Lizards

Best Pet Skinks

~ BackwaterReptiles

Skinks are sleek, smooth and generally docile lizards. Most will attain a very reasonable size and have straightforward care requirements. We’re very fond of skinks in general and think they make tremendously rewarding and entertaining reptile companions.

Backwater Reptiles list: the best pet skinks

Blue Tongue Skink (Tiliqua sp.)

Probably the most popular pet skink we sell at Backwater Reptiles would be the Blue Tongue. “Blueys,” as they are affectionately known amongst herp hobbyists, are also the largest skink species (aside from the much harder to come by Solomon Island Skink) sold by Backwater Reptiles.

The best pet skinks
This bluey is showing off his blue tongue that got him his name. Blueys are one of the best pet skinks in the world.

We recommend purchasing your bluey as a hatchling because you can watch it grow up and train it to recognize you. The more you interact with your bluey, the more docile and tame it will become. Many will sit on the couch with their owner or even hang out on their owner’s shoulders like a parrot.

Of all the skink species sold by Backwater Reptiles, we’d say that blueys are probably the hardiest and most interactive. As we already mentioned, you can train them to enjoy being handled and petted, which is great if you want a lizard that you can “play” with, so to speak.

Blueys are omnivores and will need a varied diet ranging from canned or cooked meat to fresh, leafy greens and veggies.

If you want a pet blue tongue skink of your own, Backwater Reptiles has healthy babies and adults available.

Red Eye Crocodile Skink (Tribolonotus gracilis)

Many people are attracted to red eye croc skinks because they are reminiscent of tiny little dragons. They have heavily keeled scales, fierce pointy heads, and eyes that are ringed in a very bright orange/red color. Add some miniature wings and – voila! – you’ve got the world’s tiniest dragon.

Aside from their physical appearance, croc skinks are generally pretty docile. They don’t mind being picked up and human interaction doesn’t phase them.

red eye crocodile skink
Wouldn’t you agree that this little skink’s scales are reminiscent of a dragon?

Your pet croc skink will grow to be around six or seven inches long, which makes them a very manageable size. A single croc skink will only need an enclosure ten to twenty gallons in size. We recommend going with the 20 gallon if you plan to keep a mating pair together.

Want to know an interesting factoid about the red eye crocodile skink? These skinks are actually capable of making low yelping or squeaking noises. Hatchlings and adults can make the sounds, so don’t be alarmed if you hear a strange noise from your croc skink’s home. With the exception of geckos, this behavior is very unusual in lizards.

Interested in your own little wingless dragon skink? We’ve got red-eyed crocodile skinks for sale.

Fire Skink (Riopa fernandi)

If you haven’t already guessed as much, fire skinks get their common name from their bright red/orange coloration. Like nearly all skinks, they have very smooth scales with stout legs and thick heads and tails. They stay very low to the ground and spend most of their time burrowing and hiding.

Fire skinks are carnivorous and should be fed a staple diet of crickets with mealworms, reptiworms, hornworms, and roaches to supplement and provide nutritional variety. It’s always wise to provide a light-weight water dish too, even if fire skinks are not particularly avid drinkers.

fire skink
The fire skink gets its common name from its bold red color.

Your pet fire skink should live for around fifteen to twenty years. A mature adult can grow to be fourteen or fifteen inches long, so we recommend a glass enclosure that is at least twenty gallons in size. If you wish to keep a mating pair together, we recommend a slightly larger home as these are actually pretty active lizards.

Backwater Reptiles has fire skinks for sale if you’re ready to welcome one into your own home.

Blue Tail Skink (Mabuya quinquetaeniata)

The smallest skink on our list is the Blue Tail Skink, which is also known as the Five-Lined Skink. This skink gets both of its common names from both its blue tail and the five cream-colored lines on its back and sides.

