My little brother got a bearded dragon at age 10. One day he runs to my mom saying he lost Shrimpie (he named him Shrimp) and can't find him. When my brother turned around, my mom found Shrimp, he was on my brother's back. Just hanging out there lol. Just a funny little story.

We found a Beardy in the wilds of Florida when I was 13, abandoned by an owner most likely, and took him in. Absolutely the sweetest baby.. calm, easy to handle, loved to just be on you and watch the tv. Bit me only once trying to get a carrot slice off my finger- let go before he even hurt me. Idk who left the little guy out there, but they abandoned an absolute sweetheart.

leopard geckos are also great beginner lizards! my dad bought me one for my tenth birthday because my mom wouldn’t let me get a mammal haha & i had her over 21 years! so gentle & sweet, cheap to feed, interactive while also being ok alone & minimal upkeep! i was even homeless in my early twenties & i took her everywhere, when i had enough money i’d get a motel room & put her in an empty dresser drawer & hunt crickets for her! love/loved her so much ❤️❤️ rip ferocio

You set that gecko down on the paper and I instantly fell in love. Not a single thought behind those eyes, bless him. Tell him I love him please. 💕

i wanna stress that gargs and cresties are my go to recommendation for first timers but there are quite a few alternatives, including leopard geckos, that i love a ton. I've kept beardies and they make amazing pets, they can just be a lot to handle when properly cared for. gah bless and happy poopin'

GARGOYLE!!! They make me **so** happy! 😁 A gargoyle is what I have planned to get when the time is right. 🥰

Gargoyle gecko, crested geckos, or leopard geckos are great beginner species. In my experience, crested geckos are a lot more jumpy, but they are so fun.

I had a bearded dragon as a pet until it awakened its inner spider-man and just started chilling in the ceiling

I agree as a kid I got a beardie and my parents were always annoyed at how much space it would take and the need to take me to the pet store to get crickets and meal worms constantly. A crested gecko would've been so much more simple and easy.

My dad had a female iguana when I was little, and she had a bad habit of laying unfertilized eggs all over her enclosure then going on an Easter egg hunt and eating them.

I will always lean towards beardies personally cause that’s the only lizard I’ve had cuddle with me before 😂 I love a good scaly pupper

Had a blue tongue skink, he was a sweethearth and so easy to handle he lived for 26 year had him since I was born. Very calm most of the time

Also to anyone getting a beardie (or any lizard) from a petshop, do NOT take their advice for care. It's 99% wrong and you'll make them sick. Take the time to research their care, find support sites and just... pet shop owners are not very well informed to the right care of 'izzards.

Speaking from experience it’s also not an Iguana lol. I can’t believe my parents let their 10 year old try to keep an iguana in Michigan. RIP Spike I’m sorry you didn’t have a very comfortable life :(

My first and only lizard was a Beardie named Lizzie. I miss that old girl… didn’t take the best care of her, but I was young and hadn’t done my research, so now I’m taking better care of my two chinchillas, even made sure to think about it for a while and do plenty of research.

I got my first pet reptile about 2 months ago, it was a gargoyle gecko and I love them. So cool looking and don't seem to mind handling

I completely agree with this! Crested geckos and gargoyle geckos are the best beginner reptile. I think they are way easier than leopard geckos because leopard geckos need live feeder insects, heat, more space, more humidity, and they tend to be picky eaters. Whereas crested geckos usually do well in the average household temperature, they eat a dried nectar you just mix with water. And they don’t need as much space.

I got a beardie as my first lizard and yeah, its super annoying. Not the requirements or anything, but the way he looks at me like I owe him rent for living in my own room

I know beardies aren’t the easiest of pets but my heart was set for a long time. My beardie is my best friend and I love her.

i completely agree. I work at a petstore, and i love being able to introduce new people into reptiles using New Caledonian geckos. it sparks their interest and reptiles, and if it’s not for them, then they don’t have something huge and hard to take care of.

