I want a big pet! Black Throat, or Aldabra?

Casperr

Member
I'm stuck between getting a pet Black Throat monitor lizard, or a pet Aldabra tortoise.

Black Throats can be trained really well, almost as good as a regular dog, and are more active.
Aldabra Tortoises are cheaper to feed, and are cuter.

What to get, what to get.....

any opinions? what would you get?
 
Which ever it is, be sure you can care for it for DECADES! I've also heard that black-throats can be pretty nice, but remember that a monitor at correct body temp is very active and powerful (even if it doesn't intend to hurt someone it can). You'll want a room sized enclosure for an adult. I would try to talk with some one who has adults to see what they like and don't like in terms of handling. Most people who buy juveniles don't end up keeping them as adults. Sad but true.

The tortoise will take many years to reach that size and will require either a heavily built outdoor pen with a hibernation burrow or a heated indoor room in winter. They may eat a lot of less expensive foods but they will also POOP a lot of the same. It will be a little like cleaning up after a pony! You can't really convince a tortoise NOT to go someplace it wants to...they can move furniture without trying very hard. They are also serious diggers. Again, talk with someone who breeds tortoises to find out the realities of owning the big adults. I'd look into rescuing an unwanted adult before buying a baby. I have a friend in S Calif. who had two large tortoises (not sure which species...either a Sulcata or Aldabra type) living outdoors in his yard for many years. They were actually hard to deal with as they dug under his fences, kept getting loose and eating the neighbors gardens and were like slow single-minded rototillers. Just this spring he got fed up with the damage and trucked them to a local breeder.
 
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If you want a big pet and don't mind it being a fish try an arowwanna or clown knife there awsome for reptiles you can try a tortise or a big water drago or somthing
 
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