These little lizards are quite fast and thoroughly enjoy hiding. We recommend investing in a good substrate since your skink will spend a great deal of time out of sight. You can keep a single one in an enclosure as small as a plastic shoebox, although we always recommend at least a ten gallon tank.

blue tail skink
Blue tail skinks are the smallest skink species on our list.

The Blue Tail will eat anything you provide for it. They’re not usually very picky. We recommend crickets and roaches with occasional treat insects like reptiworms or wax worms.

It should be noted that of all the skink species on this list, the blue tail is the least likely to enjoy being taken out of its enclosure to be held. They are known for being a bit skittish, so if you plan to handle your blue tail a lot, be prepared to train it.

Get your very own blue tail skink from Backwater Reptiles!

The best pet skinks: Conclusion

Skinks as a species are a great pet choice for any reptile enthusiast. They all adapt well to captivity and are easy to care for. They live fairly long lives and are great for kids and adults alike. They also make awesome classroom pets.

Lizards for Kids

~ BackwaterReptiles

Lizards can make very rewarding pets for children, even though they might not be what most parents would consider a “traditional” pet. They actually require far less maintenance than a cat or dog and most can be trained to be extremely social and friendly.

So, if you’re considering purchasing a pet lizard for your child or even as a classroom pet, check out our list below to see our top four lizards for kids.

The best lizards for children

1. Bearded Dragon (Pogona vitticeps)

Bearded dragons top our list of the best pet lizards for kids because they’re very gentle, docile, and extremely easy to care for in captivity. They enjoy being out of their enclosure and receiving attention from their owners and are probably one of the more interactive lizard species that we have ever kept.

Beardies, as they are more commonly known, begin life fairly small. If you purchase a hatchling, your little lizard should be around four or five inches in length. Beardies are piggy lizards and will pretty much never refuse food, so be prepared for your beardie to grow…and grow fast!

Even though you can keep a hatchling comfortably in a ten gallon tank for a few months, it will quickly grow into needing an enclosure that is at least 75 gallons as a full-grown bearded dragon can be about two feet in length.

 

lizards for kids
This beardie is what we call “normal” in the reptile world. This just means that it has not been bred to be any special color or have any unique markings. They make wonderful pet lizards for kids of all ages.

Bearded dragons are omnivorous, but hatchlings will be more inclined to eat insects over vegetable matter. Their favorite tends to be crickets, mealworms, and waxworms. We recommend placing fresh greens such as mustard greens and collards in their enclosure daily and feeding invertebrates daily as well.

If you’re interested in a healthy, amusing pet bearded dragon, Backwater Reptiles has many different morphs to choose from, and they’re all captive bred and thriving.

2. Leopard Gecko (Eublepharis macularius)

If you’re in the market for a cute lizard with extraordinarily simple care requirements, then a leopard gecko just might be a good choice for your child.

Leopard geckos stay relatively small. A full-grown, large leopard gecko will reach ten inches long, but most will average around eight inches in length. They are available in many interesting color morphs and patterns, so this makes them very attractive to many hobbyists.

pet super snow leopard gecko
This leopard gecko morph is called a Super Snow. They’re black and white and do very well in captivity.

You’ll be hard-pressed to make a leopard gecko bite. They’re extremely good-natured little lizards. In fact, we love recommending them to children or first-time lizard owners because they always appear to be smiling.

Your leopard gecko will eat insects such as crickets, mealworms, and reptiworms. We like to give ours wax worms as treats, but only occasionally.

Check out our extensive selection of leopard geckos for sale ranging from hatchlings to mature adults. They’re perhaps the most popular pet lizard in the world.

3. Blue Tongue Skink (Tiliqua sp.)

We wouldn’t necessarily recommend a blue tongue skink for a young child such as a toddler, but a blue tongue would be a perfect pet lizard for a teenager or even pre-teen.

Blue tongues require a slightly more varied diet and a small percentage of specimens can be nippy if they’re not properly trained, so we think that unless you’re willing to invest the time to train and feed the lizard yourself, you may want to steer clear of choosing a blue tongue for your very young child. We’ve never had one attempt to bite us–ever–but if it did happen it’d be a little more painful than a bite from a small lizard.

