Free range of home?

[robstaine]

Are there any lizards that can stay out and about in the home? For example I know people keep their iguana out of their enclosures and let them free around the home. I have a bearded gragon and it sucks that I can't keep her out of the viv for long periods of time as I would like to spend more time with her.

[sparkle]

it might suck but there a VERY good reason for it..

beardies need bery high temps and cant thermoregulate.. so really it wouldnt be fair to have them out a lot.. hmm as for free roaming lizards.. really only iguanas who have their own rooms ive heard of people doing it with..

i cant think of any lizard that would be free roaming and it not have some impact on it .. they require such specifics for hot spots and UV.. and the ones that dont are far too small to be free roaming really

[deaxone]

i know a guy who keeps his chams in 1 room,they each have their own area in a corner with plenty of plants,and feeding dishes he recons they very rarely leave their corners,they have plenty of space,
a freind of a freind lets her beardy rome the bottom of the house,he has a basking spot near the radiator,apparently hes like a dog and runs to the door when she gets home,lol
i also heard about a day gecko that got loose in a shop,when they found it and put it in a viv it was too stressed and stopped eating,so they had to let it rome the shop and has done ver since on bug patrol,
another guy i know who breeds live food had some turkish geckos escape in his cricket room 15 or more years ago,the decendents pop up by the dozens every year!
theres also people that use these and other hemidactylus species and other house gecko species to run free on bug clean up duty in thier houses,

[spirit975]

I think the other real issue is hygiene. We all know we wash and antibac hands after handling reps and such. Salmonella *can* be present in reptiles and if allowed to free roam it could be like wiping a raw chicken over your carpets and across your chairs. That would be my main concern, especially if you have kids in the house or visiting.

[pete-vtr]

i personaly wouldnt even want a free roaming lizard,

reasons being you carnt toilet train them like you can dogs, i mean id be pretty pissed if i came home and there was shit on my sofa... also can you imagine coming home and finding your TV scratched to death because your lizard has tryed to climb up to bask on top of it?

also how long would it take to find it when you got in from work? it might not be able to find a nice warm spot, and you could see your lizard go down hill very quickly.

i think unless it was somthing you really really wanted, its not really practical...

Originally Posted by sparkle

beardies need bery high temps and cant thermoregulate..

and yes dear beardies can thermoregulate

[robstaine]

They would have a place to stay in when I am out or going to bed but would the iguana be ok to be out for a few hours or to be taken outside? I am not planing on getting anymore animals but I was just curious to know which lizard could stay out of their enclosure for long periods of time and you guys answered iguana so thanks x

[pete-vtr]

Originally Posted by robstaine

They would have a place to stay in when I am out or going to bed but would the iguana be ok to be out for a few hours or to be taken outside? I am not planing on getting anymore animals but I was just curious to know which lizard could stay out of their enclosure for long periods of time and you guys answered iguana so thanks x

i reckon if you confined it to one room only with various spot bulbs on stands with rocks/ perchs under them. by various i mean 4+ depending on how big the room is and obtaining correct temps, you could probaly keep a beardie or somthing similar, my only concern would be feaces.

get it electronicaly tagged aswell!! Lol

[sparkle]

Originally Posted by robstaine

They would have a place to stay in when I am out or going to bed but would the iguana be ok to be out for a few hours or to be taken outside? I am not planing on getting anymore animals but I was just curious to know which lizard could stay out of their enclosure for long periods of time and you guys answered iguana so thanks x

Taking an iguanan outside has several massive implications.. pathogens for example and infections could be picked up from things like dog dirt.. and issues such as pesticides and other chemicals sprayed or on gorund need to be considered...

as well as that it takes a pretty special and tamed iguana to be able to go outside .. if you mean into the garden there is no saying it wont get spooked or just decide for whatever reason to take off..

my friends iguana went missing for weeks until some workmen found it on a roof of a building site.. it was unharmed .... the workmen however were petrified.. she never let it outside again..

an iguana is a huge undertaking.. but if you have the space time and funds available very worthwhile

[gravitation]

I let my beardies roam all the time. They usually explore my bedroom floor for twenty minutes and then i place them back into their enclosures to bask.

I guess it depends how cold it is where you are and how clean your room is. You don't want your beardies picking up any nasties off your floor, i know my little six year old girl loves to chase dust balls.

As far as hygiene goes i kiss my beardies but having said that their enclosures are impeccable and the beardies are always kept clean.

I've only ever had one female decide to take a dump outside her enclosure, usually it's quite obvious to me when they are going to toilet because of their feeding patterns.

[Athravan]

A true story from a customer who I'm sure won't mind me sharing it - is that his beardie ate a penny whilst out and about in the room - even when being monitored by him and his family. It was so quick that the beardie had swallowed it. The vet treatment required full surgery to remove the penny which got lodged in the gut. The beardie recovered, but was obviously extremely costly. I would not let a beardie out in an environment where there is ANYTHING they can eat, and many lizards are similar. They will, and do, eat anything, from rocks and pebbles to string, paperclips, carpet, rugs, pieces of wood, wallpaper and yes - anything that may accidentally have fallen to the ground like a penny.

I don't have any personal experiences with iguanas but it's definitely something you'd want to think about.