Are Blue Toungs Best For Kids

[tourett]

My 9 yo daughter wants a lizard for xmas, but wants one she can handle and take into her room and play with :lol: . Poor lizard :lol:
She is responsible enough to know not to overdo it, and we have spare cages to keep it in during the day.

Are BTs the best?
Will they bite her?
Will it hurt?

Thanks Tourett

 

[peterescue]

Shingleback or a bluey. Little older I'd say a beardie.
Always the possibility of a bite but she should work it out.
Cats scratch and dogs bite.

 

[Gilleni]

Yeah i'd say a blue tounge would be perfect...

Easy to look after and not as fast as a beardie... Or venomous... lol..

I have caught wild blue tounges that were tame enough not to bite...

 

[Memphis_Tank]

Blue tongues are the perfect beginner reptile for adult or child. As Pete said there is always a chance of a bite. However, Blueys give a good hiss and thats about all they have in them, a bag of hot air. They are very hardy to climate and handling, easy to feed and get along with shinglebacks and bearded dragons. If the time arises and you/your daughter decide to get a friend of the opposite sex they are live bearers so there is no incubating eggs. They are generally well priced from about $10-40. Be warned Blue tongues will remain in your collection forever, i have 3 5m2 enclosures for blueys and shinglebacks alone. Feel free to PM if you need a specific question answered.

MT

 

[tourett]

Thanks Guys.
What about Pink Tounges are they the same?

 

[moosenoose]

I think the Blue thongs are kind of nice,
but I prefer the Pink ones myself :wink:

 

[Memphis_Tank]

Moosey if i had a pit full of them i would never have to come inside ever!!!!!!

Tourett, pink tongues are a bit different they are nocturnal love to climb and test your enclosure to the max as far as escaping goes. They are a little less happy to be cuddled and they are less commonly kept. The choice is yours but for a newbie there is a lot more reading material on blueys and are alot more fun IMO, a pink tongue although a fantastic lizard not quiet what your looking for atm.

 

[peterescue]

This is a pretty good place to visit if your a bluetongue fanatic
http://www.bluetongueskinks.net
Worth the visit. Its not Australian but has Australian members.

 

[tourett]

Thanks Memphis_Tank thats the sort of advise I needed.

peterescue I couldnt get the link to work.

Moose thanks for your input :lol: I'll definatley be paying more attention to your spelling in the future. :lol:

 

[peterescue]

Try it now. Ive lopped the tail off.

 

[tourett]

Thanks peterescue, its a good site.
Hows the money that they pay for some different BTs in the US.
Its similar to the diff between GTPs in the US and here but in reverse.

Its all supply and demand.

 

[peterescue]

Try and buy a western bluey in the States, :shock: :shock: :shock:

 

[Scale_Addiction]

i have 2 blueys, one bit the others tail off... ITS TAIL OFF!!!... that tails is bloody big and meaty... don't kid yourself... those buggers can bite.

secondly, tourett, assuming thats you in your avitar, what the hell is going on with that hair?

 

[Brodie]

Yeah go smash ya finger in a door a couple of times and thats what a bite from a bluey feels like, heh heh. All good fun tho, and if you were stupid enough to ignore its hisses and puffing, you NEVER will again. Cool pets!

 

[SLACkra]

only time i ever saw a bluey for sale in canada and it was $240!!! can't remember what type it was though...

seem like the perfect first reptile.

andrew

 

[westhamsc]

Yeah go smash ya finger in a door a couple of times and thats what a bite from a bluey feels like, heh heh. All good fun tho, and if you were stupid enough to ignore its hisses and puffing, you NEVER will again. Cool pets!

that's me twice but it's funny when there hanging off your arm and you are trying to get it off while in pain :lol:

 

[peterjohnson64]

My 8 year old daughter wants a lcae monitor for Christmas. We went to Cairns in July and at a reptile park they had a young lacie clinging to the hostesses jumper. Looked very cute and now Melissa demands that we get some. Not that I mind!!! As for bites, my new EWD bit me last week when I first got him and I still haven't got full feeling back in the end of my finger.

 

[instar]

Crikey, im waiting for someone to say they have venom glands and fangs!
Bluies are by far the most lazy placid creatures (besides beardys) you will come across. Very hardy,
easy to feed, perfect for kids first lizard.
Captive blueies dont tend to hiss let alone bite if kept indoors, its like they just dont care. Mine have never done, excepting after a few hrs undisturbed outside (hissed but didnt bite).
Brodie mate, get real, there bite isnt that bad, its strong (pinching) but nothing like slamming fingers in doors! Lol you Drama queen, this from a bloke who handles vens? LOl :lol:

 

[peterescue]

Nice to see that he's feeding Peter.

 

[beknluke]

I have found that some younger kids are far more responsible and intelligent than I have given them credit for - especially when their parent keeps much more exciting animals like snakes.
I took a Jacky from the wild when I was 8 or 9, and bought my first beardie not long afterwards.
Depends what your daughter is after really. Will 'Bluey' the BT still have her fascinated in a year? 2 years? (They seem to grow up so quickly at that age).
When I was a kid, I liked bluies coz they were cute and all, but they were never really interesting for me. They look similar all over, they're smooth, and the only thing that they had going for them (in my mind) was their blue tongue!!! lol
Personally, I would go a beardie, but I am COMPLETELY bias cos I would never buy a bluie for the world now that I have these guys (made that decision at about 10yo lol), and I have always found them that much more interesting and interactive.
Also, I have had HEAPS of parents buy beardies for their kids and they were younger than 9. I'm sure that, with your daughter being raised with the wonderful world of herps, she is responsible with them and has a much better head start on their care than other kids do. I say go for whatever you think she would still love as she continues to grow, rather than something that might only satisfy her curiosity for a year
Good luck hun
Bex