Exotic pets

bluevortex

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I have been intrested in getting a bearded dragon for a few years now. Now we have got a decent house im considering getting one. Theres a shop near me that sells all sorts of reptiles- snakes, spiders, scorpians, geckos, lizards, chameleons, iguanas and so on. I am seriously considering the beardy, even the other half has said okay to it. I can't quite decide wether to go for it or not.

Surely lots of people on this forum have kept this or other types of exotic animal. Care to share your experience?

Blue
 
My brother had an iguana. Got it when it was young and small. The trouble is my mum looked after it probably a bit too well and in a few years it grew to an impressive size.
In the end we couldn't really keep on extending its enclosure unless we wanted to give up a bedroom so it had to be donated to the local zoo (where suddenly it wasn't that big anymore compared to its competition).

It's an interesting animal but my brother soon understood that he wasn't going to get warmth and love back from it and lost interest.
I personally think they're better left in their environment unless you are really dedicated to them and prepared to give them as much space and care as they need.
Also I don't think everyone would be willing to look after it when you go on holidays :)
 
My mother-in-law is a bearded dragon. I don't know whether she is for sale though.
 
My mother-in-law is a bearded dragon. I don't know whether she is for sale though.

Nice one! :laugh:

would love to respond can't resist :D

It's a shame that my mate with his toughts has castrated me:mad:

I have a PEACOCK for sale which has a brilliant plumage and a tail. :devil:
 
theres a fair bit of work involved with most exotic pets....for starters cleaning the cage relatively frequently...which involves rehousing the animal safely for a few hours, then removing everything and cleaning it etc.....you might think in the wild nobody cleans so why need to in a vivarium....simple, in the wild it rains......in the wild there are far more natural to the location bugs and wildlife that clean stuff etc......

you need to keep things constant too, sudden shocks involving change in temp etc can kill a lot of these animals......also the tank needs to be big enough not to bore the creature senseless.....

oh and with some of the lizards, you need to feed them live meat, dead stuff just doesnt cut the mustard.....so if you dont mind picking up a few mice for it to scoff then cool beans....heh....obviously some dont eat mice, probably insects of varying types, others can be fed dead stuff tho.....

basically read up as much factual information as you can on the pet you are interested in.....

then only buy from a registered dealer.....check background with the appropriate people, check the CITES list to make sure the species you are buying is legal to be sold in this country......reason being if you decide you need to sell the animal on and arnt coldhearted enough to just kill it, if you phone up a classified ads paper/site and dont have the appropriate documents they wont advertise it (i worked for Loot so know a little about this)....

also they arnt dogs, they wont be something you can cuddle etc.....they are something you can study certainly....but if its just the ego trip of telling your mates you have a modern dinosaur in the living room thats making you want to buy one....DONT buy one.....that feeling wears off once you've told your mates a couple times and bored them to death when they come round with the 'look look it moved!' routine....
 
theres a fair bit of work involved with most exotic pets....for starters cleaning the cage relatively frequently...which involves rehousing the animal safely for a few hours, then removing everything and cleaning it etc.....you might think in the wild nobody cleans so why need to in a vivarium....simple, in the wild it rains......in the wild there are far more natural to the location bugs and wildlife that clean stuff etc......

you need to keep things constant too, sudden shocks involving change in temp etc can kill a lot of these animals......also the tank needs to be big enough not to bore the creature senseless.....

oh and with some of the lizards, you need to feed them live meat, dead stuff just doesnt cut the mustard.....so if you dont mind picking up a few mice for it to scoff then cool beans....heh....obviously some dont eat mice, probably insects of varying types, others can be fed dead stuff tho.....

basically read up as much factual information as you can on the pet you are interested in.....

then only buy from a registered dealer.....check background with the appropriate people, check the CITES list to make sure the species you are buying is legal to be sold in this country......reason being if you decide you need to sell the animal on and arnt coldhearted enough to just kill it, if you phone up a classified ads paper/site and dont have the appropriate documents they wont advertise it (i worked for Loot so know a little about this)....

also they arnt dogs, they wont be something you can cuddle etc.....they are something you can study certainly....but if its just the ego trip of telling your mates you have a modern dinosaur in the living room thats making you want to buy one....DONT buy one.....that feeling wears off once you've told your mates a couple times and bored them to death when they come round with the 'look look it moved!' routine....

