jinin
Very Well-Known Member
Painteds are quite short lived, however most live until 6. The major problem is that they are know to easily die, once they show signs of getting sick it wipes them out in a few days.
some unusual captives?
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reptilerob
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I have often wondered the same thing!!! I keep seeing photos of these awesome snakes and lizards on here, and wondered why i never see them as pets. Especially the brown and green tree snakes!! I think people keep them, but i dont think its overly common.
Kenshin
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any idea on prices?
longirostris
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Dragons generally as a group are the hardest reptiles to keep successfully in captivity. Their husbandry requirements usually far exceed most other families of reptiles.
Bushfire is pretty much right on the money regarding dragon keepers holding back youngsters. Most serious dragon keepers know that their animals can go from good health to death in the space of just a few days, sometimes less. It can be very frustrating when you try to understand what the trigger might be and you cannot seem to find it.
No doubt it is one of the reasons why a lot of people give up working with them and move on to monitors, skinks and other reptiles. I guess the other problem with them is that there is no money to be made in breeding them. The reality is they cost bucket loads more to keep and breed then what you can sell the progeny for.
I am always amused by the number of times I have heard or read people saying that such and such species is dead easy to keep or breed. My experience is that as a group, they are not easy to keep or breed with the notable exception of funnily enough the easy to get species such as bearded dragons and water dragons. Any dragon species that needs to be kept in an artificial environment in order for it to survive becomes a real challenge to keep and breed. The critical component in dragon husbandry is constant and diligent attention and monitoring. This will enable the keeper to spot irregularities and potential problems before they manifest into big problems. Even then there are no gaurantees.
I kept ornate dragons well over 25 years ago, before the advent of licensing laws in most states. They are wonderful dragons as indeed all dragons are. Chameleon dragons are kept in captivity currently, their original collection conditions precluded the sale of any progeny to private hobbyists and keepers. They can be seen at Taronga Zoo in Sydney, at the Territory Wildlife park at Berry Springs in the NT and until recently Crocosaurus Cove in Darwin had them on display.
I wish more people would keep and work with dragon lizards, particularly the hard to get species. We need to make sure that species that are currently in private keepers hands are continuing to be bred successfully so that more and more can be released to genuine hobbyists that will ensure that these species do not die out in captivity.
I think most people would be surprised to know that of the 70 odd species of dragon lizards recognised in Australia today at least half of those species are held in private collections and probably another 4 or 5 that I can think of that are held in public institutions such as zoos, parks etc.
As I say we just need to get a bit more interest in dragons happening and more importantly a willingness to stick with them when they start dropping off the perch. Believe me it can take real commitment and dedication to keep going sometimes.
Bushfire is pretty much right on the money regarding dragon keepers holding back youngsters. Most serious dragon keepers know that their animals can go from good health to death in the space of just a few days, sometimes less. It can be very frustrating when you try to understand what the trigger might be and you cannot seem to find it.
No doubt it is one of the reasons why a lot of people give up working with them and move on to monitors, skinks and other reptiles. I guess the other problem with them is that there is no money to be made in breeding them. The reality is they cost bucket loads more to keep and breed then what you can sell the progeny for.
I am always amused by the number of times I have heard or read people saying that such and such species is dead easy to keep or breed. My experience is that as a group, they are not easy to keep or breed with the notable exception of funnily enough the easy to get species such as bearded dragons and water dragons. Any dragon species that needs to be kept in an artificial environment in order for it to survive becomes a real challenge to keep and breed. The critical component in dragon husbandry is constant and diligent attention and monitoring. This will enable the keeper to spot irregularities and potential problems before they manifest into big problems. Even then there are no gaurantees.
I kept ornate dragons well over 25 years ago, before the advent of licensing laws in most states. They are wonderful dragons as indeed all dragons are. Chameleon dragons are kept in captivity currently, their original collection conditions precluded the sale of any progeny to private hobbyists and keepers. They can be seen at Taronga Zoo in Sydney, at the Territory Wildlife park at Berry Springs in the NT and until recently Crocosaurus Cove in Darwin had them on display.
I wish more people would keep and work with dragon lizards, particularly the hard to get species. We need to make sure that species that are currently in private keepers hands are continuing to be bred successfully so that more and more can be released to genuine hobbyists that will ensure that these species do not die out in captivity.
I think most people would be surprised to know that of the 70 odd species of dragon lizards recognised in Australia today at least half of those species are held in private collections and probably another 4 or 5 that I can think of that are held in public institutions such as zoos, parks etc.
As I say we just need to get a bit more interest in dragons happening and more importantly a willingness to stick with them when they start dropping off the perch. Believe me it can take real commitment and dedication to keep going sometimes.
Wally
Very Well-Known Member
I agree wholeheartedly longirostris. I see threads like Moloch05 and remember why I started keeping Dragons. They never cease to fascinate me.
They are not all that uncommon, just not overly easy to breed.
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