So I’ve been talking to 2 breeders about crested geckos, and I’m FASCINATED by their genetics and overall personality! I’ve only ever owned one, an adult rescue that was super jumpy and bitey, so I haven’t had a good experience with a regular crestie.
My question is, should I attempt to get a baby, or an adult? I’m very worried about them jumping far/ending up on the floor, or worse, biting! I love these guys and want to try having one again from a breeder, but I’m still nervous. Any advice?
Cresties can be jumpy, if they jump to the floor don’t worry, they’re usually fine!
Also depends where you get from, if handled a lot adults are fine, as are babies, make sure you find a decent breeder and you should be ok!
I handle a lot from hatching, so any that leave me, young or adults age always pretty chill.
So when you find one you love, ask what they’re like, if they’ve been handled often, but keep in mind even the chillest can randomly jump off you.
As for biting, it’s very rare a Crestie will bite, unless you’ve genuinely really annoyed them! I’ve only been bit a few times and that’s mostly hatchlings that are sassy
Gotcha! I’d be keeping them in my snake room, so I think I’m more nervous that they could just go under the racks/cages and get lost if they do jump to the floor, are they normally running away after? I know with some snakes if they are on the floor they get scared and start bolting lol
In my experience with baby crestie jumpers, they usually have to stop and process why that one braincell decided that was a good idea. It’s usually pretty easy to put something between them and the way you don’t want them to go after they jump.
And never really too hard to get. It was rare for any I’ve seen actually run. Mostly just take another awkward jump or two before I could pick them up.
I’ve never actually been bit. I wonder if your little guy thought he was part Tokay?
maybe he did! He was a gorgeous black and white when he was fired up (which was nearly all the time). I swear I get so unlucky with species standards like 4 out of 5 boa constrictors I’ve gotten are STUCK on ASF rats. Absolutely will not switch
I would get a juvenile, bigger than a baby so they don’t get lost as easily should they jump, but still small enough that they’re impressionable. Fully grown adults who’ve decided they hate you don’t seem to calm down no matter how much you try in my experience I have had a handful of geckos that would bite almost as soon as you picked them up, and they were usually bought as adults. They all have their own personalities though, and they are wild animals, so you can never guarantee anything. Also, some males in particular will bite not because they’re angry/afraid but because they want to mate.
I know you’ve most likely gotten your answers already from others who’ve already commented, but in my personal experience I’ve found that Juveniles are probably the best to begin with as far as handling goes.
They can still be jumpy but they are a lot easier to socialize than an adult and can’t get lost as easily as the itty bitty babies can, and those babies can hide well.
As far as biting goes, it honestly doesn’t hurt that bad but that may just be me and my thick skin from getting bit by so many other animals lol. I’ve at least never had a “bad” bite from Cresties, never anything that breaks skin… but I have heard from others that they’ve gotten some bleeders from particularly aggressive individuals so idk, I guess it depends on the gecko and the person handling the gecko
@artisticserpents Ok Gabriella here is my humble experience with my crestie. I got him as a baby. I put him in a small enclosure with a screen top and he was so easy to remove from. He was always sitting at the top and I would be able to scoop him up. He was so tame.
When he outgrew that enclosure I put him in a much larger front opening one. It seemed his personality changed and he was very difficult to catch. When I put my hand in the tank and he would spaz.
For a while after that I housed him in a tall sterilite tub and again he was always at the top, but when I opened the lid I could just scoop him out without having to chase him. He was not skittish at all. He was becoming quite tame again.
Now he is back in his front opening tank and back to his old tricks of catch me if you can! He was out a lot more when he was in the sterilite. I am thinking if switching him back to that tub because I miss being able to hold him.
That’s interesting! Similar to my experience (kinda) with ball pythons! Most of mine would be shy and refuse to eat when in a tank, but once moved into tubs they were friendly and very food driven!
It’s interesting how individual reptiles can be, cause ive had the exact opposite experience! Most of mine are much more chill when housed in tanks as opposed to tubs, same with my BP, he’s so much more chill and became a better eater once he got into a tank with actual proper lighting.
Yup they are different. All my bps came from breeders so they went from tub to tub. If they were not eating well/thriving, I would definitely house them differently. I have used tanks in the past but my bps were iffy when it came to eating. However I used “natural” lighting and not what some would consider “proper” lighting.
I plan to upgrade some to PVC cages for my more active ones in the future! Currently working with a 10x10 room with heavily slanted walls, so it’s closer to 6x5 of usable space for these guys Still have a few picky eaters though that came from other breeders, so I’m tempted to try out a tank or something for them. Can’t fit them into a 28qt, these ladies are a whopping 3000g empty
if they do jump to the floor, are they normally running away after? I know with some snakes if they are on the floor they get scared and start bolting lol
maybe he did! He was a gorgeous black and white when he was fired up (which was nearly all the time). I swear I get so unlucky with species standards 
