Is your leopard gecko pale? you’re probably wondering why. Could it be sick?
In this post, you will find out everything you need to know about a pale leopard gecko
A lot of new owners will go looking for a reason as to why their leopard gecko is pale
You might even notice some strange behavior and you might be worried
If you’re really worried you should bring them to your local vet for a checkup to be sure but some of the signs will be in this post
Table of Contents
Why is My Leopard Gecko Pale
There are a few reasons right off the bat that your gecko might be pale
The first and most likely reason they are going pale is because of shedding
Shedding takes a lot of energy out of reptiles including leopard geckos
Their outer skin is made up of scales like a lot of other reptiles and they need to shed periodically
Scales are actually essential to the survival of certain reptiles because it provides a protective layer as well as keep them moist
As geckos age, they will shed much less. The same thing goes for bearded dragons as well.
They will start going pale when they’re about to shed
When they are young you might not even notice them change color because they’re shedding once a month
A few days before they physically begin to shed they will turn pale
Is there anything i can do about my gecko going pale
Not really. You must understand that shedding takes a toll on them
shedding costs energy. Knowing this you should expect them to show signs of fatigue as well
During the process, a good thing to do is to make sure they are well-fed
This will help them because they will receive the right amount of nutrients while shedding which is again an intensive process
They will also want to hide away from you and pretty much everyone
They do this because they are vulnerable
Since shedding takes a lot of energy to complete from start to finish they know they are in a weaker state
you might see them try to hide from you in a corner or in a hide you set up
Try to avoid touching them unless they have some stuck shed
Geckos can have some of their shed get stuck and there is a way to help them out
One more thing you can do is dim the lights down for them while they shed
During their shedding process, you should make sure that the humidity levels are nice and high
This will help the shed come off a whole lot easier which will help your gecko’s stress level
You can check the temperature with one of these
it might take your gecko a few days to start acting normal again so don’t be too afraid of their behavior during this time
I own a bearded dragon and a leopard gecko
I was deathly afraid they were going to die when they were first shedding
I was a new owner at the time so I didn’t know any better so I called the vet and they told me to calm down and nothing is wrong at all
Don’t panic as I did and just educate yourself on these creatures
Don’t take the skin out of the enclosure
Leave the skin inside because they will eat it
i know it sounds nasty but they do eat their old skin
I think this is because of old survival needs because their skin is full of nutrients
so they will eat it as nothing should go to waste in the wild
That’s the thing about knowing animals and reptiles is they are programmed to survive
the more you try to mimic their natural environment the more they will thrive
As you add more luxury to their life they will have an easier and better life
The shedding process Should you help your gecko shed?
Honestly, you can and this is totally up to you
Shedding is a crucial thing to their life and they need to be able to do it
now humans like to help and sometimes that can wreck things
I personally used to help my bearded dragon shed as he was having issues which i think was my fault because the humidity was too low in the enclosure
I got things right with my gecko as I did much more research into them
I made sure everything was right and he is able to shed no problem
it will take about a full day for them to shed their skin give or take
if you notice they are having issues you can help them along like this
Put them in a small container with some lukewarm water
Don’t make it too hot because they burn easily
Put them inside the container slowly of course and let them bathe in t
Now when they’re inside the container full of water let them rub against you
sometimes they know they have stuck shed so they will use you as a rubbing post so to speak
The shed will come off nicely
Do not pull it off
this can hurt them so be careful and cautious
The skin near their feet and toes will be hard to get the shed off so you should let them soak in the water if this is a persistent problem
You will know if there is an issue pretty quickly because baby geckos will shed all the time so keep your eyes peeled
Conclusion
Don’t be too worried if your leopard gecko has gone pale
Take a look at the signs we posted above before getting too concerned
Now if they stay pale for an extended period of time I would take them to the vet quickly
