# Anyone Lizard smart?



## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

So I found an Alligator(Northern) lizard the other day while walking the dogs.

I brought him home since he has lost his tail,I knew he was injured(plus he wasn't at all hard to catch)

So i am wondering,so they need some kind of heating lamp or a light? I haven't been able to find anything online.

I've only ever had Anoles (sp?) and I know they required a heat source.
But I have no idea about these little guys.

He seems pretty tamed though. he doesn't bite and I was able to touch him, I'm thinking someone's pet escaped.

I was hoping to let him heal and then perhaps let him go where I found him after he's all better.

Not sure if I should though,if he's already this tame. It might just be cause he's hurt,why he doesn't put up a fight.


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## pitbullmamanatl (Jun 1, 2010)

You need a heating pad for under the tank and only have it on one side. They need a cool gradient and a warm gradient so they can keep themselves from getting too hot or too cold.


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## pitbullmamanatl (Jun 1, 2010)

BTW a lizard's tail breaking off is a defense mechanism so I would just release him and let him be. It will grow back he isn't injured.


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## angelbaby (Feb 4, 2010)

id release him , I have had many lizards but they each require individual care and it varies greatly depending on species as far as the heat and humidity levels. majority of lizards caught in the wild dont do very well in captivity and can become depressed like and end up passing. with any wild animal its best to let them be.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

pitbullmamanatl said:


> BTW a lizard's tail breaking off is a defense mechanism so I would just release him and let him be. It will grow back he isn't injured.


I was just about to say that! lol They break off to avoid getting eaten if grabbed by the tail. You keeping him can kill him from stress. He is not injured, let him go where you took him from.

This goes back to being nosy! All the time people think and animal is injured and try to do good by taking th animal from the wild when they have no clue what they are doing. My favorite is when someone comes across a nest of baby birds and they touch them. Then they say they had to take all the babies because they left their sent on the birds and the mom would abandon them....... That is soooooo not true and just an example of when you are not sure you should just let them stay where they are.


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## pitbullmamanatl (Jun 1, 2010)

performanceknls said:


> I was just about to say that! lol They break off to avoid getting eaten if grabbed by the tail. You keeping him can kill him from stress. He is not injured, let him go where you took him from.
> 
> This goes back to being nosy! All the time people think and animal is injured and try to do good by taking th animal from the wild when they have no clue what they are doing. My favorite is when someone comes across a nest of baby birds and they touch them. Then they say they had to take all the babies because they left their sent on the birds and the mom would abandon them....... That is soooooo not true and just an example of when you are not sure you should just let them stay where they are.


Yeah, I know someone who tried to "help" an owl once and got tore up.... Still makes me laugh although she was hating it....


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## cEElint (Oct 6, 2009)

i used to have Iguanas.. too much of a pain .. cant hold them or they'll whip the snot out of you.. my ex's dad had mine on his chest when it was a baby.. it was looking right at him, he stuck his tongue out at it and it bit his tongue.. funny stuff


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## angelbaby (Feb 4, 2010)

waiting for the tail to grow back might not be worth it some lizards once they drop there tails they dont grow back , so you could be waiting for a long time lol. take some pictures before you release him though would love to see it , boyfriend keeps talking about these alligator lizards from back home but we dont have them up here, he said they are pretty mean usually lol.


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## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

I know it's a defense mech. However I read that it takes a lot of energy for these particular lizards to grow their tail back so it makes them more easy prey.
That's the only reason I was going to wait. Cause he was way to easy to catch I thought maybe he was tame. I didn't get to read anyone's posts before this morning cause my computer crapped out,but I had already decided to let him go.
Put him right back where I got him,to bad that's where they're building new houses,his land wont be there much longer,poor little guy.

I've captured wild animals before that were injured,a squirrel and a pigeon. Of course I took them to a wild life center though. I am smart enough to know NOT to touch a baby bird or a wild animal that's been injured.

I used a box for this little guy. Which wasn't hard,cause he was already sitting inside it when I found him.


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## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

angelbaby said:


> waiting for the tail to grow back might not be worth it some lizards once they drop there tails they dont grow back , so you could be waiting for a long time lol. take some pictures before you release him though would love to see it , boyfriend keeps talking about these alligator lizards from back home but we dont have them up here, he said they are pretty mean usually lol.


See I read they are hella mean too,but this little guy/gal?(how do you tell?)
lets me hold it and touch it.

I sure hope I didn't just re-release someone's escaped pet. LOL.


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## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

Pictures I took of him yesterday.

You can tell by the picture he wanted out. I felt bad and released him. Did that with a praying mantis not long ago either.

Here I am holding him....This makes me wonder how "wild" he actually was.


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## gamer (Feb 1, 2010)

I would let him go, you dont want him to get dependent on humans or when you do he will die. Generally lizards are pretty docile even when wild once you have caught them. He is a cutie though.


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## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

Thanks Gamer. He has been released....or was it a she? LOL Will never know.


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## Black Rabbit (Nov 14, 2009)

Aw he's just a little guy. We have tons of them over here. We always catch them and feed em to the dragons lol. We have one in the tank right now that broke it's tail but it didn't detach so he has 2 tails now. I'll take a pic of it for you.


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## dixieland (Aug 14, 2009)

How do the dragons eat them?Can they get em in one big bite or do they kill them first and then eat them?I've never seen a dragon eat something that big before.The biggest thing I used to feed mine were frogs


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## Black Rabbit (Nov 14, 2009)

Oh man Burgundy used to eat snakes too. They run they down, trap em the eat them alive. They usually grab them by the head and slurp them down lol.


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## dixieland (Aug 14, 2009)

Dang I didn't know they could handle a snake too.I bet that was awesome to watch.Now I need to go digging around youtube to see if anybody has posted videos of something like that.


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## Black Rabbit (Nov 14, 2009)

I'm pretty sure I have the snake on video let me go dig through my photobuckets


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## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

kg420 said:


> Aw he's just a little guy. We have tons of them over here. We always catch them and feed em to the dragons lol. We have one in the tank right now that broke it's tail but it didn't detach so he has 2 tails now. I'll take a pic of it for you.


Would love to see it! I love lizards~


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