Nekrasovskoe rural settlement. Russian Orthodox Church. Composition of a rural settlement

Guinea pigs. But there are lovers of exotic animals: spiders, scorpions, cockroaches, bats and reptiles. One of the types.

Lizards are different, from small nimble and desert lizards - geckos and toothfishes, to large individuals - monitor lizards, iguanas, chameleons. Field lizards very rarely get along in captivity; they can live for a long time provided they have a varied diet.

In principle, keeping small reptiles is not particularly difficult. Small individuals must purchase a special terrarium, otherwise in the wild they can run away, get sick, get injured, or hide so that you won’t find them. Larger individuals can do without a terrarium, but it is better to purchase one, because in a draft the animal can get sick.

It is possible to keep several individuals in one terrarium, but under certain conditions. These should be lizards of approximately the same age; individuals of different sexes are able to coexist peacefully only during the mating and reproduction period; at other times they will simply fight.

Lizards can be bred when the female reaches two years of age; males can breed from the age of one. It is believed that early mating can kill the female. After mating, the female should be placed in another terrarium with peat and moss so that the lizard can immediately bury her eggs. After 10 weeks, at a certain temperature and humidity, offspring will be born, which also need to be transplanted to another place. The cubs are fed vitamin supplements and calcium.

Terrarium for a lizard

The terrarium for your future pet needs to be chosen wisely. It should be tall, about two or three times the length of your pet. At the bottom you can put earth without additives and fertilizer, sand, wood shavings for rodents, pieces of paper, pieces of tree bark or special mats that can be found in a pet store.

You can stick several tree branches to the walls so that the lizard can climb on them, as in natural environment a habitat. You can also place pebbles, climbing structures, artificial plants without thorns. You can write separately about the plants - they must be strong, able to withstand the weight of the reptile, they must be rough so that the lizard does not slip or fall from them, and the plants must also be of high quality in order to withstand high temperatures.

The temperature in the habitat should be of two values: in one part of the house about 36 degrees, and in the other about 29-30 degrees. At night it should be at least 21 degrees. Most often, owners purchase a glass-ceramic lamp or incandescent lamp along with the terrarium to heat the hot zone. The soil can be maintained in a certain regime using special mats.

The lighting should be constantly bright, with only an ultraviolet lamp. Optimal humidity for - this is no less than 50-70%. Therefore, in the terrarium in the thirty-degree zone there should always be a large cup of water so that the lizard can climb into it at any time. You can spray the terrarium with a spray bottle several times a day, but you need to monitor the ventilation so that fungus does not develop.

What to feed a lizard

Small cubs must be fed from tweezers; adults can feed independently from a cup. Feeding occurs twice a day in the winter season and three times in the summer. The diet depends on what type of reptile you have.

Iguanas eat only plant foods: fruits and vegetables. Monitor lizards prefer fish, frogs, snakes, and bird eggs. Small fast lizards can feed on spiders, worms, cockroaches, flies, and mollusks. You can combine pieces of meat, for example, with grated carrots. Don't forget to add vitamins and calcium to your food.

What do lizards eat in the wild?

Most lizards are carnivores. At the same time, a considerable part of them are able to absorb combined food. These reptiles developed this ability during evolution to increase their chance of survival. Much fewer lizards are exclusively herbivorous. In nature, small and medium-sized species prefer to eat invertebrate animals. More large species lizards feed on appropriate prey: birds and fish, amphibians, including their own kind, non-venomous snakes and even mammals. The largest species is considered to be the monitor lizard from Komodo Island. It’s scary to imagine what lizards of this size eat: it is believed that they can even attack pigs and buffaloes.

Small ones eat various insects, spiders, centipedes and worms. Species that live near water feed on shellfish. Also, lizards can be considered garden nurses no worse than birds, because they destroy a huge number of pests: harmful beetles (hungry lizards can even eat the Colorado potato beetle, which most animals avoid, considering it inedible), flies, mole crickets, butterflies (including cabbage ") and their larvae. Among others, these reptiles destroy carriers of dangerous diseases, and the latter can make up almost one hundred percent of their diet, depending on the lizard’s habitat. To eat, this type of animal requires a lot of food - to the delight of the gardener.

The above-mentioned spindle stands a little apart from its relatives. Unlike other relatives, its teeth are strongly pointed and bent back, which allows it to grab and hold very slippery prey in its mouth. What does a lizard with such teeth eat? Thanks to this unusual jaw structure, the spindle can feed on slugs, worms, woodlice and similar creatures, as well as the larvae of these insects.

What do small lizards eat?

