Sure you have a dog or a cat. But have your kids ever approached you and asked about a nontraditional pet? What about a reptile? Do you know what habitat is best for your pet? Most likely, if you get your pet from a pet store, they will give you guidelines on what you need to do to keep it alive and healthy at home. But if you are debating adding a reptile to your family, here are some tips and thoughts to consider.
Conduct Thorough Research
Before you buy your reptile pet, do some research on the type of food and environment the animal will need to survive. Each reptile has some unique element it needs in its habitat. Visit a pet store or buy some books on the reptile you want to keep. The internet has lots of material and information on what you need to know about different reptile species and their salvaging habits. For example, if your target is to have a leopard gecko as a pet, get more info about leopard geckos on Everything Reptiles website.
Provide a Suitable Habitat
Have you completed your research? It is time to provide your pet with a suitable enclosed habitat before buying a pet. The habitat should include adequate lighting and foliage that it usually would adapt to in the wild. For reptiles that prefer to stay in high places like trees, provide mock branches in their enclosure. For reptiles that like to stay on the ground, provide crevices like hollow trunks, rocks, and other crevices they can hide in when they sense danger.
Will you use an aquarium? Make sure it is large enough to hold a reptile. Reptiles like to bask in the sun. Therefore, provide an area in the room that allows sun rays to reach the enclosure. Another alternative is to use mercury vapor lamps that provide ultraviolet light that mimics sunlight. It should also have adequate food and water. Do you have the cleaning supplies to keep the tank clean? If you do not have any, make sure you purchase supplies that are safe for reptiles.
An aggressive male dominates other animals. With this in mind, if you have more than one reptile in your tank, have separate areas for providing food to prevent the dominant one from starving the others. Avoid having two male reptiles in the same space or enclosure. Their aggressive behavior can lead to the death of one male.
Ground Covering
When reviewing what kind of ground cover you can give for your pet’s home, avoid foliage that can lead to mold and other organisms that can lead to disease. Ask the pet shop for the best foliage to use in your enclosure, as they have years of experience. Mixing sand, leaf foliage, and soil provides good hallowing spots for lizards.
Get Easy to Keep Reptiles
Are you a beginner in keeping reptiles as a pet? It’s better to start with easy to care for reptiles. Some of these reptiles include Leopard Geckos, Tortoises, and Bearded Dragons. Researchers state that 3 to 4 (roughly 75%) reptile pets die within the first year under human supervision. Therefore, to raise these or other pets, you need to create time to feed them on time with nutritious food and constant care.
Isolate from Other Pets
During the first week or two of bringing home your pet, isolate it from other pets. Why? You want to ensure that it does not have disease or mites that can spread to other pets. Take it to your vet during the second week to ensure it is fully healthy before removing it from isolation and keeping it with your other pets.
Assist It to Adjust to Its New Home
During the first week, leave your pet alone in its new home without handling it. Help it reduce its stress and get familiar with its enclosure and schedule. Give them plenty of hiding spaces as they adjust to their enclosure. Every new sound or noise might startle them, as they are unaware of the predators that exist in this environment, even though you know there are none. Animals can adapt to unfamiliar environments, but we need to give them time to do so.
Sanitation
A clean environment is essential for your pet’s health and life longevity. Clean out animal droppings and uneaten food regularly. Parasites develop in unclean cages and can infect your pet. Disinfect the water and food utensils weekly and clean the enclosure at least once every three months.
Ensure Safety of Your Family
If you keep more dangerous and prickly reptiles, you must provide safety rules and enclosures that keep your family safe. Children are fearless and can roughly handle the pet without using caution. Remember, animals are wild, and if they fear or face aggression, they are likely to attack back with bites or scratches. Train all in the family on how to handle the family reptile pet.
It is common for pets to ‘escape’ from their enclosure. So if your pet is harmful, always check that it is where it should be.
Photo by laura parenti from Pexels
Conclusion
Taking care of a pet is an enormous responsibility, even more so when taking care of reptiles. If you are not ready for this responsibility, it is better only to have these pets when you can create time to take proper care of the reptile pet. Avoid overcrowding the habitat with too many reptiles, even if they are of the same species. Learn about your pet’s habitat to provide a suitable home for it.
