How to Feed Cockroaches to Leopard Geckos

In captivity, leopard geckos should be fed a nutritionally balanced diet. These lizards are insectivores and prefer to consume live food like crickets, worms and farm raised cockroaches. Cockroaches are an excellent feeder choice, as they offer a good meat to shell ratio. In addition, these insects are easy to breed, non-odorous, and contain essential nutrients like proteins, carbohydrates, fats, minerals, vitamins and water.

Things You'll Need

  • Fresh fruit
  • Vegetables or commercially-available gut-loading products
  • Vitamin and calcium supplement powder
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Instructions

    • 1

      Always purchase or breed cockroaches that you intend to feed your gecko. Never feed cockroaches that are caught by you, as wild-caught cockroaches could have harmful insecticides sprayed on them, and pose a high risk of transmitting parasitic infections to your pet.

    • 2

      Offer the live cockroach to your gecko in the evening, when it is most active. Place the cockroach in a small dish, rather than on the substrate in the gecko's enclosure. This will prevent fecal hardening that is caused when the gecko ingests the substrate while feeding on the cockroach.

    • 3

      Spray or dust the cockroach with vitamin and calcium powder to fortify its diet with nutritional supplements. Immediately feed the cockroach to the gecko, before it has the opportunity to shake the powder off.

    • 4

      Feed or gut-load the cockroach with fresh fruit, vegetables or commercially-available gut-loading products, at least 24 hours before offering it as food to your gecko. Gut-loading involves loading the stomach of the cockroach with nutritious food, which is transferred to the gecko when it consumes the cockroach.

    • 5

      Ensure that the size of the cockroach is no larger than half the width of the gecko's head. This will prevent the gecko from choking while eating.