Like created I always recommend crested geckos as first reptiles

Leopard geckos are pretty good lizards as a first pet! Pretty cheap to maintain and their great to get the feel for the hobby

Not my family having a bearded dragon as a beginner pet lizard😭😭

My first lizard I got was a bearded dragon I named sol and he’s the sweetest thing ever and it’s quite easy to take care of him

Gargs are awesome, and can regrow a tail unlike Cresties. I have an enclosure that's begging for a Garg lol. I also recommend Leopard Gecko's or African Fat Tails if you are a little more experienced and don't mind insectivores (Dubia roaches are easiest to keep alive for food lol)

Blue tongue skinks gotta my number one pick for best beginner pet reptiles hands down

Chinese water dragon takes a lot to care for them but it’s so worth it because they are the most friendliest, kindest, chillest lizards you can get. The only reason they nip at your finger is because they think it’s a pinky.

My first pet lizard experience was a 5 ft green iguana. Space is definitely the hardest part about keeping them. I take care of beardies now too. Beardies are easier to keep but you need to not listen to petco/pet smart for advice on keeping them because they will give you a ton of bad information. Also they keep their beardies in terrible conditions.

Bearded dragons actually are good first pets if you do your research and buy the proper setup, the only issue is that it's difficult to get small quantities of greens that won't go bad before they can eat them. My grocery store only sells huge ass bundles of collards so I have to find different ways to preserve it for as long as possible. Otherwise they're extremely rewarding little babies

My body is a machine that turns ice cream into diarrhea.

Leopard geckos are the best beginners I’d say. They’re much calmer

Leapord geckos are super chill. They never run and you can pet em like cats

In my personal opinion leopard geckos are easier to take care of then the New Caledonia geckos because they are less flighty and you don’t have to worry about humidity but yes the New Caledonia geckos make great beginner pets

When I was 12 I did 7 months worth of straight saving and research to get my first reptile, whom I still have today, shes the sweetest bearded dragon that I've never had any issues with and shes truly a gift from God 💕

Gargoyle and crested geckos are so adorable

THANK YOU! My first reptile was a bearded dragon and as an 11 year old I was not prepared for the amount of cage cleaning and taking care of crickets that came with having a bearded dragon.

Leopard geckos are great too, they really just eat meal warms and you can feed then other stuff too, and if your cleaning out their tank and your cat jumps in they can hiss

I've had two beardies pass away from improper care from when they were little and rescued them a bit too late. I did the best I could but it was also my first time and there's so much wild misinformation... Thankfully my third beardie I got from a breeder and I know a lot more now. Aside from being a picky little booger that refuses vegetables (but will eat anything that's remotely shiny...) they're growing up strong!

I had a couple of leopard geckos when I was a kid, but the constant upkeep of crickets made it so that once the geckos passed we didn't replace them. They were a lot of fun, tho

My parents used to own an iguana before I was born! He had a whole bedroom and acted like the king of the castle.

It seems like a bearded dragon would be much easier to find, though. I’ve never heard of the gecko type you mentioned

i’ve had a bearded dragon years like 6 years, i got him when i was 10. he makes a great pet.

For me, one of the easiest lizards to take care of was a Savannah Monitor. They aren't picky, have iron stomachs and for the most part, very docile. Mine was Bubba, he was about 6-7 when I had to give him to my friend when I moved out of state. Had him a few months after he hatched. When he was young, it was just a diet of insects. Grasshoppers, crickets, roaches, etc. Then when he got bigger, it was usually pinky mice(then full grown mice) and scraps of meat I had leftover while cooking. After the first 2 years, I just let him out in my backyard. He made his home in a den in my garden and was smart enough to not go to the bathroom on the patio and only went in the grass, even though I never potty trained him. He was so sweet and gentle, even with the next door neighbor's 6y/o and all of my friends, even him growing to +6ft long. Under my friend's care, he lived to be 11 years old. Definitely recommend Savs for all reptile enthusiasts. I don't recommend Nile Monitors tho. Those fuckers are mean lol.

The easiest for me personally are leopard geckos because they don’t have such a strict humidity requirement and can go longer between feedings being desert animals. They tend to get obese easily tho and can have shedding issues so you’d have to examine them every now and then but I do that with any pet. Never had luck with cresties unfortunately :( it is really nice that the crestie food is pre-mixed though with the vitamin dosings and all that afaik.

their diet isn't annoying at all its just salad and bugs 😂

I’ve got a crestie as my first reptile. So easy to care for and while he wasn’t handleable at first, he has chilled out a lot in recent months and doesn’t mind being held. Love that little guy, he’s so stupid

You're right about the beardies. I love mine to death, but I am so glad he's over a year old now and not eating nearly as many bugs. If I ever got another one I'd get an adult instead of a baby.

