Is It Safe to Feed Your Crested Geckos Bananas?
Last Updated: January 25, 2023
Taking good care of your pet requires feeding them a nutritious diet, which may include fresh fruit. There are a lot of fruits crested geckos can eat, but some are dangerous. What about bananas? These plants thrive in hot, humid places like New Caledonia. Can crested geckos eat bananas? Are they a good choice, or should you avoid them?
Yes, crested geckos can eat bananas. It is the first ingredient in many commercial gecko powders. However, too much can disrupt their calcium levels. Bananas can be a safe part of a balanced diet, especially when blended with other foods.
You likely have other questions. How much is too much? Do I serve it with or without the peel? What are the best things to mix with the banana?
These are vital to ask before feeding your pet something new.
We will cover the benefits and challenges of serving your pet this tasty fruit and the steps you can take to prepare it to become an even better pet lizard person!
Do Crested Geckos Eat Bananas in The Wild?
We study what an animal eats in their natural habitat so we can give them a healthy, proper diet in captivity.
Bananas are tropical fruit grown around the world. Some species of banana are native to New Caledonia.
Did you know that there are more than 1,000 varieties? There are! The type of banana most of us know is the Cavendish.
Have you ever noticed that your banana doesn’t have any seeds? Because of this, this fruit can’t grow new plants. Instead, the plant creates offshoots. Farmers transplant those seedlings to grow new plants, but they are genetically identical to the parent plant.
Breeding like this has led to consistency in size, color, taste, and texture of the fruit we eat but vulnerability to pests and disease and efforts to save them.
Why does that matter? Because the fruit in our grocery stores doesn’t occur without human help. We can be confident that what we eat isn’t the same as what is in the rainforests of New Caledonia.
Even though it is unlikely that a wild crested gecko has ever tasted our bananas, it doesn’t necessarily mean they are not safe for it to eat.
Let’s look at the pros and cons to learn more.
Nutritional Value
Not only are bananas incredibly popular, but they also contain many healthy nutrients.
The nutrients in raw bananas, calculated by a standing serving of 3.5 ounces (or 100 grams), are:
- Calories: 89
- Water: 75%
- Protein: 1.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 22.8 g
- Sugar: 12.2 g
- Fiber: 2.6 g
- Fat: 0.3 g
- Calcium (Ca): 5 mg
- Phosphorous (P): 22 mg
- Iron (Fe): 0.26 mg
- Magnesium (Mg): 27 mg
- Potassium (K): 358 mg
- Sodium (Na): 1 mg
- Zinc (Zn): 0.15 mg
- Copper (Cu): 0.078 mg
- Manganese (Mn): 0.27 mg
- Vitamin C (total ascorbic acid): 8.7 mg
Bananas are full of essential vitamins and minerals. They are famous for their potassium and vitamins B6 and C, which may benefit heart health by lowering blood pressure.
In addition, bananas promote digestive health. They contain starch and pectin that support the growth of helpful bacteria in the GI tract.
In moderation, bananas are a very healthy addition to a diet.
Are Bananas Good or Bad for Crested Geckos?
Unfortunately, there aren’t lots of published studies on the health impact of feeding bananas to crested geckos.
So how do we know? First, we need to look at some key ingredients.
What Is the Calcium-Phosphorous Ratio?
All reptiles, including crested geckos, need calcium (Ca).
Calcium is critical for healthy bones and helps the heart, nerves, and blood function.
A body tries to get calcium from food but will take it from its bones if it doesn’t have enough. Doing this too often will leave the body without enough calcium to function.
Phosphorous (P) stops the body from using calcium, which makes matters worse.
Unfortunately, both Ca and P are present in many fruits and vegetables. Getting the right amounts of each isn’t easy.
The ideal calcium-to-phosphorous ratio for reptiles is 2:1. This means there should be twice as much Ca as P in every bite.
Bananas have 5 milligrams of Ca and 22 milligrams of P. That isn’t enough nearly calcium to be healthy for a reptile.
From this perspective, bananas are not healthy for crested geckos. They might be harmful in large quantities.
Wait. How can bananas be used so much in a store-bought gecko diet? Even though they are a big part of the mixture, the other ingredients offset the low calcium content.
Calcium-to-Phosphorous Ratio in Bananas
Bananas have a 0.2:1 Ca:P ratio, which is poor.
Oxalic Acid in Bananas
Oxalic acid is another compound that also interferes with calcium. Unfortunately, there is no ideal ratio for oxalic acid. We want to keep the oxalic acid content as low as possible.
Good news! Bananas are low in oxalate, with only 3 milligrams of oxalic acid per banana.
So, Are They Good or Bad?
Bananas are acceptable as an every-once-in-a-while treat for cresties.
