redXb/w

Rick · Posted: Fri Jan 11, 2008 9:45 pm Post subject:

Humans, cats, dogs, birds, etc.. can all become ill from stress or failure to meet one of our few primary needs. It is not strictly related to reptiles.

Now even though I do not say reptiles are "domesticated", I do say they are "pets", in the simplist literal description of the word. As far as domestication is concerned, there is no proof that it took hundreds or thousands of years to domesticate the dog or cat. As a matter of fact, if you google for "domestic silver fox" you will see that this species was domesticated in less than 40 generations!

We do care about their needs and in promoting proper care. Hence this website to share knowledge, but they are no different from any other pet. They have 'basic needs' that must be met for them to remain healthy or fit, again.. like any other pet. A snake has much less in the way of basic needs than that of a dog, yet more dogs, cats, birds, fish, other pets are neglected and die each year than reptiles. So, it's not a reptile issue.. It's a lazy selfish human issue that affects those poor animals.

I am all for making your tegus enclosure as enviromentally stimulating as possible, and it's diet well rounded.. But they way you come off is that we shouldn't even have pet reptiles. You can not keep a reptile in a 100% natural way, it's not even possible for zoos to do. Natural is not always better, do you have any idea how many animals in the 'wild' die every day from predators, disease, stress, starvation, etc? If given proper care, most any animal in the pet trade can live 20% longer in captivity that the same animal in the wild.

As far as hybrids are concerned.. It still comes down to a matter of opinion. There is a term.. "species intergrade", which basically means "naturally occurring hybrids/crosses". So it is natural and does happen. Now that doesn't mean I believe we should start making designer hybrids and releasing them into the wild. I am also for proper tagging or record keeping of hybrids to avoid future complications as the animals change hand.. but that is also just my opinion.

Rick
_________________
Sisco Reptiles - Proud Breeder of the Tamest & Most Social Tegus. See www.SiscoReptiles.com

txrepgirl · Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 2:43 am Post subject:

snakehandler I like your last post.That was very nice of you to say.Thank you.

txrepgirl · Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 2:49 am Post subject:

Rick I really like that tagging or record keeping part

.Now that's smart.

GISHerps · Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 3:22 am Post subject:

Hi guys.
I'm new here but have had herps for many years and soon to get another tegu. I found this a very interesting conversation. I have thoughts on the whole hybrid thing myself. I happen to presently have a hybrid rock iguana. It's a caymanensis X lewisi Grand Cayman Blue with a little Lesser Cayman in it. "High Blue" he's called. It's the only way I could get one legally~got the certificate, eggshell, all that stuff. The genepool diversity is so shallow in the Blues that the entire species is said to be ultimately derived of a single pair of lizards! So, in such an instance yes, I think hybridization is not so good. BUT by the same token, there are some really awesome animals around because of it. Oddly enough, many of the specimens found in zoos were high "percentage" hybrids and DNA tested and found to not be 100% blue but just the same lizard I have now. These animals hybridized in the wild. Swam to the island next door and found 'em a girlfriend. Hmm... sounds like something I need to do.
With any of the animals yes, I would prefer to have a pure blood, as it's what I'm used to but I've not seen a grown hybrid of any Tegu to have formed an opinion myself. I prefer the Chacoans over any tegu but that's my opinion. Fact is, it's scaly, 4 legs, tail... chances are I'll dig it. I may not buy one but I wouldn't throw it out either.
On the subject of dogs and cats. That one's almost laughable! We took animals out of the wild and domesticated them over MANY generations to get them where they are today. We bred big ones with little ones, thick ones with thin ones, hairy with short haired...to our own tastes to be used as we saw fit. Hunting, lap dog, lion killer, rescue, "arm dressing", guard duty, herding, etc. and that has been ingrained in us from birth that THAT is acceptable because man's done it for years on end. So, really besides the endothermic thing I really don't see the difference in one and the other. Reptile keeping is still in it's infancy really because it wasn't as widely accepted as mammals were so many years ago. We're still learning and getting better all the time and if the uneducated and squeamish don't wind up making them illegal for us ALL they'll wind up just like cats and dogs eventually.
...ahem... and that's my two cents

