we got an anole

[krystalirelan@southslope.]

Hey, we just aquired an anole. It was in a plant at the grocery store my husband works at. He is only 2" long including tail. we have given him small crickets and he eats like a horse. does any one have any suggestions as to special care for him? do they do better w/ a buddy? we live in iowa and winter is very cold so setting him free is not an option. i want to give him the best home possible and have read the care sheets but i found in the past that others who have had the animal before is the best resource. any help/suggestion is welcome. thanks

[adamanteus]

Hi Krystal. I think you'll find that Matt (abcat1993) is the man to ask! He has anoles.

[abcat1993]

Crickets are the some of the best things you can give them. No, they do better without another, especially if they are both male. I have mine in a 55 gallon hex tank, so they have plenty of room to move around and climb on. I spray regularly and use a reptile light (the ones with UV are the best ones and required for long term care).

[adamanteus]

Cheers Matt. I knew you were "The Man!"

[FitnessFreak]

what are anoles?
i was guno assume its a snake but 2 inches long?

[LeapinLeo]

lol no. Anoles are little lizards that are super quick. I think the smallest snake is like 6 inches. Not sure though.

Can you put pics up asap?

[FitnessFreak]

lol no. Anoles are little lizards that are super quick. I think the smallest snake is like 6 inches. Not sure though.

Can you put pics up asap?
ohhh!!! i caught a few of those when i went to mexico! but i had to let them go =[

it was walkin on the edge of my resort/hotel and i put my hand out and the thing was insanely fast.

how big do they get??
i figured it was a baby lizard of something lol

[krystalirelan@southslope.]

thanks matt. we are seting up a 10 gallon tank for him now. until we get it set we have him in a plastic 1.5 gallon thing. we use the iguana light on him while the iguana is out an about. he is is a cute little guy though. we plan on outing him next to the couch so we can watch him alot :)

[LeapinLeo]

I think about 5-6 inches or so. They dont get very big.

[suzoo]

Hi Krystal,
Do you know what type of Anole you have? I have several Green Anoles, (Anolis Carolinensis). A picture would be nice too! Here are a couple of mine. They can turn from green to brown and every color between. The big green one is male, you can keep females together, and keep females with a male. But not 2 males together. The brown one is a female. She was green until I tried to take her picture. They eat small crickets, fruit flies, small moths, even house flies. Beside the crickets from the petshop, I usually give my kids clear plastic baggies in the evening, turn on the porch light, and tell them to catch what they can.
http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//519/medium/Anoles_002.JPG

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//519/medium/Anoles_004.JPG

[drache]

I had some of those a long time ago
they even changed colour a little
different shades of green/brown

[Volksdragon]

I had a few Green Anoles a while ago. Be quick and pay attention to them while handling them, especially the small ones, because they have a tendency to hop out of your hands and scurry into the nearest heater vent. They're really fun little lizards, though, for anyone who's never had them.
Neat to watch, too.

[abcat1993]

Rhea, if they change colors like that then they are most likely green anoles which are stressed.

[drache]

Rhea, if they change colors like that then they are most likely green anoles which are stressed.

mine didn't change colour quickly - it tended to happen when they hung out in the same place for a long time - some gradual move toward background colour
also in response to light and shade - sort of like tan-lines
back then, I probably wasn't that great at providing the best care
I ended up giving them to a friend, because I'd ended up with two cats, and couldn't figure out, how to keep them away from the enclosure. That was quite clearly stressing the anoles.

[krystalirelan@southslope.]

great pics. I'm still trying to figure out posting pics, but i'll keep trying. anyway, how do you tell if they are male or female?:D

[Cazador]

Hi Krystal,

Have you seen this thread with directions for http://www.thamnophis.com/forum/site-feedback-suggestions-questions/181-posting-pictures.html?

Rick

[suzoo]

great pics. I'm still trying to figure out posting pics, but i'll keep trying. anyway, how do you tell if they are male or female?:D

It's not easy when they're young! As adults, the males are much larger, especially their heads. The females tend to have a light stripe down their back. And the males have 2 enlarged post anal scales that females don't have. My best advice, go to amazon.com and buy a cheap book. That's where I learned everything I know about them. I hope I've helped!