Yeah yeah fair point..... thats why i haven't rushed out and bought one. I have been reading up about the animal a fair bit first and have been into my local pet shop to hold and learn a bit about the dragon. Im told that it will require live crickets amongst other foods - this is no problem, although my partner has said she wouldn't want to feed them to him, and it makes me wonder if friends or family would, should we be away for a period of time.
 
I used to keep tree frogs (had 6) and a few fire bellied toads in a 5'x3'x2' Vivarium. I had reasearched alot before hand but i was still shocked by how much it cost to keep the vivarium heated in the winter months. Extreame Expense:eek:
 
I'm currently on my second tarantula. This ones a Mexican Red Knee. The previous was a Chile Rose.

I found initially the warm, moist tank used to mean I got moss etc forming.

I now use plastic rocks and vermiculite as a substrate. Put the vermiculite in the microwave first to kill off any bugs.

A lot of people usually say what's the point you can't cuddle them. You can't cuddle a goldfish either.

She usually eats hoppers, or locusts these days and I've had this one from a tiny spiderling.
 
I'm currently on my second tarantula. This ones a Mexican Red Knee. The previous was a Chile Rose.

I found initially the warm, moist tank used to mean I got moss etc forming.

I now use plastic rocks and vermiculite as a substrate. Put the vermiculite in the microwave first to kill off any bugs.

A lot of people usually say what's the point you can't cuddle them. You can't cuddle a goldfish either.

She usually eats hoppers, or locusts these days and I've had this one from a tiny spiderling.

But people don't scream in fear when they see a goldfish.
 
I'm currently on my second tarantula. This ones a Mexican Red Knee. The previous was a Chile Rose.

I found initially the warm, moist tank used to mean I got moss etc forming.

I now use plastic rocks and vermiculite as a substrate. Put the vermiculite in the microwave first to kill off any bugs.

A lot of people usually say what's the point you can't cuddle them. You can't cuddle a goldfish either.

She usually eats hoppers, or locusts these days and I've had this one from a tiny spiderling.

I heard the mexican red knee can be quite aggressive - Is yours?
 
I used to have a Arowana

Loved it, didnt swim it flew in the tank, if you know what I mean!!!

Quick link if anybody wants any info!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arowana

These are my only pics!!
 

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I heard the mexican red knee can be quite aggressive - Is yours?

Actually I thought they were meant to be docile which is why you tend to see them on TV crawling over someone. But yes mine is a little tyke. My Chile Rose was very passive. Bear in mind it can be a similar thing with dogs. Particular breeds might be meant to be aggressive or passive but in reality individuals can be very different to how they should be.
 
British Tarantula Society - BTS Exhibition

The 25th BTS Annual Exhibition - Silver Jubilee

To be held at The Coseley School, Henne Drive, Off Ivyhouse Lane, Coseley West Midlands WV14 9JW.

This Sunday.

The place to be if you are interested in a tarantula.
 
I put up a thread some time ago about this exact subject and got some fairly good advice on that.

In the end I decided against it because it was for the kids and as usual I suspected that it would end up being my pet to look after...........
 
I've got a Cardisoma armatum. Otherwise known as an African Rainbow Crab (or Eric ;)). You should be okay with more common exotic pets, but slightly less common ones, such as Eric, you'll find a lot of rubbish out there about them.

If you believed everything you read on the net about them Eric is about 1.5 inches bigger across the carapace and about 3 years older than he can be in captivity! (I estimate he's about 7 to 8 years old at least). He's obviously getting a bit old now, but is still capable of waving his claws in anger prior to bravely running away with the best of them.... :D
 
I used to keep tree frogs (had 6) and a few fire bellied toads in a 5'x3'x2' Vivarium. I had reasearched alot before hand but i was still shocked by how much it cost to keep the vivarium heated in the winter months. Extreame Expense:eek:

I used to keep tree frogs too. They were a lot of fun and I housed them in a vivarium I built myself. Heating wasn't costly at all. I made the vivarium from marine ply on all sides except for a large double glazed unit in the front. Inside was lined with corrosion resistant mirror with inch thick polystyrene behind. Heating was via thermostatically controlled soil warming cable.

