Why you shouldn't get into reptiles

[distaff]

I try to keep a focus that keeps things simple. No lizards that require UV, or 110F hotspots. Nothing that requires I raise superworms, crickets, roaches, or fruit flies. If I had started with a beardie, or something, than branching out into other lizards with similar food and care requirements would make more sense.

This is the same reason that I don't keep tropical fish that require heaters. If I ever do more than goldfish, it will likely be North American native fish - bluegills, shiners, and the smaller more passive sunfish. (This is assuming they can just get a purchased pellet - anything that needs brine shrimp, white worms, tubiflex, etc. will be off the list.) An Oscar is an impressive fish, I love how endearingly ugly they are, but I'm not heating a two hundred gallon tank!

Then, there are birds. An African Grey would probably be my dream bird. However, I don't need to own sensitive, high strung, HIGHLY intelligent animal that will almost certainly outlive me by decades...an animal that needs extensive out of cage time, but also chews walls and furniture. Two budgies are going to have to suffice as the parrot stand-in choice. Canaries are fun and easy, finches are fun and easy, pigeons are fun and easy. Would love a corvid, but again, they come with too many headaches. It can work if that is about the only pet one has, but I'm long past that.

Find a focus, and you can get away with larger numbers.