Hi guys, I'm new here and was wondering if anyone else is like me and has an affinity for scaly things! I hope I posted in the right place!
I keep around a dozen snakes, from an itty bitty hog nose snake to a great big reticulated python. My main passion is "true" red tail boas. I have 6 of those from various regions in South America.
Here is my Flickr account with links to sets of individual animals.
It would be cool to own a monitor lizard. Or one of these!
Alas, I have trouble with things that need regular care. I can barely keep potted plants alive, so I keep myself from owning animals. It's for their own good I just think they look cute...
It would be cool to own a monitor lizard. Or one of these!
Alas, I have trouble with things that need regular care. I can barely keep potted plants alive, so I keep myself from owning animals. It's for their own good I just think they look cute...
I think that's an armadillo lizard. You can sometimes find them at reptile shows.
I used to have an iguana, and it got huge. It was pretty much like a dog for me. I've steered away from monitors because for the most part, they get huge, and need some ridiculously large enclosures. They can also be pretty destructive when they get bigger. I guess Savannahs aren't that big/destructive so far as monitors go, though.
That is one massive snake!! Can you carry him at that size?
Yes. Even though she is 11ft long or so, she only weighs like 22lbs. I expect her to top off anywhere from 14-16ft and 40-50lbs. So this species is very light for their length. Burmese pythons get really hefty, as do anacondas.
Originally Posted by Mordus
Not strictly a reptile, but in a few weeks I will be the proud owner of a tailless Whip Scorpion.
Hehe. I have 5 tarantulas, so congrats on your new critter. They are very interesting.
Originally Posted by Psychotime
As cool as reptiles are, do they really make good pets? They don't seem to naturally be the sociable type.
No, they are not social. They're pretty much eye candy that you can touch and hold. They are very enjoyable because I just don't have the time to dedicate to a dog or cat and they take up very little space.
Actually I don't think that's generally true. Some snakes are very social, some monitors are very social. Personality varies within a species so how can we generalize across the reptile kingdom? Why would you want to touch and hold something that didn't want to be?
It seems a bit insane to say they are pretty, not social, and you can touch and hold them.
They're not needy like dogs. It makes a good pet if you don't want something constantly trying to placate you. I guarantee there is a chance if you have a monitor or a large snake and allow it out of its cage to wander they will come visit you and enjoy being with you more than their heat lamp. Some will just sit next to you for the hell of it. Iguanas are known for being more social, but I had one and he was a bastard who would only come for food. Some Iguanas crave attention, love to be held and petted and will beg for attention.
I don't keep anything atm, if I had a setup I would keep caimans or rattlers of some kind. indigos are nice too.
Last edited by Izi; May 23rd, 2011 at 04:42 PM.
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Actually I don't think that's generally true. Some snakes are very social, some monitors are very social. Personality varies within a species so how can we generalize across the reptile kingdom? Why would you want to touch and hold something that didn't want to be?
It seems a bit insane to say they are pretty, not social, and you can touch and hold them.
They're not needy like dogs. It makes a good pet if you don't want something constantly trying to placate you. I guarantee there is a chance if you have a monitor or a large snake and allow it out of its cage to wander they will come visit you and enjoy being with you more than their heat lamp. Some will just sit next to you for the hell of it. Iguanas are known for being more social, but I had one and he was a bastard who would only come for food. Some Iguanas crave attention, love to be held and petted and will beg for attention.
I don't keep anything atm, if I had a setup I would keep caimans or rattlers of some kind. indigos are nice too.
The only time snakes socialize with their own kind is when they all flock to an overwintering den or to breed. Otherwise, they are pretty solitary critters. They can be pretty intelligent for reptiles, especially Cobras and the reticulated python. Mine recognizes me and knows when I am in the room, and becomes more active but I think she sees me as some form of security blanket and a bringer of food than a friend.
Lizards are definitely more social, you are right in that aspect.
Also, excuse my over-generalization it was the wee hours of the morning. Also, indigos are way awesome, but I hear they poop a LOT.
I don't have any reptiles as pets, but I do have a few turtles, snakes, and lizards that live on my property. Plus, I've met people that have owned reptiles, and have been to a reptile swap. (I would love to do it again.)
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I checked again but it looks like a normal iguana walk to me, all four legs are moving forward and he never drags them. Iguanas have strong forearms designed for gripping branches and lifting themselves up so are capable of pulling themselves along with the front arms, however the placement of the legs in the back horizontally is normal, ideal for gripping around cylindrical branches.
He looks strong and healthy, checked her other videos and he seems like a normal healthy specimen with remarkable coloration. They only get that big and well defined if you take good care of them for a long time.
Also read her dietary menu for him and it's almost perfect, except for the kiwi which I've heard some keepers say causes problems in chameleons so some iguana keepers avoid it.
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I grew up with a green iguana. He got to about five and a half feet before I left to go to school and we had to find a new home for him.
His first house was hand-built by my father and me, it was about 5 feet tall and had wire mesh covering the top so he could go up there (I also grew up with several cats). Later we put fencing around an 8' x 8' area under our deck and we could roll his house over and he could get from there to the outside enclosure through a tunnel.
I'd love to get a terrarium with something small, maybe a land crab, but for now it isn't feasible.
Originally Posted by Mordus
Not strictly a reptile, but in a few weeks I will be the proud owner of a tailless Whip Scorpion.
That is awesome!
I read a wonderful book on whip spiders some years ago, it's a shame I had to get it through inter-library loans.