I have 3 cresties! They are awesome! I'd love to gargs in the future! I'd also love i keep eurydactylodes! New caladonian geckos are amazing!

Blue tongue skinks are also really good if you want something bigger

I used to have some green anoles (one at a time), when I was a kid in the '60s and '70s. They are pretty mellow and friendly.

You can litter box train an iguana fairly easily, I figured out how to do it when I was 12. My iguana had free run of my bedroom once she consistently pooped in the box. Saved a lot of money and space on not having to buy a huge cage. I think she missed having a cage though. She constantly climbed into my birds cage to sleep (no, she never showed any interest in eating the bird)... I miss that weirdo.

Yeah bearded dragons are only for level 50 pros so any thing else wold be a good weapo-I mean starter lizard

I got my first lizard! A leopard gecko I named Bumblebee. He's just a baby, but already he's getting used to me and ate a cricket from my fingers just yesterday! He's so sweet, I love him dearly.

My first reptile was a fancy leopard gecko, which I got when I was around 10-11 years old. He’s still with me today and lives a happy life with me and my roommate :)

My first lizard ever was a bearded dragon. I got him when I was eight and I still have him. He’s awesome.

i have had a northern blue tongue skink for 4-5 months now and "she" is the chillest thing alive! lol

leopard gecko is the best starter lizard! easy to care for, loving, easy for pet sitters to handle. and the little attack tail wiggle

my first lizard was a bearded dragon and honestly he’s pretty good!! i’ve had him for about a year now since april 17 2023 and he’s been a happy boy! i got his cage and all the stuff including him for free from my friend because she couldn’t take care of him due to extracurriculars but now he’s happy with me and i love him❤️his name is craig

That's the very first lizard I got! I got two, very red gargoyles, with tank, both lights, and a tank FULL of stuff (a nice ZooMed with the flip front doors) for only $50 (they were surrenders, I don't know why). Still have them to this day! The most beautiful creatures I've ever seen.

I had a crested gecko for about 13 years. He was absolutely the most mellow man in existence and could be fed with crickets and crested gecko food powder stuff. Just don’t forget to keep an eye out for calcium deficiencies and dust the crickets with a supplement occasionally. Most intensive thing is watering them 3-5 times a day but can be automatically drip. 10/10 would recommend. Rest easy speedy

I feel like owning a bearded dragon preps you for bigger reptiles. Yea the daily tasks can be tedious, but it’s well worth it in the end

My crestie is my first lizard and I love him dearly, they're easy to care for for the most part especially in a bioactive tank. Their tanks are also tall rather than longer, so they're more space efficient. I love my baby

Leopard geckos are also decent beginners... I just got mine and besides not eating yet (I've only had her a day) she is generally low maintenance and I've been obsessed with making sure she isn't overwhelmed or stressed and making sure if she is ready to eat or not

The way the crusted geckos standed i cant XD

Man I already have Iguanas and Teijú's on my backyard.

Trade off is that bearded dragons are much more intelligent and rewarding to own as pets. Geckos are more wild and struggle to behave in a tame manner. You can train beardies to come to you and hang out.

I grew up with a Leopard Gecko. I love those little guys

Thank you on the bearded dragon! I knew a terrible pet owner who got them for her kids that were too young for them and when they got old enough lost interest. It was a bad time all around.

Chahouas are the coolest New Caledonia geckos in my experience. I just love how the blend in against wood and they are very easy to keep.

I one hundred percent agree, my first lizard was a bearded dragon named Darwin and he was so expensive for just a kid to handle as well as the diet being too much, now I'm older and have a very pretty dragon named queso and I'm finally able to give one the treatment they deserve

What I think about geckos is that you have to be nice and clam with them because they're fragile

Can confirm. Roommate has a beardie We don’t have a living room, it’s the dragon’s bedroom lol

Leopard geckos are my favorite, they don’t need humidity, don’t need a screened-in enclosure because they can’t stick to glass, don’t need fancy lighting, just a under tank heat mat or ceramic heater, some places to hide, and a place to get water. They eat mealworms, crickets, roaches, basically any bug that they can fit in their mouth. They don’t mind being handled, are very quiet, and don’t smell.

