Interested in acquiring your first exotic pet? Curious what may be the best animal for someone who has little or no experience with reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates? Worried you’ll buy something because it looks cool but then get it home and realize you can’t handle it?

We’ve been there, and we know what it’s like to become a first time exotic pet owner. Just buying a pre-packaged enclosure kit and a baby animal is never enough, even if the branding on the enclosure box says it includes “everything you need!”. These are not domesticated animals like cats or dogs. They can have incredibly specific dietary, environmental, and handling needs, and if you don’t meet them, you’ll end up with a dead critter. Owning exotic animals can be expensive and time-consuming, and with many reptiles, it can be a very long commitment.

For all it’s drawbacks, however, caring for exotics can also be incredibly rewarding. Seeing them grow over time, watching them interact with their surroundings, learning all about them from books and the internet and other people in the community - there is so much to experience with these animals. Owning reptiles and other exotics is as much a life-style as it is keeping a pet. And if it’s a life-style you want to get into, here are five animals we think are great for beginners!

Please keep in mind that this list is made up from our experiences with these animals for over 30 years. It includes the basics for each critter, but if you intend to bring one into your life, we suggest you do as much research as you can stand. Many of us learned the hard way how to take proper care of exotics. Benefit from our mistakes and the wealth of knowledge we all like to share online, in books and magazines, and in person.

Bearded Dragon -

These are really awesome lizards for first time keepers. Not only do they stay a reasonable size, they are usually pretty mellow. Many just lay around basking under their heat lamps all day. Their food is readily available, as are the supplies you’ll need to take care of them. And due to their popularity, you won’t have to look too hard to find them for sale. Fun fact: they are called “Bearded” dragons because they will puff out their throat when they are upset. It may even change color to much darker than normal in an effort to scare you off.

Also Known As: Pogona viticeps, “beardies”, Lizard of Oz

Lifespan: 4-10 years

Size: 18”-22” in length from snout to tip of tail

Dietary Needs: These lizards are omnivores so they need a diet with animal proteins as well as plant matter. They can eat crickets, feeder roaches, mealworms, and superworms on a regular basis, but should also be encouraged to eat dark leafy greens as often as possible (which isn’t always easy as they tend to prefer the bugs.) Calcium supplement should be added to their greens and dusted over their insects every few feedings.

Environmental Needs: Bearded dragons come from the desert in Australia, so they need a home that is nice and warm. It should be 75-85 degrees in all areas except the basking spot, which should be between 90-100 degrees. They should have a basking light to create this hotspot, as well as a UVA/UVB light to keep them healthy. They can become impacted from swallowing substrate, so you’ll want to pick something like millet that will pass through them, or coconut bark that is too big for them to swallow. You can also use carpet on the floor of the enclosure. Provide logs or rocks big enough for them to lay on, and make sure the enclosure has a secure lid, as some Beardies like to escape. Bearded dragons don’t always understand standing water, so while you may provide them a shallow dish of water in their home, you also need to soak them on a regular basis to give them a chance to drink but also help them shed. Last but not least, provide an enclosure with enough space for them. Babies will be okay in a 20-gallon aquarium, but adult Beardies will need at least a 75-gallon or 120-gallon tank.

Pros: Once they are set up you shouldn’t have to worry about constantly checking their environment. Feeder bugs can be found at most chain and local pet stores, and any grocery store or farmer’s market that sells dark leafy greens can hook you up for those. Beardies can live longer than their estimated lifespan if they are cared for properly and given medical attention by a veterinarian when needed. Their mellow nature makes them good for (supervised) children as well as adults.

Cons: Heat is very important to the well-being of these lizards, but you have to make sure they are also getting cooler areas to hang out if/when they become overheated. Their scales are pretty rough and they have small spines along their sides and head, which can be prickly and cause issues with your skin if you aren’t careful when you handle them. If provoked they can bite, and some people have a reaction to their saliva. As with all animals, it’s a good idea to stay away from their mouths.

Russian Tortoise -

Most people think of huge shelled creatures ambling along a field or wallowing in mud when they think of tortoises. But these shelled critters come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and temperaments. Russian tortoises are pretty easy to find for sale, in part because they stay small-ish in size. They’re also curious and will grow to recognize their keepers over time (as in, they know where their food comes from). Fun fact: it does not seem to occur to these tortoises that they aren’t built for climbing. They will try to scale rocks, stairs, logs, and up the sides of buildings!

