Opinions on next reptile pet?

Hello all!
I'm planning on getting a new reptile friend sometime soon, before Christmas most likely. I'd like a snake, but my mom is set against it, so I have to wait until I get my own place lol. :P
I'm having trouble deciding what I'd like.
Any suggestions are welcome. I would like something other than a leo, for something new.
I like animals you can handle, but that is not a must. I also would like something in the beginner to medium area of difficulty of care. I'd also like to stay under the 25 gallon tank size, if possible, but if you can think of anything I may like with a bigger tank please suggest it!
So far, I'm researching:
cresties
pacman frogs (I really like frogs, except for ADFs)
pixie frogs
another golden gecko, but I have one already :P
mourning geckos (can't handle those though)
axolotl (can't handle though, they're aquatic, but I love them!)


Thanks for any suggestions you can come up with!

How about a red eye crocodile skink? I think they're pretty cool. I think they live 10-15 years if I looked them up correctly.

It looks like they need a 20-25 gallon tank and they need things to climb on (not too high!) and a place to submerge/swim. They need high humidity (about 80%) and the temps are varied...I haven't been able to find an absolute temperature requirement, but 78-86ºF seems to be the average. The UVB requirement is iffy, as some say they don't need it, but a lot of people say it's absolutely essential.

They eat grubs, roaches, beetle larvae (mealworms!), crickets, slugs, and snails. These guys definitely need variety to thrive.

They can drop their tails (and the tail won't grow back) and they usually don't like handling. They can play dead, squeak and chirp, too. They aren't known for biting, though. They can be kept solitary or in pairs, but not pairs of the same sex. If you keep them together with the same sex, they fight. So a male/female pair is the way to keep them if you so choose to get more than one.

Thanks Cerra! I will look into them!
I never thought of them... never seen them around here though, so I'll keep my eyes open! They are soooo cute!

I recommend a crestie or a fat tail gecko

Blue Tongue Skinks are just awesome. They do require more space but they can be very friendly and mine will sit on my lap in a blanket and watch TV with me. They are pretty smart and fairly easy to care for.

And with a bit more digging...maybe a pair of sandfish? They're pretty easy to care for too. They need a 24''x12''x15'' tank minimum, with a 95-100ºF basking area, 80-90ºF normal temp area, and night time temps at 75-80ºF. They also need an UTH at all times. They're pretty nifty!

They also eat mealworms, locusts, silk worms, crickets, and the occasional wax worm as a treat. The downside is that they can drown in their water bowls...so the water level has to be less than 1''. They can drown in 1'' of water, surprisingly.

The only thing that might be difficult is that they need 3 to 4 inches of sand in the tank, and the bottom part of the sand has to be moist.

Thanks Becca! Fat tails are like leos though aren't they? I wouldn't mind something different. I'd really like a crestie, I think they are just soooo cute!

What size tank do Blue Tongue Skinks need, Jolene? My aunt has one, that I babysit occasionally. I LOVE him. I can't believe I hadn't thought about a BTS XD

Thanks Cerra! I've never heard of them before. I thought they were a fish for a second. XD They look cool, kinda like skinks. I'll look them up!

rankins dragon.

I myself would love to get a crestie, because they are cute and having a climber & jumper with sticky pads may be cool. So that's my recommendation. They don't take a lot of space, they require the taller tank rather than width. So you can get one that use very little amount of space, like an 18x18x18.

Crested gecko!!

rankins dragon or a blue tongue skink.. or a african fat-tailed gecko

Thanks guys!

I'm thinking Blue tongue skink. The more I think of my aunts BTS, the more I want one. I also love Rankins dragons though, so I'm not sure!
Also, cresties are so gosh darn cute!
Not sure yet!

it's so difficult to decide on a new pet .. there's a white's tree frog for £20 in a local shop.. i'm considering.. :P

I LOVE frogs! I have my green tree frog. Soooo cute! He escaped the other day TWICE from his tank. Guess it was his way to say he wanted a bigger tank He loves his new one. LOL.