For example, the most common small lizards on Earth, members of the true lizard family, or Lacertidae, feed mainly on small insects, but larger species are capable of eating even small vertebrates. Usually lizards, hiding in a shelter and merging with the ground, lie in wait for their prey or carefully approach and overtake it with a quick movement. Some species can also use various small fruits or berries as food. Lizards of this family are generally quite small and do not hunt other vertebrates.

What do large lizards eat?

Large lizards, for example, monitor lizards, are capable of hunting larger animals. They usually sneak up on prey and grab it in a throw. Experts do not rule out that monitor lizards are even capable of detecting their prey by following their tracks, using their forked tongue, like a snake’s, that constantly protrudes from its mouth. Monitor lizards also do not disdain carrion - dead animals or the remains of the meal of larger predators.

Which lizards are preferable to keep at home?

Before keeping reptiles at home, you should carefully collect all the information about the subspecies that interest you. They are all divided into three categories: carnivores, herbivores and omnivores.

Based on this, you will have to plan your pets’ diet.

Herbivores At home, lizards enjoy eating carrots, cabbage, lettuce, apples, berries and other fruits and vegetables. Through experimentation, you will soon figure out which dishes are more favorite for them and which ones are less favorite. The main condition that it is advisable to fulfill is to try to thoroughly rinse the greens under running water. Ideally, the fruits should be grown by hand to avoid containing various chemicals that can be fatal to lizards. Occasionally dilute their diet with boiled rice and raw potatoes. The most popular herbivorous lizards, which experts recommend keeping at home, are iguanas, affectionate and unpretentious, like cats.

If you have settled at your place predator , you will have to periodically go hunting to get suitable food for him. This also has its advantages. You can combine a walk through a shady forest or sunny meadow with catching butterflies, crickets, spiders, caterpillars and flies for your pet. If the lizard is large enough, you can occasionally pamper it with small rodents. But keep in mind that there is a predator living in your house, which can turn from a funny baby into a large enough reptile that can injure you and your children. Monitor lizards belong to the category of predatory exotic lizards that can feel comfortable in city apartments.

Be sure to introduce balanced food, which is sold in pet stores, and vitamins into the diet of all types of lizards. Periodically add crushed eggshells to food, but it is advisable to feed geckos with fresh cottage cheese. In any case, you should consult and ask questions about your specific species to a veterinarian or look for answers on the Internet.

What to feed your lizard at home?

IN wildlife the lizard easily finds food for itself, but at home the owner will have to approach this issue responsibly. The pet will have to be fed several times a day. It is better to choose an opaque cup. There should always be a bowl filled with fresh water in the terrarium.

A herbivore should receive fruits and vegetables, lettuce and cabbage daily. It is useful to add boiled potatoes and rice in small quantities. Sometimes food is mixed with what predators eat.

To feed a carnivorous lizard, you have to stock up on insects:

• non-venomous spiders;
• cockroaches;
• crickets;
• mealworms;
• bloodworm;
• earthworms;
• locusts

It is not so easy to keep a lizard at home, because the diet must be varied. To keep your animal from getting sick, you need vitamin and mineral supplements purchased at pet stores. Some owners pamper their pets with boneless meat or even small mammals. But in smaller individuals, this can cause indigestion, which can lead to illness and premature death. They sell special foods and mixtures that you can prepare yourself.

Animal food for lizards

Since most lizards in their natural environment are still predators, the lion's share of their diet is live food. Reptiles are often fed crickets, flies, bloodworms, grasshoppers, locusts, and earthworms. Larger lizards are given mice, small rats and other rodents. You can also occasionally feed your pets with small or chopped fish, low-fat raw meat boneless, bird's eggs. Cottage cheese is given as feed additives: it is left in feeders or laid out on stones and branches (for individuals that do not like to go down to the ground).

It is best to feed with live food using tweezers, otherwise the insects will scatter throughout the terrarium. It is not recommended to feed cockroaches, except perhaps American ones, but they are agile and fast, so their legs are often torn off before feeding them. Mealworms are also useful; lizards are not fed beetles because they have a hard shell. It is recommended to crush the head of a mealworm with tweezers, since it strong jaws, and it can damage mucous membranes. Some species of reptiles also eat adult cockchafers. Large lizards also eat recently hatched chicks.

Plant food for lizards

About a third of the lizard's diet consists of plant foods. You can offer your pet greens - lettuce, parsley, plantain, spinach, clover, dandelion, etc. Reptiles eat well and pieces of vegetables - cabbage, broccoli, zucchini, cucumbers, carrots, sometimes you can give raw potatoes. Fruits you can give are apples, pears, melons, grapes, citrus fruits - experimentally you can find out which ones your pet likes best.

