Caring for Chahuoa Geckos

 This gecko isn't as common to find as crested geckos. They aren't as prolific breeders and have a problem with calcium in the eggs, but if you're lucky enough to find them and to find them at a price you can afford, they can be great pets and breeders. More and more people are getting into the Rhac species, so they are becoming a little more easy to find, but you'll find that many breeders only release a small number of their hatchlings, keeping back many for their collection and for later release.

There are two different locales of Chahoua- the Pine Isle and the Mainland Chahoua.  Generally, the P.I. is a larger gecko with brighter colors, whereas the Mainland is a tad smaller and less colorful. Although, this isn't always the case, as there are some really dull PI chahouas and really colorful Mainlands.

If you are looking at getting a chewie, make sure that you do your research. The basic housing and care tips for the chahoua are as follows.

Size: up to 10" including the tail
Lifespan: thought to be between 20-30 years

Housing: This species is housed similar to the crested gecko, except for slightly larger. One adult can thrive in a 36" tall x 18" wide x 18" long tank. Some people like to use screen enclosures, but then you have to worry about the habitat being too dry. Some people just use large storage totes that can be found at Wal*Mart, Kmart, Lowes, etc.

Use plenty of PVC, corkbark, and branches. These guys like the climb and spend time in the trees.

It's best to use paper towels for younger geckos, so that they don't ingest any loose substrate while eating. Personally, I prefer to use a solid substrate like paper towels or tile for all ages of gecko.

Keep the temperature around 72-80F with high humidity. You can achieve the humidity by two good soaks a day. Babies and younger geckos need to be misted more often than adults.

Feeding and Diet: I prefer to use CGD as the main staple of the diet. I also provide crickets twice a week for younger geckos. This species needs more proteins than crested geckos do, so the crickets are a good idea. You can also offer appropriately sized dubia, lateralis, or discoid roaches.

These geckos can be very docile and personable, which is why they are becoming more and more popular among keepers.