Crested geckos are a popular pet choice for many people, but not all know how often do crested geckos shed. Shedding is an important process in the life of a gecko and it can be helpful to understand their shedding cycle if you have one as a pet. This blog post will cover what you need to know about cresties shedding so that your experience with them is positive!
Table of Contents
The crested gecko, also known as the eyelash gecko is a lizard species native to southern New Caledonia. So like every other lizard, crested geckos shed. A crested gecko sheds off their dead skin throughout its lifetime. The amount of shedding depends on the gecko age.
An average baby gecko would need to shed once every week, but a juvenile gecko would shed. While a fully grown adult gecko would only need to shed once 2-4 weeks. Shedding off their skin is a very essential part of the life cycle of geckos. It helps them grow, which explains why a baby sheds much more than an adult.
Why Isn’t My Crested Gecko Shedding?
A gecko might face shedding problems very rarely. But if it did, then the main reason could be improper humidity levels, especially in juvenile gecko since its skin dries out quickly. So if your crested gecko is not shedding, make sure to give it a proper humidity leveled area. At least 50% humidity should be available or possibly 70 – 80% are the best conditions. Crested gecko shedding can be made easier by bathing the gecko and leaving it in warm water during the process. Or use moist-absorbing substrate; some types of substrates are good for high humidity terrariums.
Other reasons could be that your pet is facing health problems. If a gecko is sick, it can affect its shedding process as well. Maybe the process will stop or it will happen more frequently, Which is also bad since the skin also carries a large portion of nutrients along with it. If this occurs, make sure to consult a vet. Leftover food or dead food might make your gecko sick since they could attract infectious bacteria.
Do Crested Geckos Eat Their Shed?
Geckos do tend to eat the dead layer of skin they shed. The skin of crested geckos contains a lot of important nutrients. After the shedding process, geckos lose most of their nutrients and energy, so they eat their removed skin layer to regain the loss.
BTW crested geckos love to eat mealworms, check out the article.
Crested Geckos are known to be nocturnal, which means that these animals are most active at night. So you might not even notice your reptile pet shedding off their dead skin, since they also eat it after shedding.
If you find your gecko have shed stuck on its toes or tail, you can manually pull it off as a help.
Do Crested Geckos Stop Eating When They Shed?
A crested gecko might lose its appetite during the process. It might happen even before or after the process too.
It is a usual process of crested geckos and every other lizard type. So let it be and it’ll restart eating in some time. But if your pet doesn’t eat for more than two weeks, it would be better to consult a vet.
Make sure to remove any excess food around your gecko during its shedding process since these could attract bacteria and make your gecko sick.
How Do I Know When My Crested Gecko Is About to Shed?
You will be able to notice the skin color and texture of your gecko change when it is getting ready to shed. Its skin turns paler and dry. Geckos even have trouble climbing when it is getting ready to shed.
How Long Does a Crested Gecko Shed?
It normally takes an average time of 15-30 minutes for a healthy gecko to complete its entire shedding process. But this may vary with the age, health, and the type of the gecko.
Bottom Line
All in all, there are no specific times on how often do crested gecko needs to shed. However, we recommend that you check up on your pet regularly and see what happens. You could also offer your help if it needs some. Also check out if crested geckos can swim here.