Vitamin and mineral supplements can be mixed into food: for example, added to fruit or porridge with insects. It is also useful for the lizard to give crushed eggshells, calcium glycerophosphate tablets, chalk, and preparations for reptiles.

Nutrient mixture and fertilizing

On your own, you can prepare a nutrient mixture that lizards really like. For this you will need meat and carrots (1:1). The meat needs to be ground in a meat grinder and the carrots grated. Next, mix it all, add a little lettuce leaves, calcium, and vitamin supplements. The nutritional mixture is ready.

Vitamins and minerals are necessary for the health, bright appearance, vigor and liveliness of lizards. They are not given in pure form, but must be mixed with food.

Most often, raw crushed eggshells, calcium glycerophosphate tablets, chalk and specialized preparations for reptiles are used.

Each species has its own food

The sand lizard naturally eats small snakes, spiders, grasshoppers and insects. In captivity, it can be fed with flies, crickets, mosquitoes, spiders, cockroaches, mealworms and earthworms, a nutritious mixture of meat and carrots, and fruit and vegetable mixtures.

1. Chameleons Flies, cockroaches, and crickets are suitable as food. We should not forget about vitamin supplements. There is special dry food on sale, but it is better to use it infrequently. You can periodically treat your pet with banana slices, citrus fruits, and grapes.
2. Geckos agree only to live food: spiders, crickets, flies, cockroaches, locusts and others, as well as worms (mealworms and zoofubus). Large individuals can be fed with baby mice and baby rats, as well as quail eggs. It is necessary to put water and bird stone powder in the terrarium. Dry vitamins and ground calcium are used as insect deboning daily, and liquid vitamins are given once every week. Treats for geckos include bananas, oranges, marmalade and honey.
3. Moloch(thorny dragon or thorny devil) is difficult to keep at home, but it is found in zoos. This Australian lizard feeds exclusively on ants and can eat 600-2500 of them at one time! Skinks can be given the same food insects as for the above species, supplementing them with snails, pink mice, caterpillars, squid, one-day-old chopped chicks, ready-made food mixtures for reptiles and even dry dog ​​food. They will not refuse vegetables, fruits, seeds, buckwheat, rice. Occasionally you can give beef liver and heart (chicken or beef).
4. Iguana is a herbivore and is very selective in its food. In nature, it feeds only on tree leaves. In captivity, she can and should be given spinach, cabbage, turnips, broccoli and other dark green leafy vegetables. The second half of the diet consists of other vegetables, such as carrots, peppers and sweet potatoes, peas, beans and others. Alfalfa in the form of granules (sold in a pet store) is very useful. It is recommended to give fruits infrequently and little by little. Vitamin and mineral supplementation is required.
5. Monitor lizards. It is believed that they are unpretentious and happily eat both fresh food for other lizards and fragrant game. In captivity, they can be given frogs, mice, chickens, small vertebrates, insects, cockroaches, earthworms, fish, pieces of meat, chicken eggs etc.

Unsuitable food for lizards

There is no need to feed the animal human food - it is not at all suitable for a reptile. You should refrain from catching cockroaches and flies that live in city apartments - they can be poisonous. Sometimes the owners themselves breed some insects in the apartment in order to feed the lizard at home. Also, you should not catch insects near cultivated fields that are treated with pesticides. Grass growing near industrial zones, highways or railways is not suitable for food.

Lizards love to eat moving food, so the insects in the bowl should periodically be alive or half-alive. Young animals should not be given old grasshoppers and crickets, as their tough chitin can damage the esophagus, which can lead to to a pet fatal.

You cannot offer stale or unwashed vegetables and fruits, meat with bones, cut into large pieces. Their health and life expectancy depend on what lizards eat at home.

Popular questions

How often should you feed your lizard?

What about the diet is more or less clear, but we will return to this issue a little later, but what should be the frequency of feeding of these reptiles? If you think that lizards, just like house spiders, can for a long time to live without food, the main thing is that there is water, then you are mistaken. Lizards need several meals a day, and in the hot season it needs to be fed 3 times a day, while for the colder season it is enough to feed the pet 2 times a day. The time for feeding is chosen when the lizard is active. If you have several lizards, then make sure that the reptiles do not fight over food, therefore, it is better to feed them in different terrariums. After the lizard has eaten, it is better to remove the remaining food. Putting a reptile on a diet and limiting its food intake is not worth it. As a result of malnutrition, the pet may begin to get sick and die.

What to do if your lizard refuses to eat?

