Basic Reptile Care

Reptiles make ideal pets in many ways! They are very quiet and have virtually no odor. The space needed to house them varies depending on the pet. It can be an area smaller than a flower pot or as large as a room. You can find a suitable reptile or amphibian for a pet whether you live in an apartment or in a house.  Reptiles and amphibians are easy to take care of with a minimum amount of cleaning.  You can even miss a feeding occasionally and not worry too much about it.  In nature, reptiles don't get to eat constantly and they have to be much more active in collecting their food than they do in captivity.  Becoming obese can actually be a problem if they are fed daily.

Housing Types
Cages
Your pet's home will be determined by its size and its natural environment needs. Housing for large pets can be accomplished with various types of cages, while different types of terrariums can be set up for smaller pets. Cages should be made to fit the needs of the pet that you will put in it. A tall, narrow cage will accommodate a climbing branch for an arboreal or tree dwelling animal, such as a chameleon. A low, wide cage is needed for the roving terrestrial or ground dwelling animal, such as a bearded dragon.

House your pets by their size and their kind. Only mix your pets if they are known to be compatible. Cages can be aquariums with screen covers or they can be wooden cages with glass fronts. Sometimes they are indoor atriums. The important considerations are these, a cage must be:
  - Escape proof
  - Draft Proof
  - Moisture resistant
  - Heat resistant
  - Well-lighted
  - Largest size possible

Aquatic Terrariums

The aquatic terrarium is like an aquarium. You need water, a submersible heater, usually gravel is spread on the bottom, and a filter is nice to make maintenance less work. It differs slightly from an aquarium by the decor you use, the lid or covering used on the top, and the amount of water needed (generally 4 to 6 inches) for the animal that will live there. First you will need a vented or wire screen top. This allows air to circulate through the terrarium as well as giving you a place set a basking lamp. Next a basking area is usually needed. It can either be a floating type such as an artificial lily pad or a slab of bark, or it can be a built up area of rocks and moss. Then you will want a background. This is important not only to provide a naturally looking setting, but to help your pet feel secure and comfortable. Some animals that are suited to an aquatic terrarium are: turtles, frogs, newts, rubber eels, water snakes, mudpuppies, waterdogs and salamanders.

Semi-Aquatic Terrariums

A semi-aquatic terrarium is a combination of water and land. The land and water areas can be divided with a piece of glass attached and sealed with silicon, or a removable container can be used for the water area. The water area can be set up like the aquatic terrarium with a heater, gravel and filter. The land area can be filled with substrates such as: sphagnum moss, cypress bark, loam, potting soil, or small gravel. A layer of charcoal covered with filter floss placed under the substrate helps keep it fresh. Decorate the terrarium with driftwood, moss, rocks and plants. Some animals that are suited to the semi-aquatic terrarium are: Most of the aquatic terrarium animals, especially the various salamanders, frogs, and newts. Also crocodile lizards, caimans, basilisks, and several turtle types..

Woodland Terrariums

The woodland terrarium is set up just like the semi-aquatic terrarium only without the large water area. Simply provide a water bowl. This terrarium is all substrate with plants, driftwood, moss and rocks. The pets you wish to keep in it will determine how heavily it should be planted and whether you will have more branches for tree climbers or more rocks for ground dwellers. The woodland terrariums can house: various frogs, including red-eyed tree frogs, barking tree frogs, green tree frogs and true frogs, various salamanders, day geckos, anoles, skinks, and snakes.

Desert Terrariums

A desert terrarium is just what it's name implies, an arid or semi-arid environment. The good substrate for this terrarium is a terrarium carpet or sand. Plants need be able to handle low humidity and be drought tolerant, such as cactus and succulents. You will need a hot rock, a basking lamp, and full-spectrum lighting for most of the desert types pets. Some pets that will do very well in the desert terrarium are: chuckwallas, desert iguanas, collared lizards, swifts, fat-tailed and leopard geckos, spiny lizards, fence lizards, and alligator lizards.

Housing Requirements
The housing requirements for most cages and terrariums consist of four basic elements , heating, lighting, floor covering, decor and cleaning .

Heating

Heating can be provided for your pet in two ways, with a hot rock and/or with a basking lamp. The hot rocks are available in most pet stores that deal in reptiles. They provide a warm place for your pet to bask, with the rock itself being warm. Basking lamps are mounted on top of the cage. You don't want you're pet to be able to touch the lamp as it can get burnt. The lamp provides a heat source through a full-spectrum bulb during the daytime and a red frosted bulb or a "black light" bulb for night. The light in these bulbs cannot be seen by your pet, though you can see it, so they think its dark out. It is important to have a wide-range thermometer mounted on your terrarium so that you can monitor the temperature.

