Reptile & Amphibian Forums

now please dont bash me here but i REALLY like gators but not no where near ready to get one but i own to many dang snake lizzards large and small i have my fare share of animals now anywhos. seems all the american gators i see are "docile" but get way to big for me any tips on any kind of crock/gator that dont get HUGE like nothing over 10 preferably and doesnt usualy have a i wanna kill you temper just not sayin i want to cuddle it tho that tame would be nice just as to where its a lil safe moving from indoor to outdoor cage etc but just currious as to what you guys/girls think on what would be a good first gator ( i wont be getting it for a few years but nothing like a few years research etc to prepare yourself lol

Pretty much all caiman stay under 10 feet, but then again most of them have that i want to kill you temper.

hmmm no tips no nothin on any kind of gator? well out of the caimen then what one has the best temper out of the spec smooths black etc etc etc

Chinese alligators don't get nearly as large as their American cousins, but they're one of, if not, the most endangered species on the planet so acquiring one would be pretty well impossible. As mentioned, all caiman species are generally by no means docile. Dwarf caimans are the world's smallest species of crocodilians but they are typically very defensive and will not allow you to go anywhere near them. Also they are extremely secretive animals and like to hide all day or they stress easily. Another major problem with any so called "tame" crocodilian is that it could make the owner complacent resulting in potentially serious wounds. I've met a couple of people that have had this happen to them with big American alligators. Two people I've met both have very large gators and would both go right in the water with them for years to clean the glass etc., and in both cases, one day the gators (or rather, the keepers) made a mistake. One guy ended upw ith plastic surgery in his leg and the other was not as serious, but had his side bitten. Crocodilians are extremely cool animals and it's great you're interested in getting one down the road. Just keep in mind that they are all extremely powerful animals and can inflict very serious wounds, or in some cases, death, so make sure you know what you're getting yourself into before you get into it!

Matt

oh of course thats why i am asking now and like i said before not looking for a cuddle buddy just somethign that will be a lil safer moving from inddor to outdoor etc. out of my 25 i think it is now reptiles i dont fully trust not one of them tho they are all docile guard is always up. 10 years made me not trust them lol but love them more with alot of caution. hmm hopefully some1 gets a bright idea and the "perfect" gator pops in some1s mind

who replied and for not bashing me like i expected. hopefully some1 will still get a bright idea on the "perfect" croc that fits into my specifications. unless oneday i get the money and space to house and feed a huge american gator lol

There are only 2 types of gators ... americans and chinese, I highly doubt you will ever see a chinese available in the pet trade. Chinese gators are also quit aggressive.

Dwarf Caimans (P. palpebrosus) which get about 3ft-5ft, Smoothfront Caiman (P. trigonatus) which get about 4ft-6ft, Spec Caimans (C. c. crocodilus) which get about 4ft-7ft, Hybrid Caimans (crocodilus x yacare) which I think would get about 4ft-7ft ..... these are whats the smallest species that can be found in the pet trade. .... these all have typical croc attitudes, the dwarfs and smoothfronts being more of a shy animal trying to stay away from you but will get fiesty when and if handled or if you get to close to them.

Dwarf Crocodiles which get about 4ft-6ft can be found once in a while in certain states but they are pricey. These are about the same as the Dwarf and Smoothfront Caimans, my adults tend to get a bit aggressive at times but nothing big.

New Guinea crocodiles are available from time to time, these get about 7ft-8ft, and are actually quit docile, also a slender crocodile for the most part if not over fed ... these are still a crocodile and not to be under estimated but these are the most docile species I have worked with, these however I find to be very aggressive/testritorial towards other crocodiles (male or female) ... and again pricey.

I think your first concern should be housing of the animal, not its disposition, even if a species is considered docile or aggressive as a whole, each individule animal does have its own personality which can be more docile or more aggressive.

I keep 11 or 12 differant species of crocodilian and to me there all just croc's, I dont really see them as aggressive or docile .. I just see them as croc's each with its own personality. They are a hands off species as far as im concerned so as lond as care is taken it really doesnt matter which is more aggressive or more docile, they should only be handled for enclosure purposes (cleaning, maint, etc).

Hope this helps

i dont want a hands on croc/gator tho it wouls be nice to have one that is more on the docile side much esier for me to clean cage move form inside to outside weather permitting etc. and like i have said 1000 times before im doing research now so hopefully sometime in the next years i can get one etc

I would focus on enclosure just as much as the species.

Enclosures can be pretty expensive and time consuming ... soon as you think you have it right you figure out something else that needs to be added, changed or removed ... dont spare on expence or cut any corners for the enclosure either, you will be sorry later if you do. thats from experiance trust me.

I would stay away from gators because of there size potential, heck you could get lucky and end up with a small 6ft or so female but I dunno im just not that into gators I guess. Plus if you start out with a gator and later decide thats not the species for you, you might have a hard time getting someone to take the gator in, caimans are a little easier to find homes for and crocs are pretty easy to find homes for ... not saying you wont keep the animal, but some just in case info.

I think any of the caimans would be an ok choice, none are like cubans so I dont see any actually trying to go after you n kill you or anything like that.

If you want to invest in some really nice crocs go for a Dwarf croc or even a New Guinea.

Seriously do lots of research and talk 2 lots of folks who keep crocs before you start your enclosure or purchase your animal

enclosure comes after i figure out what type of croc/gator i want that way i can build to its needs bigger pool smaller pool more land less land even of both more tree type bush on land size etc. this is a minimum 5 year project in the making that way ihave more than enough time to find the right type of gator/croc make the right enclosure make sure everythign is sound test run the cage (or i should say have fun and pretend im a gator in the cage lol)

yea your right figure out the species first then the enclosure.

The Dwarf Caiman, Smoothfront caiman and Dwarf crocodile will all use pretty much the same type enclosure. I set these up with large land area's, lots of hidding spots by way of plants trees and burrows.

For gators, the other caiman species and the new guinea crocs .. pretty much standard croc set ups, but for the NG's I would provide a lot of plants and trees for them to hide. This enclosure would of course vary in size depending on which species as well.

Most alligators dont get much over 10 feet. And mine are relatively tame (I hate saying that word) but then again their alligators, all they think about is food.

i hear you on the tame thign thats why i say "docile" with """ lol

lol good point, my gators will take fingers given the chance but they calm down once my hand goes in the water to grab/change something. I am lookin at one of those nilets on the classifieds with alan bosch. Any1 kno if these are a good captive?

I sold a few of these last year that a friend in FL bred by accident and I probably will again this year, I am not a big fan of hybrids but they were pretty cool little croc's, some looked like hybrids, some looked like niles and some looked like morelets.

I am still in contact with the ppl who purchased these from me last year and they all report the crocs still doing great and they really like them!

No offence to Alan or anyone else selling on KS classifieds but ... I would highly recumend buying crocs from ppl/facilities that are keeping/breeding these animals or at least from ppl/facilities experianced with crocodilians. If you want this type of Hybrid by from Nature Coast or from Glades