QUESTION - about WC Long Nosed Leopard Lizard

what else did i say then? i am not "chastising" you for making suggestions i just thought it sounded like u was sayin to lewis that he should get a leopard lizard. im sure hes very aware what keeping an iguana means. good luck with your leopard lizard wrigley.

 

I never told him to get one, he said he would like one but couldn't feed it a lizard. I then told him it didn't have to eat other lizards. It was something you said in another post about someone knowing what they were doing. It doesn't matter Luke, I'm not here to argue. I personally have a lot of reptiles but would never consider myself an expert. These forums are for advice and suggestions, you can take what you want and leave the rest. I believe Lewis understood what I was saying and that's all that matters. As for myself, I've had various reptiles for over 30 years and I have many years of experience with iguanas. That was the only reason I told Lewis that their care is vast. I once took in an iguana that someone else couldn't care for anymore. It had such severe MBD that I couldn't save it. All four of it's legs had multiple breaks. It's back was broken and it had rubber jaw. All because the owner didn't realize that it needed UV lighting and calcium dust. I was simply offering advice. I'm sure Lewis knows what he wants and can take that advice or leave it. No hard feelings.

 

Mind your business jesus freak. I'm sick of everyone on these forums taking everything personally. This is your first post and you're bashing me???? How bout you get a life.

 

I think everyone needs to calm down, Wrigley has done nothing wrong just suggesting his opinions on lizards he has experience with and thats what the forums are for, however I think wrigley, you need to calm down and be careful with the way you put your feelings as you may get banned (not bashing you just warning )

Back to the subect though...
Wrigley, isn't feeding your lizards anoles an expensive diet? I know them themselves are only a couple of $ each but keeping them... do you have like loadza tanks full of them or do you just feed them every now and then? Sorry for all the questions, Im just curious

 

Yeah, you're right Ryan, I shouldn't let a jerk like that make me so mad. He's not worth it. Back to the subject...Initially buying anoles is expensive. Where I live they are $7.00 each. I only have 2 tanks of anoles, each tank has 3 females and 1 male. During the breeding season each anole can lay up to 10 eggs (one at a time). I only feed them anoles every few weeks as a treat. On a daily basis they get crickets or grasshoppers and various types of worms. Next breeding season I will keep a couple of the babies (females) and rotate my breeders. Anoles can successfully breed for a few years but I only use each one for 2 years and then I trade them. That way I know I have good breeders. This years babies can be ready to breed by next spring. I only had 2 females last year and ended up with 17 babies between the 2 of them. Like I said, I only feed them anoles every several weeks to space them out. It's really not that much work to be honest. I start brumating around October and bring them out of it in late Feb., early March. They start breeding usually in early May. I have to keep a close watch to find the eggs cuz they bury them but my tanks have reptibark in the majority of the bottom and only one corner has soft, moist bedding for them to lay in so I don't have to search the entire tank. I will get more babies next year cuz I have added extra females. My snakes like an occasional anole too so they won't go to waste!

 

i don't think there's anything wrong with you raising anoles as feeders wrigley, it's actually a very smart economical choice. what sort of reptiles do you have? i've been considering obtaining either a leopard lizard or a blue tongue skink soon, since from your posts it appears you have both types which would you recommend?

 

If it's a money matter, the leopards are by far cheaper. They run $25-$30 and the set up is inexpensive too. A 20 long is fine for life. They can live happily on crickets and grasshoppers but love an occasional anole or fence lizard. Play sand for substrate, a few flat rocks and a few cactii are about all you need for cage decoration. They tame easily and quickly (even a wild caught) and love to be held. Mine will actually climb the glass until I take her out and hold her.