My first pet lizard was a bearded dragon and I dont have any trouble with lighting, sizing or food. Had him for 4 years now and he's happy and healthy in 16 now for reference.

I had a common green anole lizard for a couple years and while handling them my mom started talking at me for a solid twenty minutes and my lil noley decided to hide in my hair. It took a while for me to remember that noley wasn't in his terrarium. My sister helped me find him by hysterically laughing at me and picking him up off the top of my head where be was acting like remy.

My leopard gecko, Irving, is very social/likes to be handled. He will hang off the door when he wants to play and will always come out to greet ppl when we have guests. He's more social than our cats

Leopard Geckos are pretty fun too.

I'd pick something that lives somewhere colder than a tropical island for a beginner. These colorful and interesting reptiles are always harder to care for

"Diet is super annoying..." YES 😂😂😂😂

My first reptile was a beardie. 8 years later we're still going strong! But he is very very expensive!

I find that my Uromastyx has been an amazing pet. Not a species I heard is the most handleable, but they can still interact with you. They don't need much in terms of space requirements, they're relatively small and easy to care for as well. I put mine on calcium sand because he likes to dig and he's unlikely to suffer from impaction. They do like it pretty warm so he's got a basking spot that's hot to the touch that he loves to chill on. His diet is primarily just leafy greens that I already buy: he pretty much will only eat lettuce but has eaten mustard and collard greens in the past. He's also fairly active and fun to watch, he'll stand around staring at me, follow my fingers, run across his tank, chill on his basking spot, dig around, and shadowbox his demons. I also hand feed him his first leaf every day. His cleanup is easy since they make relatively large pellets and being on sand makes it incredibly easy to remove. He was far from cheap and I definitely wouldn't try to make him hand tame. But he's fun to look at and easy to care for and has become my favorite pet that isn't a dog.

So cute!! Sadly we can’t get them or most reptiles in Australia but I love to see all different kinds of cool and interesting gecko species that you can get around the world!😊 thanks!😊

My first lizard was a wild texas spiny lizard that I originally was just rehabilitating after one of the neighborhood cats bit through its leg but she ended up not wanting to leave the cage when I went to release her even left the cage outside in the shade for an hour with the lid off and when I came back she was still chillin in her cork hide.. super easy lizard to take care of fed her dubias, hornworms, meal worms, crickets and very rarely she would eat greens but it wasn't a recommended part of her diet considering she was a species of lizard specialized to live in the desert. The only main requirement I had to go out of my way for regularly was her ultraviolet lamp bulbs but she was worth every penny I ever spent on her. Miss that lizard like there's no tomorrow, got her so used to me in the few years i had her she would eat from my hand 😢❤

I jumped right in with a beardie and I had to learn by trial and error thankfully my boy never had any problems and now I have 2 of them both well fed and cared for with proper heating

my first lizard was bluetongue lizard. I think they are good beginner pets as well. they are quite slow so you don't need to worry about them running away. they will hide under anything in their enclosure, which always gives me a fright when i cant find him.

I agree that New Caledonian geckos are great pet reptiles, but like people in Australia its illegal to own them and one of our best alternatives are beardies

My very first 🦎 pet was a beardy, and I took care of her very easy full time job school kids. I don't think her ever turned black. She was a happy girl. Just died a few years back from old age. But there's nothing hard about dragens they can get tail infections and eat pebbles and silly shxt like that. Just use ur head and ul be fine.

I have two leopard geckos and they've been absolutely a joy to have, i love my lil geccs 🥰

I see a lot of love online for Cuban false chameleons! I’ve heard they can be very sociable and interesting to watch.