Leezard leezard needs a beeger box!
_________________
Tree hugging is the truest form of self preservation!
http://myspace.com/gisherps
1.1? Grand Cayman Blue Rock Hybrid Iguanas
1.1 Ackie Monitors
1.0 Dumeril's Boa
1.1 EXTREME GIANTS!!

txrepgirl · Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 7:49 pm Post subject:

Hi GISHerps.Welcome to the Tegu forum family.Wow you have some cool reptiles.I really like the Rock Iguana allot.We ( my boyfriend and I ) almost bought one ( it was still a baby ).Do you have a picture of your Iguana ? that would be great.Thanks.

GISHerps · Posted: Mon Sep 08, 2008 10:18 pm Post subject:

Yes, actually.
I have pix of ALL sorts on my myspace. Link in my signature.
The one I presently have is 10 months. I have to take some recent shots because the ones on there are of him brand new. BUT I have some nice ones of Fizmont who now resides in Miami with his girlfriend on the beach in a nice outdoor condo at a breeder's house.(...oh, to be a lizard..) I wish I had present pix because he was blueing up very nicely. I had to sell him when I moved out here to Ewtaw from Orlando...ugg, don't ask.

_________________
Tree hugging is the truest form of self preservation!
http://myspace.com/gisherps
1.1? Grand Cayman Blue Rock Hybrid Iguanas
1.1 Ackie Monitors
1.0 Dumeril's Boa
1.1 EXTREME GIANTS!!

txrepgirl · Posted: Tue Sep 09, 2008 12:04 am Post subject:

I want one

.Great picture of him.How many babies hatched from Eve's eggs ? Adam and Eve look so cute together on that one picture

.

GISHerps · Posted: Tue Sep 09, 2008 8:43 pm Post subject:

It turns out Adam didn't know how to... umm, well... hit it right. He had scarred up her eyelids before I got them. I caught them going at it and he had her again, by the eyebrow with his body way out to the side nowhere in the neighborhood! So since he was an ass and she was a sweetheart I sold him and kept her for a while. Now she is with a very loving breeder. No eggs were even fertile.

_________________
Tree hugging is the truest form of self preservation!
http://myspace.com/gisherps
1.1? Grand Cayman Blue Rock Hybrid Iguanas
1.1 Ackie Monitors
1.0 Dumeril's Boa
1.1 EXTREME GIANTS!!

txrepgirl · Posted: Wed Sep 10, 2008 8:48 am Post subject:

that is such a sad story.To bad Adam didn't know what he was doing.At least she is with a good man ( a male bearded dragon ) now that knows what he is doing

.Who knows maybe you end up with one of her babies one day

.

GISHerps · Posted: Wed Sep 10, 2008 3:56 pm Post subject:

Nah.
I think I'm done with beardies. I'm more into tegus and Ackies and Cyclura.
Between those I should run out of room quickly! Oh yeah, can't forget the boas! Dang, I'm gonna have to kick out the roomie once everything gets rolling here just to have room for ME!
Got my red today. Gonna go start another thread!
_________________
Tree hugging is the truest form of self preservation!
http://myspace.com/gisherps
1.1? Grand Cayman Blue Rock Hybrid Iguanas
1.1 Ackie Monitors
1.0 Dumeril's Boa
1.1 EXTREME GIANTS!!

Wolf-hound · Posted: Fri Sep 12, 2008 11:38 am Post subject:

I'd like to know how to tag a baby tegu permamently. They can't insert a microchip into a lizard as small as a baby tegu, they have to get larger. There is no tag that can be attached that I've found so far to attach without shed skin affecting it, of not removing it eventually.

I asked around about permenantly marking or tagging hybrid hatchlings, and no one came up with ANY way to do it. I've got pics of my hybrid babies I ended up with. My B/W was supposed to be a male, it laid the eggs, and the red male was the dad.

They were very striking, and I've only found one set of babies that looked like them.
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Raw Bear with Salt tastes like Oysters.