Reptile & Amphibian Forums

should i choose a bearded dragon or ball python? which is easier to care for and which is more rewarding. you can also say a different lizard. (im leaning towards bearded dargaons)

i keep a beardie and my roommate has a bunch of ball pythons. so...

every day i feed the dragon, clean out poop, feed the crickets, change the water, play with the dragon. once a week i check temps, buy more veggies..... its a fair amount of work.

once every two weeks my roommate buys a couple of rats, throws them in the dragon tank, changes the water and poop-scoops.

so dragons are a lot more work - but personally i think they are work it. the snake is not so much fun to play with, and as an adult they will go through a 5 month breeding cycle where they get grouchy and dont eat. dragons dont do that, although they may go into a 2-month brumation (hibernation) each year as adults.

the cage setup for the dragon is more complicated, and more expensive but again i think in the long run you'll prefer the beardie. maybe i'm just biased!!
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Ross

0.1 Bearded Dragon (Fuego, spent the last 10 months thinking she was a he!)
2.1 Roommates (require more cleaning up after than the dragon)

I've got both and am crazy about both but they are definitely way different from one another in every aspect except they both are reptiles.

Honestly the only way I can give you a comparison is in the care and cost of each.

With a beardie you will need to invest more time and money than with a python. A beardie is diurnal as opposed to nocturnal like the python.

Screw it! I say get both! I started out with just a ball and 3 mos later got two beardies. Seriously, though, if you haven't had a pet yet I'd lean towards the python first. The python will not take as much time or money to maintain and will get you some experience with reptiles. This is just my opinion, though, and after reading as much as you can about each you'll have to make up your own mind.

Whatever you do make sure you know exactly how to take care of it. Research, research, research! Both animals will amaze you if you let them.

Good luck with whatever you get!
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Rob Talkington

I would say go with the beadred dragon. They eat a wider range of foods and are more active. Like the last person said sankes are cool but not that much fun to play with. I personally have about 15 dragons and think they are the heartiest lizards I have owned.
Hope I was of some help