Bearded pygmy question

[boosh96]

Would it be a good idea for me to purchase a R. brevicaudatus for my 10-year old brother? He's responsible and cares a lot about animals, and I was thinking about getting him a bearded pygmy in the future. What are your thoughts on that? What's the care difficulty of bearded pygs as opposed to full-size chams?

 

[qdude46]

I would go against it due to how fragile they are and i dont mean to be rude but it seems like to much of a burden for a kid that age. For now I would recommend a Crestor or leopard gecko. If you have the money a beardie or blue tounge skink would be great.

 

[boosh96]

You didn't seem rude at all. I was thinking about that and I figured I'd wait on getting him a chameleon. As a matter of fact I'm trying to get my hands on some Spectral pygs soon, so maybe he could be "co-owner" or something.

 

[fluxlizard]

I like the crested gecko suggestion if you really want a lizard for your brother. I used to breed cresteds. Go for the crested gecko. You won't find an easier lizard pet than that, plus they look super cool and are very easy to handle. They don't need lighting or heating and eat a commercial diet so there are no insects to mess with unless you want to treat the lizard with an occasional bug.

 

[qdude46]

Areim getting a cb male bearded soon hopefully, are you getting WC or cb?

 

[boosh96]

I'm hoping to find CB Spectrals. I don't think I'll get them if they're wild-caught.

 

[qdude46]

I wish you god luck, a hunt for cb pygs has taken me about 6 months so far, hopefully you'll have better luck than I

 

[pssh]

I think it's possible for kids that young to be able to keep them well, but obviously not all kids are going to be capable. I think it would depend a lot on how responsible he is, how dedicated he is, and of course learning the proper husbandry. I got a veiled when I was 7 and it lived for a long time. I, however, was unusual in that I was really dedicated to things that I knew I was responsible for. I read a few books on chameleons and did nearly all of the care-taking myself (my mom had to buy the bugs/equipment and drive me to the vets when it was necessary though. You can't do that by yourself when you're 7!)

I would say, don't unless he is really, really interested in one, hasn't shown a likeliness to grow out of his "favorite" things (ie, only likes something for a month or two and then starts to neglect/hate it,) and is really responsible. Also be prepared to do most of the work or all of the work if he decides that he doesn't want/like it anymore or just doesn't have the ability to give it the care it needs. Some kids might be ultra dedicated but just lack the capability to give the animal the care it needs.

I think a crested would be a good starter reptile though! Plus they can be taken out and handled so they would be more likely to hold a child's interest.