Can geckos eat spiders?

Yes, Leopard Geckos eat spiders. Leopard geckos are insectivorous which means they eat insects only.

Spiders are full of protein, folic acid, zinc, and other nutrients; however, you should never feed wild-caught spiders to your Leopard Geckos because they contain dangerous parasites, pesticides, or herbicides.

As we know Geckos are insectivores and cannot eat vegetables or fruits. They can't digest plant matter.

Types of spiders Leopard Geckos eat?

Spiders play a vital role in Leopard Geckos' diet. Always give them store-bought spiders because wild-caught spiders are harmful to them.

Types of Spiders to feed Leopard Geckos are as follows-

• Daddy's long legs
• House spiders
• Wolf spiders
• Jumping spiders
• Tarantulas

Don't feed them dead or poisonous spiders because they are harmful to Leopard Geckos and create health issues.

Benefits of Feeding Spiders to Leopard Geckos

As we know Spiders are essential for Leopard Geckos' diet. It contains so many benefits.

Some benefits are as follows-

Protein Rich- One of the significant benefits of Feeding Spiders to Leopard Geckos is that they are completely protein Rich. An average spider ( around 12 grams ) contains 6.5 grams of protein and 1 gram of fat. This is because spiders themselves have a good amount of protein in their diet consisting of mosquitoes and flies.

Nutrients- They have vital nutrients which help to function properly and maintain health.

Types of Spiders you should avoid feeding to your Leopard Geckos

Feeding them unhealthy spiders causes health issues. Always feed them healthy spiders. There are some spiders you should avoid feeding to your Leopard Geckos are given below-

Death Spiders- Don't feed dead spiders to Leopard Geckos because they are harmful to them and create health issues.

Wild-caught Spiders- Don't feed wild-caught spiders to your Leopard Geckos because they contain pesticides and insecticides. Their chemical contains harmful ingredients like hydrogen cyanide that can damage leopard gecko brains.

Some extreme venom-containing Spiders - Some species like Redback spiders (Latrodectus Hasselti) and Black widows (Latrodectus mactans), are dangerous for Leopard Geckos. They contain extreme poison and can affect the nerve endings of leopard geckos.

How often should you feed Spiders to Leopard Geckos?

Spiders are full of nutrients and they are protein-rich. Feeding Spiders to your geckos is always a good choice but how many spiders should Geckos eat is also important. So it is better to feed them only 1- 2 large spiders in a week.

Overfeeding Spiders to your Gecko causes vomit and other health issues.

How to care for Spiders before giving them to Leopard Gecko

To provide your Leopard Geckos with the best possible nutrition, you will need to take care of the spiders before feeding them to your Leopard Geckos.

There are some points on how to care for spiders are as follows-

• Firstly purchase spiders from pet stores or online. Don't catch wild spiders
• Store them in a plastic container and the maximum number of spiders stay alive for so many days.
• Spiders do not feed fruits or vegetables. They eat insects.
• Feed them insects before serving.

Tips to feed Spiders to Leopard Geckos

Leopard geckos should not be fed anything other than insects. Feeding in a proper manner is most important.

• Always serve live spiders to your Leopard Geckos. Do not kill the spiders before serving them to Leopard Geckos
• Don't force Leopard Geckos to eat something it doesn't want to
• Some spiders snuggle in one place when they are in front of geckos, in that case, jab them with the help of a stick.

Where can I buy spiders for my Leopard Geckos?

Spiders play an essential role in Leopard Geckos' diet. There are so many benefits to serving them to your Leopard Geckos.

You can easily buy them from pet stores or online stores too. We can easily buy these products on the online websites given below-

• The Spider Shop
• Petco
• Underground Reptiles

Other Healthy Food Choices for Leopard Gecko

Sometimes spiders are not available in pet stores and sometimes as it is an expensive issue you can't afford them in that situation we have so many alternatives to spiders for Leopard Geckos are given below.

• Dubia roaches,
• Crickets,
• Locusts,
• Mealworms,
• Hornworms,
• Superworms,
• Butterworms,
• Silkworms,

For more details, You can read an Ultimate guide to Feeding your Leopard Gecko.

Nutritional value of Spiders as compared with other feeder insects

The table given below indicates the Nutritional value of Spiders as compared with other feeder insects.

As you can notice in the table that spiders are protein Rich with comparison to other feeder insects. But their other nutrients are low.