Do you have a gecko as a pet or are you seeking to get one? Well, keeping pets generally can be very rewarding, but it comes with some responsibilities as well. Just like all other pets and animals, geckos also need some form of care and maintenance. If you choose to keep a gecko as a pet, be sure that one of your new responsibilities will involve cleaning its poop or pee. But wait! Do Leopard geckos pee? If you’re seeking an answer to this, don’t worry; we have carefully explained it in this blog. We also gave some tips we felt you may need to take care of your gecko pet.
Do Leopard Geckos Pee?
You might have heard people say that Leopard geckos don’t pee, but technically they do. Leopard geckos pee, but it is not the same way humans do. Their pee is not liquid. They pee a white, semi-solid substance. We can say that leopard geckos pee or urinate because “peeing” and “urinating,” by medical definition, require that the waste product be generated from ammonia metabolism through the kidney.
Humans and other vertebrate animals pee by passing out urea as the major product of ammonia metabolism, while geckos and other reptiles pee by passing out uric acid as the major product of ammonia metabolism. Leopard geckos pass out uric acid in the form of urates, a solid white substance.
Leopard geckos belong to the larger reptile family. They are cold-blooded and are relatives of other types of lizards and geckos. They come from a hot and dry climate where water conservation is necessary, so their excretory system has evolved to help them adapt well to this environment. Leopard geckos need to conserve water in their bodies, so they don’t pass liquid. Instead, all the unwanted chemicals in their bodies are passed out as solids.
What does Leopard gecko pee look like?
If you have a leopard gecko as a pet, you might have noticed both brownish and white droppings. Leopard geckos pee urates. The white part is the pee, i.e., urates, and the brown part is the other unwanted chemicals, i.e., poo. Urates are high in uric acid, it is usually white in color.
Can leopard geckos pass urates without feces?
Yes, leopard geckos can pass out urates without feces. This usually happens during the breeding season, when both the males and females stop feeding. They do not feed and so they’re not able to pass feces, but they still excrete urate. You should not worry if you just see white urates without feces.
Why do leopard geckos pass urates?
As we explained earlier, leopard geckos come from hot and dry regions of the world where water conservation is critical to their survival. For geckos to survive in this environment, they have to conserve water. The leopard gecko is able to save water by converting its waste uric acid to urates. That way, it excretes pee in a salt-like form. This phenomenon helps it stay for longer periods without needing water.
How to clean a gecko pee
Leopard geckos usually excrete in one corner of their pet enclosure. Thankfully, they don’t excrete all around their pet enclosures, so they already make the job of cleaning their poop and pee very easy. The type of substrate or bedding you use for your pet gecko will determine how easy or difficult cleaning will be. For example, if you use a paper-based substrate, you can easily roll up the section of the pee, discard it, and replace it with a new one. You might find it a little more difficult if you’re using other types of substrates. If you use a reptile mat, you may need to remove it completely and wash it before replacing it.
When cleaning the pee of your pet gecko, it is advised that you wait until it solidifies. Don’t try to clean it immediately after the pee drops. Why? This is because fresh gecko pee is runny and likely to smear, so it may eventually dirty the pet tank.
What does leopard gecko poop look like?
Leopard gecko poop can also be called feces. The poop is passed out from the gecko’s intestine and is usually brown in color. Remember, as we explained earlier, leopard geckos both poop and pee. Geckos have the ability to poop and pee at the same time. You shouldn’t be surprised to see brown poop and white pee at the same time.
Does leopard gecko poop smell?
Naturally, a gecko’s poop does not smell; however, it can if it contains bacteria.
Is Leopard gecko pee poisonous?
The pee of geckos is slightly toxic. Just like many other reptiles, bacteria can be found in the excreta of geckos. These bacteria are capable of causing sickness in humans if ingested. The bacteria that can be found in gecko excreta are E. coli and salmonella. When cleaning a gecko enclosure, make sure you don’t touch the pee or poop of the gecko with your bare hands.
What should you do if a leopard gecko pees yellow urate?
It is very possible to find out that your gecko’s pee is yellow instead of white. This may be a sign of dehydration, illness, or malnutrition. If you ever notice this with your pet gecko, here are the three things you should do.
1) Provide clean water to your gecko to avoid dehydration.
Yes, geckos can go for long periods without drinking water, but not when their urate is yellow. To avoid dehydration, please make sure you provide clean water to the gecko.
2) Provide more water during the breeding season.
Geckos usually abstain from eating during the breeding season, however, they still need water this time, so remember to provide more water.
3) Gut-load before feeding
Leopard geckos do not always take the required amount of water as they should. Surprisingly, they get most of their water from the insects they eat. You should supplement this lack of water by pre-feeding the insects with enough water and nutrients before giving it to them. This is called gut loading. (link)
Conclusion
Leopard Geckos pee and poop. Their pee comes out in the form of uric acid, as most reptiles do. However, in geckos, waste uric acid is converted to white urates. So essentially, geckos pass white urates as their pee. Geckos also poop. They excrete unwanted substances from their intestines. This appears as a brownish poop. Unlike humans, geckos only have one opening for peeing and pooing; it is called the cloaca.