On the other hand, blue tongues (especially if you start out with a baby) can really learn to love you. They love routines and love to interact with people. They are awesome pets but require much more room. A 40 breeder is the minimum size tank. They each have a unique personality. Some are more outgoing than others. Mine is a cuddler. He will sit on my chest as long as I let him. He also loves to wander in my garden. In the house he is content to sit with me but outside he wants to explore. Average price for a blue tongue is $100-$150. I've seen them cheaper but with health issues. They need a large variety of food so they don't get bored. Some people want to feed them nothing but cat food or dog food because it's convenient and they love it but if you feed that too much they get to where they won't eat anything else and it's so high in fat you end up with a very obese bluey that won't live as long.

Ultimately you have to decide what kind of room you have in your home and how much time you want to dedicate to your pet. A blue tongue definitely requires more of your time. They should be held daily. I hold all of my lizards daily and my snakes weekly. I'm sorry,I doubt that I've helped you very much. Both make excellent pets. There is more information to be found on the internet and in books about bts and almost nothing about leopards. Fortunately, leopards are so easy to care for they don't require much research. Let me know what you decide, I'll help with anything I can.

 

thanks that actually did help. the blue tongue sounds more appealing to me because from what you've just told me and what i've researched they are more social animals. that's really cool how yours likes to cuddle with you. i've been wanting one for a while but i am having a hard time finding any breeders or stores that sell them.

i'm not really worried about money or difficulty of care, and that tank requirement size is tiny compared to the enclosures for my two green iguanas, my beardie tank is around the same size. i'm willing to do whatever is neccesary to care for the animal. if i can find one somewhere i'm definately getting a blue tongue i've decided. although i'd also love to get a leopard lizard at some point lol.

they're both awesome lizards i just don't have the room for both varieties so for now at least it looks like i'm getting a blue tongue. thanks for the info it was helpful.

 

Good! You won't regret it. They are great lizards. I would suggest though, that you start out with an Irian Jaya or a Northern. They are the most docile of the bunch. If you go to bluetongueskinks.net you will find an awesome care sheet with everything you ever wanted to know about bts. There are also a handful of breeders that have some available. Look at the sales page. Not only are there individual pics so you can see what you're getting but they tell you a bit about each of their personalities. It's a great site and will definitely help you a lot. Good luck!

 

First, during the breeding season a female has bright orange spots on her sides. The orange is still there after the breeding season but much lighter. Males don't have any orange on them at all. I wouldn't put 2 males together but if you want to house a male and female together you will need a bigger tank. At least a 30 gal. Also, make sure they are approximately the same size because they will eat each other if there's a size difference.

There are no care sheets on them that I know of but they don't require much. Give them play sand for substrate with a few succulents scattered around, a small dish of water, (mine likes to drink droplets off the glass or from a syringe) UV lighting above a basking rock and as many crickets as they want to eat each day. My leopard eats at least 6-10 crickets every morning and for a treat gets 1 anole about every 4-6 weeks. You can also give them grasshoppers and various worms (meal worms, wax worms).You can handle them as much as you like, they are not easily stressed and seem to love himan interaction. Mine will actually climb the walls of her cage when she wants out. They have very long tails so always be careful if you have children handling her, if they grab the tail she will drop it. There's not much else to them. If you have any other questions feel free to ask. Good luck and show pics! Here's my pretty little girl. The day after I bought her she laid 7 infertile eggs so I named her Mama for lack of a better name.

 

Talk about your all time backfires.

I think specialized feeders are cool. These guys obviously eat other lizards in the wild. I had a glossy crayfish snake once. It was almost as picky as a queen snake. If you know what I mean.

 

She still wont eat any insects, I know its so horrible but Ive been forced to force feeding to keep her alive I need some serious ideas quick because I really dont know what to do, and I dont want her to do so please post some ideas if any ASAP
thanks,
Cody

 

Stop force feeding right away... its very stressful and could speed up and advance the illness through the stress. If she is severly underweight and near dying then she should have seen a vet by now and thats what I recommend doing if you already havnt.
Thats the only idea I can think of as the illness (what ever it is) will not go away on its own.