Pet Frogs, Snakes, Lizards, Salamanders, Turtles, Newts and More!
The My Froggy blog is about exotic pets!
We love our pets and the weirder and wilder the better!
What kind of pets?
Well, mainly pets like Frogs, Snakes, Lizards, Salamanders, Turtles, Newts – BUT – we do want to blog about all kinds of animals – so be sure to let us know if we’re missing something here you’d like us to blog about!
Tips for raising reptiles as pets
One really important point about raising reptiles as pets is to keep the area sufficiently warm.
You need to learn about your individual pet and make sure the temperature is what is required for them to thrive.
Geckos thrive best when the daytime temperature is in the eighties, up to eighty-eight degrees.
All reptiles have to be really aware of how cold or hot they get, for their body temperature depends on the temperature of their surroundings. They spend much of their time doing two things: looking (or waiting) for food, and moving between sunny spots and shady (or wet) spots to warm up or cool off.
Nighttime temperatures can get to the middle sixties without causing any health problems. If your house is normally cooler than that, a lamp with a forty-watt bulb over the top of the cage should create enough heat to keep the gecko warm. There are also hot rocks that you can buy and put in the cage. Keep the cage out of direct sunlight (because it will get too warm) and have a screen cover for the top if you have small children or cats in your household.
If a reptile gets too warm, they can get very sick, and if it gets too cool, it is hard for the animal to have enough energy to move to a warmer spot. These warm spots are often the places that you find reptiles: turtles that come out of the water to sit on a rock or tree branch, and lizards that sit on a fence or sunny wall in order to catch the rays of the sun. Sometimes this search for warmth can dangerous, like the snakes that lie on a warm road at night.
Once you have the environment, go to a reputable pet store and select your geckos. Leopard geckos come in a variety of colors, and you can keep several in the same cage as long as there is only one male in the group (most geckos that are sold are female).
Most of the lizards are very specific about the temperature they thrive in. The temperature of their terrariums should be exactly matching to that of the natural habitat from where they come. Although lizards are cold-blooded, they require warmth for healthy growth. In the wild, the reptiles move to areas where they find desirable temperature. They stay out in the sun and even live in shade depending on the condition. So a temperature gradient is a must so that the appropriate temperature can be provided to the pet. Lizards are omnivorous. They eat fruits, leaves, insects, and smaller mammals.
They eat mealworms and crickets, and correct care and feeding should be discussed at length with the seller. A well taken care of gecko can live as long as twenty years.
Raising a reptile can be a fascinating hobby whether you are eight or fifty-eighty years old. Leopard geckos are among the easiest to raise, are easily tamed, and are always beautiful and interesting pets. Consider a gecko for your next pet.
More on exotic pets coming soon!
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