Keeping leopard gecko's together can really sound exciting and pleasing. But should they be kept together. The answer is no. Leopard geckos are solitary animals and prefer to be alone.

     While many people have kept leopard geckos together successfully. Many haven't. Their are a lot of keepers that do not know what the proper signs are to look for when they need to keep their leopard geckos separated. Some people think their leopard geckos need a buddy. This is far from true. They would rather be alone. The gecko is not lonely nor board without others present. They are actually very happy and content with out the presence of others. Females may tolerate each other, but this is to the extent of any companionship they feel towards each other. And males should never be housed together. They will fight, especially during the breeding season.

     Size and age is a major consideration before attempting to keep leo's together. Young gecko's can be more bullish towards their clutch mates then adults. But not always. Leopard geckos when young are ferousouse eaters. They will fend off others to protect their food for themselves. If a other gecko is smaller then they can be bullied easier then one their size and age. They can and do look at smaller geckos as lunch as well. Many breeders keep all their babies separated for this reason. Generally the rule of thumb for hatchlings and juveniles is no more then a 1/2 inch in length should be housed together. With adults then no more then an inch is generally ok to keep together. Using a larger cage does not seem to help, nor do the amount of leopard geckos kept together.

     So how do you know when a gecko can be housed together or needs to be separated? Well if their is any signs of aggression or an animal is sick or injured. Most of the times a sick or injured gecko is easy to notice. But aggressive geckos are not. They will bully each other different then how a child my bully another child in a school yard. So the signs are different. Some times the will simply attack them when ever they see the other. This is obvious of course to spot. Other times you may just notice them nipping or biting each other during feeding. They may not bite at each other at all so you may think that they are or to keep together. This is not the case. They can simply chase each other, follow the other, keep nudging the other out of the way, and other behavioral patterns. They will even gripe at others if one comes near or in their hide. This is seldom ever noticed, but can happen.

     Some other tell tale signs are, one gecko is growing faster and or larger then the other, the tail size is not as big as others, or one is always hiding in the hide. If you ever notice one avoiding another or spends allot of time in a corner or climbing at the glass, it may be time to separate them.

     Many times people want to keep their leopard geckos together so bad they do not want to give in and do not notice or look hard enough for any of these signs. If they are not outright biting or injuring each other then they believe their geckos are ok together. You have to keep a close eye on them. Some times they are ok at first with each other and can go years and then start bullying each other, other times they may be aggressive to each other when young and years later may be ok to house together. So each day is different and you should always be on the look out for behavioral changes.

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