#rockybae

God I'm glad I'm so paranoid. After about 4 hours of in-depth research on comparative substrates it looks like I'll be spending the day cleaning out Rocky's entire home and replacing the current mix with something called "reptisand."

I've never had a desert reptile before and no one seems to know much about steppe runners so I've been having difficulty finding reliable info as all of this is pretty much new to me.

So just checked my inbox and I have a bunch of questions about my lizard (thank you guys). Since a lot of them are similar or the same (and I'm a profoundly lazy ass) I decided to get them all on one go, so here is a kind of FAQ/blanket post about my new buddy:

Wait is that YOUR LIZARD?? Yea.

Boy or girl?/Name? Boy. His name is Rocky (I named him that because of his long flicky tongue) but I usually call him some manner of embarrassing pet name or Idjit. <3

What kind of lizard is he? He is a Steppe Runner. Look them up they are rad as hell.

How old is he/how big will he get? He is 8 months old and full grown at around 5 3/4 inches.

What does he eat? Mealworms. They are creepy. I keep them in the fridge.

Where did you get him? Repticon in Orlando. I forget which booth though. They didn't have a sign up and I payed cash so no receipt.

What size tank does he have? Exoterra small terrarium: 18x18x12. I keep it nice and dry with a bunch of hides and a super-hot corner (~100 degrees) for basking.

Is he friendly?/ Can you hold him? Yeah. He's totally socialized already by the breeders and super friendly. The steppe runners caught my attention at the booth because when I walked up the whole container of them started clambering at the side of the tub like tiny lizard-kittens. He was super chill when I held him at the con too and he loves chin and lower-neck scritches. Precious.

Does he bite? Nope. Not even a nibble. He likes to burrow into clothes or between fingers though. But that just tickles. <3

How long will he live for? ~8-10 years