by James Johnson

Created on: November 06, 2009

How to build a cage for a moisture loving lizard species? Simple, put in a lot of moisture and a lot of plants!

For starters, use an aquarium, the large the better. You ban landscape it with a small pool and rocks with a little pump to keep the water circulating. This is because stagnant water will not only breed mosquitoes and start to smell, it is bad for most lizards as toxins can accumulate and poison the poor reptile, and unlike in the wild, this is a cage with no escape.

In this moisture cage, put in lots of plants, but plants that like moisture and that aren't poisonous or dangerous to the lizard. If possible, try to use plants from the area where the lizard species is native to. You also have to consider what the lizard will eat. If it eats plants, avoid ones such as philodendrons and diffenbachia as they will kill the lizard if it chews on them. Safe plants that like water include bromilliads and orchids. They are also attractive and will add to the decor.

When adding the plants and pool, put everything in pots or containers that can be easily removed. Why, because this cage is for a pet and will need cleaning! With a moisture loving species and a glass cage (and it needs to be glass to keep in the humidity unless you live in a rain forest), algae will start to grow on the sides! The animal will also be producing waste products and in the wild these will be either washed away, eaten by something or the gases disappear, in a cage that won't happen. With a desert type lizard, the dry environment turns the feces to dust, in wet areas it promotes fungus and smells!

When building a cage for any lizard species, location is important. Dry loving lizard species want a place sunny and bright, most moisture loving lizards prefer cool and damp. But note, it should be cool and not cold. Temperature is very important, too cool and the animal becomes sluggish, to hot and it over heats and dies. Dry loving lizard species are much more tolerant of temperature extremes!

In summary, the best cage for a moisture loving lizard species is made out of glass using an aquarium, it should have water that is being circulated and will keep up the humidity and safe plants. Everything should be in containers and easy to remove to facilitate cleaning and it needs to be in a temperature stable location!

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