By KELLY WONG YEE LIN
What is gecko?
This is the common question I get when I told my friends that I have three geckos as pets. My answer to the question will be followed by a series of disgusted looks (mostly from girls) and probably some requests for me to show them pictures.
Geckos are exotic lizards in the reptile kingdom, having more than 2,000 species throughout the world. They are smaller in size as compared to lizards, and they feed on worms, crickets and sometimes grubs and roaches.
Many people were surprised with the fact that I keep geckos as pets. Mainly because I am a girl. After all, not many can associate girls with reptiles, not to mention having them as pets too.
It all started last year when I got my first gecko as a birthday gift from my brother. It was not a Normal Striped African Fat Tail gecko (AFT), a common morph in the gecko family.
Since then, my interest towards geckos grew. I began to explore the variety of morphs and learning about their behaviours. I even visited pet shops and exotic pet exhibitions. This year I bought two other geckos - a Normal AFT and a Sunglow Leopard gecko.
AFTs have a lump of fats on their tails. The function as an energy reserve, which allows them to stay alive for days without food.
A Leopard gecko, on the other hand, has black spots on its yellow body like a leopard. The Sunglow morph has strains of albino DNA in it, causing it to have a brighter yellow body and the absence of black spots.
I normally feed my gecko once every two days. My AFTs prefer crickets, whereas my Leopard gecko likes mealworms. Their eating habits differ due to the way they were brought up by their breeders when they just hatched.
The set-up for a gecko tank is easy too. All you need is a tank big enough for the gecko to move around, a water dish, moss box and a hide. A moss box is essential as it provides a moist environment for the geckos to shed their skin and to prevent any excess skin attaching their tail or toes.
Preparing a moss box is simple. Just take a plastic box, cut an opening big enough and place some wet moss in it.
Do not worry about the gecko getting the moss box dirty. Another fact about geckos is that they are very clean animals. They never defecate in the moss box, so you can reuse the moss for a few weeks before changing.
A hide is also important for a gecko. Geckos love dark places, as it gives them a sense of security. One can easily make a hide out of a black container with an opening.
Geckos stay alone, unless you plan to mate them with another gecko. Even so, attention needs to be given from time to time, as there are cases where the male geckos will injure the females after mating.
To sum it up, it is very easy to take care of geckos and the cost needed is low. They also make perfect pets for people who are allergic to fur. The hard part comes in only when you decide to breed them. Hatching gecko eggs need special attention as fluctuating temperatures can destroy the eggs during incubation.
Gecko breeder and seller Cheah Mein Kuok, 27, said gecko keeping is still not a mainstream hobby for Malaysians, but it is getting more and more known.
“My customers are aged from 15 to late 20’s. 90% of them are males,” Cheah added.
Cheah is one of the few popular gecko breeders in Malaysia and he has more than 350 geckos. He is also the owner of Geckos.my. You may visit his Facebook page for more information about geckos - https://www.facebook.com/mygeckos.
This is the common question I get when I told my friends that I have three geckos as pets. My answer to the question will be followed by a series of disgusted looks (mostly from girls) and probably some requests for me to show them pictures.
Geckos are exotic lizards in the reptile kingdom, having more than 2,000 species throughout the world. They are smaller in size as compared to lizards, and they feed on worms, crickets and sometimes grubs and roaches.
Many people were surprised with the fact that I keep geckos as pets. Mainly because I am a girl. After all, not many can associate girls with reptiles, not to mention having them as pets too.
It all started last year when I got my first gecko as a birthday gift from my brother. It was not a Normal Striped African Fat Tail gecko (AFT), a common morph in the gecko family.
Since then, my interest towards geckos grew. I began to explore the variety of morphs and learning about their behaviours. I even visited pet shops and exotic pet exhibitions. This year I bought two other geckos - a Normal AFT and a Sunglow Leopard gecko.
AFTs have a lump of fats on their tails. The function as an energy reserve, which allows them to stay alive for days without food.
A Leopard gecko, on the other hand, has black spots on its yellow body like a leopard. The Sunglow morph has strains of albino DNA in it, causing it to have a brighter yellow body and the absence of black spots.
I normally feed my gecko once every two days. My AFTs prefer crickets, whereas my Leopard gecko likes mealworms. Their eating habits differ due to the way they were brought up by their breeders when they just hatched.
The set-up for a gecko tank is easy too. All you need is a tank big enough for the gecko to move around, a water dish, moss box and a hide. A moss box is essential as it provides a moist environment for the geckos to shed their skin and to prevent any excess skin attaching their tail or toes.
Preparing a moss box is simple. Just take a plastic box, cut an opening big enough and place some wet moss in it.
Do not worry about the gecko getting the moss box dirty. Another fact about geckos is that they are very clean animals. They never defecate in the moss box, so you can reuse the moss for a few weeks before changing.
A hide is also important for a gecko. Geckos love dark places, as it gives them a sense of security. One can easily make a hide out of a black container with an opening.
Geckos stay alone, unless you plan to mate them with another gecko. Even so, attention needs to be given from time to time, as there are cases where the male geckos will injure the females after mating.
To sum it up, it is very easy to take care of geckos and the cost needed is low. They also make perfect pets for people who are allergic to fur. The hard part comes in only when you decide to breed them. Hatching gecko eggs need special attention as fluctuating temperatures can destroy the eggs during incubation.
Gecko breeder and seller Cheah Mein Kuok, 27, said gecko keeping is still not a mainstream hobby for Malaysians, but it is getting more and more known.
“My customers are aged from 15 to late 20’s. 90% of them are males,” Cheah added.
Cheah is one of the few popular gecko breeders in Malaysia and he has more than 350 geckos. He is also the owner of Geckos.my. You may visit his Facebook page for more information about geckos - https://www.facebook.com/mygeckos.