[krystalirelan@southslope.]

the anole is a green anole. also we got another in the same manner as the first. a week or so ago my husband came home and said our anoles are dead. i went to look as i had just sprayed them 20 min. ago and both were fine. and sure enough they were laying upside down together by the rock. I opened the cage and they both jumped up and took off. well now one is getting really thick in the middle and digging around alot in the substrate. were they breeding? i have been checking for eggs but don't see any. ofcourse it's a little like looking under the hood of the car...i see all sorts of stuff but don't know if it really belongs!

[abcat1993]

I'm not sure, mine did the same thing (I mean the female got thick), but it never got any skinnier and escaped after a few months.

[krystalirelan@southslope.]

sunday i was doing a little cage mait. and there was a baby anole in there! we looked all over the internet to find what to do w/him and decided to put him in his own little cage to make sure he ate. well, the little guy can get thru the smallest of holes. we hope to have a few more hatch over the summer (it can take12 weeks for all to hatch!)

[drache]

congratulations!
what a nice find
and may the little guy thrive

[krystalirelan@southslope.]

looking back to see when the last guy was born b/c i have a new one.
we had a run of bad anole luck. the little guy died. the mom died and then the dad died. so i had a 10 gallon plant pot for a while then we got another anole at the dreaded PetCo. the other day we found a baby anole in there!
I can only guess we got a female anole and she laid egg(s). This time I am leaving him alone and I put fruit flies in there for him. He is already HUGE compared to the other one. wish me luck in keeping him and mommy alive!

[anji1971]

Nice surprise!
Hope he grows up healthy and strong!:)

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

Nice! you are teh second person I have seen get an anole from a plant! haha!

Anoles are a leeetttle lizard. not quite a snake.


I believe the smallest snake award actually goes to black blind worm snakes... as adults supposedly reach 1.5 inches! they also reproduce asexually, meaning they don't need a mate!

http://www.reptastic.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=42&thumb=1&d=1200505464

hard to beleive thats a snake eh?

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

oh wow... this thread is old! oops! haha

[bio6464]

Good luck Krystal...feed him some of these flies and mosquitos that our midwestern floods have brought us. :mad:
Jerry

[infernalis]

Seemed like the best place to put this.

Our Anoles are roughly a year old, have a male female pair, They have bred, but mom keeps breaking the eggs open.

I enjoy these tiny lizards, and discussed it with Dorothy just last night how I wish to build a much larger enclosure and plant a mini rain forest in it.

The Crickets are breeding like crazy, and I thought that the baby crickets would make great food items for some tiny Anoles.

Really hope that maybe with the proper conditions the mom would quit smashing her eggs.

Got the first one back in December 07, so I must be doing something remotely correct since he is still here.

As for handling them, Never would even try... Far too stressful on the animal. Great "display" critters and fun to watch.

It's kinda sad that they are so misunderstood, and considered by many as "disposable" pets.

[reptile3]

Anoles are cute, never thought about owning any. What else do you breed Wayne?

Wonder why the mom keeps doing that to her eggs... hope you can find out why!

[misskris]

I never new people kept them till we moved north.. I alway's had them in my garden.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff136/kswmm/Picture20097.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff136/kswmm/Picture20098.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff136/kswmm/Picture20105.jpg
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff136/kswmm/Picture20099.jpg

[infernalis]

We got the first one because Samantha wanted a pet reptile, So I set her up with a 10 gallon tank, put in some plants, and spent 6 bucks on an Anole.

She lost interest when she learned she couldn't play with it, So I took it over.

I like watching social interaction, and lizards are social creatures, so I went and asked specifically for a female (2 males is not good) and put her in there.

Within a few hours this was going on..

http://www.reformedsniper.net/1xxx.jpg

When we lived in Florida, they were everywhere, I loved it. Used to make a game out of trying to catch one (no nets or any tools, just dive and grab) hardly ever worked.

As far as mom smashing her eggs, I'd have to assume it's the stress of captivity.

They key to successful breeding would most likely be to give them enough room with conditions that are such that they don't even realize they are captives. That's why I want to set them up in a really big "closet size" enclosure.

[gregmonsta]

Groovy little thing :) you should try the mirror trick and watch him dance ;)