Also Known As: Afghan tortoise, Central Asian tortoise, Horsfield’s tortoise, four-clawed tortoise, steppe tortoise

Lifespan: 40+ years so this is a long-term commitment kind of animal

Size: 6”-8” in length; the females will oftentimes grow larger than the males

Dietary Needs: these tortoises are vegetarian and need high fiber and low protein foods. Grass, hay, succulent vegetation, flowers, and fruits as treats make up a good regular diet for them. You should also add calcium supplement to their food on a regular basis

Environmental Needs: For Russian tortoises a temperature range of 75-85 degrees is necessary. They can handle it a bit colder, but won’t be happy about it. They like to burrow so a substrate of coconut bark or a mix of soil and bark will work. Glass tanks are frequently advertised for tortoises but they can actually stress these animals out. As they don’t understand the concept of glass, being able to SEE outside the glass but not being able to GO outside the glass can confuse them and make them anxious. A wooden tortoise box with a latching lid and a screen top to let light in will suit these animals just fine. They are technically grazing animals and do require floor space to roam around to be happy. If you house them with other tortoises, you’ll need to make sure you have enough space to accommodate all of them. It is also very important that they get UVA/UVB light to keep their shells healthy.

Pros: Russian tortoises are one of the easiest torts to keep. Their temperature range is the same as most indoor room temps, they don’t hibernate in the winter, and they can handle short periods in extreme hot or cold (but not too long). They’re considered social animals, and won’t hide from you all of the time.

Cons: Like most tortoises, Russians are long-lived. You aren’t committing to a few years like with a hamster or gerbil. These animals live for decades and you will need to be ready to provide care for them all that time. They are also known for digging, burrowing, and climbing, so you need to make sure their enclosure is safe for them to do these things.

Ball Python -

Don’t let the “python” scare you. These snakes may be constrictors, but that doesn’t mean they’re something to be afraid of. Many people get Ball pythons as their first snakes because they are really great starter animals. They don’t grow more than five feet long (usually), they are good with being handled, and when they are frightened they don’t lash out first thing. Fun fact: instead of lashing out and trying to bite when they are scared, these snakes tend to ball up to protect themselves and hide from whatever scared them - hence the name “ball” python.

Also Known As: Royal python

Lifespan: 30+ years

Size: 2-5 feet long; females will grow one to two feet longer than males as it is necessary for them to have size to accommodate large eggs when breeding

Dietary Needs: appropriately sized prey animals such as pinky, fuzzy, and adult mice, as well as small rats; these can be purchased frozen and kept to be thawed at feeding time

Environmental Needs: Humidity is very important for these snakes. They originally come from tropical areas in central and western Africa, and proper humidity not only keeps their respiratory systems working correctly, but assists them in shedding. You want to set them up in an enclosure that can retain humidity, but is not dripping wet all the time. It also needs to be 88-96 degrees under a basking light, and between 78-80 in the rest of the space. Like with all reptiles that digest over a matter of days and weeks, be sure that the temperature does not fall too low, as it will stall the digestion process and the food will rot in their stomach. Coconut and orchid bark as well as cypress mulch work well as substrates as they retain moisture. But don’t let them get soggy or they could mold. A young Ball python can be housed in a 20-gallon aquarium with a locking lid (they can be escape artists), but an adult should have at least a 40-gallon set up. These aren’t snakes known for excessive climbing, so width is more important than height. Be sure to include some rocks, logs, plants, or other items they can hide in as they wish.

Pros: Relatively shy, Ball pythons are usually very easy to handle and interact with. They may be bitey when they are babies, but normally grow out of that within the first year. They are very popular, so easy to find from breeders and reptile sellers. These days it is common to see them in many different colors and patterns.

Cons: Like the tortoises, these are long-lived animals, so you need to be ready to commit to them for not just years but decades. Ball pythons are commonly more picky eaters than other snakes, and may refuse already dead prey, mice in a color they aren’t used to, or rats if they’ve been eating mice and vice versa. There are dozens of color and pattern morphs available, but these can be much more expensive than the traditional kind. There are also some morphs that are known to have health issues, including neurological problems.

Rose-hair Tarantula -

Once upon a time this species of tarantula was live-caught in the wild and sold as pets. Nowadays they are mostly captive bred, but one thing remains the same - both wild caught and captive bred Rose-hairs tend to be super mellow and easy to keep. They can be one of the lazier spiders, sitting around all day waiting to see if food might wander by. And even if they haven’t been handled in awhile, most can be touched, picked up, and moved whenever needed without a problem. Fun fact: female tarantulas can impregnate themselves! They can retain breeding material after mating and impregnate themselves with it whenever they feel conditions are right for young. This can be done multiple times until the female tarantula molts.

