# + Reptiles as Pets



## Ethics (Dec 16, 2004)

Hey,

I recently looked into purchasing some kind of reptile as a pet. I've owned a gecko before, and sometime ago for 3 RBP.

I really had my eyes set on a Veiled Chameleon but i just read that they don't like to be handled. I want something I can handle, and maybe let free in my room while im there.

Can you guys maybe give me some suggestions on what I can purchase?

Thanks,
Mario


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## lemmywinks (Jan 25, 2004)

bearded dragons are awesome. They are very easy to care for. just make sure they have a basking spot that get to around 90-100, they get proper lighting, and get fed and watered regularly. They are also very dicile lizzards and do not mind one bit if they are held


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## smokinbubbles (Mar 25, 2005)

i would recomand a bearded dragon as well. they are big easy to care for peaceful animals. another you might wantt o look at that gets a little bit bigger (about 3 feet) is a water dragon. look sorta similar to a iguana as a baby and a adult but a lot smaller. both these lizardas are fairly large and can have some great personalits to em. my cousin was campin at some place awhile back and there was a guy there that goes campin he said quite a bit and he just walks around with this 2 foot water dragon on his shoulder.

J-Rod

also yeah stay away from chameleons, like you said they don't like to be handled and there skin is extremly senstive. i was given a panther chamelon from a local petstore that was attacked by a snake and had this huge bruise on its side. the panther made a slow recovery but eventually died. they make great pets though if you know what you are doin. not recomanded for starting out in keeping reptiles.


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## jan (Apr 24, 2004)

Maybe you get some better response in the reptile section. Personally I like Iguana's best. They look great and are relexed enough to handle.


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## Wisdom16 (Feb 19, 2005)

I personally like savanna monitors, but they get 3-4 feet long so you'll definently notice them in the room







Bearded Dragons are great too, you might want to chck out Dragoncharm.com or check with Dracofish on here. She breeds them and they are exceptionally nice. Very reasonably priced too.


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

jan said:


> Maybe you get some better response in the reptile section. Personally I like Iguana's best. They look great and are relexed enough to handle.
> [snapback]1040558[/snapback]​


Maybe that's the experience YOU had with iguanas... However they can be very tempermental and vicious. And once they get some size on them could easily maul a small child - either using its claws to scrape the hell out of them or its tail to whack them into submission. I've personally heard of both happening. Igs also have rediculous care needs as they get so big. Look at the average closet in a home today and that would be a minimum size for a suitable enclosure.

As for chams... Way too fragile if you want something you can handle. They stress so easily. Not to mention the problems sometimes had with feeding, the entire drip system needed so they can drink, the screened enclosure opposed to a tank, etc. Definitely ONLY a display animal. I've personally toyed with getting one quite a few times but each time decided not to as the start up cost is big, maitenance is fiendish, and the enclosures need to have a condierable amount of branches and leaves (fake or real) so the 'display' factor is cut down a lot.

Bearded dragons are a great choice. Just make sure you have the room and money to invest in a cage big enough when the time comes. Another option is a uro. Those are some cool reptiles and feed mainly on fruits and veggies - only the occasional cricket or something as a treat. But they really need super high temps, so that's something to consider as well.


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## Ethics (Dec 16, 2004)

Hey,

Thanks guys, you have really helped me out quite a bit. I've got my mind set on a bearded dragon now.

I will do some reading on them see if i could handle what's required of them. I'll also start putting money aside for the expenses. The piranha tank cost me a small fortune, so im going to play it smart this time and tyr to buy something used.

As for the dragon, I'll try to get it as small as possible, I love wtahcing things grow.

If you guys have anymore advice for me, I'd love to hear it.

I will give it a few weeks to make sure Im really into it, and then go ahead and search for a nice bearded dragon i could purchase.

