# FEMALE LEOPARD GECKO'S FIGHTING Urgent help needed!



## AizureMarakesh (Sep 30, 2011)

A few months ago I went out and got myself a new female leopard gecko to accompany my other one. She is a little bit younger than the one I have now. 
When I put the new one in the tank (I have already quarantined her) they were on, however the older one was licking her lips. She isn't much bigger than the new one but still.
And a few minutes later she bit her when she got close, I quickly separated them, however they should get along well.. they weren't having any problems at first. 
Does anyone have any answers to why my gecko might be acting this way?


----------



## scottymac1989 (Oct 10, 2010)

Its a lottery keepin 2 leo's together to be honest. Some can live together some absolutly wont i had 2 together in the same viv for over a year with no problems but the more i hear the more i realise it was sheer luck with the two of them. People are know gonna jump on this an tell you you are wrong to do that but it is luck of the draw


----------



## AizureMarakesh (Sep 30, 2011)

Even though females are about 80% of the time okay together, even if they don't know each other? That's crazy, 
I mean, she bit her stomach area for around 1 second before I pulled her away. This isn't exactly normal behavior, to think of one as food? She kept licking her lips.


----------



## scottymac1989 (Oct 10, 2010)

Well they arent group reptile they do prefer to be on there own i think the majority of breeders and big collecters keep them seperate


----------



## Hashcake (Nov 23, 2011)

AizureMarakesh said:


> I mean, she bit her stomach area for around 1 second before I pulled her away. This isn't exactly normal behavior, to think of one as food? She kept licking her lips.


It has nothing to do with food, it's to with dominance and bullying.
In the wild Leo's lead a solitary life and only get together for the purpose of mating.
The same applies to many lizards and I just don't get why people can't understand and accept this.
This is why you quite often find that breeders keep a ratio of one male and two females together.
The only option you have is another terrarium / vivarium separate them and you need to do this asap before the one being bullied gets too stressed out.


----------



## kelsey7692 (Jul 28, 2010)

Even if they're both female there is no guarantee that they'll get on. Many keepers/breeders will suggest keeping Leos on their own for this reason, and only putting them together for mating purposes. Although some people manage to keep females together with no problems, there are also others that have tried and problems have erupted.

The fact that there was a size difference won't have helped matters, as it automatically makes the bigger one the dominant animal.

Like already said, they'll need to be kept separate.


----------



## scottymac1989 (Oct 10, 2010)

Yeah what that guy said haha


----------



## SuperSpeedyWheels (Jun 23, 2011)

AizureMarakesh said:


> Even though females are about 80% of the time okay together, even if they don't know each other? That's crazy,
> I mean, she bit her stomach area for around 1 second before I pulled her away. This isn't exactly normal behavior, to think of one as food? She kept licking her lips.


Wheres the evidence to support this kind of statement? ... You wont find any because it isnt true and its a number youve picked at random. 

Leopard geckos are as territorial as most reptiles, you will find its highly unlikely you will get 2 to cohabit without any issues whatsoever.

Yes some people manage it, but its not somethng many people try because of the risks involved. 

Keep them separated, one of them clearly doesnt play well with others.


----------



## beaniebopps (Oct 4, 2009)

I agree with most things said above - get those leopard geckos seperated right away. Hopefully you'll have a spare set-up ready because that would have been the thing to do when buying any new animal that you intend to keep with another :whistling2: If you don't - get one quick or rehome the gecko.

I keep 2 females and 1 male together with no problems - but I am lucky and I am always on the lookout for any fighting or signs of stress such as weight loss or constantly hiding. They are in a 4 foot viv though with lots of decor and multiples of warm, cool and damp hides - plenty of space is important if you want there to even be a small possibility that two or more can live together.


----------



## scottymac1989 (Oct 10, 2010)

Yeah i'd say it was way way less than 80% i'd say 20-30 % from what i've read


----------



## kelsey7692 (Jul 28, 2010)

I actually don't know why people are so shocked when they put two together and they don't get a long. It only takes a quick forum search to see how often it happens.


----------



## blizard87 (May 9, 2011)

they thrive on their own and they wont thank you for the company.i do keep the odd pairs of females together but only as sub adutls mostly.some just arnt compatible and thats it.


----------



## AizureMarakesh (Sep 30, 2011)

I got the 80% stat from a website when I was first doing my research about them, thank you all for your kind advice, I am separating the new gecko into a different vivarium. 
Your advice is much appreciated  thanks


----------



## Hashcake (Nov 23, 2011)

There is a lot of mixed information on the internet, in particular with care sheets.
I'm glad I joined this forum before getting mine as I soon discovered that the best information is available here via experienced keepers.
It's good to hear that you are separating them rather than letting them just get on with it, it shows you are a caring owner :2thumb:


----------



## AizureMarakesh (Sep 30, 2011)

Trust me, I am so stressed out about it all, she is also a pretty skinny gecko, I really need to fatten her up, but she isn't eating anything now. She was eating fine a couple of days ago, but for the past 3 days she hasn't eaten a thing, I dunno we'll see tomorrow. 
still. I might try giving her a liquified medicine, where you blend up meal worms, wax worms, calcium without d3 with some warm bottled water, then you use a piper thing, I think they are called pipetts? I dunno, one of them, and you just inject that in their mouth. I will try that when it gets to another day without eating.
I just want her to be safe and healthy :/


----------



## beaniebopps (Oct 4, 2009)

I wouldn't force feed her anything until it gets to longer than a week that she hasn't eaten as that could end up stressing her more. But if you do have to do it, be very gentle, careful, yet get it over with as soon as possible.


