What You Need to Know Before getting a pet Reptile
If you’re thinking about getting a reptile as a pet, I am so excited for you! But you need to slow down for one minute because there are some things you should know in order to make that decision. Today, we’re going to be talking about what you need to know in order to have a pet reptile.
But there are things you need to consider before you get a pet reptile. And that’s what we are going to be talking about today. I’m going to be sharing with you all the things you need to consider and research before making the decision to bring a reptile into your home, and before you decide on what type of reptile you should get.
Know Your Lifestyle
The very first thing I believe is so important to consider before bringing a reptile into your home—before you even begin researching reptiles—is to determine the type of lifestyle you have. There is typically a reptile that will fit any lifestyle, but the type of lifestyle that you live can dictate what kind of reptile is best suited for you.
For example, if you are someone who has to travel quite a bit, whether it’s for work or other reasons, you probably don’t want to get something like a bearded dragon because bearded dragons require daily care. That being said, you could easily have a ball python and leave a ball python home alone for a few days without any real concerns, provided you have your husbandry correct (We’ll discuss husbandry more later in this post).
Time
You also need to know how much time you want to spend with your reptile and how much free time you have as permitted by your lifestyle. If you want a hands-on pet that you can carry around and hold, you may like:
Bearded dragons
Crested geckos
Leopard geckos
Or maybe you are looking for more of a “display animal”, an animal that you are going to be able to look at but not necessarily handle. In that case, you can consider chameleons or crocodile skinks. There are honestly so many amazing reptiles, I could talk for hours and hours, but I’m trying (really trying) to contain myself!
The important thing to remember is, you want to provide your pet reptile with the best life possible. And that means making sure they fit into your lifestyle.
What Kind of Food Can You Handle?
The next question I always love to ask people when they come to me for advice about getting a reptile as a pet is, what type of food are you most comfortable handling? Here’s the thing: there are many different types of food that reptiles need to have, depending on the species. And you have to be comfortable handling it.
For example, I have many snakes, and all but one of them lives on frozen/thawed rodents. That means, once a week or once every 10 days, I am feeding snakes frozen/thawed—previously, ahem, deceased—rats or mice. That’s not something that everyone is going to be comfortable with. Regardless of what your comfort level is with the food item of choice, your reptile has to eat.
The other area that people can get squeamish about is that many reptiles require some form of insect in their diet. Like my beardie, Q. While he enjoys greens and veggies, he also requires a certain amount of protein which he gets from Dubia roaches with his meals. You have to be comfortable with that type of thing in order to have a reptile.
Now maybe you’re not comfortable feeding with insects or rodents. There are options for you, too! For someone who doesn’t necessarily want to handle live/previously living food sources, a great option is a crested gecko. Cresties eat a powdered blend mixed with water (think of a consistency similar to baby food). And that covers their entire diet.
Once you know what you’re comfortable with, it will be easier to decide what reptile best suits your lifestyle. Still unsure? Reach out to those who have experience or have reptiles and see how you do.
Housing Requirement
Once you’ve determined your lifestyle and what reptile suits you, it’s time to start looking into the reptile of choice. You probably already have something in mind. You’re thinking a lizard, maybe a snake. Time to research the requirements. The very first thing I always say to research when it comes to requirements is the housing requirement.
The good news is, there’s plenty of information online. You can look up the minimum enclosure requirement for the species of reptile you’re interested in. However, a little disclaimer here: minimum enclosure requirement is exactly what it sounds like. It is the minimum. And while the minimum is appropriate, I always say go as big as you possibly can for many of the species that you’re going to be working with as a pet.
For example, the US minimum enclosure requirement for a bearded dragon is a 40 gallon breeder size enclosure. This is 36 inches wide, 18 inches from front to back, and about 16 to 18 inches tall. However, bearded dragons require enrichment. They enjoy meandering about; they’re not the kind to sit in one spot all day—well, Bumble does, but Bumble is old and grumpy. *4 But Q is super active. He loves to be all over his enclosure, climbing, resting in his hammock, you name it. Bearded dragons also require hides, and you’re not going to be able to fit all of that into a 40 gallon breeder.
Husbandry
Now once you know what kind of enclosure you need and what type of housing requirements there are for your specific reptile, you also need to know the best *5 husbandry practices. Now, enclosures do fall in husbandry, but I like to break these up into three separate things because they are both important on their own.
The three big things for your husbandry practices are:
Lighting
Heating
Humidity
(Please note: this is NOT an exhaustive list)
Let’s break those down.
Lighting
Some reptiles require special lighting in order to maintain their health: UVB lighting. We can talk more in-depth about what UVB does and why UVB is so important in another post. I have plenty of reptiles that require this special lighting, and it is vital to their health. You have to be able to provide that if the animals needs it.
Heating
The next thing you have to consider is the heating requirement. Most reptiles require a higher temperature than room temperature. Research to find the ideal heating requirement for your particular reptile, and figure out how you’re going to provide that heat. In some cases, you’re going to use under-tank heat mats, a ceramic heat emitter, or even a basking bulb because some reptiles need to bask. Bearded dragons and blue tongue skinks are examples of reptiles that sit out and bask under the sun.
Since these pets are going to be kept indoors, you need to substitute that light source. So be sure to know what sort of heat you’re going to be required to provide and how you’re going to provide it.
Humidity
Next up is humidity. In my experience, humidity is the most difficult part of reptile keeping because I live in an area that gets dry in the winter. Many reptile owners agree that humidity is the most challenging part of care because every reptile has a certain humidity requirement specific to their species, and they can vary greatly.
I have a blue-tongue skink that I got from a rescue. His particular type requires a humidity of 80% to 100% at all times. That’s a tough thing to figure out when you’re living in an area where the average humidity, especially at this time of year, is around 20%-30%. So it is vital to know the level of humidity the reptile you want requires and how you are going to provide that. Again, there are many resources available which I’ll be going over in a future post explaining how to easily boost (or reduce!) the humidity in your enclosures. As much as there are reptiles that require high humidity, there are reptiles that require low humidity, such as bearded dragons.
Vet Care
The next thing you need to consider when bringing a reptile into your home is what you would consider for any pet you’re adopting: vet care. A lot of people operate under this misconception that because it’s not a cat or a dog, reptiles don’t need to go to the vet.
This is not true.
I always recommend bringing a reptile in for well-checks the same way you would with your cats or dogs. But here’s the big caveat: you have to find a vet that is reptile-specific. A vet that is well-educated in reptiles. If you have a vet that does not work with reptiles and is not properly educated, your pet is not going to receive the level of care it needs. This is something I have experienced personally as I’ve gotten into my reptile rescue and rehabilitation.
It’s so important to find a vet who understands the species you’re working with because if something were to happen, you want to have a vet that will be able to provide you with the correct answers. One of the best things you can do before bringing your reptile home is to call your local vets and see if they work with the species you are interested in adopting.
There are many other factors to consider when it comes to getting a reptile as a pet, but we’ve covered the big ones. This may sound like a lot, but the truth is that this is exactly what you would put into a cat or a dog. And reptiles are such incredible pets! They’re rewarding animals that make it all worth it.
Once you have the enclosure set up and you’ve mastered the husbandry requirements, it is much less overwhelming. The beginning always feels overwhelming but after that, you are able to have this incredibly rewarding pet. It is an amazing experience.
