| Tokays get their name from the distinctive mating | | | | Their cage should be a minimum of 20 gallons per |
| call that the males make to attract female | | | | gecko and, since they are arboreal, the taller the |
| companions. If you find yourself with a male Tokay | | | | better. They are easily stressed so it is essential to |
| for a pet you can expect to be woken up some | | | | provide adequate cover in the form of branches and |
| warm spring or summer nights from this loud call. | | | | plants (live or fake) to hide behind. Tokays rarely |
| Unfortunately, it is not uncommon to find emaciated | | | | drink from standing pools of water and instead lick |
| and dying Tokay Geckos in many exotic pet stores. | | | | droplets off of the surfaces of leaves, etc. so you |
| Most stores purchase wild caught Tokays which may | | | | must mist their cage one or two times per day to |
| be infested with parasites, or the store might not | | | | keep them hydrated. They are native to humid |
| have sufficient knowledge to properly maintain them | | | | climates so do best with humidity of around seventy |
| which leads to stress making them stop eating and | | | | percent which is most easily achieved with the |
| they starve. Because of this I highly recommend | | | | addition of a shallow water dish or live plants. They |
| purchasing your pet Tokay from a reputable breeder | | | | require warm temperatures from eighty to ninety |
| if you want the best chances at success with a | | | | degrees Fahrenheit. |
| healthy specimen. | | | | While there are many examples of people who have |
| Tokays are arboreal geckos and will spend most of | | | | successfully tamed their pet Tokay, it takes a lot of |
| their day in a high up and (preferably) secluded | | | | time and patience (as well as a few bites along the |
| location in their habitat. They are carnivorous and | | | | way) to achieve without too much unnecessary |
| feed exclusively on live insects and other small | | | | stress on the animal. Other Tokay owners are happy |
| animals. They are nocturnal so will be more active | | | | to appreciate these beautiful and colorful geckos |
| during the night and, unlike other popular geckos in | | | | from a distance limiting their interactions with them |
| the pet industry, do not need special UV lighting to | | | | and always using thick gloves! |
| survive. | | | | |