Breeding information
Leopard geckos are easy to breed under the right conditions. Females need to be at least 50 grams and they should be around 1 year old. Males should be at least 45 grams.
When the male is ready to breed, he will make a buzzing noise with the end of his tail and then bite the female. Sometimes the male may bite hard and break the skin, treat these bite marks with vetadine to avoid infection.
The female will either allow him to proceed or she will tell him she is not ready. If the female does not want to mate she will usually bite back or run away; she may also wave her tail in the air.
After the male is done with the female, he will turn to clean himself. This should take no longer than 10 minutes. While doing this, he should not be disturbed. After he is finished cleaning himself, make sure his hemi-penis retracts. If it does not, you might be dealing with a prolapse.
It can take two to five weeks for your leopard gecko to lay her eggs. If by when the 5 weeks are up and she hasn't laid it is possible that she could be egg bound. Please contact your local Reptile Vet if this is the case.
Females normally lay clutches of two eggs. Rarely clutches of three eggs will be found. Most first time females will lay one egg clutches. The number of clutches each female will lay depends on the female. Many first time breeders will not be as productive as proven breeders.
Even though Leopard Geckos can retain sperm, to maximize the fertileness of the eggs, it is best to reintroduce the male to the female once every two clutches if the male and female(s) are being housed separately.
Make sure your female is getting the proper nutrients to breed, always gut load their food. Also remember to dust their food with calcium to avoid MBD in laying females.
Before the eggs are laid, it is best to have the incubator set up at the appropriate temperature, just so you can make sure it holds a constant temperature. There are many incubators on the market now, get the one that you want or you can also make your own with a poly box, heat mat and pulse stat. Just make sure your incubator is holding the correct temps as this can cause birth defects in your hatchlings.
The first is the substrate to incubate the eggs in. The most popular substrates that are used are Perlite, and Vermiculite. You can get this from your local garden centre or order some online. When using Perlite or Vermiculite it takes a little math to get the right mixture of Substrate to Water. The ratio is 0.8 parts of water for 1 part of substrate. The best process is to weigh the container, then zero the scale. After the scale has zeroed out, add enough substrate for the egg to have 1/2 inch under it with the egg halfway covered. Take note of the weight. After this, get the weight and multiply it by 0.8. Then add the weight you have just multiplied to the weight of the substrate together. This is the amount of water, weight wise, which should be added. After this process has ended, the eggs are ready to go in.
Once your container is ready to put the eggs in, your next thing to worry about is temperature. Leopard Gecko eggs are best if incubated between 80°F and 89°F. Pending on the temperature you incubate at, you will receive different ratios of males to females. If you are incubating for females the best temperature is between 80°F and 83°F. For a mix of sexes the temperature should be between 84°F and 86°F. If you are incubating males thee temperature should be between 87°F to 89°F. If you incubate above 89°F, this can produce "hot females" who will be more aggressive, like males, and have a possibility of being infertile. Temperature sexing is not 100% fool proof you can still get males when incubating for females and vice versa.
The temperature also determines how long the eggs will incubate for. The length of incubation can range between 40 days to 80 days, depending on the temperature. The higher temperatures will result in eggs hatching sooner. Generally the lower temperature of, 80°F will result in 60 days. There are always eggs that will take longer though. Do not throw the eggs out, trust the process.
The rule of thumb is if in doubt incubate. Never throw a bad egg out unless it is obvious the egg is bad. One of the leading indicators is a horrible smell. Other signs could be massive denting.
The picure below shows what a good egg looks like
Below is a picture of a Bad egg looks like
