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| Name: |
McLovin
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Age: |
Two months old
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| Gender: |
Unknown
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Kind: |
Tangerine Leopard Gecko
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| Home: |
Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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McLovin
is a tangerine Leopard Gecko who lives in Baltimore at Johns
Hopkins University! During my sophomore year at college, I realized I
really wanted a pet - I have cats and a dog at home, but had no animals
to keep me company at school. I decided on a Leopard Gecko because they
are pretty easy to maintain and are easily tamed. I started looking for
geckos and found a picture of a group of tangerine hatchlings on the
internet. His adorable juvenile coloring really got my attention - he
was yellow and gray banded with a black and gray tail. I called the
breeder, who had five hatchlings available. He told me that one baby had
had to be separated from the rest because he was getting so big that he
was bullying his siblings and eating all the food. I decided to pick the
"Bad Gecko," paid for him over the phone, and a week later he arrived !
He had come all the way from Maine, and was pretty confused. I couldn't
believe how tiny he was! He seemed a little overwhelmed by the big tank
I had bought him, but quickly adjusted and now acts like he owns the
whole thing. My boyfriend suggested I name him "McLovin" because he was
so cocky - like the character in the movie "Superbad."
He's nocturnal, so he spends all day snoozing in his log cave under the
heat lamp and all night patrolling his domain, looking for bugs. His
favorite foods are crickets, mealworms and the occasional waxworm - we
only give waxworms as treats because they're very fattening. He also
eats all his foods dusted in special gecko supplement to keep him
healthy. When he sees a worm or a cricket moving around, his eyes get
really wide and he slowly stalks toward it. Right before he pounces, he
sticks his tail straight up in the air and shakes it around like a
maraca because he gets so excited! After he eats, he put his little chin
down on the ground and licks his lips. It's really cute! He loves to eat
and has never turned down a meal. In fact, he's growing very quickly and
gaining lots of weight! He has a nice fat tail, which is a sign of
health. He's also starting to get his adult coloring, which is a little
darker with more orange at the base of his tail.
He's just a baby, so we don't know yet whether he's a male or a female.
He's also very calm for a juvenile. I read a lot on the internet about
how young geckos will scream and hiss when touched, but McLovin lets me
pick him up easily. He has never hissed or screamed, and will climb
right onto my hand if I put it in the cage. He loves hands because I've
hand-fed him since I got him - in fact, if he sees a hand come into the
tank, he runs out of his cave to see what I've brought him to eat! He
has a really sweet personality and I look forward to spending many more
years with him.
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