This question is very often asked by reptile owners who are not yet accustomed to their status as a lizard breeder. Well, perhaps you just simply overfed your pet, and he decided to arrange a couple of fasting days for himself. Just watch the lizard's behavior - if it is still active, drinks water well, but simply refuses food or eats very little - it's not scary. The reptile may thus be relieving its body from your overfeeding (a symptom of the latter is frequent belching), or perhaps it is clearly hinting to you that what you are feeding it is not to its taste. In this case, it is recommended to reconsider the diet of your pet or pet. It is not uncommon for young lizards to refuse to feed themselves. In this situation, you can try to interest the reptile in breakfast or lunch in the following way - squeeze out the contents of the mealworm and lubricate the lizard's mouth with it. She will definitely lick it off, and then, having tasted the delicacy, will greedily reach for food.

Does a lizard need vitamins?

If you want your reptile to be healthy, look bright, and behave lively, it must include vitamins and minerals in its diet. If you have a vegetarian lizard, you can crush these vitamins and minerals and mix them with rice and fruit. For predator lizards, you can prepare a mixture of food insects and add vitamin powder to it. Some owners even specifically inject mice and rats with vitamins before giving them to their lizard to eat, or inject the latter with minerals in gelatin capsules. To do this or take a simpler path - each owner must decide for himself. The main thing is to avoid those substances that can scare your pet away from food or spoil his appetite... By the way, calcium can be given to lizards in the form of cuttlefish shells or in the form of crushed eggshells (eggs must be raw).

There are different types of lizards: herbivores, carnivores and omnivores. Before you start feeding, you need to determine what type of nutrition is typical for the species that lives with you.

The most common in temperate climate reptiles are representatives of the family True lizards, as well as the genus Forest lizards. All of them are carnivores. However, in southern regions there are habitats for omnivorous lizards such as the Middle Lizard.

Meat-eating lizards

If you determine that you have come across a common lizard, the problem of what to feed can be solved quite simply: insects, worms, small mice and pups, and occasionally meat. Locusts, grasshoppers, crickets, cockroaches, fruit flies - this is what you should feed an ordinary lizard. Please note that the cockroaches are not Prussians caught somewhere, but black cockroaches, which are specially bred to feed reptiles, amphibians and spiders. Ask at a pet store or look for people who breed insects: it will be much more profitable to raise insects at home than to buy them every time.

Another good solution for feeding your lizard at home is snails. They are easy to breed; moreover, their shells contain calcium, which must be mixed when feeding the lizard with other types of food. If you feed lizards with mice, you can pre-inject them with a vitamin-mineral complex. Another source of calcium is egg shells.

Herbivorous lizards

Fruits and vegetables are the basis of what to feed a lizard that leads a vegetarian lifestyle. Cabbage, carrots, lettuce, apples, grapes, potatoes (occasionally) are suitable. What to feed the lizard1 Serve fruits and vegetables together, cutting them into small pieces and peeling them.

Observe the lizard while feeding and do not be afraid to experiment - this way you will reveal the gastronomic preferences of your particular lizard. However, remember that the products must be safe for the reptile - that is, you do not need to feed it chips. Carnivores should be offered plant food once a week, and herbivores should be offered an insect.

The lizard must be fed daily. If she suddenly begins to refuse food, force feed her once every two days. If after a week the lizard does not begin to take food on its own, take the animal to the veterinarian.

Lizard- These are reptiles that have their own habits and needs. It has a very unpleasant appearance, despite this, it poses no danger to humans at all. For this reason, some people breed them at home. They create for them comfortable conditions and carefully study the literature about what lizards eat.

In total, there are more than five thousand such individuals, some of which can be found in our vegetable gardens and orchards.

Classification of lizards

In Russia there are two species of lizards - these are ordinary and quick. They can most often be found in the European part of the country. They differ in external characteristics.

Ordinary lizard can often be seen moving in a vertical direction. Sharp and rounded claws allow her to do this. Its body is covered with small scales.

Fast lizard has a smaller body size, which allows it to move quickly. In some cities you can find a green specimen. Distinctive feature lizards is that when they are threatened, they can painlessly throw off their tail and continue moving.

What do domestic lizards eat?

It is unlikely that anyone will be surprised to see a man walking his lizard on the street. This is completely normal nowadays. Some people keep snakes, huge pythons and human-sized iguanas. Every animal, even the most terrifying, must Healthy food.

