# Suitable for Children?



## Notgotoneyet (Apr 24, 2009)

I have a soon-to-be 9 year old (very responsible) girl who would love a reptile... but I have a few simple questions - we've been looking at bearded dragons or leopard gekos and I understand some basic differences (size, nocternal, price) but I would really like to know which one is going to return the most enjoyment - I've heard horror stories of BD's not liking being handled (but could be down to bad owners), some threads seems to say otherwise... also like the idea of breeding eventually so LG's might be better...

Is it suitable to keep them in a bedroom (prefered) or better downstairs?

As a family we've no experience in reptiles at all... got two cats though to keep out of the way...

Lots of space for a tank, 4.5 ft wide by 2 x 2 no problem.


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## MissCat (Mar 9, 2009)

this is my opinion on the matter (just covering my a**e there lol).
my 10 yr old has leo geckos, he deals with them himself (though i keep a very close eye on it all). they are in his bedroom.
i had bearded dragons but they were family pets, were kept downstairs. If they had been my sons, i think it would have meant a lot more involvement on my part.
personally i would go for leos if you want him to do the majority.

edit: also (again this is opinion, not gospel) given the size viv you indicate you can accomodate, i would say leo geckos, but if you intend to breed them you will need to think about the following:
will you keep the male+female(s) together all year?(some do, some house separately. probs can arise from housing all year together)
Do you have room to house the hatchlings until (if you chose to do so) you rehome them?
that's all i can think of.
i'm not in anyway an expert on this though, i am sure other people will have more (possibly better) advice for you soon.


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## angela__k__84 (Oct 4, 2008)

Bearded dragons are normally very docile pets but need a lot of specialist care and you need to get your set up spot on - which requires you to spend a little more than if you were to get geckos - best bet is to get a 4x2 viv (which should be suitable even as an adult) Then your UV and heat light, some rocks and logs - for basking - and cage decorations.
I reckon you would need to give your daughter some help to look after one but it could be a nice way for you to spend time together.
If you have a beardie from a baby and handle it gently, and regularly they can be very sweet wee pets.
Bear in mind that most reptiles come with a small risk of carrying salmonella (due to what they eat) and make sure to teach your daughter about good hygiene, we always keep alcohol rub near the vivs but when children handle any of the animals I make sure they wash with hot, antibacterial soapy water too.
Furthermore you are going to need to feed a beardie live insects. Do you think your daughter would be ok with this? Baby beardies can eat around 60-70 crickets a day, as they grow obviously they eat a lot less insects but you will have to handle some at some point.
Personally, I think beardies are great. They are cute, fun and friendly (on the most part - I have never encountered a bad tempered beardie) 
If you are willing to put in a little time to help your daughter out with her pet then go for it 
You would be best to keep your beardie in the bedroom if you have cats - keep them out of the way - just remember if you like a lie in your beardies lights will need to go on in the morning


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

For a 9 year old i'd say a beardie, simply because leo's are nocturnal. 
Some leo's will come out for a mooch in the early evening but some don't come out till a lot later. 
If your daughter goes to bed before the leo's come out to play then she's not going to get any enjoyment out of having them as pets.


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## Karras (Jul 8, 2008)

> just remember if you like a lie in your beardies lights will need to go on in the morning


Put it on a timer. Beardies get light, you get lie in. Win, win!. :2thumb:

Have no experience with beardies but have 4 leos (2 male, 2 female). We find them to be gentle, easy going and relatively low maintainence. The only real negatives are that they can sometimes be very reclusive, at least while there is any lights on in the room, and they can also become jumpy quite quickly sometimes and make a dash for it.

The first of those just depends on the gecko's personality I guess, as we have a couple that come out a lot. One even lies out in the open for a bit while the viv light is on. I suppose the same can be said of most animals though.

The second can be greatly alleviated by regular handling. I think they also mellow as they get older. Just something to be aware of though as they can easily catch you off guard at times. In particular, some of ours have been prone to trying to make leaps of faith.

If your child is responsible, I doubt it will be a deal breaker though.


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

Karras said:


> Put it on a timer. Beardies get light, you get lie in. Win, win!. :2thumb:
> 
> .


the light will still wake you up though.


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## scots_pine (Mar 25, 2009)

Karras said:


> Put it on a timer. Beardies get light, you get lie in. Win, win!. :2thumb:


Yeah, but I can't sleep with a 10.0 UV beaming out at me 

I am 25 and, personally, find geckos far too skittish. My partner and I got his sister a gorgeous tremper albino for her xmas and she was so gorgeous I was tempted to keep her - but I just couldn't handle her. She was so tiny and delicate and FAST.
I'd stick with a beardie.

Hahaha - just realised I am signed in on the other half's account!
Angela.


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## stephenie191 (May 29, 2007)

Bearded dragons seem very friendly and interesting. I would say there also better for a 9 year old to handle. Only down fall is size of viv compared to a leo and they eat alot more than a leo.