Thanks,
Mario


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

With a beardie, I'd definitely recommend getting it small. They grow fairly quickly so it wouldn't be tiny for too long. As for enclosure, you can start off with something small. Like a 10 gallon tank if you get the beardie as a tiny baby. It's actually not a bad idea to keep them in something smaller when they're younger. A huge enclosure would be kind of intimidating and it also makes it a lot harder for them to catch the crickets you'll be serving them up as food. You might also want to think about rubbermaid containers at first - like the transparent ones. Not very pretty, but cheap at places like Walmart and Home Depot, and a good option for something when it's small rather than investing in multiple tanks.

As for the tank... Can't remember what size for an adult. Maybe someone can fill in that blank. But cruise yard sales and maybe check out if you have a local herp and/or aquarium society where you could possibly get something for cheaper.

Good luck!


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## smokinbubbles (Mar 25, 2005)

just like mettle said uros as well. these are grat lizards but can runa little pricey. i have seen malies (the cheapest of the uros) run from 40 to 130 for babies. they can have quite a great personality to em. one of the best things baout em you don't give em water. you actually aren't supposed ot give em a water dish at all or mist em, it can be bad for em. they get all their water fomr the plant matter they eat (this is due form being form such hot climates.) i have a egyptian uro that is a great lizard but he knows hes got a boom stick and he uses it and yeah it can hurt like hell if he hits you right. right now mine is about 11 years old and weighs around 4 pounds. one of the funny things about uros. is they have one buck tooth at the front of there mouth but just don't get your hand close to the lizard if its abitter casue uros have extremly powerful jaws that can slice through your skin like a hot knife throguh butter. heres my egyptian uro, sampson. have any more questions on the uros fell free to pm me.

J-Rod


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## ElKingo (Apr 29, 2005)

Mettle said:


> As for the tank... Can't remember what size for an adult. Maybe someone can fill in that blank.Good luck!
> [snapback]1041224[/snapback]​


I'd say at least 40"x16"x16" for one and 48"x20"x20" for a pair.

BTW these 'uro's' some of you are talking about, does anyone have a scientific name for me, I don't know the English slang.

Ciao,


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## Burf (Nov 3, 2003)

_Uromastyx acanthinura/aegyptia/hardwickii/maliensis_


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## dracofish (Jul 13, 2003)

Here's a link to my caresheet on Bearded Dragons:
http://www.dragoncharm.com/caresheet.htm

We house ours in rubbermaid containers (not the clear ones). I really wouldn't recommend something as small as a 10g for babies because it's nearly impossible to establish a proper heat gradient in something that small. You need to have enough room for all cage furniture (dishes and whatnot), a basking spot of 105-110 degrees and a cool side below 80. For furnishings we only use slate basking rocks (NEVER NEVER heat rocks), and driftwood perches under the UV light. There are fresh plates of food and water offered daily and a high-sided dish of superworms is offered at all times.

When purchasing a juvenile, you really don't want to get it as small as possible. Too many breeders are selling hatchlings of 4-5" and about 4g in weight. These animals are WAY TOO SMALL TO BE SOLD. Our hatchlings are that size out of the egg. We refuse to sell any juveniles at less than 15g in weight. At this point they are more able to withstand the super stress of shipping and going to a new home. If you buy one at a smaller size risk of death increases exponentially. One that's a few weeks older may cost a few dollars more, but it's worth it in the long run.

As far as Iguanas go, I love ours and she's the sweetest and most personable reptile you'll ever see, but I'd be the first to say that it's a rarity and that Iguanas really don't make such great pets as Petco would like you to believe. We've had ours for five years now and she's more like a dog than a reptile.


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## Ethics (Dec 16, 2004)

Amazing Information.

Thank you guys for taking the time to write out some info.

I have a few questions.

Could anyone post a picture of their enclosure, I'd really like to see what's involved in placment, and what's really required to keep a Bearded Dragon.

Are they quick runners?

Does anyone take theirs outside? Im kinda scared they can run away and climb a tree or something, has this ever happened to anyone? Is this a possibility?

Uros are very very cool Lizards also, Im reading up on them now, I'm going to call a few pet stores around here and see if they ahve any for sale incase that's what I choose.

