Considering a lizard

Sylphie · 01-20-16, 01:28 PM

Well, as we'll start buidling our home this year I'm thinking about maybe getting into lizards as well. I'm not the most knowledgeable person about different lizards species, so I'll ask what you would recommend. Here is what I'm looking for:
- size to 2, maximum 3 feet, nothing much smaller than 1ft
- diurnal
- rather hardy as I'm not having much experience with lizards (yet!)
- well, food wise I'm open to all suggestions, insects, vegetables, no matter what
- enclosure size doesn't matter too, we'll made a reptile room, so I can go all the way and build a palace for my bunch
- it would be great if it'll tolerate handling well, as I prefer reptiles that I can hold, not the ones that are "look but don't you dare touch me!"

As for now I'm thinking about Jewelled Lacerta (Timon lepidus), Bearded Dragon or Blue-Tongue Skink. Are there any other species that would fit in my requirements?

Thank you for any help!

prairiepanda · 01-20-16, 01:53 PM

Just to be clear; since you said the enclosure size doesn't matter, I'm wondering about the size of the lizard itself. Would that limit include tail length, or are you more concerned about the actual body of the animal? Because there are some lizards that get up to around 4ft long but are actually pretty lean and just have really long tails.

That aside, you really can't go wrong with a beardie or blue-tongued skink as a first lizard. They're great for beginners because they're easy to care for, easy to find(especially beardies), and easy to handle. Jewelled lacertas aren't too bad, but they're a bit more demanding than the other two and definitely a lot less fond of handling. Since being able to handle it is a priority for you, beardies and blue tongues are probably your best options. There are loads of other lizards which match your other requirements, but the majority tend to be skittish and easily get stressed by handling. How much handling time are you thinking of?

dannybgoode · 01-20-16, 01:57 PM

Need I even answer?! How tongued skinks look really nice also and personally wouldn't have a bearded but simply because they're so common.

Another one to consider is the black lined plated lizard. Similar length to a bearded but more slender, not at all fussy about what they eat and very docile, easy to handle lizards.

Or, for something a bit different a European legless lizard.

The T Lepidus would obviously get my vote though

Sylphie · 01-20-16, 01:59 PM

I was thinking more about body size

Well, I'm not a person that wants a "lizard like dog" but it would be nice to being able to handle it once in a week or something like that. I also don't want to spend hours walking with it, just few minutes of interacting. Tolerating handling is also important for me because I don't want a lizard that will stress much in case of vet visits or when I'll simply need to take it out for some reason.

Ps. And yeah, danny, bearded dragons are on the end of my list, as like you said, the are so common, and to be honest they aren't the most beautiful lizards for me (not that they are ugly).

dannybgoode · 01-20-16, 02:03 PM

Have a look on YouTube of people handling their T Lepidus (though search under jewelled Lacerta, ocellated lizard and Eyed Lizard). Kitten tame a lot of them. Just takes work to get them there.

Sylphie · 01-20-16, 02:03 PM

Ohh, I forgot about European legless lizard, thank you! I need to read about them more, as I once was handling adult one in a pet store and it was weird, but cool at the same time! Like lizard with a body of a snake.

dannybgoode · 01-20-16, 02:08 PM

A quote from Eyed Lizard - Timon lepidus on Timon's. This guy is a keeper of many many years.

All three species make excellent vivarium animals. They can become extremely tame - especially the males which can, with patience) rival a Bearded Dragon in terms of tameness.

Sylphie · 01-20-16, 02:12 PM

Thank you for that link, I'll read it for sure. Timon's are top on my list for now, as I loove their colors. But to be honest, blue-tongued skink is nice too... knowing life I'll end with both of them probably, being a reptile addict

**Minkness** · 01-20-16, 02:53 PM

I'm nore of a gecko fan myself, and really believe that a great first lizard would be a leopard gecko. They do have a 'super giant' type that get pretty big. You can have multiple females together as well and their care is very basic.

Anoles are actually really cool since they are a colony type and not terrible to handle. Buuut.they are small...

Chams are nice too. The panthers are larger, calm, and beautiful. I don't know much about them though.

Achie moniters are also pretty neat (will totally own one some day)

Chinese water dragons or a green basilisk would be really pretty, interactive, and fit into your requirements. Also, male basilisks are really cool looking (imo).

Of course I would loooove to talk you into an abronia graminea, but if you got one, I might be jealous lol. They really are nifty though as they are about 12 inches long, bright blue or green, can have colonies of females if you wanted a few, and if you decide to breed, they have live young! Buuuut...they require a pretty humid enclosure and should be kept under cooler temps.

Another neat lizard would be what I know as a 'horned mountian lizard'. They meet your size requirement, can be handled, easy care, and look kinda cool to me.

You also have a whole BUNCH of agamas that would work. My personal fave is the 'collared lizard'. Again they meet your size requirements. They may be more for an intermediate keeper, but since you already have snakes, I don't see you as a real 'beginner'. They can be handled, and once set up have pretty straight forward care needs. Also...they are super colorful!

