In this week's blog we want to talk to you about our top picks for best beginner animals that we sell in store!
These won't be in any particular order or rating, but in this blog post we will talk about our reasonings as to why they are in this list and give you a little bit of insight in case you were thinking about purchasing any of these animals.
Bearded Dragon
Bearded Dragons are one of our most sold out reptiles and for good reason! With their incredible temperament and highly sociable personalities they are a family favourite! Bearded Dragons are relatively easy animals to take care of, they do require a little bit more care than some of the other animals on this list, however, it all becomes second nature once you get used to it! Bearded Dragons are also great for younger children, they are very social animals so enjoy being out of the vivarium for handling sessions and are very durable animals, they will tolerate a lot more than some other animals do!
Corn Snake
Wanting to get your first snake? Corn snakes are perfect for beginners! These colubrid snakes have a great docile nature to them making them great for handling! They are also quite active when they are out in comparison to something like a Royal Python (which we will be including in this list, don't worry!), making handling sessions a lot more entertaining! Snakes do not require as much maintenance in comparison to most lizards due to the fact they don't eat every day- making their feeding regimes a lot simpler! Corn snakes will usually max out anywhere between 3-5ft and tend to stay quite slender- so they aren't a very big snake at all! Corn snakes are another animal that are great with handling for children. When corn snakes are babies they can be a little bit more difficult to handle especially for younger children but especially as they grow they become a lot calmer and more manageable - nothing frequent handling can't help with!
Leopard Gecko
The second lizard on the list is Leopard Geckos! Leopard Geckos are a smaller species of lizard that don't take up a lot of room! They can be quite skittish when they are young but calm down very fast as they grow and handle frequently. Being a nocturnal species this animal doesn't necessarily need electrical equipment such as a U.V.B tube (we do always recommend a UV for any animal as it does have lots of benefits, it just isn't necessarily needed for Leopard Geckos) which makes this lizards set up a lot cheaper than what a Bearded Dragons would be. Another advantage of leopard geckos is that they don't require as much maintenance as other lizards, they don't eat anywhere near the amount as a bearded dragon does- their diet only consists of insects!!
Royal Python
Royal Pythons are the next best beginner species of snake- they have a very calm and docile nature. They tend to move a lot slower than corn snakes making them a lot easier to cope with handling for a new owner! Royal Pythons get the nickname 'ball python' due to the fact that they are very head shy. One of their main defence mechanisms is to curl up into a ball and hide their head away. Royal Pythons can be a little fussy at times with their eating habits but this is something we can discuss if you do have any problems with your pet. Overall, these medium sized snakes are an incredible family pet, great for you and your children!
Tarantulas
Now I know what you're thinking, a tarantula as a first time pet! Tarantulas are one of the easiest pets to take care of- and as a store we don't advocate for handling Tarantulas so these pets would be considered a display pet only. Most first time species of tarantulas don't require too much room when they reach their adult size and only require feeding as and when they need it (we go by the size of their abdomen, something we would discuss with you upon purchasing). As well as this, a tarantula's overall care is very minimal, they don't require as much attention as other animals in regards to the cleaning side of things. We would usually recommend a clean out once or twice a year or when the tarantula moults and the enclosure size needs upgrading. All in all, a wonderful, interesting and incredibly low maintenance pet.
We hope you enjoyed this list of our Top 5 Best Pets for beginners and would love to know your opinions in the comments!
Thanks for reading!
From,
Danni
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