Exists grocery list, which can be fed to a lizard:

• Better than any food for reptiles are insects. They readily eat flies, maggots, cockroaches, worms and moths. Lizards enjoy eating them live. Also, caring owners catch insects themselves and dry them for their beloved pets;
• Pet stores sell a wide variety of special food for reptiles. But some lizards are reluctant to eat them. In addition, such food can be introduced into the diet several times a week;
• Some lizards prefer plant foods. Special food is made for them from fruits and vegetables. First, each fruit must be washed in warm, boiled water;
• In order for the pet to grow fully, the owners buy special vitamins for them; they especially need to be given to the pet during the cold season.

As for water, lizards can drink just once a day. They have large reserves of fluid in their bodies, which are enough for them to fully exist. The diet for lizards living in plant conditions is slightly different.

What do lizards living in plant conditions eat?

Lizards living in nature get their own food. They usually have the same type of diet.

• These reptiles feed on what they find in the ground. These can be various beetles and caterpillars. The most dexterous individuals manage to catch butterflies and flies;
• In summer, lizards can often be seen in beds where potatoes are planted. The Colorado potato beetle is their favorite meat product;
• They prefer slightly different foods spindles. This reptile loves earthworms, woodlice and slugs. It is also a lover of beetles and their larvae. The main difference between such a lizard and other individuals is that they have sharp, rounded back teeth. It is this quality that allows them to hold slippery food in their mouth;
• As for vitamins, lizards get them from vegetation and greens;
• They also obtain water on their own in ponds or puddles.

Lizards are one of the most voracious reptiles. Despite small size, their daily diet is almost the same as that of large birds.

Habitat form and living conditions

For the lizard to function properly, it is necessary that there is a lot of vegetation around. It is for this reason that they tend to be in the fields most of the time. If a person wants to have such an individual, then he needs to think about creating conditions for her to live.

They love freedom, so you should buy a large terrarium. You need to make sure that there is a sufficient amount of vegetation there. It is advisable to spray the leaves of plants with dew at least several times a week, which the lizard will readily lick off.

IN summer time year, the pet needs additional moisture. Recommended spray the terrarium every day. In winter, they can die from the cold, you should monitor the air temperature, it is advisable that it is not less than 25 degrees .

Lizards are solitary individuals. There is no need to have a couple in the same terrarium, otherwise the individuals will constantly conflict. For them, there are several periods a year when they are ready to reproduce, but the rest of the time they will begin to eat each other. Females are bad mothers; they carry the eggs and never approach them again. They can also conflict with the cubs that grow from them.

Lizard habits

Lizards, like any other living creature, have its own characteristics :

• They don't go hunting with early morning. First, they sunbathe for a long time and bask in the warmth. Once they feel comfortable, they are ready to go hunting. Reptiles actively run across the field and search for prey. You should pay attention to this feature and equip the terrarium with at least a lamp;
• They love warmth but avoid heat. Towards the afternoon they find shelter in the shade and rest there;
• Lizards cannot live in the cold, winter time years they bury themselves underground and emerge only in late spring;
• Several times a year, individuals are ready to reproduce. They choose only the partner who is similar in color to him. They are not ready to communicate with other types of lizards;
• If you keep this pet in winter, you should add more vitamins to its diet. It is very stressful for him to be in conditions that are uncharacteristic for him.

It is important for owners who truly care about their pet to know what to feed their lizard. How realistic is it to find suitable food for such an animal at home? How do diet features depend on the seasons? You will find the answers in this article.

Not knowing what to feed your lizard can harm it.

What to feed a lizard at home

Having decided to have an exotic animal at home, you need to find out the intricacies of feeding it. The diet depends on the type of lizard according to the type of food, of which there are three.

1. Predators, or meat-eaters.

Depending on their size, they are fed:

It is important not to overfeed the animal, since the animal’s intestines are its weakness. It is recommended to combine meat with plant foods.

2. Herbivores.

Their diet is based on fruits and vegetables. Especially good for pets:

• apples;
• carrot;
• cabbage;
• grape;
• salad;
• potatoes (sometimes).

The reptile's diet should be varied. It's good when the types of vegetables and fruits are mixed. They should be served without the peel in crushed form. Approximately every 2 weeks it is worth offering the lizard an insect.

3. Omnivores.

In this case, in daily menu includes both meat and plant food. Sweets and food from the table are absolutely excluded. Otherwise, you can expect poisoning or serious consequences.

What to feed lizards in winter? Pet stores will come to the rescue. They stock up on special food and insects there. It is strictly not recommended to use household cockroaches for these purposes.

How to feed a common lizard

Some of the reptiles are awake during the day, others at night. They are fed during periods of greatest activity.

If the individual is young, food is presented to it in tweezers. For older lizards, food is placed in a feeder with a flat bottom and a well-fitting lid. Any remaining food must be removed.