I grew up with a green iguana. He got to about five and a half feet before I left to go to school and we had to find a new home for him.
His first house was hand-built by my father and me, it was about 5 feet tall and had wire mesh covering the top so he could go up there (I also grew up with several cats). Later we put fencing around an 8' x 8' area under our deck and we could roll his house over and he could get from there to the outside enclosure through a tunnel.
I'd love to get a terrarium with something small, maybe a land crab, but for now it isn't feasible.
That is awesome!
I read a wonderful book on whip spiders some years ago, it's a shame I had to get it through inter-library loans.
I grew up with a big one as well, he got so big, we proofed the house and let him roam in certain areas. He used a big potted plant as sort of a litter box. He would bask in window sills and sleep on my bed sometimes. Definitely a cool lizard. I just don't have time/space for a big lizard, now. Snakes are a little more forgiving of space, but I still take them out to bask/roam in the warmer months. I mist the retic with the hose.
We are building an outdoor pen for the little pancake tortoise. They are a small species, only about 6-8 inches in diameter or so, and very active. Good climbers, too.
Land crabs are cool. There are these brightly colored ones called Halloween crabs that come up for sale from time to time. Orange and purple and black, and from what I understand, strictly land crabs. We've tried hermits a few years back, but none of them made it so, no more crabs for us.
I got my first tarantulas last year. I must admit I'm still leery of spiders, but I've gotten over much of that by raising a mexican redknee. It kicks hairs at me but it's otherwise docile.
No i dont, unless the random geckos we get around the house count. I wish i did, nothing too big though, probably one of the little garden snakes we always had around when I was little ^^.
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EHhe, Popeye my green iguana (he loved spinache) had my entire room to roam when i went away to france for 2 years, my mom took care of him. he was quite social. Didnt enjoy beign petted or anything (he would close his eyes, that means they are zoning out, like an ostrich putting its head in the sand, not enjoying it!)
but he would hang around, and when i had a big computer monitor he would jump o me from the bed climbing up and sit on top of the monitor for the heat. He was deathly scared of crickets, and would run the other way if he saw one.
He was startled by his own farts.
When my mom cleaned the room he would sit on thedoorstep and look at my mom, he usually wasnt allowedto go out in the larger room because she keeps over 70plants outhtere, and he would casue a mess. so he was used to being shooed back in my room, andafter a while hed sit on the door step and look out, and then look at my mom. then she would motion to him with her hand that it was "ok" and he would scoot off to the plants. I don't know how much we are injecting in to that story, but I like to fool myself in to believing that there was some form of communication/understand there. He would sit there for maybe 10 min looking back and forwards between the great unknown and my mom.
He also had a place where he went tot he toilet, furthest from where he slept. Ill see if i can dig out some pics.
HE got to be abut 1.40 inc tail, but we dont have any pics of him from the last years unfortunaley. I had a cool ass terrarium with a waterfall!
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I used to have a turtle and I would love to have a few pet snakes. Right now with my financial instability, college lifestyle, and living in apartment means it is not very plausible .
I've got a blue tongued skink ( T.gigas) called Oscar. He's 5. He's pretty awesome.
I also have a tarantula. I'd like a snake but for the time being I'm all out of space.
Last edited by crowbones; June 3rd, 2011 at 01:17 AM.
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I had a leopard gecko for about 7 years. She passed in 08 from an unexplained abscess inside her abdomen. The vet tried to save her, but she never woke up. Her little body was so tired, and she had been ill for a few months prior. Her name was "Plasma".
She was quite docile and sweet, and curious. I'd recommend leos to anyone willing to love and care for them. I haven't thought about her in some time, but thinking about her makes me a little sad.
I don't currently have reptiles, but I do have a terrarium with 4 land hermit crabs. They're pretty cool to watch.
Where I live there are a couple of large ponds, and several species of aquatic turtles. They're pretty big, and will definitely come around looking for bread if you're feeding the ducks. Occasionally, I've brought them green veggies or carrots to on the healthy side. It's kind of funny how I actually worry about these wild turtles eating too much junk food. (bread isn't really good for them) I go often enough now that I think they may recognize me, and there are one or two turtles that will be bold enough to climb up n the bank just to see what I have. Made for great photos, I'm definitely gonna use them for art refs.
It's kind of funny how I actually worry about these wild turtles eating too much junk food. (bread isn't really good for them)
Not great for the ducks either tbh .
How are the hermit crabs as pets? I've seen them at the pet shop...they look so cool. But I hear they are quite noisy. Otherwise I thought of getting a couple in place of a snake.
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Kerrimonster, yeah I agree the bread's not too good for the birds either.
The hermit crabs aren't very noisy actually, unless you count the knocking of shells against glass every now and then at night. They can make a sort of croak/chirping sound but only do so on occasion. I usually never hear it.
They are pretty inexpensive in terms of care and maintenance, and they don't need vet care. A great deal of helpful info from other hermit crab hobbyists can be found here http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/index.php
You should definitely post there if you want to find out what you need to get started. I am a member there, so if you do join let me know.
Well I will definitley take a look over there, I really like crustaceans
They look so cool.
I really want a milk snake or a king snake, or a rainbow boa...I really like grey banded king snakes. But the new place I'm moving into would be so cramped with a viv that size. Plus I don't know whether my future housemates would mind mice etc in the freezer. Boo.
This thread induces much jealousy, I miss snakes so much
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I just think they look cute...
Originally Posted by RyerOrdStar
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