The Tokay gecko, from the forests of South and Southeast Asia, is one of the largest and most striking geckos, blue-grey with orange and white spots and named for its loud 'to-kay' call.
It is bold, fast and famously defensive, delivering a powerful, tenacious bite, so it is firmly an advanced, hands-off species.
Despite their difficult temperament, Tokays are hardy and long-lived when their humidity and space needs are met.
Many sold are still wild-caught and arrive stressed or parasitised, so captive-bred animals and a quarantine plan matter.
They suit experienced keepers who want an impressive vivarium occupant to observe, not to handle.
Housing
House one adult in a tall, well-ventilated, securely latched vivarium of at least 60x45x90cm, well furnished with cork bark, branches and live plants for climbing and dense cover.
As a strong arboreal climber it needs vertical space and many hiding spots to feel secure and reduce defensive displays.
Maintain a warm gradient of around 28-30C with a basking area near 32C and cooler shaded zones, plus a nighttime drop.
A low-output UVB tube is beneficial.
Keep humidity high, around 60-80%, by misting daily, while ensuring good ventilation so the enclosure dries partly between mistings and avoids stagnant, mouldy conditions.
Diet
Tokay geckos are voracious insectivores.
Feed a varied diet of gut-loaded, calcium-dusted live insects such as large crickets, dubia roaches and locusts, with the occasional appropriately sized pinky mouse for large adults.
Their size means they take substantial prey, so match insect size to the gecko.
Dust feeders with calcium and a vitamin/D3 supplement on a regular schedule to prevent metabolic bone disease.
Feed adults every few days and juveniles more often.
Provide fresh water in a dish, though they drink mostly from misted droplets on leaves and glass.
Health
A healthy Tokay is muscular and alert with clear eyes, full toe pads and a strong appetite.
Wild-caught animals commonly carry internal parasites and mites and arrive dehydrated, so a vet faecal check and quarantine are wise.
Retained shed, metabolic bone disease and respiratory infections from cold or stagnant humidity are the main husbandry concerns.
Because they are easily stressed, signs of illness such as lethargy, weight loss or laboured breathing can be subtle against their normally defensive behaviour.
Use a vet experienced with exotics, and favour captive-bred stock to reduce disease and welfare problems.
Temperament
Tokay geckos are bold, territorial and highly defensive, gaping, lunging and biting hard when approached, and they will hold on.
They are not a handling pet; interaction is largely limited to maintenance, and even calm individuals rarely become truly tame.
They are also loud, calling at night, which suits some keepers and not others.
They are strictly solitary outside supervised breeding.
Two will fight, often seriously.
A single Tokay in a tall, well-planted vivarium, observed rather than handled, is the appropriate and humane way to keep this species.
A good fit for
Experienced keepers wanting a bold display gecko
Those happy with a hands-off, observe-only reptile
Keepers who can source captive-bred animals
People untroubled by loud nighttime calls
Common mistakes to avoid
Expecting a handleable, tame gecko
Wild-caught stress, parasites and mites
Housing two together (serious fights)
Low or stagnant humidity causing shed and respiratory issues
Small geckos dehydrate and lose condition quickly, and the tail is the fuel gauge.
Go now
Tremors, weak grip, or a jaw that will not close properlyGo now. Calcium and D3 deficiency.
Now
Today
Tail visibly thinning in a species that stores fat thereWeigh, then call with the trend. The fat store goes before the body condition does.
Today
Stuck shed around the toes or over the eyesRaise humidity, offer a damp hide, and call if it is not clear within a day. Constricting shed rings cost toes. This is the most common avoidable injury in geckos.
Today
Refusing food with weight lossCheck the cool-end and warm-end temperatures, then call. A gecko that cannot reach its preferred temperature cannot digest.
Today
This is general guidance for a healthy adult, not a diagnosis. An exotics vet who knows your animal always overrides it — and the time to find one is before you need one.
Can a tokay gecko eat that?
Geckos split into two diets that share almost nothing: insectivores like the leopard gecko, and the fruit-and-insect species like the crested gecko. Check which one you have.
Never (13)
AlcoholNo safe amount at any body weight on this site.
never
AvocadoPersin.
never
CaffeineCoffee, tea and energy drinks. Cardiac and neurological toxicity at tiny doses for an animal this size.
never
ChocolateTheobromine and caffeine. Small mammals and reptiles cannot clear either.
never
CitrusAcidic, and it blocks calcium absorption.
never
FirefliesLucibufagins. Fatal to geckos.
never
GarlicSame allium toxicity as onion, and more concentrated by weight.
never
Insects larger than the gap between the eyesA recognised cause of impaction and neurological injury in small geckos. Size the feeder to the animal, every time.
never
LeekAllium family. Same mechanism as onion and garlic.
never
OnionOrganosulphur compounds damage red blood cells. The whole allium family is out.
never
RhubarbVery high in soluble oxalate, high enough to cause acute kidney injury. The leaves are worse than the stalks.
never
Salty or seasoned human foodSalt, oil and seasoning. Crisps, chips, seasoned leftovers and processed meat are all out.
never
Wild-caught insectsPesticides and parasites.
never
Rare treats (1)
WaxwormsVery fatty and habit-forming. Useful to get weight on a thin animal. One or two, rarely.
rare treat
Occasional (4)
HornwormsHigh water content; useful for a dehydrated animal. One occasionally.
occasional
Mashed fruitFor crested and gargoyle geckos only, and only as a supplement to a complete diet. Never for a leopard gecko. A small amount, alongside the complete diet.
occasional
MealwormsHard chitin and a poor calcium ratio. A leopard gecko fed only mealworms is a leopard gecko heading for calcium problems. A few alongside better feeders.
occasional
SuperwormsFatty. One or two.
occasional
Everyday foods (4)
Black soldier fly larvaeHigh in calcium, and readily taken. Several per feed.
everyday food
Complete crested gecko diet powderFor crested, gargoyle and chahoua geckos only, mixed with water. A complete food and the simplest way to feed those species correctly. Fresh, every other day, for fruit-eating species.
everyday food
CricketsStandard feeder. Gut-load for 24 hours before offering. Sized to the eye gap.
everyday food
Dubia roachesThe best routine feeder for insectivorous geckos. Sized no wider than the space between the eyes.
everyday food
That food is not on our list. Check which kind of gecko you have first — the two diets barely overlap — then ask an exotics vet.
Dust feeders with calcium to the schedule in the species guide, and keep a small dish of plain calcium available for insectivorous species.
Setup, monthly, first year and across a whole life, itemised and with the electricity worked out from the actual wattage. Published figures for the same animal disagree by a factor of four, so the calculator shows ranges rather than picking one.
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