Every gecko I own has swum at some point in its life.
Video · 11 min watchWritten by Brian
Yes, crested geckos can swim, and they are good at it. I made this video after seeing a social media post from someone planning a waterfall in a bioactive vivarium. A lot of people in the replies insisted that any water feature was a death sentence because crested geckos drown easily. That is not true.
Why every one of my geckos has swum
I incubate eggs on hatching medium: porous volcanic rock that soaks up water. Repashy and Pangea both sell it. When the babies hatch, the rock sticks all over them. So every hatchling goes into a small Tupperware dish of water for a few seconds, swims around, and the rock falls off. Then it goes into its enclosure.
I do this to keep the enclosures clean, and to avoid impaction. Hatchlings shed within about a day and eat the shed, and I do not want them eating rock at that age.
Crested geckos also float. They can lie on the water without moving, using no energy, so the idea that they will tire quickly or sink straight to the bottom does not hold up.
Where myths like this come from
Someone thought water sounded scary and said crested geckos drown. Someone else repeated it, and it became common knowledge. A group being about crested geckos does not make what is said there true.
Water features: give them a way out
Your gecko has no need to swim, but a waterfall with a pond can be a good feature in a bioactive vivarium, and it helps keep humidity up. The one requirement is a way out. A gecko that falls into water with no way to climb out will drown eventually, just as you would in a pool with smooth walls you could not climb. Give it a route out:
- a fake plant sitting in the water
- branches or grapevine
- a turtle basking shelf
Water features: keep the water clean
An enclosure is a dirty, humid environment, and bacteria thrive in warm water. A water feature needs very good filtration or constant cleaning.
That is why I do not recommend foggers or self-contained waterfall units, such as the jungle or skull designs. The same water circulates over and over, so it is effectively stagnant, and bacteria and mold grow in water your gecko drinks. If you use one, take the whole feature out every second or third day (about twice a week) and scrub it with antibacterial soap, rinsing it very well, or with vinegar. Because they need cleaning that often, I do not think they are worth it.
Water dishes are fine
I have seen people argue against a drinking dish because a gecko could drown in it. If a dish is deep enough to drown in, it is a pool, not a water bowl. Geckos will not hold their faces in the water the way crickets do, so a proper water bowl is not something to worry about.