Hey! Thought it would be nice to create a thread about methods for taming/bonding with Crested geckos. Just wondering what all of you peoples methods are, as there are definitely some more fierce ones out there.
Thank you in advance for sharing your methods!
From my experience, the best way is to handle regularly and even suprise them with some treat of some sort or another. I immediately notice that one I stop handling for 2ish weeks (when I’m on vacation) they’re always a little bit iffy the first time 
What methods do you all of y’all find work the best?
I cannot more highly recommend the behaviorist Lori Torrini on youtube. She does training work mainly with snakes on her channel but nearly all of it will work on geckos too.
It’s about choice based handling, building a relationship on trust, and target training a gecko would be very fun as you can feed them bits of worm at a time. You could learn all kinds of stuff together getting your lizard to touch a target.
I have a 1 1/2 year old? Crestie that’s as tame as can be whether whether I handle him once a week or every day. I can pet his little head all day long. However he has a tendency to leap at any moment. Many he doesn’t qualify as tame because of this?
My leopard gecko, around 2 years old, will let me hold her and pet her head as well, but she will only sit still for so long and then she is on the move.
I would love to be able to work with each of them but I have a small dog that has to be where I am at all times so I cannot take the chance. This is very frustrating but it is what it is……
I would classify him as tame, but he just has that sort of temperament.
Also some geckos have different (patience?) levels than others. At least your leo likes to move and doesn’t act lethargic.
Oh no she is a mover! She’s very sweet though!
@ghoulishcresties I’m sure you get bolters sometimes, do you have a particular way that usually works? or @foxreptile? Thank you 
I get a lot, babs especially can be pains.
Other than ‘taming down’ there’s not much you can do, some just are bolsters.
I had one male here who never tamed down really, still would bolt.
But others with a lot of handling (which I do nearly every day) are so chill and don’t care when I get them out now.
That’s what I hope mine will be like soon 
I’ve got a bolter 
he’s causing me so much stress!
I’ve have to move his enclosure and redo it so many times! I cannot hold him which aggravates me.
He’s at his calmest now, but handling is literally on my hand then off again or I stroke his head.
He use to bolt even when just putting food in his enclosure.
He seemed fine with the previous owner, I just think he doesn’t like me 
I can’t tong feed him insects or go near him without the warning that his going to drop his tail 
But wait for it… He was fine with another gecko!! I’m like what!!!
I’ve had bolters before but this is something totally different!
Previously regular handling had helped, but then some did better with less handling.
I think persistence is the key, choose something and stick with it.
That is odd. What do you wash your hands with or touch before handling? Maybe there’s a scent that one doesn’t like. You don’t have cats or dogs, do you? Weird.
Nope no other pets! But I do have children. I don’t handle him when they are near though.
I usually use hand sanitizer or wash my hands before holding him as I don’t want to pass germs on from outside world but I’ve even tried not cleaning my hands (I wouldn’t recommend this but I’d been home all day and I regularly wash my hands anyway).
I’ve even held a female gecko before trying to interact with him but no luck.
He use to flinch the moment I’d unlock his enclosure. Putting fresh food and water in there was a nightmare, despite it being towards the front of the enclosure
I’ve tamed him now so that he doesn’t freak out when I spray water or put food in, so that’s a bonus
He watches my every move though 