Thinking of getting a Caiman Lizards

[chelvis]

I love my tegus to death and i was thinking of getting a ferret but really i enjoy reptiles so much more. So I really like the way caiman lizards look and as of late they seem to be all over the market. Now i won't get one till i move home.

Before i get any new pets i like to get an idea form a pass owner. I've got the basics down (got a buddy at the herpetology department at San Diego Zoo) so thats not what im worried about. I just want to see if anyone has first hand experiance with them as pets (taking care of them at work is way different then in a home situation).

 

[nemo66]

i have 2 tegus and a ferret lol the ferret is just as awesome as the gus. ive also been wanting to get a caiman lizard! but i dont think i can afford the price tag that they carry. like 700 to a thousand dollars. and even if i could afford one i dont know if i would want to have to buy snails all the time for them to eat. i live in a small town and would have to drive an hour to get snails lol. if they would eat meat like a tegu i would proly save up for one. they are truly beutiful. on the other hand i have thought about getting a dwarf cuvier caiman though. they stay fairly small but are verry nippy

 

[chelvis]

Ya i've been talkin to a guy on fauna and his is eatting snails and ground turkey long with other foods. And luckly their price is coming down although i would spend more on one that is eatting a varied diet verses just a snail diet. Snails aren't too hard to come by, but then again i live in a large city and can go down to the asian market and get a pound for almost nothing.

I just totaled my truck not fun but the insurnace company gave me the market price for it which was fair and it only took 1/4 of the price to fix, again called and told them and they were like well already slavaged it so ya dont worry bout it. Now i'm saving alot but i still think a caiman lizard would be a great addition.

I still want a ferret but i dont like to have illegal pets so i have to wait to either move out of Cali or wait till the become legal. Before you say no one gets caught, i work and live on a wildlife center where fish and game come by every week. so no ferret for me unfortuntly.

 

[isdrake]

i have 2 tegus and a ferret lol the ferret is just as awesome as the gus. ive also been wanting to get a caiman lizard! but i dont think i can afford the price tag that they carry. like 700 to a thousand dollars. and even if i could afford one i dont know if i would want to have to buy snails all the time for them to eat. i live in a small town and would have to drive an hour to get snails lol. if they would eat meat like a tegu i would proly save up for one. they are truly beutiful. on the other hand i have thought about getting a dwarf cuvier caiman though. they stay fairly small but are verry nippy

They cost 4.500 EUR here, that's more than 6000 USdollars. *cries*

 

[nemo66]

i think you should totally get one. XD wow omg ferrets are illegal in calie? thats crazy! but sucks 2 though. ferrets are awesome pets. mine is super smart and plays like 24/7

wow isdrake 6000? glad i live in the states lol

 

[chelvis]

Ya cali has stricked pet laws. No ferrets, gerbils, hedgehogs, gliders, ferrets and alot of other cool pets. Surprisingly reptiles are not to bed just no hots(spiders, scorpiens, gila, beaded lizards are not included those are allowed) and no crocodilians but i checked with my buds at fish and game and camine lizards are perfectly legal. Ya another reason cant have illegal pets, my friends work for the people that take them away, so no ferret.

Man 6,000 that is rediculus. Course over in europe you can get a fiji igunna, not over here in the states. But ya there are alot of great animals popping up here.

 

[isdrake]

Man 6,000 that is rediculus. Course over in europe you can get a fiji igunna, not over here in the states. But ya there are alot of great animals popping up here.

wow isdrake 6000? glad i live in the states lol

Yeah I know it's ridiculous. Seems like everything costs more over here.. =(
A Tegu costs almost 3 times more than in the states. But the Caiman lizard.. who can afford that price? :O

Ya cali has stricked pet laws. No ferrets, gerbils, hedgehogs, gliders, ferrets and alot of other cool pets. Surprisingly reptiles are not to bed just no hots(spiders, scorpiens, gila, beaded lizards are not included those are allowed) and no crocodilians but i checked with my buds at fish and game and camine lizards are perfectly legal. Ya another reason cant have illegal pets, my friends work for the people that take them away, so no ferret.

Why does the different states have different laws? Isn't it hard if one wants to move to a different state?

I'm interested to hear why all those animals are illegal in California. It's not that gerbils are dangerous or threat of extinction.

In Sweden we have pretty strict laws too. But all of those you mention is legal and pretty common as pets. However all Carnivora except cat, dog and ferret are illegal. So I guess the states have many interesting pets that we don't have.

 

[chelvis]

LOL an aggressive gerbil that is funny. The different states have different laws so people can have a choice. Really its not that bad, right now i live in Arkansas but soon will be back in Cali. So here is a brake down on why so many different animals are illegal in Cali.
Ferrets: Fish and Game says its becuase of the ecological problem, if one escaped its unknown what havic they can play on the local fuana. Truth is its more of a political problem. Long story.
Hedghogs: they use to carry monkey pox is what my buddies tell me, really again no reason, they cant survive the cold winter (and yes it gets cold in cali).
Sugargliders: They are lumped under a few other classifications (marsupials, non domestic rodents and others from similar families) despite being popular pets.
Gerbils: they are deffinently ecological problem if not careful. People would release them and becuase they can take both extream heat and cold and drought conditions there is a good chance they could cause a problem for the native Kangaroo rat which is already endangered.

Really when people ask me what pets are illegal in Cali i just tell them whats legal much shorter list: Cattle, Goats, Llamas, Alpaca, horse, pigs, sheep, cat dog, rabbit, mice, rats, hamsters, fish, most reptiles, and there are a few others, but nothing really domestic.

 

[nemo66]

lol well i do have to say ive been bitten by far more gerbils than reptiles lol. they can be quite vicious but not really a threat. you live in Arkansas? what part? i used to stay by mountain home.

 

[chelvis]

Right now i'm in north west arkansas doing some work. Will be moving back to cali though and will be there for a year or more.