Question about lizards

[Liradralyn]

I've been interested in getting one for a while ever since I saw the nifty chameleons in my local pet store, but I don't like the idea of having to maintain a tank of bugs for food

I know there are many lizards who eat fruit instead of bugs and I was wondering if anyone owns this type and could give me some names to begin researching.

Thanks!

[Twisterdog]

Green iguanas are vegetarians, eating most green, leafy vegetables and a little fruit.

They are relatively easy to maintain, IF you do the proper research. If you are not VERY WELL informed about them and their unique needs, you WILL kill them.

Also, they get VERY large ... mine was over six feet long, including his tail.

[ChewmonkeyBC]

Iguanas dont make very good pets.....they my be really neat when they are young and really cute but when they get older......they can become very very aggressive!!I have two and they where agressive.........and on Jack Hannas show that I watched he said that Iguanas do not make good pets and that people make the mistake of getting them........

Good Luck on finding a lizard though....their cool!!

-Kay-



FCR

[Twisterdog]

That is not necessarily true. Some iguanas make very good pets. The males can be more aggressive than the females. It depends on how the iguana is raised, treated and socialized ... just like with any animal.

We had a six foot long male iguana. He was not aggressive at all. He took naps with me on the couch, and had free run of our living room.

Iguanas make very good pets, for someone who takes the time to do the research into proper care, treatment and socialization.
Not everyone can or should own one, but not everyone should own any pet.

[ChewmonkeyBC]

True......my iggys i didnt have when they where smaller they came from friends of ours,and so guessing by the iggys attitud e and aggresivness they didnt bother with Iggy much...."We had a six foot long male iguana. He was not aggressive at all. He took naps with me on the couch, and had free run of our living room. " o wow....mine ran loose in my room and every once in a while he would climb up on my bed with me......but their previous owners aparently didnt have them out very often and socialize with them.....

- Kay-



FCR

[Liradralyn]

Thanks for the responses, people. Wow, SIX FEET? That would probably freak my bunnies out too much. I shall keep looking, though. Or maybe I should just suck it up and get used to the crickets...

[Aspen and Misty]

We have a chamleon named Peaches. She is a sweety. She eats crickets. Our frogs also eat crickets. So does our Oscar fish. Its not that bad. You can stab them with a strong piece of straw to hand feed them. You can also put an egg carton in the cricket cage to dump them in the cage. You might dump to many. It will give her somethign to do, but hand feeding is beter if you want her to be hand tame. My sister also fish nets her crickets out.She feeds her crickets gut load. My sister says Chamleons are high matinice and if you want to bring yours out of the cage you need to handle them sevreal times a day for an hour to keep them handtame. They need running water because they don't see still water as a water sorce. They need live plants but you must be careful becasue some plants could be toxic if eaten so you can use plastic plants it just doesn't look as nice. The cage needs to be kept at certain temperature (70 and 80 degress Fahrenheit) and humidity (atleast 50% humidity). You really shoudl do your homework on them before you get one. Get a hold of some chamelion books and depending on what species of chameleon you want get that book for that specific breed and the link below gives you care sheets for a couple of the different types of chameleons that you might want to get. I have a Veiled chameleon but there are several others that can be purchased. just what ever you do i can't stress this enough DO YOUR HOMEWORK!!! The are a very high mantance pet and need a lot of time and care in order to keep them healthy.

www.exoticlizards.com

Ashley

[CathyBogart]

To be honest, I can't think of any entirely vegetarian lizard that would make a good pet for a new herper. However, a good place to ask would be at http://forum.kingsnake.com

Go to the beginner lizard forum and repeat your question there. There are many people with a lot of good knowledge and experience that will be of great help in either finding a good lizard or helping you find a good arrangement for some bugs. (Mine live in a Kritter Keeper in the garage)

Best of luck to you, and keep us posted!

--Cathy