sDLfj
Veteran
This is to continue the discussion from another thread. Feel free to post if you have reptiles or are curious about keeping them or my hobby of breeding them.
Keeping and Breeding Reptiles
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sDLfj
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I could make a youtube channel (I have camera equipment and plenty to talk about), but I think the time involved with making one wouldn't be worth the rewards of it.
Reptile breeding is a pretty big hobby. It's like cubing, most people aren't surprised that it exists, but they're surprised how big of a hobby it is. There are a ton of forums, books, websites, and youtube channels about it. I honestly think that it is a bigger hobby than cubing in terms of how many people are involved. It's also pretty simple to get into, if you're smart about it, you wouldn't need to spend more than $500 to be in a very good spot to make money and expand. But, you could get into it for under $200 if you just want to start small.
qwr
Legend
A few months ago I was going to see a magic show and right next door was a reptile store. It was quite fascinating how they had humidity and temperature controlled glass cages for the reptiles. I was surprised such a specialty store existed, but I shouldn't have been because lots of people own pets and PetSmart has a whole aisle for reptile items.
SpedCube
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...Is it strange that I have a sudden urge to buy geckos....
So explain what would be needed for a complete newby, as in, I literally know nothing so... what steps would be next (considering I actually decided to get into it)?
So explain what would be needed for a complete newby, as in, I literally know nothing so... what steps would be next (considering I actually decided to get into it)?
sDLfj
Veteran
The first step would be to decide which species to get. My recommendations are crested geckos, leopard geckos, or gargoyle geckos. I have crested and leopard geckos and I've heard good things about gargoyle geckos.
Crested geckos are easier in terms of their food is very cheap and easy. You buy a powder and mix it with water to make the food, but it's still good to feed them some bugs occasionally. They don't need any heat as long as the room is at least 70* or so during the day. They are also very easy to breed, and they can be (sometimes) housed together. But, the babies can sometimes be tricky to keep alive, I've had a few die (out of about 20), andone person I know haven't been able to keep them alive for more than a few weeks, but I know many people who don't have problems and most of the time they are very easy to keep.
Gargoyle geckos are very similar to crested geckos, but you'll have to look up the differences and how to keep them, because I don't know much about them.
Leopard geckos need heat, which is best provided with a piece of heat tape ($10) and a thermostat ($30), the electricity to use this is extremely cheap (probably about $2/month). They also need a lot of bugs, which can be hard. They will need either crickets, mealworms (I would say these are the 2nd best), dubia roaches (which are best), or soldier fly larvae (which might be hard as a staple feeder). These are very hardy and they are easy to handle since they don't jump (unlike crested geckos). Their enclosure is outrageously easy, I use a plastic shoebox container with paper towels on the bottom and hides made from food containers (this is better than a big enclosure with substrate and complicated decorations for multiple reasons).
Do a lot of research on these and think about it for a couple weeks, geckos are a lot of responsibility and are very expensive. Are you prepared to put in the time to take care of these, and if you breed them, spending an hour a day feeding and cleaning everything? Are you able to pay $100s for enclosures and food? These are super rewarding and getting reptiles is the best decision I've made, but it is a lot of work and something you need to be prepared for.
Crested geckos are easier in terms of their food is very cheap and easy. You buy a powder and mix it with water to make the food, but it's still good to feed them some bugs occasionally. They don't need any heat as long as the room is at least 70* or so during the day. They are also very easy to breed, and they can be (sometimes) housed together. But, the babies can sometimes be tricky to keep alive, I've had a few die (out of about 20), andone person I know haven't been able to keep them alive for more than a few weeks, but I know many people who don't have problems and most of the time they are very easy to keep.
Gargoyle geckos are very similar to crested geckos, but you'll have to look up the differences and how to keep them, because I don't know much about them.
Leopard geckos need heat, which is best provided with a piece of heat tape ($10) and a thermostat ($30), the electricity to use this is extremely cheap (probably about $2/month). They also need a lot of bugs, which can be hard. They will need either crickets, mealworms (I would say these are the 2nd best), dubia roaches (which are best), or soldier fly larvae (which might be hard as a staple feeder). These are very hardy and they are easy to handle since they don't jump (unlike crested geckos). Their enclosure is outrageously easy, I use a plastic shoebox container with paper towels on the bottom and hides made from food containers (this is better than a big enclosure with substrate and complicated decorations for multiple reasons).
Do a lot of research on these and think about it for a couple weeks, geckos are a lot of responsibility and are very expensive. Are you prepared to put in the time to take care of these, and if you breed them, spending an hour a day feeding and cleaning everything? Are you able to pay $100s for enclosures and food? These are super rewarding and getting reptiles is the best decision I've made, but it is a lot of work and something you need to be prepared for.
sDLfj
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Here are a few pictures of some of my reptiles.
SpedCube
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all good points. also, those are so cuteee. idk if I'll be able to do it now, cubing takes a ton of my time and money and I plan to stay invested in it. however, once I have my collection up to a solid size, I will definitely consider this. Seems extremely rewarding
AJT17
Veteran
Is the one in middle right a Hognose snake?
sDLfj
Veteran
Yes, she is, she has a trait known as anaconda that makes her have less spots. She's my favorite snake, mainly due to her personality.
The top row are leopard geckos, the second is a sand boa and hognose, and the bottom is a crested gecko.
AJT17
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Hognose snakes are definitely one of my favorites, I like her pattern too.
sDLfj
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I love them, they are supposed to be picky eaters, but when I offer a mouse, she just immediately opens her mouth for me to put it in rather than striking. I'm planning to get a yeti male (if you look them up, they are white with some subtle patterns, they are awesome) and when I breed them I could get a super yeti baby (a solid white color) and a ton of other super cool babies (like a pure pink (albino superconda), a yeti, albinos, axanthics (which are darker), and combinations of those). It's going to be a few years out, but I am already super excited to breed her.
SpedCube
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Wow thats gonna be cool
Arcanist
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actually a really cool hobby (idk if I have the time to take care of them though)
sDLfj
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Reptiles are actually super easy, breeding them can be complicated, but just keeping a couple reptiles only takes about 30 minutes a week at the most.
abunickabhi
Legend
sDLfj
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These ones are all pretty young. The first one is about a year old, the second is about 1.5 years old, and the last is one of the babies I hatched, and is about a year old. On the second row the first is about a year and a half and the second is about 8 months old. The last one is about 2 and a half.
sDLfj
Veteran
I just got a male yeti hognose for my female. $1200+85 shipping, but he's well worth it.
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