Reptiles that require no heat source

**jmora** · 08-26-2010, 08:56 PM

I have 3 crested geckos which I understand dont need any source of light, basking lamps, etc. I also have a bearded dragon that requires all of those and my electricity bill is out of control. Well, I would like to acquire some more reptiles (boyfriend and I are actually planning a reptile room.) I am able to adequately feed/spoil all of my animals, but having to purchase heat lamps and provide that source of energy for a ton of reptiles would make things impossible. Therefore, I am wondering, what other reptiles are out there, besides the cresteds (&& gargoyles) do not require a 24 hour heat source? I am really interested in getting some gargoyles and possibly a tokay (yes, I know they are aggressive but I just love their coloring) but are there any others?

**tiedyegecko** · 08-26-2010, 11:59 PM

Tokays need atleast one 24 hour heat scorce. I tryed keeping mine like my cresteds and they kept getting URIs but no one has gotten sick sense i've added a red bulb to each of there cages. Red eyed tree frogs do very well without extra lighting or heat.

**foxe** · 08-27-2010, 12:11 AM

UTH and flexwatt use very little electricity, especially if you hook them up to a thermostat so they're not constantly running. Then you could get some snakes.

I don't know of any other reptiles besides Rhacs that like room temperature, though I'm sure there are some. It's one of the reasons I was attracted to Rhacs, that and their dietary requirements. Gotta love that easy care.

**geckolover99** · 08-27-2010, 05:27 AM

fire belly toads do well at room temp.

plus i've always thought they were pretty cute

**jmora** · 08-27-2010, 10:25 AM

Yeah. I am going to stay away from the firebellys. They require a large amount (not huge) of water source and Id rather not deal with that. They are super cute though. I am thinking frogs as well. However, I am going to get a few more Rhacs. including some gargoyles and cresteds. People werent joking when they said they were addicting. I recently bought my first at Petsmart. He is gorgeous when he fires up and (he meaning I dont know what his/her sex is yet) hes approx half the size of my index finger. Then I bought several females from a breeder in Ann Arbor, however, there sister had an underbite and I am beginning to see a bit of that in them. (They will not be breeders, but still love them.)

Has anyone had any Tokays that were raised from hatchlings or slightly older that they were able to easily tame?

**tiedyegecko** · 08-27-2010, 11:12 AM

Any tokay can be tamed. I have a wild caught animal thats as tame as a kitten (remember kittens still have claws and bite) and a captive animal thats well... untameable. It all depends on how you work with them and how much they trust you. It's a matter of getting them out and forceing interaction (with gloves) but god forbid you miss a few days of handling because they will go back to being wild. You also have to be a very straight forward handler. You an't be skitish when trying to get an animal out because boom they run and the next thing you know you have a gecko stuck to your ceiling. These guys are 5x as sticky as cresteds and can stick to your walls. There nasty by nature and I don't belive you can completly tame them. Expect to be bit ALOT and possibly loose chunks of your hand. I try to handle mine every other day but shes nowhere near tame like a crested or a leopard. I deffinatly think these guys are for more experianced keepers who arn't afraid of being bit. NERD (new england reptile distributors) have some really good info on tokays. Heres a good thread on what even a tame tokay can do http://pangeareptile.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35749

**Jateui** · 08-30-2010, 01:54 AM

Captive bred tokays seem to be a bit easier to tame when you get them small.
The tokays are just defensive and skittish, but are more likely to stand their ground and fight back when cornered. Normally the times you get bit will be when you grab them, they mistake you for food, or you corner them. They're more scared of you for the most part, and will do what they can to try to scare you back, but normally run more instead. Just be sure you don't go through all that trouble just to get tired of them after a month and sell them, it does take a lot of time and patience to tame one down. But after so much stress of trying to tame them, selling them out of the blue without a little settling period can seriously stress the animal.

There are some skinks that don't need a lot of heating, either. It does benefit them, however.

Other than that, I know mourning geckos are basically within that temperature range you're looking for. But they're small, however they are parthenogenic (meaning they will lay eggs without a male, the offspring are copies of the mother.) and will create a small community within the tank they're set up in. The eggs glue to whatever they're laid on. Something you may like about them is that they do eat CGD, too.

Other than that, I know this sort of question has come up a few times, so you might be able to search through the forums and find more. I know that leaftail geckos don't always need a heat source either, but they aren't easy at first. You may want to do a good bit of researching on them first, since I don't know what your normal room temperatures are otherwise.

[edit] Forgot to mention Gehyra! The gehyra martinata is known as the poor man's leachie. They're squishy and wrinkly looking like leachianus, but their skin is much more fragile (they'll shed off parts of their skin as a defense.) They tend to be about the price of a crested when you find them ($35-60) but they aren't too easy to find. Their care is basically the exact same as a crested gecko, they eat CGD but you should never leave insects in with them, as the insects can do bad damage to them within minutes if they're hungry.

**Rhachic** · 08-30-2010, 09:45 AM

rubber boas are small and need it cool, they're great little snakes if you're into snakes.

**darkplatypus** · 09-01-2010, 10:19 PM

If you're going to have a dedicated reptile room and can keep it at around 75 degrees year round, I recommend corn snakes, rat snakes, and kingsnakes. Ours do well at room temp without any supplemental heating. We keep it air conditioned in the summer and use a space heater in the winter and cage temps run at around 75-80 degrees.