Thanks for all the help guys,
Mario


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## ElKingo (Apr 29, 2005)

Burf said:


> _Uromastyx acanthinura/aegyptia/hardwickii/maliensis_
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thanks









Those are nice animals, but I always thought they are not quite a beginners species due to their stressy nature









Oh well, thanks for the info









Adios


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## Burf (Nov 3, 2003)

ElKingo said:


> Burf said:
> 
> 
> > _Uromastyx acanthinura/aegyptia/hardwickii/maliensis_
> ...


I have also heard that, but as I have had no experience with them I couldnt really comment


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## smokinbubbles (Mar 25, 2005)

Burf said:


> ElKingo said:
> 
> 
> > Burf said:
> ...


i have never heard anyhting about uros and stress nature but my egyptian use to be a little skiddish casue the home he came from but itsn't so bad now. like i said the mail is the cheapest of the uros. at reptile shows i have seen em cheap (about 40 bucks) but if you look at places that get em from breeders they are expensive (100-140). we have a little baby mail right now at my work goin for 112 and i have been really think about buyin it casue i can get it for about 80. just wanted ot add in on the iguanas, iguanas can make great pets like dracofish but they can be quite aggressive. i have seen pics of a full grown male ina reptile mag. that pretty much ripped off this ladies nose. they had pics of it and everything







. we use to have a iguana as well that was a little over 4 feet that was like a dog, that even slept with the dogs. he had roam of the house and we were even allwed to leave the doors open to the back deck casue he was just so calm. he would go out their and sunbath and came back when he was done. he even one morning crawled in bed with my parenst and their bed isn't that short either. he sadly died though when we went out of town and became really really sick. we got back home to be there with em for his last moments with us.

J-Rod


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## dracofish (Jul 13, 2003)

Here's a picture of one of our enclosures shown with juveniles from a couple seasons ago:









The slate is situated under the heat lamp and the driftwood is situated under the fluorescent UV strip. Food and water dishes go on the cool side as well as bug dishes.


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## johndeere (Jul 21, 2004)

Get a Mali Uromastyx those thing are awsome.


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## nswhite (Mar 23, 2005)

bearded dragons are the best to handle and maintain they grow very fast. vield's can be handled but it is very stressfull for the veild and if you know anything about reptiles you would know that stress is bad


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## Mr. T (May 26, 2005)

all of those mentioned are awesome begginer lizards. Iwould say that the easiest and cheapest would be leopard gecko. I personally like the beardies better and they are very calm and easy to handle. Also think about a mali like smokinbubbles said those are really cool.


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## smokinbubbles (Mar 25, 2005)

nswhite said:


> bearded dragons are the best to handle and maintain they grow very fast. vield's can be handled but it is very stressfull for the veild and if you know anything about reptiles you would know that stress is bad
> [snapback]1042136[/snapback]​


veiled chameleon are not the best beginner lizard. chameleons are one of the hardest lizards to own, the veiled are just one of the eaisest to own out of the chameleons. like i and nswhite have said they get stressed out way to easy and not recomanded for a person lookin to hold their pet. now don't get me wrong though, a chameleon can be held but he has to be a extremly healthy chameleon that is calm, let the chameleon walk around on you instead of you pickining it up.

J-Rod


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## Ethics (Dec 16, 2004)

Hey,

Thanks guys for all the great replies. I have decided to go with a Bearded Dragon.

Now I have a dilema, I need to figure out what I have to buy, and how much it's all going to cost.

Can someone help me make alist of what I might need? How big of a cage ( I'd like it to be roomy so it's not stressed out ). Are any brands better then others?
and what everyhting might cost me?

I know it's a little much to ask, but i'll do some research right now and try to find out on my own, but if anyone has a spare minute could you help me out.

Thanks,
Mario


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## PunkRockSkater39 (May 31, 2004)

where u live? i have a baby beardie for sale


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## Ethics (Dec 16, 2004)

Toronto, Canada


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## PunkRockSkater39 (May 31, 2004)

lol nvm
i live in CA


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## nomaddan (Nov 26, 2004)

Not to beat a dead horse, but as far as Iguanas go...

