new turtle keeper

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loconorc;1132918; said:
Oh, you replied at the same time I did! lol Well now I can adress your reply.

I very firmly beleive that herps are the best pets for kids. I wasnt about to suggest a mammal or bird.

Ok, you really want a turtle. You're going to have to build a pond, or a very expensive tank. EIther that or a very very ugly stock tank. I doubt your landlord will let you modify the house (ours doesnt, we rent too). We were almost getting a tegu, but we arent allowed to build things in the backyard (like a large cage).

Pets are the best way to teach kids responsiblilty if you go about it correctly. Sure, parents need to know the care and maybe intervene if something goes wrong. But an easy, fun pet is a godsend to little kids. And since you CAN hold a turtle and not a fish, I doubt she will be satisfied watching it (not as fun in either aspect as a fish). She will most likely want to hold it at one point.

Anyway, I don't know your daughter, so I have no idea of her personallity or what she really wants. If in the end after all this she STILL wants a turtle and youre ready to commit, there are much better species of pet turtles than the ones you suggested.
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what are the better species. again a 75 gallon is the biggest i have to house it in. in the summer we may be setting up a koi pond. our landlord gave us the ok and we got a 300gallon pond with filter and the whole deal from my inlaws for free so?!?! so if we get a turtle it can spend the summer months outside.
 
evilxyardxgnome;1132942; said:
Maybe a leopard gecko is the way to go? A 20L is great for a long time. And older geckos are docile enough for the child to hold.
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Good idea, but what's the point if neither the father or the daughter like them? I really believe that they need some 1 on 1 handling with a large variety of herptiles first before buying any.
 
If you want an easier, more fun reptile pet: I have suggestions for you to show her.

Try these, not in any particular order really: bearded dragon, uromastyx, northern blue tongue skink (and I mean NORTHERN), carpet python, ball python, corn snake (or rat snake, kings, and milks. all are virtually the same), western hognose snake, rosy boa, kenyan sand boa, childrens python, and pine/gopher snakes. If anyone has other suggestions or feels one of mine is wrong, say so.

I suggest some herps most people would suggest, and I don't suggest some others would. For example, leopard geckos. Yes, incredibly easy. But very fragile and often killed or injured by careless mistakes by children. If you take a liking to any of them, I have a wealth of websites to show you for buying and caring for them, all better alternitives to pet shops.

I'm glad youre doing your research though. It shows you care about the animal and your daughter, and you didnt just buy the cutest animal at the store without even a glance at a book. Now thats good parenting! :D
 
Leopard geckos are DEFINATELY among the easiest pets for kids. But does that make them the best? NO! They are extremely fragile, though docile, one mishap and easily kill them. You will almost never seen them anyway, and every kid I know who has them quickly gotten bored. And a 75 gallon is far too large for a leopard gecko. All of the lizards I suggested would do MARVELOUSLY in a 75. The snakes, not so much, but it can be fine with a little fixer-upping.
 
thanks allot for all the suggestions, i am going to look into them. i dont know abotu a snake though, my daughter isnt scared of them but my wife cant stand them. lizards are pretty cool but dont know if my lil girl likes them too much. she does like red eyed tree frog (because of deigo or dora) so the next time i take her to the pet store i am going to try to get her to look at everything but a turtle and see what she thinks. again thanks for everyones help
 
A pet store is a great place to look around, but with a VERY FEW exceptions, a bad place to purchase. You can find a lot more animals, better quality, better information, and better prices online. I have a word document 3 pages long of links to breeders, suppliers, forums, etc.

I wouldnt go with a tree frog if I were you. They are relatively easy, but horrible in the way of handling. Obviously, jumping is a problem, and I know frogs that have jumped to their death. My crested gecko hurt her snout once in a jump, and I no longer suggest them to kids...
 
Oh, youre in VA beach? I'm in Burke, close to DC. :)
 
loconorc;1132987; said:
A pet store is a great place to look around, but with a VERY FEW exceptions, a bad place to purchase. You can find a lot more animals, better quality, better information, and better prices online. I have a word document 3 pages long of links to breeders, suppliers, forums, etc.

I wouldnt go with a tree frog if I were you. They are relatively easy, but horrible in the way of handling. Obviously, jumping is a problem, and I know frogs that have jumped to their death. My crested gecko hurt her snout once in a jump, and I no longer suggest them to kids...
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if you dont mind i woudl like to see that word doc you got. email at michael.voils@navy.mil

there is a pet store here that is just amazing I think. it is a small family owned business and I recommend it to everyone I talk to in the area that have pets. so if i get something anything from a store it would be from them.
 
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