----------



## AizureMarakesh (Sep 30, 2011)

Ok, well she is very skinny, I will upload a picture soon, she really needs all the food she can get!


----------



## Hashcake (Nov 23, 2011)

I don't think you should stress yourself about her not eating at present.
Give her a few days to settle in on her own and the chances are she'll soon start taking live food again.
Leo's can go for up to two weeks without food.
The pipette method is like force feeding and I am not sure that this would be a good idea as it may also cause her stress.
In her own terrarium / vivarium she will soon thrive.
Give her fresh water and a little dish of calcium and keep offering her live food.
Try a varied diet, crickets, locusts, waxworms and mealworms.
When mine decided to turn his nose up at crickets I tried locusts and he loves them and he has never refused a waxworm when he is hungry.

There is another recent thread where a young Leo escaped and was recently found again after being loose for a few months.
Apart from obviously being small it didn't look unhealthy and it's amazing considering it's not have any food etc for quite some time.

Try not worry, give her some time and update us when she starts to eat again


----------



## AizureMarakesh (Sep 30, 2011)

Ok will do, thanks for the advise!


----------



## SuperSpeedyWheels (Jun 23, 2011)

One of my leopard geckos requires constant force feeding. She only eats if its pushed into her mouth. She is otherwise healthy, been examined, but will not eat on her own. What I do is get a small dubia roach, using the shovel area of their head I pry her lips open and push the roach in, she bites down.. thinks yum I like this and chews and swallows. I dont force it too much, if she is adamant its not going in I will not hold her down and force it too much. If after 7 days of being adamant I will hold her tightly and make her eat, this usually brings her feeding response back and she will eat from my fingers again as long as im putting it in her mouth for her. Maybe try my tactic, only after separating them though.


----------



## AizureMarakesh (Sep 30, 2011)

That sounds very dramatic and quite drastic measures to be taking. I well let her settle, today has been very stressful for them both, and me, so I will now just tidy up and relax, whilst they settle in.


----------



## kelsey7692 (Jul 28, 2010)

If the new gecko is skinny surely she should have been kept in quarantine and not allowed near the other gecko? The whole point of quarantining is to ensure any new reptiles are healthy and prevent them from passing anything they might have on to the others.

Sorry if I've missed something out but it seems as though she shouldn't have been put in with the other if she isn't gaining weight.


----------



## SuperSpeedyWheels (Jun 23, 2011)

AizureMarakesh said:


> That sounds very dramatic and quite drastic measures to be taking. I well let her settle, today has been very stressful for them both, and me, so I will now just tidy up and relax, whilst they settle in.


Not if your gecko is not eating and is getting unhealthily underweight its not.


----------



## kelsey7692 (Jul 28, 2010)

To add to what I said above (Won't let me edit it in) maybe fecal tests should be done on the gecko that is underweight and probably now the other female too since they've been together. It's often suggested that fecal tests should be carried out at the end of quarantine.


----------



## AizureMarakesh (Sep 30, 2011)

I did say I have already quarantined her, she isn't supremely under weight (e.g: near to MBD) she just needs to fatten up a bit, because she is like most leopard geckos when young, and just needs to be fed more regularly to be a good weight.

just to add: She has now eaten.


----------



## geckograham (Jan 22, 2012)

I do keep female Leo's together but you do have to keep a close eye on them for any signs of aggression. The best way to go is to always have enough space for each of your reptiles to live alone, you can let them live together unless they don't get on, then just seperate them if needs be.

In my experience, if they fight once, they will never get on well enought to live together. It's just like people, some Leo's just don't like each other!


----------



## kelsey7692 (Jul 28, 2010)

AizureMarakesh said:


> I did say I have already quarantined her, she isn't supremely under weight (e.g: near to MBD) she just needs to fatten up a bit, because she is like most leopard geckos when young, and just needs to be fed more regularly to be a good weight.
> 
> just to add: She has now eaten.


I didn't say you hadn't quarantined her, I was stating that really she should have been kept in quarantine until the weight issue had been resolved.

Fecal tests are a routine thing to do at the beginning and end of quarantine, as not all illnesses/parasites can be obvious, and some need fecal tests for them to be spotted and diagnosed. If you haven't already I would get a fecal test done as a routine after quarantine thing.

The fact that she was smaller than the other female will have only led to the bullying issues.


----------



## Hashcake (Nov 23, 2011)

Glad she is now eating again and I hope you have learned a valuable lesson.
I'm sure she will be very happy in her own environment.


----------



## Salazare Slytherin (Oct 21, 2009)

I keep two female leos together and have done for many years, I have not seen any displays of dominance one over the other they both have pleanty of space and pleanty of hides, they are just pets, and have been together for some time. (They haven't always been together though) and I based the co-habitation entirely on the personality and they are fine together.
If I had any doubts about this or started seeing dominance behavior (like in your case) I would separate.

I agree it is individual, no animal is the same, but just entirely out of interest are you sure that these "females" are infact females and not males.


----------