Due to their giant blue-colored tongues, blue tongue skinks are commonly referred to as “Blueys” amongst reptile enthusiasts. If you’re lucky, you’ll catch glimpses of your bluey’s tongue when it eats veggies like kale, spinach, and collards combined with proteins such as mealworms, canned meat, or boiled chicken.

We know we already mentioned it, but blue tongues do have more complex dietary requirements than the other lizards on our list. Feeding them is not as simple as dropping a few insects in their cage or placing “skink pellets” into a dish.

blue tongue skink hatchling
This is a hatchling bluey. Many lizard lovers like blueys because of their short legs and big heads.

Blueys will not need a lot of accessories in their enclosure. They have short, stubby, little legs, which means they’re not climbers. All they really need is a water dish, clean substrate that allows for burrowing, and some hiding places.

If you’re ready to take on a pet blue tongue skink, we have healthy babies and adults available. They’re one of the world’s most popular lizards.

4. Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis) or Brown Anole (Anolis sagrei)

Anoles have always been great starter lizards for kids. In fact, many of us experienced herp hobbyists started out keeping pet anoles when we were a child, so we recommend them from first-hand experience.

 

Green anole
Green anoles are compact little lizards that are very inexpensive pets for kids.

Both green and brown anoles have very similar care requirements and eat the same types of food. In fact, in the wild, they share habitat and compete for space and food. We’d recommend either color – we say let your kid(s) pick which species they want.

Anoles are very small pet lizards which means that the space they require for a habitat is smaller than any of the other pet lizards on our list. However, anoles are prone to flightiness and don’t really enjoy being handled. So, if your child wants a lizard that they can hold and pet, we recommend going with a hardier lizard from this list.

brown anole
Brown anoles have essentially the same care requirements as green anoles.

Green and brown anoles are both extremely affordable pet lizards, so if you’re on a budget, an anole just might be the best bet for you and your family.

Backwater Reptiles sells both species of anole, plus a few other species too!

Lizards for Kids – Conclusion

There are tons of great lizards available in pet stores and from breeders that make excellent pets. However, we highly recommend any of the four lizards listed above if you are specifically in the market for your child’s first pet lizard.

How to Care for Your Flying Dragon (Draco volans)

~ BackwaterReptiles

In this article we’re going to explain to you information on Flying dragon care and setup as a reptile pet. They’re definitely one of the most fascinating creatures on the planet, and definitely a favorite with our customers!

The Flying dragon (Draco volans) is a species of agamid lizard that is also known as the Flying Lizard and the Flying Draco. These lizards are brown to dark brown in color with some darker overlay patterns. Males have a yellow-ish dewlap and females tend to have a blue dewlap. They will grow to be about eight inches long.

They are unique and interesting pet lizards because they have “wings” that allow them to glide from tree to tree in the wild. These wings are not true wings, but rather a ribbed membrane attached to the side of the dragon’s body that spread out like a fan.

Flying dragon care
When a flying dragon spreads its membranous “wings,” the colors that show through are quite spectacular. We detail their care in this blog post.

The Flying Dragon is not a pet lizard you commonly see. Although these lizards are not extremely difficult to care for, they aren’t that easy to come by. We do not recommend these lizards be kept by beginners, although herpers with some experience (and space to house them) will find them to be rewarding pets.

Flying dragons come from the Philippines, western Malaysia and also widely across the Indo-Pacific islands. They prefer to live in forested areas with lots of trees and foliage and rarely descend to the ground.

When their wings are extended, bright colors are displayed, which makes it easier to determine the dragon’s gender. When the wings are not in use, the dragon keeps them folded closely against its body, giving the lizard a long, slender appearance.

Flying Dragon
Here you can see a flying dragon with its wings relaxed. These are long, skinny lizards when they aren’t gliding.

