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Why Is My Leopard Gecko Shedding Never? Crazy Creatures.

a photo of a leopard gecko that is shedding its skin

Owning a pet leopard gecko can be a rewarding experience, getting to know your new little friend is so much fun. However sometimes things happen that can cause us pet owners to worry. Like why is my leopard gecko shedding never?

One of the biggest worries that I hear from new pet leopard gecko owners is that their Leos are not shedding. They have been keeping a close eye on their pet and although they have seen their leopard gecko go pale or white they have never seen the shed come off.

So it is understandable why they think there is a problem or that their Leo is ill.

In this post I am going to go over the reasons why it can be that your leopard gecko does not shed its skin.

Why do you never see your leopard gecko shed?

I am going to answer the question straight off the bat and give the Information you came here for. Stick around though as I will go into more detail later in the article.

The fact is that all Leopard Geckos shed. You may think that your is not shedding but actually it is more common for them to shed late into the night when you are sleeping, this gives the impression that it has not shed. They actually eat the shed skin as well so there will be no evidence.

So there you have it, you are more than likely just missing the moment when your leopard sheds its skin.

leopard gecko shedding

All leopard geckos shed but sometimes they can face problems. Like why is my leopard gecko shedding never? 

Will I ever see my leopard gecko shed?

At some point in time you are more than likely going to see your leopard gecko shedding. It is just catching it at the right moment.

The reason why you may not be seeing your Leo shedding is because they tend to complete the process during the night when you are sleeping. You should however see the build up to the shedding process.

What does a leopard gecko look like when it is about to shed?

There are some big and quite unmissable signs that you can look out for that will hint that your leopard gecko is starting the shedding process.

The skin color will change tone.

When a leopard gecko is about to shed you will notice that it’s skin goes through tone changes. The often bright and vivid colors will turn dull, pale and even white.

This is because the thin opaque skin layer is starting to separate from the body and drying out.

a photo of a leopard gecko that has turned pale and white

Leopard geckos turn pale or white when they are about to shed their skin.

A noticeable lack of interest in food.

It is well noted that when a leopard gecko is about to shed it can have a lack of interest in eating its food. Make sure you provide them with a good leopard gecko food in the first place.

This is because it is giving its full attention to the shedding process.

A change in mood and temper.

This is a signal that quite a few owners notice during the time when a skin shed is imminent. Your Leopard gecko might start to be a bit more temperamental and be less manageable when handling. I think a good way to describe this would be that your pet Leo can be a little bit cranky.

How long does a leopard gecko take to shed?

The majority of leopard geckos will shed their skin within 24 hours although I can take up to 48 hours for all of the last little bit of skin to peel off.

Your Leopard gecko will go through this shedding period every 4-8 weeks, giving you plenty of opportunities to witness the event.

What happens to the shed skin?

This is where it gets interesting. Thiz is the main reason why it appears that your leopard gecko never sheds!

Lots of owners note that they see all of the above shedding signals but the  nothing happens.

When in actual fact the leopard gecko sheds its skin in the night and then clears up the evidence.

Leopard geckos are the masters of clearing up evidence, leopard geckos eat their shedded skin.

There are a couple of reasons for this which I will tell you below:

  • A leopard gecko will eat its shed skin so that it is harder for predators to track it. In the wild a leopard gecko would not want to leave behind any traces that could enable a predator to find it.
  • The skin is packed full of nutrients. In the wild food is harder to come by so why waste your shed skin when  it contains nutrients and calories, waste not, want not as they say!

Leopard gecko shedding problems. Why is my leopard gecko shedding never?

In general your leopard gecko will shed naturally when needed. However there are still some things that you must do to help ease the process along.

If you find that your leopard gecko is having shedding problems such as stuck shed the reason will be that the humidity in the tank is incorrect. The humidity levels need to be kept at around 20-40% to stop shedding iissues.

To change the humidity levels and to ease the shedding process you can use a spritz of water from a spray bottle to mist the tank a little.

If you notice a small patch of Loose skin that just is not budging after 48 hours you can use a small pair of tweezers to gently and delicately help remove it.

Conclusion.

Why is my leopard gecko shedding never? Although it may not seem like your leopard gecko is shedding the chances are that it is but just when you are not around.

Generally the shedding process should run smoothly if you keep the humidity of the tank at the optimum level.

Try not to be to surprised if you do not find any of the shedded skin in your leopard geckos tank, it will have eaten it to hide the evidence!

Above all, enjoy your new pet and get to know its unique and funny personality.

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