It was just like a tardis. it looked much, much bigger on the inside than it really was.

re tree frogs.... mine would jump acrobatically through the air to catch insects in mid flight. very skillfull. They barked like small dogs if I sprayed them with rainwater :)


It was a sad day when I had to sell the vivarium. A snake owner wanted it for his python!
 
I got an Indian Ornamental. First time I've bought an arboreal one.
 
There's a post in here from a few months ago that asks an almost identical question, have a search for it (try searching on my name and "herp" keyword), might help you.
 
I kept a pair of Uromastyx Ornatus for years(need to be lucky to keep them in pairs, I was lucky as bought them as babies, turned out male & female and co-existed perfectly).

I'd recommend Uromastyx to anyone considering keeping a lizard, the most underrated Lizards out there, as active as Beardies, just as much character, but IMO more interesting and depending on the type of vivarium you'd like to build they various breeds are quite different(ie. Ornatus like to climb so a viv with alot of branches and climbing spots will have them climbing all over, Acanthinurus like a rocky terrain and love to burrow, Aegyptius grow huge!).

Another bonus is they're mostly vegetarian. Well worth considering, just find a breeder(I bought from Terry Thatcher who is THE man in the UK for Uro's, although he's winding down a bit now). to buy from rather than a pet store, and do your research on the relevant breed to be sure you can build a suitable enclosure and set it up with all the correct equipment.
 
Crested Gecko FTW, simple to keep, (room temp is fine, although we do have a light in there), misting to keep humidity up, but not drastically, crickets and baby food mixed with a supplement, (baby food is pure banana purée). Get one that is used to being handled otherwise they tend to jump all over the place, and being sticky feet creatures, they can climb all over the viv.

Also have a super tame Royal Python, which are very easy to keep as well, slightly higher temps needed, feeds on dead mice once a week ish, but can go for a long time without. Only problem is when they poop you sure as hell know about it! Fully grown at about 4.5ft, and has never bitten, (nearly four years old).
 
Crested Gecko FTW, simple to keep, (room temp is fine, although we do have a light in there), misting to keep humidity up, but not drastically, crickets and baby food mixed with a supplement, (baby food is pure banana purée). Get one that is used to being handled otherwise they tend to jump all over the place, and being sticky feet creatures, they can climb all over the viv.

Also have a super tame Royal Python, which are very easy to keep as well, slightly higher temps needed, feeds on dead mice once a week ish, but can go for a long time without. Only problem is when they poop you sure as hell know about it! Fully grown at about 4.5ft, and has never bitten, (nearly four years old).

I was always under the impression that royals could be a little awkward when it comes to feeding, pinkie pumps could be the owners best friend; but do agree they are a great first herp (babysitted one for a couple of months a few years ago)

My only foray into reptile ownership was a Northern Pine (snake)

Beautiful temperament, definitely no problems with feeding (apart from how to stop her) she grew to around 5ft, cleaning the tank was definitely NOT a pleasure.

The OP may want to locate the nearest suitable vetinarian, and get an idea of the prices involved.

It is a sad fact that reptile treatment is expensive, and fraught with dangers that cannot be associated (obviously) with the care of mammals,

If this has been discussed already, I humbly apologise
 
I think it depends on the individual snake, we were lucky with ours as he is the most laid back, friendly one you could imagine, loves being out and about. He occasionally misses a feed, but we never get worried, and just keep putting the mice in every week and he eventually takes one.
It is really important to find a vet who specialises in reptiles, we have one about 10 miles away from us. Also good to have specialist reptile shop with knowledgable staff, again we have a few up here where the staff are also keepers, and they are always willing to offer advice.
 

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