In the wild, flying dragons will eat mostly termites and ants, but in captivity, they can be taught to eat crickets, mealworms, and flies as a staple diet. It’s always wise to offer a bit of variety in order to make sure your dragon gets all the nutrients and vitamins it needs.

Flying dragons should always have access to a water dish. We also recommend misting their enclosure regularly as they do come from moist and tropical environments.

If you want to see your dragon fly, you must provide it with enough space. Due to their arboreal nature, you should provide an enclosure that is tall as well as wide. There will need to be plenty of sturdy plant life and foliage inside the enclosure with enough space between them to allow the dragon room to stretch its wings.

It is generally acceptable to house two or three females together, or even one male with several females. This will encourage the male to perform territory and mating rituals which can be entertaining to watch. When the male encounters a female, he will extend his wings and dewlap and try to make himself look larger. He will also bob his head to display his dominance.

We do not advise keeping multiple males in one enclosure as it will cause them undue stress. They might even injure one another.

In general, flying dragons are somewhat secretive. Although they’re not aggressive, they usually don’t enjoy being handled and will do much better if left to their own devices in their enclosures.

As previously mentioned, flying dragons are arboreal and don’t descend to the ground often. The only behavior that has been observed where they go to the ground by choice is when a gravid female lays her eggs.

The female will dig a hole with her snout and proceed to lay a clutch of approximately five eggs. After the eggs have been deposited in the ground, the female will cover them and remain with them for a day or so. The eggs will hatch in about a month’s time.

draco volans care
Flying dragons use their wings to glide from tree to tree and in territorial displays. They look like they’re part lizard, part butterfly, don’t they?

Conclusion

While flying dragons make impressive and fascinating pets, they are not for everyone or for beginners.

Due to their arboreal nature, they need an enclosure that is built like with an arboreal style so they have room to glide and hide. This means a wide and tall cage will be needed.

In addition, flying dragons can be secretive and are not great pets for someone who would like to handle their reptile often.

If you are ready to care for your own flying dragon, Backwater Reptiles does have these beautiful and unique gliding lizards for sale.

 

What To Do If Your Crested Gecko Loses Its Tail

~ BackwaterReptiles

Crested geckos (Rhacodactylus ciliatus) are fun and interesting pet lizards that have gained in popularity within the reptile hobby in the last few years. These cute little geckos are also known as “Eyelash Geckos” due to the miniature spiked hair-like ridges that run from their eyes down to their tails.

They can be a variety of colors ranging from dark brown, orange, red, grey, and beige. They can have no markings at all or have speckles, stripes, or bar patterns adorning their skin.

crested gecko tail loss
This is a frogbutt crested gecko, which means it lost its tail. It has a stump where a tail would normally be.

Crested Gecko tail loss
Did you know that when a crested gecko loses its tail, it then becomes known as a “frogbutt” crested gecko within the reptile world? This is because once the gecko’s tail is gone, the truncated rear end of the lizard sort of resembles a frog’s posterior.

Tail loss among crested geckos is actually not uncommon and will not harm the animal. In fact, in the wild in New Caledonia, most adult crested geckos will actually drop their tails naturally. It’s more common to see wild Cresties without tails than with tails. And other than changing the gecko’s physical appearance, losing a tail does not change the gecko’s lifestyle or impair it in any way.

Will my crested gecko’s tail grow back?

Unlike many other lizards, including the Crested Gecko’s close cousin, the Gargoyle Gecko, a crested gecko’s tail will not grow back once it has been lost. In other words, a Frogbutt Crested Gecko will always be a frogbutt.

The cells surrounding the base of the Crestie’s tail are brittle, which means that when the Crestie is threatened by a predator or stressed, the tail can easily break off. The capillaries and blood vessels in the tail will close almost instantly once the tail has been lost, so there shouldn’t be much blood loss.

