Any ways to make cresties eat more?

Hey everyone, I’m kind of new here so I thought I’d say hi! I am owner of a Gerbil, Dog, and my Crested Gecko, Draco.
I’ve had my gecko since about March 2022, when (I’m pretty sure its a he) came at 3 grams. He is now 1-1/2 years old, and still waying in at 8 grams. I currently have him with 4 flavors of Pangea, and one flavor of Repashy. I can see that he eats every day, and am finally noticing some growth (now that I have him in a fully bioactive tank). I just bought him some Repashy Banana cream pie, which is still in the mail, which I’m hoping will trigger his appetite when I give it to him as a treat.
Do any of you guys have good ideas for making his appetite stronger?
Also, he’s pretty docile but always gets kind of scared when I come in to hold him. I try to come from the bottom, so I won’t seem like a predator. Are there way’s to make him like me better?
And of course those pictures :grinning:
Thanks!!



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8g at 1 1/2 years old is tiny!! Is that a recent pic, if so, he could likely be a she.

Maybe you have a dwarf crestie?

Some questions… What temp and humidity is the enclosure?

Does your cresties eat insects? If so which?

How watery is the food when made up?

Have you tried adding in fruit on occasion?

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Yes, that picture is from today. I bought this Crestie as a 6 month old, not a dwarf. When I first got him/her he didn’t eat for about a week, so a rough start. I keep the enclosure at about 74F, that fluctuates a little bit, colder at nights. Humidity is usually about a 60 down to 40 during the day up to about 80 at night. He as only ever eaten mealworms, when I chopped the head off, nothing else. I make the food quite thick actually, since that’s how he likes it. Maybe about like ketchup. I have tried adding bananas but he/she didn’t like them. I could try other fruits I guess. Thank you for your help!

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Ahhhhh not mealworms :pensive:

Cresties have been known not to digest them, causing issues.

Make sure u research which fruits are good for them. I find raspberries, strawberries & mango more of a hit with my cresties.

I had a couple of cresties they also didn’t eat for a while, it’s not fun :sweat:

It seems that the gecko may have been younger than u were told, but hard to say as it still should weigh more by now.

Make sure the enclosure doesn’t go below 61f (I think that’s right…I use c)

I feed my cresties dubai roaches, locusts & on occasion wax worms l. Wax worms are fatty (great to help weight gain) but only use them as a treat

Where do u keep the food bowl?

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I have not been giving him mealworms lately. The seller I bought from had a website, which showed when all their clutches were born, so I’m quite confident with the age. My enclosure only gets to about 67F at night. I will definitely try some new fruits and insects. However he seems to get stressed by crickets. The food bowl is on the ground near to his favorite sleeping spot. If he can find it is not a worry, since I see him there every night :grinning: Thanks so much for your help!

That has me a little concerned. Cresties are arboreal cresties creatures and love to climb, all my cresties even sleep up top apart from one that occasionally buries herself, but most of the time she is up top.

Does your crestie climb much. Esp on glass

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He/she sleeps close to the ground during the day. I’ll here my crestie climbing at night though, jumping around. So he is pretty active.

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Few, I was worried your cresties feet might be damaged and can’t climb. But your crestie can climb :+1:

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Yes, he can. He does have a little bit of hard time walking glass though, but he does it.

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Hopefully some of those suggestions help :crossed_fingers:

Aside from babies, all my geckos are in bioactive enclosures so I place the food on the side of the enclosure rather than the ground so they don’t accidentally eat any of the flooring.

Do you feed your gecko daily?

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Yes, do you recommend that I get a side wall feeder? I know changing up their food spot is kind of upsetting for them. I am quite confident though, because since I added heat, he has grown a bit, and his crests are all popping out now.

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If he has trouble climbing the glass I’d make sure the wall feeder is put next to a branch or vine so he can easily reach it if you decide to add one!

Personally, I add a bit of bee pollen powder to my Pangea mix which seems to have increased food interest across the board, at least for my crew!

If he has started to show some growth now that you’ve added heat I wonder if it was just too cold for him before?

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The seller had not given him any heat before I bought him, which makes me think that mighted have stunted his growth right then.

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That’s a beautiful enclosure set up! I have a suction double cup feeder, one for food and one for water. I attached it about 3 quarters of the way up next to a hollow log that my crestie hangs out on/in. I got the feeder from The Bean Farm. I ordered the cups separately of course. From the Bean Farm too. They are disposable but I wash them out for reuse. He won’t eat anything but his mixed powders so don’t feel badly! Lol!

I also spritz my Mim (his name) occasionally. It helps with the humidity and he seems to like it. I did read somewhere that if a crestie sits on the bottom that means he is too cold? But I don’t know if that’s true. Mim’s heat comes from above and he hangs out at the top pretty much all the time……

I am sure your little guy is fine. And as suggested by @foxreptile you can offer him some wax worms once in a while. That should help with his weight. If he will eat them! Lol!

Best wishes! :heart::snake::frog::lizard::blush:

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Thank you all for the tips! Much appreciated :grinning: :lizard:

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I’m a little bit surprised that he wasn’t raised with heat? Mim is in a tall tub with ventilation in the top. I have a heat mat on the top where he stays. I’m sure adding heat will increase his appetite!

:blush:

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Just ordered the bee pollen and feeder ledge :smiling_face:

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Yay! Keep us posted on his progress when you get everything in place! I love the feeder ledge! I am excited for you!!!

:heart::snake::frog::lizard::blush::wink::confetti_ball::tada::balloon::champagne:

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Thank you! I’m excited too. All I want is him to be happy and healthy :grinning: :heart: :lizard:

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Yes do keep us updated. Make sure u use bee pollen in small doses as addictive. Also some crestie food already contain it.

With regards to laying on the floor, it’s more of a humidity issue, rather than heat. However practically every gecko I have put in bioactive enclosure spends the first few weeks on or in the substrate. So if the bioactive is recent, then u may find your crestie will start to venture up. Just make sure you have hiding places up high. I mostly use coconut shells.

I also use a double cup feeder, mine r normally half way up (depending on the setup & the gecko). I like to have water so they always have access to it

Is that a UV bulb? What strength is it and how long have u had the bulb?

Edit - I forgot to add…

If cresties aren’t warm enough they will likely eat less because they aren’t able to digest food properly so the heat just might do the trick.

Also heat mats do not warm the air, only the heat mat area. Many ppl don’t recommend them for cresties. I do use them but I also use a radiator for room heating as I have so many geckos. Although I need a new one

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