REPTILE LIGHTS

Now that you have finally decided to keep a pet you should try to keep it healthy and happy. The most important pre-requisites are a clean and hygienic terrarium, good healthy live food and proper lighting and heat.

The amount of light that your pet reptile may require depends on its habitat, i.e. the place to which it originally belongs. If it belongs to an area which has a subtropical climate then his basic requirement for sunlight is about10 hours in winter and 14 hours in summer. Adequate lighting increases the immunity of your pet. Initially people believed that reptiles only needed a proper supply of heat. But now, modern concepts have changed. Today pet lovers have realized that besides heat, light is equally important for the health of their pet reptiles. Every animal is happy in its own habitat. We should make efforts to provide natural conditions so that they do not miss it.

Reptiles produce vitamin D in the presence of light. This with the proper support of supplements of calcium helps them in building up their bones and nerve cells. Deficiency of calcium in reptiles can lead to osteoporosis, failure of nervous system and death. To prevent this they should be given adequate amount of light as they can convert and absorb vitamin D from the food they eat, only in the presence of UVB light or ultra violet light.

Any kind of incandescent light can be used for the day. Mind it, proper care should be taken that the nocturnal lights should be dim so that they do not disturb your reptiles while they are sleeping.

During the day any ordinary incandescent light can fulfill the need of white light and heat for your reptile. Some pet shops which sell expensive bulbs for your pets, ‘color correct’ them so that the reptile gets the feeling of being in its natural habitat.

These are simple incandescent lights with a partially blocked visible spectrum. These bulbs do not emit UVB. They might cost you a bit more than the than household lights. Ultra violet B and ultra violet A are the two lights, found in UVB/A producing fluorescents which are specially suited for the diurnal reptiles. Some lizards which are hyper active during daytime need UV lights. For reptiles kept in glass cases care should be taken that there is a proper UV light provided as it cannot penetrate glass window panes.

Proper heat and light is required to be maintained in the terrarium where the reptiles kept so that your pets live in a healthy atmosphere. This keeps them healthy and blesses them with a long life.