First, keep in mind the amount of time, space and resources needed to maintain the breeders and babies. Do you have a market for the offspring once they have been produced? It's not as easy to sell the babies as you may think. Leopard Geckos can be very prolific. If you don't have a place to sell them, you can and will more than likely, quickly become overrun with leopard gecko hatchlings.You can quickly tire of feeding all those little mouths and then cleaning up after all those little...well you get the idea.

Second, It can get expensive to breed leopard geckos. Do you have adequate food supplies, caging for the offspring and the equipment needed to incubate the eggs? A typical Leopard Gecko will produce around a dozen pairs of eggs each season, a total of about two dozen offspring. That's a lot of babies, all needing their own little cages! Do you have the free time available that will be needed to care for the hatchlings?

Third, are you willing to risk the health and possibly the life of your Leopard Gecko? Breeding your Leopard Gecko is not without risks. Dystocia (commonly known as egg-binding) is fairly common and poses serious health risks that may require expensive veterinary services. More common is the incredible drain on body resources that egg production places on the female. Leopard Geckos can be very aggresive while mating, so there is the possibilty that females may be injured by the male biting them. If not in perfect health, a female can become severely weakened or injured and may succumb to disease.

These are just a few things to consider before attempting breeding. Most people fail to realize this until after they have babies. If you can honestly answer yes to all of the above questions then continue reading.

PRE-SEASON CONDITIONING Temperature and Light (photoperiod) cycling Make sure your breeders are full grown adults, healthy and at a good weight. The age is not the sole determining factor of breeding requirements. I recommend males be a minimum of 8 months old and 45 grams and females be a minimum of 1 year old and 50 grams. Although those are the minimums. I prefer my females to be no less than 60 grams as it will be easier on them. If a female is too young, complications may arise, and the overall lifespan of the gecko can be shortened. If your female can be around 2 years old that would be even better for her.Some breeders cycle their lights and give a brief cool down period to trigger the breeding season. Other beeeders keep breeding racks and tanks at a constant temperature year round and let the females cycle once a year on their own. Either way works so it’s just what your preference is (experiment). If you do cool them stop feeding a week prior to a cool down. Gradually lower the temperature until it is 65 to 75 degrees fahrenheit as a high. Do this for 4 -8 weeks, then gradually raise the temperature back to 85 to 90 degrees fahrenheit. Once they are warmed up offer the pair as much food as they will eat so they can gain back the weight lost during the cool down. After a few weeks, put the male with the female. The geckos may mate right away or it might take a little time. Leave the male with the female for several days and then take him out. You may need to do this several times until you have a successful mating. If you don’t cool them just place the male with the desired females and use the same method as above. Fortunately, temperature cycling is not very important in breeding Leopard Geckos. I do not provide any special changes in temperature in my colonies. However, in most temperate climates (most of the US) a natural drop in temperature will occur in the home during winter. This natural drop in ambient air temperature during winter is usually more than adequate to cycle your Leopard Geckos and nothing special need be done.

You need to make sure the female has enough calcium all through breeding season (January - October) and that she stays well-fed. You can leave the calcium out in a low dish and she will take it freely when she needs it. I actually leave the calcium in the cage like that year round. The males will lick at it if they need it too. Conditioning is usually done from late November to early January and usually lasts about 8 weeks and ensures healthy parents and offspring.

BREEDING SEASON North of the equator, the breeding season can start in January and can extend into October.

SEXUAL DIMORPHISM There is sexual dimorphism in this species, making it easy to tell males from females. Males are generally larger, having broader heads. Males have two distinct bulges behind the vent; one on either side of the base of the tail that clearly indicate the presence of hemipines (male reproductive organs). In addition, Males have a dintinct V-shaped row of pre-anal pores in front of the vent (cloaca). As the gecko matures, they become quite prominent and will often secrete a waxy substance. Males also have enlarged femoral pores on the underside of their hind legs (thighs).

Juvenile leopard geckos can be very difficult to sex. With experience, you can sex leopard geckos at around 3-4 months of age, and it gets easier as they get older. Sexing is usually much easier after 6 months of age. The differences are quite distinct but are much easier to see if you have a  gecko of each sex to compare.

Male                                                               Female

 BREEDING ENCLOSURE PREPARATION There are two main ways that people house their breeder geckos, The first is the harem method where one male is housed with two or more females. This method lends itself well to commercial breeding on a large scale or for those with limited space for their Leopard Gecko collection. The second is where all males are kept separately and are introduced to the females. This second method is useful for selective breeding, keeping more accurate parental records or preventing early breeding.
You will need a laying box where the female can lay her eggs. Leave it in the enclosure all the time. I use a sterlite plastic box that measures about 4.5 inches wide by 8 inches long by 4 inches high. I use a 2 inch hole saw to cut a entry ether on one end of the box or in the lid. This is a nice sized laying box for 1-3 females. Fill the box about halfway with moist (not soaking) Zoo Med Eco Earth coconut fiber substrate, moist moss, vermiculite, perlite (or combination thereof) experiment to see what works best for you. I have found that different mixes may be needed due to hummidity levels in different areas. Check the laying box often during the breeding season. Clear sides help as you can lift the box up and look through the bottom to see where the eggs are located. The laying box allows you some time before the eggs dehydrate. On very rare occasions, eggs have been laid on the floor of the cage, but these almost always prove infertile, but if you catch them in time, try to incubate them anyway.