Cresties are super easy to take care of. I've got one that's a crackhead that won't let anyone touch him and my other is a super chill dude that will just vibe with you

I got my first reptile was when I was about to turn 14, it was a baby bearded dragon! I'm 25 now, turning 26 in a few months, and my best girl is still going strong! I personally don't find their diet to be difficult, I just pick two types of greens per week and veggies/fruits to supplement, and then some bee pollen. Lately I've been adding some baby food in the mix for my oldest since she has become so picky, but the other two girls I have (9 and 1 1/2) also love it so they get to enjoy some too. I agree with the geckos being great beginner pets also though!! Definitely smaller space requirements which is a big issue with a lot of apartments or rooms. They're so soft and squishy too, love the little buggers. I just don't find geckos to be as safe to cuddle or bring out places, which is a personal draw for me, 2 of my 3 love going outside on their harnesses to run around and explore, and I take them on nature trails with my best friend. I like to say beardies are my heart animal, I'd love to someday own a couple different kinds but I'll always have a beardie or three!

SO happy you mentioned these geckos.. I am consindering my first lizard and doing my research led me to gargoyle geckos :D glad that someone reccomend them too

This gecko is beautiful

My family had a beardie a long time ago. We got from a friend because they moved and orchie was the chillest she would follow us outside kinda like a dog lol

my brother didn't have a lizard, but the Tiger Salamander is a good starting pet. it's a burrower and it eats half a worm per two days. But it has to have clean water everyday, not just to drink, but to keep moisture. Tora, was a good pet and friend before he passed away. He lived a good life in his 10 gallon terrium.

My first was a Leopard gecko named Spike, named after the Gremlin. Had him for 12 years, loved him everyday.

As a former corporate pet store animal care manager who owns a Leachie, I 1000% agree. Beardies are always front and center in the reptile habs, and they are almost always on sale. So much of the nice reptile imagery that adorns the reptile department depicts beardies and their habitats, and it's for good reason. You sell more sh!t with them for an initial setup and in the future than with a crestie, that sh!t costs more, and you sell so, so much more food and consumables over the lifetime of the lizard. Beardies need: light/heat/UV bulbs and fixtures, which are all disposable and are recurring costs, calcium supps and a shatload of veggies and bugs all the time, even stuff to breed and house those bugs because they'll need so many. 75 gallon tank at adulthood and everything that goes with that setup, which gets really expensive really fast, so people will almost always start with a 20 gallon and have to upgrade in the future (bingo, more supplies sales). They suck at shedding, so you'd better get some shed-ease. Rocks and basking spots, hides, sand, dishes, heat mats, extra care to prevent MBD especially at the hatchling stage they come to the store in, and so much more that I'm sure I've forgotten. Also, The smell. You can smell if someone has a beardie in their house or apartment as soon as you walk in. It's unmistakable. New Caledonian geckos need: tank, dirt, deco for cover, food powder, food and water dishes, and occasional misting. Maybe UVB? But it's still up for debate whether or not it's necessary. Maybe bugs to supplement or as a treat? But many just won't eat them, and if they do it may not be year-round. My Leachie loves frozen thawed pinkies, but that's just once every few weeks. She goes apesh't for superworms and has loved every flavor of Pangea that I've given her, but I understand she's an exception. Beardies are wonderful and I love them to death. Eternally chill, although exceptions do exist. They're very charming and intelligent reptiles, have tons of personality, and can be a very rewarding pet to keep for many years, but boy are they a lot more work than most new pet owners realize. Pet stores will always sell them because of their ability to generate return business, one 15-year-long commitment at a time. Respectfully, I'll stick with New Caledonians. My Leachie is just a squeaky trashbag with eyeballs. She's astonishingly stupid, but she's easy. Much like the 15 tarantulas I also keep.

My first lizard was a brown anole I wound up with because he hitched a ride in a shipment of plants my hardware store got from Florida. He was great, and I miss him so much. We now have a fire skink and a veiled chameleon.

Me in Australia knowing I’m able to keep chameleon geckos (which are also from New Caledonia) but unaware if I’m able to keep this beauty:

My buddy had some crested geckos for a couple years, they died last year but only because he left them with his sister and she didnt mist the cage, they ate once a week and where extremely low maintenance apart from the mist 3 times a day, which he did it around a school schedule. Definitely would reccomend as a first lizard 👍👍👍 Edit: they would also love bieng handled, everytime i came round his i got to see the gecks, he also had bunnies that he had to take care of at the same time so that shows how manageable they are, think of them like sentient plants that also need food once a week!