It is thought that the energy needed to re-grow the tail is better used by the crested gecko elsewhere. Regenerating a tail is very costly in terms of energy and resources needed, so it is assumed that crested geckos have simply learned to live without their tails.

frogbutt crested gecko
Frogbutt crested geckos are only affected cosmetically by the loss of their tail.

What causes a crested gecko to lose its tail?

The reason a crested gecko loses its tail can be complicated or simple.

Sometimes a crested gecko is a bit skittish by nature and can be predisposed to drop its tail due to its high-strung nature. With these types of geckos, a loud noise or sudden movement can be enough of a trigger to cause the gecko to drop its tail.

Cresties with more calm demeanors will usually only drop their tails in captivity if they feel threatened or scared. Because it’s a defense mechanism, try not to make your Crestie feel like you’re a potential predator. Move slowly and within your gecko’s line of vision to try to avoid any surprises.

What to do if your crested gecko drops its tail

First of all, don’t be alarmed if the tail wiggles autonomously. The dropped tail is meant to deter and distract predators, so it is natural for it to continue to move and twitch on its own.

If your gecko’s enclosure has gravel, sand, or other small particulate substrate, we recommend moving your gecko temporarily to a small, clean container with no substrate or paper towels liners. This will help ensure that no loose pieces of substrate accidentally cling to the wound and cause it not to heal or to become infected.

Although you might feel inclined to do so, it’s not necessary to put any kind of salve or ointment on the gecko’s stub. The only time this might become necessary is if you notice the stub looks infected. In that case, it is acceptable to put a little bit of antiseptic such as Neosporin on the wound.

If the stump ever begins to ooze, your gecko needs to see a vet. This is a rare occurrence, but once the tail has gotten that infected, veterinary care will be required for the gecko to survive.

frogbutt eyelash gecko
Crested geckos are also known as Eyelash Geckos due to the ridges of hair-like spikes down their backs and heads.

Conclusion

Frogbutt geckos are not uncommon in the wild or in the reptile hobby world. This “new look” only affects the gecko cosmetically and personally, we think frogbutts are just as cute as Cresties with a full tail.

If you think you’re ready to welcome a Crested Gecko of your own into your home, Backwater Reptiles does have frogbutt crested geckos available as well as crested geckos with intact tails.

How to Dust Feeder Insects for Chameleons

~ BackwaterReptiles

Keeping chameleons in captivity can be a challenge. These delicate lizards have very specific care requirements and need their wild habitats to be replicated as closely as possible in order to thrive as pets. Dusting their feeder insects properly is a key to keeping chameleons successfully.

How to dust feeder insects
Pictured is one of our extremely healthy female Oustalets chameleon, fed a diet of properly dusted insects.

Besides requiring a mesh enclosure or cage, a dripping and misting system to meet humidity requirements, and UV lights and heat, chameleons also require their invertebrate meals to be extremely nutritious. This means that you can’t just feed your pet chameleon any old feeder insects. You will need to make sure your chameleon’s insects are gut-loaded and vitamin dusted regularly.

So what is vitamin dusting? What vitamin dusts do you give a chameleon and how often do you need to do so? How do you go about dusting the insects?  These are all questions we will address in this blog article, so read on if you want to make sure your chameleon stays healthy and strong.

What is vitamin dusting?

The answer to this question is actually very simple.

Vitamin dusting is where you coat your feeder insects in a film of powdered vitamin supplements before feeding time.

Do you take a multivitamin pill daily? How about a vitamin C tablet every now and then? Well, dusting your chameleon’s feeder insects is basically the same concept. The only difference is that because it would stress the animal to try to get it to ingest a vitamin pill, reptile hobbyists have invented a clever way to get the animals their vitamins. By coating the insects, the chameleons don’t even notice they’re eating the vitamins they need.

What types of vitamin dusts are good for chameleons? How often do you need to dust your feeder insects for your pet chameleon?