MATING PROCESS Mating can be a somewhat violent affair in geckos. When you place the pair together the male will be aggressive toward the female. Usually, when a male encounters a female ready to breed, he will begin to stalk her. He may rapidly vibrate his tail, or begin waving it about and scent marking. He will then approach the female and will begin biting her, often at the base of the tail. He will then take rapid nips, moving forward a little with each bite in hopes of achieving a neck hold on the back or side of the female's neck. This is normal behavior and nothing to worry about unless the biting leads to open wounds.If the female accepts him, he will curl his tail under that of the female and copulation will take place. This usually lasts a very short time, and the male can usually be seen cleaning himself immediately after they separate. Sometimes a female will reject the male, if she is not receptive she will bite back. Usually the male understands this 'NO' signal and releases the female. Don't worry if this happens, he will try again later and eventually she will be ready. In fact, he will mate with the female several times during the breeding season, fertilizing many sets of eggs.

EGG LAYING Females in their first year will lay less eggs. After a successful mating the female will lay her first clutch of eggs within four weeks. Each clutch will consist of one to two white oval eggs. On average Leopard Geckos will lay eight clutches in a season with each clutch being laid in two to four week intervals for a period of three to four months. When it's time for her to lay her eggs, you should be able to see the 2 eggs through her semi-transparent stomach. As the time approaches she will get restless and start digging and stop eating. She may start to refuse food when she is about to lay. She will dig quite a hole in the laying box. You will also notice when she has laid her eggs because she will be a lot skinnier. Then you just remove the eggs and incubate them. IMPORTANT: Do not turn the eggs over. Transport the eggs in the same position they were laid to the incubator. Your gecko will be ravenous now so be sure to feed her to keep her weight up. Definitely dust any food items with calcium for feeding after laying. She needs to get her calcium levels back up. A healthy well-fed gecko will have no problem laying eggs all season. But you have to keep an eye on her to make sure her tail stays nice and fat. If your gecko appears particularly weak after egg laying you will want to remove her from the male and other females for a time until she gets her strength back.

INCUBATING THE EGGS After being laid the eggs need to be removed and placed in an incubator. When in the incubator the egg needs to be in some sort of container with a moistened bedding. Vermiculite, perlite, or 1/1 mix of both works great. Hatch-rite is a new incubation medium that has great results as well; with Hatch-rite, you do not need to add water. Super Hatch is another good option that is now available. The incubator could be a professional reptile incubator like Zoo Meds new Reptibator idgital egg incubator or a home-made one, such as an old styrofoam coolers with heat tape attached to a thermostat. An aquarium with an under water heater set to a particular temperature. Have the eggs in a tupperware of some sort set above the water line can also be an inexpensive but less reliable incubator. If you have the money to spend a professional reptile incubator is the way to go! Fertile eggs will remain white, or may go slightly discoloured towards the end of incubation, and will quickly harden up a bit, while infertile ones stay soft, and are yellow. Reptile eggs must not be turned, if they are the embryo may die. The eggs can be placed in the vermiculite (completely covered, or half covered) inside a transparent deli cup, which is inside the icubator, so you can constantly monitor the eggs. They should be checked regularly (every day) to give them some fresh air. Very shrivelled or mouldy eggs should be taken out. A slightly shrivelled egg needs a higher humidity level, which should be maintained at 80% - 90%. Any bad eggs should be disposed of promptly if they show signs of bacteria or fungus.

 
 

Leopard gecko eggs are temperature sex dependent. The eggs should be incubated at 79 - 91 degrees Fahrenheit. Usually if the egg is incubated at 90 degrees Farhenheit, it will be male, or if it is incubated at 80 degrees Farhenheit, it will be female. If the eggs are incubated at 85 degrees Farhenheit, the chances are 50/50 for either male or female. This means that you can decide what sex baby you want by incubating at a certain temperature. The sex is locked in after the first three to four weeks of incubation.

POST BREEDING SEASON During the off season provide females a moist hide and plenty of fresh food and water. Give them a dish for calcium and vitamins so they can rebuild thier calcium levels. Recuperating from the breeding season is very important for the health of your breeding females.

CONCLUSION Breeding reptiles is educational and fun for all age groups.  We hope it will inspire people to learn and to have fun at the same time.

RECOMMENDED READING  "The Herpetoculture of Leopard Geckos" by Philippe de Vosjoli, Ron Tremper and Roger Klingenberg.

I highly recomend anyone thinking about breeding Leopard geckos to read and understand this book before even attemting to breed Leopard geckos!!!