texas horned lizard (horny toad:snort:)

meesha · #1 (**permalink**) 05-28-2005, 11:48 PM

i cant seem to find a good care sheet for these guys.
i get one that says he's not hard to care for, then the next one says they're very hard to take care of.
it says he's agressive, then one that says that kids in texas catch them all the time and they're totally fine.

i've always thought they were "super duper neat", and when i was young i always loved watching those super slow mo' shots of these guy's squirting the blood out of their eyes as a defense (u know they always do that poo on the learning channels and discovery), and the pet store i regularly annoy just picked one up. i <3 him.

this is where i beg for help.

LdyDrgn · #2 (**permalink**) 05-29-2005, 12:00 AM

They are hard to care for because they have a very specific diet. Do you have the ability to get the certain type of ant it will need to eat? Feeding it crickets, meal worms or other proteins will only kill it.... I can't even remember what ant it is they eat.

meesha · #3 (**permalink**) 05-29-2005, 12:54 AM

i believe it's harvester ants that they eat for their formic acid, and i found a place that i can get those, im more worried about husbandry, i can only imagine that the set up is much like the bearded dragon being a desert lizard.

haroldo359 · #4 (**permalink**) 05-29-2005, 03:47 AM

they are difficult to keep from everything i hear.

here is an informative thread from another site...

http://herpkingdom.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1343

ST'77 · #5 (**permalink**) 05-29-2005, 03:19 PM

Its only the diet that makes it hard to keep them, oh and you have to keep them on a loose subtrate so they can burrow as they please. I keep a pair of them and theyare doing awsome for the past year I have had them. They will also eat small crickets. Oh and the only Horned toads you will find in the pet trade are out of Nevada. they are protected in all other states.

meesha · #6 (**permalink**) 06-11-2005, 11:09 PM

thanks,i decided to buy him, and have had him for about 2 weeks??i believe.he seems to be doing fine with the ants and small amounts of crickets. For some reason he's not bothered by me, but hisses and jumps at my boyfriend.haha, its extremely cute.lol.

ST'77 · #7 (**permalink**) 06-12-2005, 01:24 AM

Congrats, they are a enjoyable lizard to watch. How big is he ? adult size yet ? if so if you have a digi cam take a pic of his underside close up and I can sex it for you.

Livia · #8 (**permalink**) 06-12-2005, 10:11 PM

They are poorly protected in other states, thats the problem. Texas doesn't protect one of their three species. California only protects one of its three species. New Mexico, Arizona,and Nevada don't protect them... its been a point of frustration for the Horned Lizard Conservation Society for years, because these animals are disappearing at an incredibly fast rate as their habitat becomes suburbia. All states require collection permits to keep and sell them, but anyone with the inclination can get that.

For setup, a deep loose sand and packed sand mixture, to give them some texture. Various rocks, a basking area that gets pretty warm (90s) but the rest of the cage should be left to get to room temperature so they can thermoregulate as necessary. A strong UV light. Provide a shallow dish of water, and when feeding, make sure you don't put too many in at once. They have a built in instinct to freak out and try to get away if they start to get swarmed by ants, so if they feel overwhelmed they won't eat, they'll just panic instead. They are basically 'grazers' so feeding them small amounts over the course of the day is probably better than tossing in a bunch at once anyway. Diet varies by species, some do ok with crickets, others want only ants.

Even the experts have a hard time keeping them alive in captivity. Some do well, some don't. Its very hit or miss, and no one is really sure why.

Livia

meesha · #9 (**permalink**) 06-12-2005, 11:50 PM

thanks, i took a pic but for some reason it came out small, see if you can tell.
<img src="http://redtailboa.net/pp/data/3993/123362.jpg">
and if there's no image linking from my gallery, its here
http://redtailboa.net/pp/data/3993/123362.jpg

meesha · #10 (**permalink**) 06-12-2005, 11:53 PM

or maybe this will work?

----

i guess i cant link at all.

Livia · #11 (**permalink**) 06-13-2005, 06:09 AM

Looks more like a Desert Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma platyrhinos) to me, not a Texas Horned.

Livia

ST'77 · #12 (**permalink**) 06-13-2005, 06:51 PM

Looks to be a male desert Horned, larger fem's and looks like a pair of bulges .

brownsfan222 · #13 (**permalink**) 06-13-2005, 11:21 PM

i know someone who owned a texas horned that looked different, oh well i dont keep desert lizards for some reason i dont like them

meesha · #14 (**permalink**) 06-23-2005, 11:14 PM

thanks

lolitaz · #15 (**permalink**) 09-24-2006, 04:10 AM

Well good luck at searching...

Anyway join our liks at the free time?

xxxhotbi · #16 (**permalink**) 09-27-2006, 11:44 AM

Gratz you with this kewl web site.

Spider Tyrant · #17 (**permalink**) 10-29-2006, 08:00 PM

The biggest problem is that many of them die in captivity for no apparent reason. The rescue/zoo I work with brought in two of them, one of them slowly starved while the other one thrived. They were both from the same location, and they were the same species.

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