New Class Pet?

[Masa06]

Get an A.Javanicus or elephant trunk snake.. I think theyre cool haha

 

[rudukai13]

Get an A.Javanicus or elephant trunk snake.. I think theyre cool haha

You no longer get an opinion.

Really most of the suggestions in this thread would work (other than the above one...), so it really just depends what you think the students would enjoy most. Never under-estimate the curiosity of a child and it's want to "play" with whatever you choose. With that in mind, I wouldn't go with an emerald tree boa or green tree python.

 

[rudukai13]

With the dimensions of that cage you could probably go with a tree monitor, that would certainly be interesting. Can I ask what class this would be for? That may help direct our suggestions for something more topic-appropriate.

 

[Noto]

A big semi-arboreal colubrid would also be nice. North American, Central American, and Asian "ratsnakes" would all work. I can't think of any others off hand- the vine snakes are too much trouble.

 

[alexpie001]

i think that water snakes would be awsome, and the guppies too, u cant go wrong with a setup like that

 

[Kogo]

As someone with a few classroom pets (including snakes), I would say that taking consideration for the type of food required would be the first thing. Getting live mice is a pain and an expense... raising them is a smelly process... and co-workers may not appreciate frozen ones in a communal freezer... etc...

the next thing to consider would be weather the animal could tolerate the inevitable neglect that may occur due to circumstances beyond your control... sickness... school closings... power outages... helpfull night watchmen unplugging things to save electricity... etc...

after that try to anticipate all the things that could go wrong... escapes... deaths... regurge ... breeding durring school wide testing.... etc...

and finally, I would suggest not keeping anything in the school that would cause you to loose sleep wondering if you will find it dead in the morning...







... now that thats out of the way, my top pics for classroom herps....

small / med tortoises (like redfoots)
box turtles
corn snakes
rat snakes
king snakes
bearded dragons
leopard geckos (if you get them off crickets)
well established captive bred adult ball pythons

Herps I'd avoid
Pretty much all the arborial boids (dang!)
True Chameleons (other than captive well established veileds)
anything requiring high humidity
anything nocturnal (except things that adjust in captivity)
cricket eaters
anything with a septic bite (large monitors)


these are just my personal thoughts... food for thought and all... and I break my own rules all the time LOL

However, It would definatly be cool to have something that utilizes the height of the cage. I know from personal experiance that a large yellow rat snake would be all over the place (especialy when ready to feed) and a pair of bearded dragons would love sunning on a nice perch...

... I have seen alaborate vinewood structures for monkey tail skinks as well, but have never kept them personally


looking forward to updates and pics.

 

[Pazzoman]

water dragon.....dk lol

 

[Dan F]

Dan, You should not go with Emeralds or Green Tree Pythons as starter snakes. Also, they are nocturnal, so the kids would see nothing beyond them coiled on their perches.

Have you looked at water snakes? You could do something with water and a couple of guppies and a couple of Natrix snakes, for instance...

Water snakes would be very interesting. I'm actually much more of an aquarist than a reptile keeper, so this might be just right.

 

[Noto]

Well, the water snakes he is talking about are not really aquarium snakes. You keep them just like you would a corn snake or king snake, just with a bigger water dish.

As an alternative to a Natrix or Nerodia, you could keep one of the west coast garter snakes; some of those are large and semiaquatic, very similar in habits to water snakes. I like the idea of native animals in the classroom.

 

[Miguel]

Well, the water snakes he is talking about are not really aquarium snakes. You keep them just like you would a corn snake or king snake, just with a bigger water dish.

As an alternative to a Natrix or Nerodia, you could keep one of the west coast garter snakes; some of those are large and semiaquatic, very similar in habits to water snakes. I like the idea of native animals in the classroom.

Tottally ageed. The set up should have an aquatic part, with a small filter and a couple of fish and plants. The dry part could be set up for the Natrix or Garter.

Being native has, evidently, an educational twist to it.