Leopard geckos are smaller so a 2ft tank is fine for a single one, this may suit the bedroom better.

However, i would just read up alot on each of them both are good pets


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## ShellsAngel (Feb 12, 2009)

my 13 year old son has a gecko and he looks after it himself (with supervision). she was quite skittish at 1st and he used to let her climb on him rather than hold her. she fine with him now and if we're sat on sofa together she will crawl across us to get back to him!!!


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## erewegoagain (Mar 25, 2009)

Both LGs and BDs are good in terms of being handled in my experience. Beardies are quite big animals that will be very active and need a lot of space to run around and display when adult and have breeding on their minds, particularly the males, so I would say start off with LGs


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## Notgotoneyet (Apr 24, 2009)

that's quite a lot to think about then! 

I would be tempted to 'start small' and go for LGs, but I really don't want to have tanks everywhere, I think I have to choose one and go for it.

The BDs certainly seem to eat a lot! must cost quite a bit too... whilst my daughter will have no problem handling the insects what's a ball park figure for food costs per week??? not to worried about the set up though, but I did think that 4.5 x 2 x 2 ft tank was enough for life for a BD....

Without sounding daft will the DB be happy on its own with only human contact, even if that is quite a bit of contact?


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## angela__k__84 (Oct 4, 2008)

4.5x2x2 is a great size for an adult beardie, I think one would be very happy in that.
Not all beardies get on well with others, and would be fine on their own. They can fight with each other and cause loads of problems.
Baby beardies will eat loads in the first year or so but once they reach adult size you really want their diet to be 70% veg and 30% insects - so in the long run it evens out.
I am not sure exactly how much it would cost you. You'd be best to go into your local reptile store, see how much their livefood is and if they do a discount for buying in bulk. Some places do like a buy two boxes get one free sorta thing.


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## lizardkid (Dec 30, 2008)

theres a topic similar to this that i started a while a go click on my account and then on the list of all the topics I started.


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## Notgotoneyet (Apr 24, 2009)

thanks lizardkid - just read your posts - have you got something yet?


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## reptile0mad (Apr 12, 2009)

at the end of the day it is completely up too you though personally i think lg's are easier to care for ,though they are both great beginner lizards..: victory:


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## wendyandgary (Mar 28, 2009)

We used to keep lg's and our daughter couldnt be bothered with them as they came out after she went to bed but we now have a bd which we all love personally i think a bd makes more of a 'pet'


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## Notgotoneyet (Apr 24, 2009)

Thanks everyone, I think the Bearded Dragon makes it by a nose... I'll be back in a month or so once I've everything sorted!! 

Now for a search in here for "making your own tank"...:2thumb:


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## fran2491 (Oct 10, 2008)

hmm its a good one hun i have both leos and beardies and if i was you i would go for a beardie, my daughter hardly ever sees the leos as shes in bed by the time they are out for a mooch,beardies on the other hand are out all the time and they are great with my daughter i do find tho thet keeping them upstairs is not good they like to be part of the action and mine are in the livingroom had a male upstairs for a few weeks and he hated it was going nuts everytime i went in the room,plus if you have it downstairs you can keep an eye on it and help her out with the care to start with :flrt:

also edit lol a link for your livefood buy in bulk its far cheaper http://www.livefoods.co.uk/


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## sallyconyers (Mar 21, 2008)

If you've got the space then I would go for a beardie as they are active and usually very sweet and make great pets when you have the right set-up. Also at the moment there are alot of people trying to re-home male bearded dragons, which would be great if you weren't interested in breeding. They also do fine by themselves - most reptiles are not pack animals - they are found together usually to mate or as there is a good food/shelter/water source in that area.


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## Notgotoneyet (Apr 24, 2009)

The only problem with keeping it down stairs and "in the action" are the cats, I think they would be a problem in the first year, maybe once it's fully grown they will leave it alone, but it's not something I'm willing to test...

and if it's downstairs and out and about all the time (which I'm sure it will be) it's going to end up outside, in the garden, in a tent, on the trampoline, down the slide... 

(only joking about the slide)

I assumed it would not be allowed outside, so keeping it upstairs negates that worry...

incidentally is there a way to set your preferences to alert you when someone leaves a message on a thread you're using?


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## cfcbulldog78 (Apr 24, 2009)

beardies are great first pets but if you want to finally bread then leopard geckos are better as you can get some fantastic colours which makes it more fun


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## reptileman99 (Jul 28, 2011)

Well in my opinion leopard geckos are better and don't cost much they don't special lighting and there is some amazing colours I am very fimilia with leopard gecko and they can go anywhere upstairs or downstairs so in my opinion get a leopard gecko


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## 123dragon (Jan 15, 2011)

beardies can go outside for a bit when it is nice and warm in summer, in fact if they like it it is actuly good for them


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