I want to hear from the people with pets like centipedes, prarie dogs, alligators, scorpions, vultures, octupus… What is taking care of your pet like?
My girlfriend has a shaved beaver. It’s pretty easy to take care of, just feed it some wood every so often.
Five ball pythons; two Normals (Monty and Lucky) one Super Mojave (Hisui), one Jigsaw (Amber), one Mystic Spider (Jasper). And two Leopard Geckos (Spot and Rover).
And anyone who tells you reptiles don’t have personality is lying. Jasper is very snobbish and a homebody, Hisui is a coward but tries to be brave, Monty is laid-back and lazy, Amber is adventurous, and Lucky is very gung-ho (and food obsessed, because his previous owners starved him, then dumped him on the side of the road).
Rover is very confident, and Spot is a grumpy old man.
I have a few and have had more in the past, but my current most interesting I think are mourning geckos. They’re a little gecko and when they were found in the rainforest the researchers realised they were all female, so assumed some dreadful disease had killed off all the males and called them ‘mourning geckos’ as they were mourning all their husbands and would die alone.
Turns out nope, they don’t need men, they’re independent women, they lay fertile eggs through parthenogenesis, who are also female.
Blue tongue lizard - they’re pretty easy to take care of (so far - we’ve only had it about a month). We’re still learning what it likes to eat, but their diet is pretty varied, so there’s always an option in the fridge - strawberries, lettuce, banana, etc.
It’s been pretty reclusive, and even a little cranky, since we brought it home. It’s started hissing at us when we try to pick it up. Talking to the people at the store, I think we need to “force” it to get used to being held, so that’ll be this weekend’s fun activity.
That said, experiencing other domestic blue tongue lizards, they’re pretty chill pets.
Yeah, grew up in the Dandenong Ranges here in Victoria. Had plenty of them in our backyard too.
I’ve fed the wild ones snails as they seem to think they’re pretty awesome. Would that be an option for domestic? Or do you run the risk of giving them whatever diseases wild snails have that they may not have a built immunity to? I suppose the possibility a snail has been poisoned is a risk too…
I think I’ve just answered my own question. Thanks for observing my stream of consciousness.
Budgerigars (small parrots).
They’re active, smart, and social. They fly.
So I made them a flight cage that takes up most of the room they’re in. I’d prefer a full walk-in aviary, but don’t have room in my apartment.
Cleaning isn’t bad, I just shop-vac out the litter tray & refill it with a 20lb bag of corn cob bits. Fresh food in the mornings, take it out & replace with pellets around noon. Clean water daily. Millet treats when I let them out (about an hour per day to interact with them).
Feathers get everywhere when they molt. And feather dust. Their room has its own HEPA filter.
Vet appointments are more expensive for exotics than cats & dogs. There are fewer exotic vets, and I always go to a board certified avian vet. Boarding when I go on vacation is also more expensive (about $50/day), especially since they’re flighted.
They’re not anywhere near as loud or destructive as larger parrots, but that doesn’t mean they’re quiet. Just means they might not damage your hearing from the next room. They wake up with the dawn, and let you know about it.
They’re extremely sensitive to airborne toxins (avian respiration is rather different from mammalian). That means absolutely no teflon cookware use, no air fresheners, etc.