While they have a poor Ca-to-P ratio, they have other nutrients and are low in oxalates. We can consider these a monthly treat.
Bananas In Crested Gecko Diet
Many commercially prepared crested gecko diet blends use bananas.
It is the first ingredient in over a dozen types of CGD, making it the component that weighs the most in a sample.
What does that tell us?
First, we can say confidently that crested geckos can safely eat bananas.
Second, it may help you guess whether your crested gecko will like bananas. Check the ingredient list for your current CGD. Is dried banana on there? If so, the taste may be familiar to your pet.
Feeding Instructions
What Is the right portion size?
The amount of food to give to a crested gecko is relative to the size of the lizard.
Compare a 1/8 teaspoon, 1/4 teaspoon, and a 1/2 teaspoon to the space between the crested geckos’ eyes. Notice which teaspoon is the same size or a bit smaller. That teaspoon is one serving of fruit for that animal.
How often can I serve banana?
Bananas are a treat.
Ideally, your pet should primarily eat meal powder with some live feeder insects and occasional fruit. This mixture will provide them with the vitamins and minerals they need. It also won’t disrupt their calcium levels.
Following this approach, you can feed your crested gecko bananas once a month.
Remember that bananas shouldn’t be the only fruit you feed your pet. Variety is essential to getting your crested gecko all the nutrients they need, even if they like one the best! Fruit is always a treat!
How do I prepare and offer a banana?
Crested geckos don’t use their teeth to bite and chew their food. Their tongues do most of the work!
Any solid food provided to a crestie should be small enough pieces to be easily swallowed and digested.
Softer, overripe – even slightly spoiled – is ok. In the wild, crested geckos eat fruit that has fallen to the ground once it ripened. Even if it isn’t our preference, this is natural for them.
Preparation
First, wash the banana to remove pesticides or bacteria. You can use a fruit and vegetable wash to break down the chemicals, wax, and residue covering it. Rub it with the produce cleaner under cold water and then pat it dry.
Remove the peel and discard it. While some other lizards enjoy eating the peel, it is not healthy for crested geckos.
Then, slice off a piece and either mash it or puree it. Whole banana slices can be challenging for your pet to manage.
Should you serve bananas with or without the peel?
It is better to remove the peel from a banana before serving it to a crested gecko.
Banana peels are likely to have pesticides or other chemicals on them. They can also be hard to swallow and may strain their tummies.
Can I mix the banana with something else?
Yes! Bananas contain excellent healthy nutrients but aren’t a ‘perfect food’ for crested geckos. Mixing them with something else can reduce the problems. Mashing or pureeing makes mixing them easy.
CRG and papaya are reliable options because they are higher in calcium than phosphorous, which helps balance out the downside of bananas.
You can mix bananas with other foods, like crickets or dubia roaches, or another fruit, like strawberries, but these mixtures won’t be as healthy. Only do this once a month and not two months in a row.
Buying and Storing Bananas
What is the best month to buy them?
Unlike many other fruits, bananas are available year-round. Because they are grown where heat and humidity are consistent, they don’t have four seasons.
You can buy bananas when you want.
How do I pick a good one?
Choosing a good bunch depends on how soon you plan to use it. Bananas ripen after being picked, changing from green to yellow to brown.
A ripe banana, ready to eat, is yellow with some brown spots. Ripe bananas have no green on the peel, which is easy enough to notice. Dark, overly soft areas on the skin usually indicate bruising inside.
How long do they keep?
Because bananas continue to ripen, how long you can keep them depends on how ripe they are when you purchase them and how you store them.
Eat or serve peeled bananas immediately. If you are trying to keep them longer, only peel what you will use. Place the other section in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
You can speed up this process by placing the bananas in an open paper bag on the countertop. You can slow it down by placing them in the refrigerator.
Store at room temperature, away from sunlight.
Do All Crested Geckos Like Fresh Banana?
Just like with people, individual crested geckos have dietary preferences. Not every person likes the taste or texture of bananas, nor does every crestie.
Do you remember a time you tried a new food? Maybe you took only a little taste and then stopped and tried again later. Just like humans, crested geckos need to warm up to new things.
If you’ve given a banana to your pet and they didn’t eat every last bite the first time, don’t worry. Try mixing the fruit with another familiar food to help them adjust to the taste.
Conclusion
Crested geckos can eat bananas periodically, up to once a month.
While they have a less-than-ideal Ca-to-P ratio, they have a lot of potassium and B6.
Many crested geckos love the taste and will be thrilled for their treat!
Remove the peel and mash it before offering it to your pet. Mix it with CGD or insects to make it even healthier.
Bananas are in many CGD on the market.
If they are something your crested gecko enjoys, bananas can be part of a diet that helps them live a long, healthy life.
What about other fruits? Can Crested Geckos Eat Blueberries?