Also Known As: Chilean rose tarantula, Chilean fire tarantula, Chilean red-haired tarantula, Grammastola rosea

Lifespan: 20+ years for females, 5+ years for males; in many tarantula species the females are much longer lived than the males

Size: 4.5”-5.5” leg span

Dietary Needs: live prey including crickets, roaches, super worms, and pinky mice (most people feed them insects and skip the rodents, as like all spiders, tarantulas have to start digesting their food in order to swallow it, and no one needs to see that happen to a live baby mouse)

Environmental Needs: Rose-hairs are terrestrial spiders, so floor space is more important than height (they need a tank about three times longer than their leg span). They like to burrow so a good substrate such as coco fiber, Reptisoil, or ZooMed Creature soil is best. You should also provide them with places to hide, so if they are startled they can disappear instead of sitting out in the open and stressing out. These spiders are nocturnal so will be most active at night. Glass or clear acrylic 5-10 gallon tanks with one opening that locks work really well. These kinds of enclosures retain humidity, which helps the spider molt. Be sure not to let the inside become dripping wet, though.Enclosures with screen tops are common, but you need to make sure there are no holes that your spider could slip out of. Rose-hairs do best at around 80 degrees, though a bit cooler or warmer is okay. If their enclosure is kept in a room that stays around this temperature, you don’t need to worry about heat sources for them.

Pros: Rose-hair tarantulas are a reasonable size, relatively low maintenance, and easy to handle if you don’t stress them out by picking them up too often. Their feeder bugs are readily available at pet stores, and the spiders themselves are commonly found anywhere that sells tarantulas. They are also very quiet, less messy than just about any other animal, and oftentimes long-lived.

Cons: Female Rose-hairs live a lot longer than males, and it can be difficult to tell what sex you have when you purchase one. Especially if it is a spiderling. These spiders have urticating hairs on their abdomen and use them as their first line of defense - which means if you upset them they may flick a cloud of itchy hair at you. This hair can get in your eyes or burrow into your skin and you’ll be feeling it for a while. Some people are highly sensitive to their hair even if they don’t flick it, and will need to keep allergy medicine on hand whenever they touch or pick up the spider. All tarantulas are venomous, with some being more dangerous to humans than others (though none has ever been known to kill a human being). If you are allergic, very old, very young, or highly sensitive, you could have a very serious reaction to a bite. And it will definitely hurt no matter who you are, because those fangs are not small. Most Rose-hairs will go through a series of postures before they ever get to biting you, which you should keep an eye out for. They may flick hair first, and if that doesn’t get you to leave, they may rear up the front part of their body. If they are still upset, then they may bite. Tarantulas are also surprisingly fragile. If dropped from more than a foot or two their abdomen could explode and kill the spider.

White’s Tree Frog -

There will always be an extra layer of difficulty in keeping amphibians. None of them are exactly ‘easy’, but the White’s Tree Frog gets relatively close. These critters are pretty mellow, can be handled if you take the time to get them used to you, and can survive just fine with minimal interference (once they are set up properly). They can also be a lot of fun to interact with. Some will croak back at you if you croak at them or play clips of White’s Tree frogs croaking. Fun fact: these frogs can be quite bold and social, and will climb up plants or trees to check out their keepers if they are standing by the enclosure.

Also Known As: Australian green tree frog, green tree frog, dumpy frog

Lifespan: 16-21 years

Size: 3”-4”

Dietary Needs: live prey, such as crickets, mealworms, moths, roaches, earthworms, and grasshoppers

Environmental Needs: It is very important that frogs remain moist at all times. If they dry out they could die. Their enclosure should be enclosed so that it can retain heat and humidity. As these are tree frogs, they should have a tall enclosure with plants, branches, logs, and other things they can climb on. Carpet works well as a substrate, or you can go with a natural environment and use soil (which you definitely need if you want to do a living terrarium-style enclosure). It is necessary for these frogs to have a water dish big enough for them to soak in. The water should always be treated before being added to the dish. Bottled water and dechlorinated water both work great. Never use tap water as the chlorine can be toxic, and stay away from distilled water as it lacks proper minerals. Keep in mind that frogs absorb the water through their skin, so don’t give them something that could be harmful. The temperature in the enclosure needs to be 80-86 degrees during the day, and 72-78 degrees during the night cycle.

Pros: These are some of the easiest frogs to keep in your home. Once they are set up properly and you have a routine for changing water and feeding, they basically take care of themselves. They are fun to look at - they’re known for funny expressions and silly postures - and setting up a natural habitat for them can be a rewarding hobby. Their feeder insects are readily available, and the frogs themselves are pretty easy to find for sale.

Cons: These are nocturnal animals, so if you want to see them in action you’ll need to set up a night LED lamp on them. They can live with other frogs, but you have to be very careful as they may fight or eat each other if they vary too much in size or temperament. Humidity is no joke with these critters, as drying out can literally kill them. And while they can be handled safely, they can also jump really well and may decide to escape after you pick them up.

Have questions, comments, concerns? Want to share your own tips on keeping these animals? We love a good discussion, so drop your thoughts in the comments!

The Top 5 Exotic Animals for Beginners