Snakes in Sepia

Hi,

If you can afford to avoid it and find a breeder in your area, I would do that instead. (Or if you’re comfortable paying extra, buy online and have it shipped to you.) Every time I go into Petco I wanna rescue the little fellas from their awful tiny tank, but I know if I do that I’ll just be giving Petco my money and they’ll replace the bearded dragon with a new one and the whole thing repeats. Not to mention you won’t know anything about the animal such as its genetics, sex, illness history, etc. Bearded dragons at pet stores are also usually never handled and are untame.

Buying from a responsible bearded dragon breeder who is accepted in the community, who knows what they’re doing and treats their dragons well is the better option. But it does tend to be slightly more expensive. You’re paying for a healthier dragon with no genetic defects or history of illness and you will typically know the sex of the dragon you get. A lot of breeders will hand tame babies before selling.

Another option is to look on your local craigslist. I live in an area where people put up their reptiles all the time to be rehomed. That’s how I got my rescue, she was being treated very poorly and I got her for free along with all the stuff she came with which saved me some money in the long run, and I gave her a much better home where she’s happier and healthier. You still won’t have the benefit of knowing genetics and sex unless their previous owner did, but you’ll be able to help a dragon in need without giving money to a bad store like Petco.

Yeah, I would avoid buying them from any major pet store (if you have a local reptile store ran by people who know what they’re doing that might be a different thing altogether.)

If the store is not up to standard, please file a complaint about them, and encourage others to do the same. Be objective, with specific dates, animals, and details and that will greatly improve the chances of action being taken against the store. If your store is really great about animal care, turn in a compliment in the same manner.

And also beware of breeders in the same way. There are plenty of good breeders out there that have nothing but good intentions. But for every one good breeder, there are two breeders that are just in it for the money, and giving them money and business is just as damaging as encouraging a bad retail store.

At approximately one-thirty this afternoon, an unsuspecting local man was forced to live everyone’s worst nightmare. Upon entering his nearby Pets at Home, little did he know he was but seconds away from coming face to face with a natural-born killer.

“There’s a snake in there,” his companion, a young woman, said. Lulled into a false sense of security by the row of rabbits the pair had passed, the man laughed and said, “No there ain’t.”

So little did he expect to see one of the world’s deadliest creatures that he leant down, face inches from the glass.

A cry of “Oh my god–it’s fucking huge!” could be heard throughout the store. Flight or fight instincts kicking in, the man leapt back and said, “That’s a baby anaconda, innit? Are they allowed to sell those?”

It was later confirmed that the creature was, in fact, half anaconda, half python, half basilisk. 

His companion – either malicious or simply ignorant of the danger posed – nudged him towards the enclosure. Knowing that two layers of glass would not protect him, the man yelled, “Don’t!” threw out his arms, and quickly retreated.

One brave photographer, putting the pursuit of the truth above their own safety, was able to capture an image of the beast.

I can specifically help out with green tree pythons and asian ratsnakes too, since I know those two don’t get much coverage.

With summer coming, I’ve been seeing people recommending or thinking that fans will help keep their reptiles cool.

Fans do not work for reptiles because reptiles do not sweat. Fans don’t actually lower temperatures that way. In fact, fans can add heat to a system just by working.

Fans can work to move hot air out of an enclosed space, but if your entire room is getting too hot then a fan will just blow hot air around. It won’t feel cool to a reptile.

If your room is getting too hot for your reptiles, you’ll have to find a different solution. Simply putting a fan in a room with a reptile is not going to keep your scaley buddy cool.