A leopard gecko comes in handy for every pet owner. Apart from their low maintenance, they are great mood-lifters- A single glance at the face of your small reptile friend and that’s all it takes to warm your heart and smile.
Most Leo pet owners claim to have witnessed a leopard gecko smiling at some point. But do these little reptiles smile or is it something else? Let’s find out.
So, do leopard geckos smile? Leopard geckos are known for wearing a constant perpetual smile. Nevertheless, they don’t intentionally smile to express happiness. Most reptiles, particularly leopard geckos, have naturally-curved mouths that stretch from ear to ear, creating the illusion of a wide grin. This perpetual “smile” is attributed to the reptiles’ facial anatomy rather than their happy emotions. Still, leopard geckos seem to have a permanent smile that draws many reptile pet enthusiasts towards them.
The Science behind a Leopard Gecko’s Smile
We’ve already established that leopard geckos seem to be smiling all the time due to their facial anatomy. In other words, they do not intentionally smile to express happiness. Rather, Leos have very cheerful-looking faces due to the following:
- Structure of their mouth
- Cheek folds
- Movable eyelids
- The shape of their head
1. Structure of Their Mouth
The mouth of a leopard gecko is curved upwards on either ear. This mouth structure is convincing enough that the lizard has a smile on its face. Interestingly, this is true when the gecko’s mouth is open and when it’s closed.
2. Cheek Folds
When you look at the face of a leopard gecko, you will notice that it has some excess skin on its upper lips. This hanging skin gives leopard geckos their perceived constant smile.
The excess hanging skin normally extends to their lower lips, thus allowing your reptile friend to open its mouth as wide as possible without injuring itself. In addition, the cheek folds make the leopard gecko look friendly with its uncontrolled ever-smiling face.
3. Movable Eyelids
A genuine smile is believed to trigger the muscle near the sides of the eyes. As a result, most people squint or squeeze their eyes while smiling. Since leopard geckos have movable eyelids or have eyelids that are subtly squinted, they appear to be wearing a smile on their faces at all times.
4. Head Shape
Generally, geckos have small triangular heads like many reptiles such as snakes and dragons. As such, they appear to always have a smile, whether their mouths are closed or open. Surprisingly, even a simple yawn creates the illusion of a smile on a Leo’s face.
Furthermore, if you look at your leopard gecko straight on, you’ll notice that it has an angular snout. It also seems as though its lips are curved into a constant grin.
Are Leopard Geckos Capable of Feeling Emotions?
Since we have already seen that the permanent smiles of leopard geckos are attributed to their facial structures, do the reptiles have emotions?
All reptiles have emotions and leopard geckos are no exception. However, most reptiles primarily experience emotions of fear and aggression as built-in survival mechanisms from predators and other life risks
On the contrary, leopard geckos experience emotions of pleasure and happiness. These feelings (positive emotions) are triggered by either food or proper handling (stroking these little pets).
Even then, leopard geckos don’t express their pleasure or happy emotions through smiles. Rather, Leos express happiness via a healthy, comfortable, and active lifestyle.
Signs of a Happy Leopard Gecko
Even with their ever-present grin, it is evident that we can’t really tell how our gecko pets feel. So, how can we know that our lizard pets are happy and content with our care? Pet leopard gecko experts point that a healthy gecko is often a happy gecko.
More importantly, certain behavioral clues can help you determine whether your gecko is happy. To summarize, the following are signs of pleasure or happiness in your leopard gecko:
- Regular feeding habits
- Exploring their enclosure/housing
- Overall calmness
- Enjoy handling
How Can I Make My Leopard Gecko Happy?
The ever-grinning appearance of your leopard gecko does not necessarily mean it’s happy. As such, let’s dive into the intricacies of ways to make your little reptile friend happy:
Regular and Healthy Feeding
As a rule of thumb, a healthy leopard gecko is a happy leopard gecko, and proper nutrition is essential for sustainable growth and life support. So, you must constantly feed your gecko the right amount of balanced diets at the recommended frequency to ensure it’s healthy.
Besides keeping your pet Leo happy, healthy feeding prevents most health hazards such as being underweight and illnesses such as metabolic bone disease.
Regular Handling
Leopard geckos also experience some negative emotions such as fear and stress. Such emotions often kick in whenever the Leo feels threatened, especially by potential predators. A leopard gecko often views bigger animals as threats, so your pet might mistake you for a predator.
Fortunately, setting aside some time to socialize with your gecko creates a bond between you and your pet. Moreover, regular and careful handling helps your leopard gecko to understand that you are a friendly caregiver and relax in your presence.
Proper Habitat Set Up
Another important way to keep your leopard gecko happy is to provide it with proper housing. This means you have to setup and maintain your gecko tank properly to keep the pet healthy, active, comfortable, and happy.
To start with, the terrarium should be spacious enough to allow your gecko friend to move around, play, explore, eat, poop, and sleep comfortably. For an adult leopard gecko, you’ll require a minimum of a 20-gallon tank.
Secondly, install sufficient hides in the enclosure for your gecko to hide from perceived threats including predators, unfamiliar faces, excess heat, and disturbing lights. You can upgrade the Leo’s comfort by installing a warm hide and a cold hide in either side of the tank.
Leopard Gecko Emotions Fact Files
Since the wide grin of a leopard gecko does not express any emotions, below are some of the behavioral clues to certain leopard gecko emotions:
- Excitement – The gecko quickly flicks its tail when feeding or during its breeding season to relay its excitement.
- Calmness – the leopard gecko may close its eyes in your presence or when you are handling it.
- Enjoyment – when handling your leopard gecko, it will stick its neck out or seem to enjoy your touch.
The Importance of Understanding a Leopard Gecko’s Emotions
Let’s face it, knowing the emotional state of your pet plays a major role in improving the pet care you give. Besides, this also helps pet owners and breeders to better understand and empathize with these small reptiles.
Effects of Smiling Leopard Geckos on Their Owners
Humans tend to replicate a smile when they see others smile. In this view, leopard gecko owners smile often and, in turn, enjoy the benefits of this positive feeling. Seeing the smiley face of a leopard gecko causes you to smile back and enjoy other perks of smiling such as:
- Experience less anxiety
- Boost your immune system
- Lower your blood pressure
- Normalize your heart rate
Summary
Leopard geckos appear to be smiling all the time. However, their smiley faces result from the reptiles’ facial anatomy and have no bearing whatsoever on their emotions. The mouth structure, cheek folds, movable eyelids, head shape, and mouth structure give Leos the illusion of a constant smile.
Smiling leopard geckos are a sight to behold for reptile pet owners and enthusiasts. They appear to be smiling and happy on every occasion and a single glance at them is enough to melt your heart. Although we know that leopard geckos don’t actually smile, their beguiling appearance might just convince you otherwise. Regardless, leopard geckos are personable reptile pets that lighten gloomy moods with their smiley faces.
