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I got a baby leopard gecko exactly one week ago and I haven't seen him eat yet. He is a hatchling and he looks like an average sized baby.

I am feeding him on large calcium dusted mealworms. I have him in a 20 gallon (76 liters) tank with the hot side at about 88-90 degrees Fahrenheit (31-32 °C). So I am pretty sure the heating is not the problem. On 6th day I found that one of the mealworms had been torn in half and I hadn't touched it. So now I am wondering if the mealworms are to big for the baby leopard gecko.

Please help!

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  • Do you know how old he is, also how big is he?
    – user6796
    Commented Apr 23, 2017 at 7:22
  • He is a hatchling and he looks like an average sized baby
    – Devan
    Commented Apr 23, 2017 at 15:59

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I would stay away from the mealworms - they aren't very nutritious and are hard to digest.

As your little guy grows a variety of small crickets, waxworms, silkworms and butterworms will be a delicacy. As an adult you can feed all the above as well as superworms and small to medium sized hornworms.

If you haven't done a fecal test I recommend doing so as parasitic infections in our reptiles is high.

Stay away from sand or other loose substrates - repti-carpet or paper towel is ideal as they tend to accidentally ingest the substrate while catching their food (can cause GI impactions). It is also a bacterial breeding ground, since this is an enclosed space and the soil isn't normally changed daily he will be constantly surrounded by filth.

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I got a hatchling about a month ago, it took her a good 5-7 days to get used to her new surroundings and get comfy enough to start eating. I was getting pretty worried and then she ate one small mealworm...the next day she was chowing down on pinhead crickets and will eat every day without issue now. A good rule of thumb is not to feed anything bigger than the space between your gecko's eyes...chances are those mealworms are too big and she'll have trouble with them. I feed mostly crickets as they're more nutritious for her (assuming you're feeding the CRICKET quality food, aka "gutloading" them), but she eats small mealworms when I go out of town. The mealworms are ok for 'emergency' or backup, but shouldn't be her staple food.

FYI, if you want crickets, PetSmart "small" size seem to be the smallest, and you can get them "fresh" rather than pre-packaged. I prefer this as I know if I pay for 50 crickets, I leave with 50 LIVE crickets rather than some already dead in the box (and how long ago did they get the box?) Hope this helps!

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It could be that the large mealworms are too large for him. I feed my full grown adult large ones when I feed him mealworms. I would say to feed smaller for a hatchling. I am of the same stance as Rebecca, don't feed mealworms. I feed mine one per week or so, and most of his meals are small/medium Dubia roaches (because I hate crickets to be honest).

It also could be how you feed it. I never just leave insects in the cage. I feed them one at a time if the gecko is interested in it, then take it out if they don't eat it. Leaving them in a cage can be stressful, and even dangerous if they start chewing on the animal.

Also I approve the test and impacts. If you are worried, you should find an exotic vet

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  • the chewing is mostly in reference to crickets.
    – Ian
    Commented Apr 24, 2017 at 14:39
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Large mealworms are too big for a hatchling. Try using smaller ones or dubia roach nymphs. Avoid waxworms though because of their too high-fat content though.

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