Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hey all
i have a question about cages because skeletor's post has me paranoid. my lizards are in one of those all screen cages and they absolutely love it because they can climb all over. i swear they spend more time on the sides than the ground. i could never put them back in glass because they will probably break their noses. anyway since i am keeping my one egg that means i am getting another lizard and i was going to buy another cage but you said skeletor's 150 gallon tank should only have 1 male and 2-3 females. is it ok that the tank i wanted to buy is smaller than that since they actually can run around on more than just the floor? or should i buy 150 or larger cage? i will have 4 lizards after the baby gets big enough to live with them. any recommendations? thanks
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vonnie
***One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries. - A. A. Milne***

I have never felt the necessity to go any larger than a 55 gallon tank for my lizards. Perhaps if you toss some wild caught adults into a larger cage, you may have better results...if they don't hit full speed before hitting their face on the glass ;P

I have had no problems with keeping one male and 2 or three females in a 55 gallone or 40 breeder size tank. More lizards = more cleaning and more competition for food. If you are one that takes good care of your critters, and makes sure they are all getting their fare share, I wouldn't worry about it.

I would wait at least a year to even think about putting the new lizard in with the adults...I also would try to do it at night, or sometime where the "new kid" won't draw a lot of attention to himself.

John

well i definitely was not going to put the babe in there until they were similar sizes. and i think that i must have weird lizards because alot of the descriptions i read of them are not like how my lizards act. i have never seen my lizards be territorial, but then again when i bought them they all lived in cages with alot of collareds, none of them have ever lived alone. i even brought milly and walter home and just stuck them in the cage with ivan and she never even thought twice about it. (she was only alone for like 3 days after walter the first died, the vet said she was healthy and i could get other lizards) in fact half the time when i wake up in the morning the three of them are chilling on the heat rock using each other's backs as pillows. anyway it is nice to know that it is ok to have a smaller tank. i mean i want them to have space buti am just a lowly grad student who does not make much money ha ha.
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vonnie
***One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries. - A. A. Milne***

Than wild caught individuals...they will know no differences. I'd say still, for health reasons, more than four or five in a 55 gallon tank may have its problems...mostly with cleanliness and competition for food. Just put more places to hide for them, and remove the hides when feeding.

well after looking at the prices again there is only like an eleven dollar difference between the 100 and the 65. i may as well get them the palace if it is not that much more expensive and that way if i am ever homeless i can live in it too. ha ha thanks for all your advice
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vonnie
***One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries. - A. A. Milne***

It will be like living in a FISH BOWL Hahhahahahhahahahahha,
Get it ?????
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Eve

...is the fact you will probably have to use additional lights/mats to maintain the correct temps in the longer tanks, as the "far end" of the cool gradient will be cold as 'heck' to a collared otherwise. I've always liked to provide as much room as possible, but I've pretty much settled on keeping pairs or trios in 40 gal breeder tanks out of 'practicality' LOL. I have a nice 13 foot by 3 foot enclosure upstairs which will have some collareds in it when Fluffy the Savannah 'no longer needs it'.
Or fits in it, I should say.

DC
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I've got the blues...LOL...them screamin' yellow-head blues...

Just a clarification as to why I am using a 150 gallon. I originally purchased this setup from a guy for only $250 dollars. It came with a stand, glass top, some rocks, some driftwood, and a couple of filters. I was planning on using it as a saltwater tank, but after doing all my research I decided I didn't want to spend that much money on all of the pieces (would have been over 2k for equipment alone, no water or fish). I discussed this with my wife and decided to put reptiles in it instead of selling it. If I was buying a tank just for this purpose I would probably use a 55 gallon because of the price.
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-Scott

Hail, Hail, the gang's all here
Leave your worries at the door boy, they're not going anywhere.
Hail, Hail, the gang's all here
When the going gets tough I know my friends will still be there.
-Dropkick Murphy's

oh no, it's great that you have a tank that large. it just made me nervous because of the amount of lizards he told you to put into the tank. until i found this forum i had to rely on pet stores for information and i thought maybe they had told me the wrong cage sizes and since i was looking to buy a new cage anyway i thought i would ask my well informed friends. i am just a paranoid lizard mama and i want them to be as comfortable as possible!
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vonnie
***One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries. - A. A. Milne***