I still have scars on my arms from being whipped by mine. He was the meanest sob around. I had him in a 6' x 4' x 3' enclosure. When I needed to clean the cage or him it was like a boxing match







. I would have to get a big towel and cover his head to be able to get near him. God forbid if I missed covering him or he moved. Once he got loose while I was cleaning his cage and when I tried to catch him he whipped me across the forearm that ripped about 8" of skin. I eventually had to give him to my vet who was going to try and place him in a rescue "ranch". Last I heard he was terrorising(sp) the palce.


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## psychofish (Jun 5, 2004)

nomaddan said:


> Not to beat a dead horse, but as far as Iguanas go...
> 
> I still have scars on my arms from being whipped by mine. He was the meanest sob around. I had him in a 6' x 4' x 3' enclosure. When I needed to clean the cage or him it was like a boxing match
> 
> ...


what a punk


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## shutter13 (Jun 23, 2004)

ever think of a snake?... ball pythons dont mind being handled one bit and are extremly nice...

maybe look into a milk snake or corn snake too


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## Ethics (Dec 16, 2004)

Hey,

Sure a snake would be great, are they active? I mean if i left it out in my room would it crawl around freely.

Also what do they eat? Are their enclosures expensive?

Thanks,
Mario


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## shutter13 (Jun 23, 2004)

Ethics said:


> Hey,
> 
> Sure a snake would be great, are they active? I mean if i left it out in my room would it crawl around freely.
> 
> ...


yea of course they would!! if you handle them regularly they wont get lazy....

IMO snakes are the easiest pets to care for..... when they get bigger you feed them every 3-4 weeks, change their water every other day, and clean their cage every couple months..... you wont need to worry about going on vacation etc.

assuming you would buy a baby, a 10g tank would suit it for some time... but i would just go with a 20g right off the bat so you wont have to worry about upgrading for awhile.... im not sure how much a 20g is... but shouldnt be more than $25-40.... then you need substrate (Repti Bark is good) a water dish, some decorations like wood etc... a small heat lamp and thats it

as babys they eat frozen or live pinkies (hairless baby mice), then they go to fuzzies, larger mice, small rats, larger rats etc.

read up on milk snakes, corn snakes (albino corn snakes too) and ball pythons.... they're all better than lizards


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## Guest (Jun 3, 2005)

Dammit! Now I have to go and buy a lizard! I think Im goin to get some leopard Geckos









Either a lizard, or a bird...hmmm.

Or another reef tank....

By the way ethics, I know someone in T.O who is lookin to sell thier Leopards if you are interested?

--Dan


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

shutter13 said:


> Ethics said:
> 
> 
> > Hey,
> ...


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## dracofish (Jul 13, 2003)

Another great Snake that I'd argue as being the best "pet" Snake would be a Western Hognose...


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## shutter13 (Jun 23, 2004)

yup, my brother's python eats smaller rats


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## shutter13 (Jun 23, 2004)

i just saw him yawn!!! coolest thing ever


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## Wisdom16 (Feb 19, 2005)

Dammit y'all, know I want a Beardy.


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## PuffPiff (May 23, 2005)

i own a bearded named rufus and he is very docile....excellent for the beginner....tortoises are cool too i have a red foot


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## smokinbubbles (Mar 25, 2005)

PuffPiff said:


> i own a bearded named rufus and he is very docile....excellent for the beginner....tortoises are cool too i have a red foot
> [snapback]1059531[/snapback]​


yes beardies can make great pets. mine that i have now wheni got it from the perosn always wanted ot bite but all i did was just normal care for em (changing water, feeding ,etc..) and he has become so docile. and yes tortoises kick some major ass as well. i would love to geta sulcata. i have read that they are just like a dog and when you go outside (they can get over 200 pounds) they will come up to you.

J-Rod


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