These are questions we get a lot at Backwater Reptiles. This is because there’s no manual on how frequently dusting needs to be done and the frequency as well as type of vitamin dusts required can vary from species to species.

At Backwater Reptiles, we use five main vitamin dusts for our chameleons – bee pollen, spirulina, a calcium + D3 supplement, a calcium supplement, and Herptivite/Supervite supplement.

The general rule of thumb with baby chameleons is to dust pinhead crickets (or whatever food source you give them) fairly frequently with calcium. Babies are growing fast and their little bodies need lots of nutrients to make sure their growth process happens smoothly.

Listed below are the vitamins used at Backwater Reptiles and the schedule we subscribe to when it comes to dusting feeder insects for our chameleons.

Bee pollen

Bee Pollen Vitamin Supplement
Bee pollen can be bought in powdered form from specialty retailers and health food stores.

In the wild, chameleons eat insects that could have recently pollinated a flower. Supplementing with bee pollen is said to help avoid chameleon “hunger strikes.”

Frequency:
Babies: once monthly
Sub-adults: twice monthly
Adults: twice monthly

LoD (calcium + D3)

Calcium and Vitamin Supplement
This Repashy vitamin and calcium supplement is what we use at Backwater Reptiles.

At Backwater Reptiles, the type of LoD vitamin supplement we use is called “Repashy Superfoods Calcium plus LoD.”

Frequency:
Babies: once monthly
Sub-adults: twice monthly
Adults: twice monthly

NoD (calcium)

Powdered Calcium Supplement
This powdered calcium supplement is used frequently when feeding baby chameleons.

The kind of calcium supplement used at Backwater Reptiles is called “Repashy Superfoods Supercal NoD.”

Frequency:
Babies: 10-15 times monthly
Sub-adults: 5-7 times monthly
Adults: 2-3 times monthly

Spirulina

Spirulina Powdered Supplement
Spirulina is a powdered algae that can be purchased at health food stores or specialty stores.

Spirulina is an algae that commonly grows in freshwater ponds and lakes. The kind fed to our chameleons is dried and powdered. Any powdered spirulina will be fine for your chameleons, but we use an organic, non-irradiated, and non-GMO spirulina from www.nuts.com.

Frequency:
Babies: once monthly
Sub-adults: twice monthly
Adults: twice monthly

Herptivite/Supervite

Multivitamin Supplement for Chameleons
This is the multivitamin supplement used at Backwater Reptiles.

These are general vitamin supplements or multivitamins. The kind we use at Backwater Reptiles is “RepCal Hertivite with Beta Carotene Multivitamins.”

Frequency:
Babies: twice monthly
Sub-adults: twice monthly
Adults: once monthly

How do you dust your feeder insects?

The good news is that the physical process of dusting your feeder insects with vitamins is not as tedious as it sounds.

All you will need to complete the process is a small plastic bag, your vitamin of choice, and your feeder insects.

Reptile Feeder Crickets
At Backwater Reptiles, we opt to dust our crickets in a bucket instead of a plastic bag simply because we have so many animals to feed. It makes sense for us to do it on a larger scale. But a plastic bag works just fine in most cases.

Just put your insects in the plastic bag along with your vitamins and seal the bag shut. Then shake the insects around in the bag with the dust for a few seconds until you can see that they are visibly coated with the dust.

Now your feeder insects are ready to be eaten!

A quick tip – if you are feeding your chameleon dusted crickets, be sure to feed them to the animal quickly after the dusting process has been completed. Crickets have good hygiene and will clean themselves of the dust as quickly as they can, so the sooner they are eaten, the more vitamins the chameleon will ingest.

Vitamin Dusted Crickets
When your feeder insects are coated like these crickets, they are ready to be served to your chameleon.

How to dust chameleon feeder insects – Conclusion

A healthy, happy chameleon will require supplemental vitamins in its diet. This can be achieved by dusting your pet chameleon’s feeder insects with a number of multivitamins.