Easy Pets: How Low (Maintenance) Can You Go?Note: For more information and special deals related to the topics on this page, place your cursor over the double-underlined links. All information supplied by Kontera.com. 
These animals don’t require a lot of special care. No grooming, walking or even petting. Just the basics: food, water and shelter. These are good starter animals. Downside: They offer the least payback in terms of returning love and affection. Predictably, younger children are usually better suited for lower maintenance animals. (Older teens can likely care for and better appreciate the high-maintenance variety.) Here are the three best-bets when it comes to low-maintenance pets: 1 Fish Little boys love lizards and snakes. Most moms don’t. If your son or daughter is begging for a lizard or snake, be sure there’s an adult in the house who’s willing to handle it. You’ve got to have that backup person with pets. 
Some reptiles (like iguanas) grow up to five feet long - making them a possible hazard to other pets. Others, (such as pythons) can grow to 13 feet long and be hazardous to the owner. Nuff said. Don’t forget to ask how large the reptile will be at adulthood. Even though reptiles are relatively sturdy, they are still living creatures. Never let young children handle them unsupervised. Make sure you choose a reptile that is tame and does not try to bite. Good lizard choices are a bearded dragon or a gecko. Good snake choices are a corn snake, rat snake or a king snake. The needs of reptiles and snakes are simple: a tank, a light, water and food. Additionally, lizards need places to hide and objects to perch on. Tropical or desert reptiles will also need a heat source. Some even need special thermometers and full-spectrum lighting. These do not come cheap. The bearded dragon, for example, requires a 10-gallon terrarium with a screen top the first year; and a 40 gallon terrarium as he grows (very, very fast) up to 18 inches. Many reptiles are omnivores, which means they not only eat fruit and vegetables but steak and mice as well. This is not a simple matter of dropping in some pellets each day. Reptiles don’t need a lot of exercise (though if you released one near me, I would get a lot of exercise) or a lot of attention. Figure on about 15- to 30 minutes daily (the time it takes to feed them) and about an hour a week to clean the tank. 3 Tortoises and turtles These are good reptile choices, too. Turtles are amphibians; tortoises are land creatures. Make sure you provide the right environment for your species. Turtles can be quite affectionate and can live for decades (30 to 40 years for the box turtle). Even though they look sturdy, however, take care not to drop them because that could injure their shells or internal organs. Tortoises in particular should not be handled often. For more information on safety and animal handling, read Preventing Zoonotic Diseases. Got fleas? I recently used Frontline to rid our new kitten of a serious flea infestation at the animal rescue league. Best news? It worked - and it worked before little Ted gave it to our resident feline, Chloe. Get it here: Frontline Plus Flea & Tick for Cats, All Weights, 6 Month Of course, it's also available for dogs: Frontline Plus Flea & Tick for Dogs, 0-22 lbs, 3 Month Visit the Pet Shop!
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