Jewled lacertas are also awesome and gorgous of course.

Beardies are just...uhg...some have great personality but personalky I find them boring and unless you get a really well bred one specifically for color and scale texture (look up silkies), they are mundane looking. Also super common, and if yoy ask me, more work than I'd like. They will also eat you broke as they require fresh veggies, greens, fruit, and bugs DAILY. They can also have skin issues with shedding so I know some people who actually use lotion on them (like on feet and tail) and they require baths. I have no personal experience with these, but know quite a few people who do, and their stories keep me far far faaaaaarrrr away fron them....

Tiny Boidae · 01-20-16, 03:04 PM

My vote is obviously for water dragons. They fit all of the requirements up there, and while not typically aggressive, they can be skittish. They could also be complete couch bums, it really just depends.

Like my girl Miu does not tolerate handling too well. She was wild caught and incredibly sick when I first got her, same thing goes for another baby dragon we'd gotten with her, although he had to be put down. She's gotten better and will eat from my hands now, so she's not totally psycho at the sight of people (she used to be incredibly defensive. Biting, tail-whipping, thrashing. The whole nine yards). Now she doesn't let me pet her and or hold her, but she isn't scared of me anymore and has more of a "I can touch you but you can't touch me" thought process.

Xiu we'd made sure was captive bred, and she's a lot more sluggish. She will sleep with me in the evening, and it's a ritual of ours for me to sit on the couch at night and watch shows with them (or I'd watch shows and keep an eye on the trouble makers as they tore up the place in their free time).

Another interesting note is while they have and can be kept singly, in the wild they're known to congregate in large groups by river banks. That's why I'd gotten two, to give Miu a confidence boost and it has helped, she follows Xiu everywhere. You do have to look out for aggression, although it's never been a problem so long as they each have their own spaces to go to when they can't stand each other. They'll head bob, arm wave, and Xiu will lill Mei down, but they've never gotten into a full-blown cat fight with the biting and all.

These guys, especially in pairs, need A LOT of room though. I mostly have my girls outside in a pen, although when the weather is rough they have an enclosure to go to and plenty of free time. A lot of these guys are imports though, so don't make the same mistake I had and make sure you get these guys tested for parasites as soon as you get them.

Good luck

Tiny Boidae · 01-20-16, 03:52 PM

One more note I forgot to make- Basilisks tend to not be a hold me kind of animal. They're incredibly skittish and have sharper, needle-like claws. I've read that they can sometimes, literally, poke their eyes out with them, and for this I would lable them as a look but don't touch. Cool looking and they're something I want, but definitely wouldn't want to be holding one.

chairman · 01-20-16, 07:26 PM

I have Northern Blue Tongue skinks and I like them quite a bit. They easily meet your requirements and tame down nicely once they grow up.

I also like crested geckos but they're too small to meet your requirements. A possibility could be a leachianus gecko, I hear that many tolerate handling though some can be shy and nippy.

A dwarf monitor might be a good fit. Not an exanthematicus, though... mine is "tame" but he's still 100% convinced that he's the apex predator in our relationship and I have to keep my eye on him. But I understand that the little guys, like the acanthurus, keep much of the personality but won't try to eat you.

Sylphie · 01-21-16, 02:42 AM

Minkness, thank you for all suggestions! I remember that I once read about Abronias, and although I loove they look, they are one of the many lizards that I would love to have, but I'm not feeling capable of that yet. And I totally agree about Bearded Dragons! I need to research collared lizard for sure, as some of them looks stunning.

Tiny Boidae, your girls sounds like a funny duo! Thank you for all your input, I need to research about chinese water dragons more after what you described.

chairman, ohh, I'm not sure I'm ready for a monitor, but I'll read about smaller ones, just to know if they are for me or not, thank you for suggestions!

dannybgoode · 01-21-16, 03:44 AM

I'd love a small monitor also but like you sylphie am not up to one yet.

In fact I'd love the time and space to properly keep a Savannah Monitor but that's likely to remain a dream.

If it weren't for the fact that I now have Julius and assuming T Lepidus were not available then for me a legless lizard or a pair of plated lizards is what I'd go for to start with.

Again, I'd love a water dragon but they do require a bit of size to their enclosure

Piggybuns · 01-21-16, 09:55 AM

Haha, your thread and dannybgoode are the ones who got me into the bluey thing actually! If you're interested in them, I can PM you some info I pick up, but so far I'm reading, it really fits into what you're looking for. They can tame to be fairly friendly, one of the best for beginners, and if enclosures and food aren't your worry, the size of the viv at 36" long (basically a long 40 gallon) seems to be what to look for. And they can apparently eat a LOT of different types of food, including bread, which is rare. Almost no animal eats bread. Eggs, all kinds of greens, crickets, meal worms, bananas... they have a neat little list.

I'm biased tho. I wanted a bluey before I bought Ghost and was researching 3 different reptiles in particular, balls, blueys, and corns before deciding on her. XD