Classification of Reptile Pets | Keeping Reptiles as Pet

Written on November 5, 2010 – 2:57 pm | by admin |

Reptiles are animals having scales (ruff curls) on their body. Reptiles are among the oldest species and widely adopted as pets. Reptile Pets are very popular among kids. Having a reptile as pet is very fascinating and most of the reptile pets can be handled easily. If you are interested in reptile pet, knowledge about reptile types and reptile feed is necessary. Also it is very important that reptile pet should be provided with suitable living conditions. All these things depend upon the species type adopted by you. Reptile pets can be divided into several categories including crocodilians, lizards, snakes, turtles and tortoises. Following is brief introduction of reptile pet types.

Crocodilians

Crocodilians are big reptiles. Crocodilians are not commonly kept as pets because most of crocodilians are several feet long and can be dangerous for human. It is not easy to keep them in home. Lot of experience and expertise is required before you can adopt crocodilian as pet.

Crocodilian is in fact a group of animals consisting of four major families including crocodiles, gharials, caimans and alligators. Crocodiles and alligators and more popular. Apparently, all of these look same.

Crocodilians like meat. Although they are big animal, but surprisingly they do not need much food. So their feed do not cost much. In natural environment they get it by hunting fishes, birds, other small mammals and even small crocodilians.

Lizards

Lizards are available in wide variety and sizes. There are thunders of lizards species. Their size ranges from inches to feet. Most of the lizards species  are harmless for human. So Lizards are most common reptile pets.  Famous Lizard pets include Leopard Gecko, Axolotl, green Iguana, Bearded dragons, girdled lizards, Blue-tongued Lizards, Armadillo Lizard and Carolina Anole.

Small Lizards eat small plants, meal worms and other small insects. Large Lizards eat mammals.

Snakes

Snakes are found in about 3000 different types world wide. Few of these are very dangerous while others are harmless. Corn Snake, Garter Snake, Ball Python and king sakes are very popular pet snakes.  Snake pets are easy to handle and feed. They do not need much space. Their maintenance cost is very low as compared to others pets. Some snakes species are very small while other can grow to several meters.

Snakes eat small animals like mice, rats, beavers, Squirrels and other rodents. They can also hunt birds. If you have decided to keep a snake as pet, you can buy frozen rodents from stores and feed you snakes. Few snakes like to remain in water and these snakes should be provided with fresh water on daily basis.

Turtles and Tortoises

Turtle are another reptile type which is widely kept as pets. These are among widely seen reptile pets.  Apparently, turtle and tortoises look same but they are quite different species.

Turtle usually live in water, specifically in salted water. Turtle have fillips on their body which help theme to swim. Small turtle of around 4-6 inches are very popular among kinds. Some turtle are very big and can gain huge weight, in thunders KGs.

Tortoises have legs and they usually like to live on land. They also like fresh water. Tortoises are long living and can have life upto 150 years while turtle have lifespan of about 20 to 40 years.

Small turtle can be dangerous for kids. They can spread diseases among children. This is the reason why U.S government banned the sale of very small turtles. So if you have small kids, do not adopt a small turtle. Make sure that turtle size is great than five inches.

Feed of these reptile pets depend upon their species. Turtle and tortoises  can eat meat and plants like vegetables ,  flowers, weed, grass, worms and insects. Before buying a turtle or tortoise, inquire about its feed as different species like different food.  Feeds available for dogs should not given to turtles and tortoises because such type of food can not fulfill their body requirements.

Galapagos, False Map turtle, Graptemys, box turtles, Mary River turtles, Black-Breasted Hill, Bog turtles are well known turtle types kept as pets.

Russian tortoises, Red-Footed Tortoise, Aldabra Tortoise, Bolson Tortoise and Indian Star Tortoise are some of famous tortoise pet types.

Keeping an Alligator as Reptile Pet

Written on November 1, 2010 – 6:33 pm | by admin |

Alligators belong to a reptile class called crocodilian. Alligators are very popular as reptile pets. Alligator are found in two species, American alligator and Chinese Alligator.  Alligators are big animals, about 450 kg in weight and 14 inches in length.

Keeping an Alligator as pets is really challenging and also very interesting. You must consider and examine several important things before making a final decision. First of all, you must arrange the place or enclosure where the pet will be kept. Alligator needs water as well as dry place.  So what should be the size of area where the pet will be kept? As the average length of Alligator is about 14 feet, its living enclose should be about 4 times of its size. So it should be about 40X40 feet and about 75% area should be filled with water. A proper system should be installed to change water at regular intervals.

Now the questions arises that how much Alligators eat and what type of food should be given? Alligators like all other crocodilians like meat. Alligators feed consists of  live animals and frozen animals which are easily available at stores. Young alligator should be provided with insects while adult alligators like fish, birds and other mammals. Feeding should be done very carefully. Alligators usually jump and show excitement while taking food. Alligator’s jaw may hit some part of your body. So you should stay at safe distance. Alligators do not eat much, an adult alligator may need food only once or twice a week. When you buy alligator, remember to discuss it feeding requirements.

Although it requires time and money to keep to an Alligator but surely having reptile pet makes your lifestyle unique and prominent. Reptile pets provide lot of fun and joy for you family members, especially for children.