Welcome to Pet Viewpoint

Comment/Question?

Please contact me.

Copywriter Tricia Perry

Contact

If you have not subscribed —

Get Pet Viewpoint content delivered directly to your inbox weekly so you do not miss out on great recommended USA-made pet products and services and good researched articles on pet care for your pet birds, cats, dogs, and aquarium critters. You will find how to’s, lessons on pets, training tips, fun stories, and more.

DON’T MISS OUT!

Free Subscribe —

Type your Email>>>

********************

Easy Pets

This post is following up my post “Easy Care Pets” which is about the care of a small 5-gallon aquarium and Dwarf African Frogs. There are quite a few more ‘easy pets’ to keep you company if you do not have a lot of time or energy to expend on a pet. And since June is National Aquarium Month, I am concentrating on pets fitting into that arena.

Betta Fish

For a small aquarium, Betta fish are very gorgeously colored and formed creatures but they are definitely solitary beings. I tried to pair one with a small frog and had to get my frog bud a log to hide under. He ended up butting heads literally with my beautiful Betta. He survived for four fun years but it proved to be the end for my sweet and jealous Betta.

Betta Care

Bettas do need water conditioning and changing as well as Dwarf African frogs do and any freshwater fish. But other than washing every thing in very hot water and possibly lemon juice before inserting it in their water to keep the nasty critters at bay, a heater and filter, they really just need some betta food, a silk or real plant to lay on, and some of your attention. Although a fun floating log, a cave, or maybe some bling tiered rocks to swim into or through or lay on and investigate would be great to give them something to enjoy.

Note: Catappa leaves or Indian Almond leaves help to keep the nasty critters from invading the water and are good hiding spots for your swimmer pets.

Check out my post: Freshwater Aquarium Summer Care.

Other Fresh Water Fish

Guppies, gold fish, tetras, gouramis, swordtails..the list goes on for so many colorful and fun swimming friends to choose for your aquarium. Just be sure to check on their aquarium needs with your local fish experts or API.com for great information. Or maybe a saltwater tank would be more to your liking. Check out the difference as well as the care needed. Add some fun elements to your fish tank. Then enjoy your new swimmer best buds.

Snails

I have had the pleasure of just two Nerite snails. My first named Dale, kept my tank scrupulously clean and lived a good long time for a snail..at least 3 years. My present guy, or girl?, is named Tigger and he/she is going on four years with a normal life expectancy of only one year! This fella has had several Dwarf African Frogs living with him. At present all my frog buddies have passed on and Tigger is still going strong.

Snail Care

He does need a piece of a bird calcium bar for his shell placed at the bottom of the tank. And I do give him a mini algae wafer once daily, sometimes every other day, and a dried algie treat when I change his water. It is in a suction holder on a tank wall and he loves ripping it off. And, yes, snails do need a heater for their water up to 80 degrees and a filter for water movement.

I haven’t brought in any additional snails because my friend who had more than one told me how fast and furious they tend to multiply. Yikes!

TerrAquariums

Hermann’s Tortoise

I just recently learned about Hermann’s Tortoise in writing about World Turtle Day just past on May 23rd. Hermann’s is said to be the most popular turtle as a pet in the USA. As an adult he is just 6 to 8 inches. His life expectancy is 75 years so maybe get one when you are young or bequeath your turtle friend to a good replacement pet parent.

You will need to find a breeder for your Hermann’s Tortoise. They run approximaely $150 to $500. They live on land mostly but also swim in the water.

Tortoise Care

A great spot for a terrarium and needed products and care tips is Zoo Med Labs.com. This creature needs a basking light or heat lamp and a basking spot, ie, a row of low flat rocks, with an ambient temperature of 95F and a 10 percent florescrent UVB tube light with a reflector so your turtle can absorb calcium from the light source for his shell. You will also need a substrate for digging of up to 2 inches of a combination, say, of sand, soil, and composted bark. They like to burrow to cool themselves and for exercise and activity.

This tortoise needs to be fed once a day and at the same time every day. Normally they like to eat from serveral food trays in their terrarium, eating leafy greens and grasses plus small bits of broccoli, cabbage, cucumber, carrot, apricot, grapes, melons, peaches, and strawberries. So a large variety to choose from for these critters. And you need to give them about 30 minutes to eat as much as they will. That is normally about as much food as the size of their shell, it is said.

Geckos

The common house Gecko has a life span of 5 years and is found on every continent except Antartica. They live in warm climates and are nocturnal. Not a good idea to handle them as it can cause them to lose their tails. As an adult they are normally just 3 to 5 inches in length.

Gecko Care

They do need a tall 10 to 20 gallon terrarium with branches to climb and caves to hide in and this would accommodate just 2 geckos. Feeding for juveniles is once daily and for adults every other day, They eat live crickets and as a treat, meal worms. You would need to change their water daily and pick up their droppings. Cleaning would need to be done weekly for their entire terrarium. A list needed for their habitat is as follows:

10-20 gallon aquarium or vertical terrarium
_____substrate
_____shallow water bowl
_____humidity gauge
_____thermometer
_____plants and branches
_____misting bottle
_____heat source
_____vitamin / mineral / calcium supplement.

Daily temperature should be at 75 to 95 degrees and nighttime a bit lower at 65 to 75 degrees.

A leopard Gecko has a longer life span of up to 15 years and is usually 5 to 10 inches long as an adult.

Bearded Dragon

The bearded Dragon has become quite popular as a pet since they can definitely be handled by their pet parent. I have seen these critters hanging from teen boys t-shirts. And I worked with a fellow who had one of these lizards and he brought it to work quite regularly in his truck.

Bearded Dragon Care

Life span for this guy is 10 to 15 years. They grow 16 to 20 inches in length as an adult. Young juveniles need a 20 gallon terrarium with daytime heat of 83 to 88 degrees and basking spots of 95 to 105 degrees. Nightime temperature can drop to 70 to 80 degrees. An adult requires a 40 gallon or larger terrarium. You will need a sandy substrate with several basking spots, and thick branches and good rocks to climb on and/or bask on. This creature also needs a UVB light for 10 to 12 hours daily.

See care information and products for bearded dragons at Zoo Med.com.

The bearded Dragon eats live crickets and once or twice a week good leafy greens and veggies with clean water daily.

The above are a few explained fairly easy pets to enjoy. There, of course, are quite a number more furry guys and girls too, like our guinea pigs. Do a Google search in the area near you to see what fits best with your lifestyle.

Funny Animal Videos

From Big Geek Daddy – some best pets – https://biggeekdad.com/2021/11/best-pets-of-the-month-17/.

Next is a variety – https://biggeekdad.com/2022/01/this-is-your-internet-331/.

And last deception in the rain forest – https://biggeekdad.com/2021/03/deception-in-the-rainforest.

Thanks

So very happy to have you stop at Pet Viewpoint. Do come back next week and remember to let your pet-loving friends and family know about Copywriter Tricia Perry’s pet blog site too.

And, remember to Subscribe!

Sharing is caring!