How long do you have to decide on what to getand random question, but do you hold your frogs? I feel like you cant do anything with them, so i never considered buying one

I also wouldn't rule out newts and salamanders if you like frogs. Fire newts, tigers and mandarin newts all get about the same size as leos, you can handle them on a limited basis, have great personalities (tigers are referred to as slimy puppies) and hey won't attack you like a pacman or pixi would. Most newts and salmanders can survive on grubs and earth worms, don't like temps over 75*f really so no heating I needed, and the habitat can be as complex as a planted viv or as simple as substrait and hides. I just finished my first planted viv. Was hoping to get a mandarin newt (T.shanjing) but it looks so nice I'm thinking somthing smaller like red efts or blue spotted that won't tear things apart. You really ont et much easier qnd rewarding than caudata imo. Axies are nice but their a real P.I.T.A to take care of with water changes and all the testing you need to make sure everything is proper. I don't like or suggest aquatic caudata for beginners at all. Terrestrial are the only ones id consider.

Thanks Kel! I was actually considering getting a newt a while back. I'll look into them again.
I was looking into axolotls a while ago, as I've had a lot of experience with tropical fish, I know they aren't fish though lol. Just with keeping water changes and testing water I mean are the same XD But, I'm thinking of crossing them off my list. I'm kinda tired of water changes lol. Cleaning a non-aquatic tank is much easier than cleaning a tank filled with water!
A partial water tank for newts and such would be easier then a full tank. And I have a few LPS have some different newts. You just opened up a whole new species to look at XD

Lindsay- I don't have a time I need to make a decision by. But my mom says I need to wait at least a few weeks as something may happen that will affect my decision. O_O Surprises kill me. lol
From what I know, its not a great idea to handle frogs. I only handle my frog occasionally and that is after washing my hands (no soap though) and misting my hand with conditioned water. My frog LOVES it. I stick my hand in the tank and he jumps on my hand. But I'm pretty sure most frogs you shouldn't handle regularly, as our skin contains oils that can harm the frogs skin (they absorb through their skin).

Yep you can handle frogs
White's tree frogs when they are adult are massive and they will happily sit on your hand for hours being lazy

Haha. I have a african dwarf frog that just sits in my fish tank and does nothing. i've never held it before.

ADFs are an exception. If you take it out the water it will probably die. I had two, but my fish were trying to kill them, so I took them back, poor froggies.

I don't think you should handle frogs a lot because your skin releases oils that can hurt the frog. The frog absorbs everything from its skin. I'm not sure about white tree frogs, but I know with my green tree frog, I've read in several places that you need to be careful handling them.

Ahh i see! Interesting

I have two Axolotls and they are great but you need to monitor their temp as it cannot get above 70 F so in the summer they need an AC room or cooling fan and if not have to go in the fridge. As for a tank I would say 25g minimum for when its an adult others may say diff but they can get to 14 inches and I like to give min as much space as possible but I would stick with just getting one for a 25g unless you are moving out in less then one yearto upgradeto a 40 breeder.

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Awww! So cute!!!

Thanks for the info!
I'm leaning towards a BTS right now.

IT HAS BEEN DECIDED!

I am getting......

a BLUE TONGUE SKINK!

My aunt has one, and decided she doesn't want it anymore as she is getting a dog, which I would normally be kinda sad about as she is just trading one pet for another, but he'll be much better off with me. He doesn't get the attention he deserves at their house as they have two insane children who would hurt him (trust me, I had to stop them from hurting him when I was holding him once O_O ). They are seriously INSANE.

ANYWAY. So he's a few years old, at least 6 or 7, but I expect much older than that. He's a big suck. I've baby-sat him a few times, and I adore him. I've wanted him forever. He acts all tough, but as soon as he gets to know you, he'll go as close to your body warmth as he can, and then falls asleep in your arms!

Once I get home (I'm at the hospital right now) I'll be going to pick him up! I'm so excited!

His name right now is Skinky (named by two 6 year olds lol). So I am planning to change his name. I'm thinking Gideon. I love that name, I got it from a romance novel I read, and the BTS just reminds me of the character Gideon.

He used to belong to my Aunt Theresa's son, and then went to my Aunt Julie's, and now he comes to me!

That's awsome Kathryn... I'm so happy for you and Gideon can't wait for pix, get well soon so you can get that tough guy home