Can You Cohabitate Leopard Geckos? A Revision of Leopard Gecko Cohabitation ft. Reptiles & Research

Reptile keepers are, for once, almost unanimous in their opinions about something: they don't think that keeping leopard geckos together is in the animals' best interests. However, this notion rests upon the assumption that cohabitation has no beneficial aspects as far as a leopard gecko is concerned, and in this video I aim to illustrate why this is incorrect.

Many of the topics I have covered in previous videos - such as why all reptiles should be offered ultraviolet lighting - have been contentious in that they go against the grain of popular opinion. However, in most of these cases, I have been explaining things about reptile care which are strictly true or false, or at least close to this (we don't have any good reason to suppose that any of the reptiles we keep do not benefit from the right intensity of UVB, to continue my last example). This time, however, there are significant reasons why cohabitation might not be recommended: leopard geckos can fight, can bully each other, and can ultimately kill each other. So what case can really be made in favour of cohabitation?

Put simply, we have to take note of the benefits which are brought (to the lizards) by keeping leopard geckos together. These benefits are not widely recognised, so today we have to take a look at a couple of scientific papers for me to get the point across that naturally, leopard geckos are not the solitary animals people think they are.

Only when we compare the benefits to the costs of introducing leopard geckos to each other are we able to come to a valid conclusion as to whether we should do so or not: it is my view that, if (and only if) sufficient precautions are taken to ensure its success, cohabitation is not only viable but to be recommended.


Papers referred to in the video are:

Natural history and biology of hobbyist choice leopard gecko Eublepharis macularius, Muhammad Sharif Khan - https://www.researchgate.net/publicat...
Social experience affects territorial and reproductive behaviours in male leopard geckos, Eublepharis macularius, Jon Sakata et al -https://www.researchgate.net/publicat...
PHEROMONAL DISCRIMINATION OF SEX BY MALE AND FEMALE LEOPARD GECKOS (Eublepharis macularius), Cooper & Steele - https://www.researchgate.net/publicat...


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