Lighting

Lighting can be provided in two ways, through a full-spectrum incandescent in a basking lamp discussed above and/or through full-spectrum fluorescent lamps. A full-spectrum incandescent bulb provides heat as well as light. They are fine for many lizards, but for lizards that require natural sunlight, it is not adequate. A full-spectrum fluorescent bulb provides a sunlight replacement for those pets that need full-spectrum lighting. Not all require this, but those that do will be at risk if they don't get it. Of course, natural sunlight is the best source of full-spectrum lighting!

Flooring Covering

There are a variety of floor coverings that can be used for your pet, but they all have their own considerations. One of the primary considerations in choosing floor coverings is cleanliness. Reptile cage carpets are often an ideal floor covering. They are made for your pet, not for human floors, so they are not abrasive to your pets' skin. They are also easy to remove and clean. Sand is sometimes used, but it tends to cling to herptiles feet and to get into their food. It can be very harmful if it is ingested. Gravel is a better choice, but should be washed and disinfected. Other options are shredded barks and packaged peats, but again be mindful of cleanliness.

Cage Decor

Cage decor is very important for your pet. It provides their sense of security through shelters and camouflaging, as well as the maintenance things, like food and water dishes and hot rocks. Some standard decor items are rocks, basking limbs and plants. Wash everything you put in. Sand or logs that you collect from outside needs to be cleaned and bleached or sterilized in a slow oven (120 degrees to 150 degrees) for two to three hours. Wood limbs and rocks are very natural additions, but make sure they don't have any sharp parts that can injure your pet. Limbs can be sealed with polyurethane varnish to prevent places for parasites to live. These can be used in dry land or aquatic terrariums. Plants and sphagnum moss make good hiding and/or camouflage places. Live plants must fit the terrarium size and like the temperature and the lighting. Sphagnum moss kept wet helps keep the humidity up for those reptiles that need a high humidity environment. Plants in small pots help to contain the size and do make it easier to clean the terrarium. Tortoises and herbivorous lizards will eat live plants, so plastic plants do make a nice alternative. Various "air plants" such as tillandsia make real good terrarium plants. They can be grown on the climbing limbs and only need misting a couple times a week to thrive. Aquarium plants, such as elodea (anacharis), can do well in aquatic terrariums.

Cage Cleaning

Reptiles kept in a confined area as pets need to be protected from harmful micro-organisms and parasites. Your pet will appreciate fresh food and water in clean dishes everyday and a weekly cleaning of their home. Everything you put into their home should be washed and disinfected . This includes dishes, floor coverings, and cage decor.

Foods and Feeding
Types of diets

Diets vary with each animal but they are primarily one of three types: some are herbivores , a plant eater, carnivores , a meat or protein eater, or omnivores , which eat both plants and proteins. Herbivores tend to need large amounts of food and a good variety. Commercially prepared complete diets are available for iguanas, turtles and tortoises and should contain the necessary vitamins and minerals. Otherwise feed fresh foods with a vitamin and mineral supplement. Especially feed those high in fiber such as, parsley, dandelion leaves, cress, a little romaine lettuce, escarole, yellow vegetables, and a wide variety of fruits. Tomatoes are great for tortoises, but not for iguanas. Spinach should not be fed as it binds up calcium internally. Herptiles that are carnivores eat proteins such as rodents, insects and invertebrates. Other proteins include guppies, goldfish, eggs and even other herptiles. Some of the rodents they eat are mice, pinkies (baby mice), rats, rabbits and chickens. These form the basis of many snakes and some lizards diets. These can be fed live or purchased frozen and completely defrosted before feeding. The most currently fed insects include crickets, another is mealworms. These are not really worms, but the larval state of the flour beetle. They are low in calcium, and so should be coated with a calcium supplement. Flies can be  purchased as larva. Waxworms, butterworms, red worms, earthworms, and night crawlers also make good protein choices. Fruit flies, blackworms, bloodworms and tubifex worms are very tiny, so can be fed to aquatic frogs, toads and baby turtles.

Supplements and lighting

No matter which type your pet or pets primarily are, it is a good idea to supplement all of their diets with a reptile vitamin and mineral supplement. A calcium/phosphorus based mineral supplement is vital to fast growing reptiles skeletal growth and to prevent osteoporosis, it also helps prevent softening in turtles' shells. Specially formulated vitamin supplements, some with vitamin B-12, are used to stimulate the appetite of reptiles that are not eating well and give them a quick energy boost if they are lethargic. Gastric acid in some supplements helps aid food digestion. Full-spectrum lighting is important in conjunction with supplements. The ultra violet rays in sunlight stimulate the synthesis of vitamin D-3. It is vital for some herptiles, especially iguanas, to bask in unfiltered sunlight or under a full-spectrum fluorescent light. This light helps them to absorb and utilize the stores of calcium and phosphorus in their bodies.

When to feed

Generally feed amphibians daily. Remove whatever they don't eat in five to ten minutes. Other herptiles do well with an occasional break from the routine of daily feeding, so take a day off every few days. Rodent eating snakes can be fed about once a week. Learn about your individual pet, as each herptile will have its own best schedule. Always supply you pets with fresh water in a clean bowl daily.