As household pets, reptiles typically require essential equipment and specialised care, including food, water, housing, and temperature control. To legally care for a scaly friend, you must also first get a licence from the Office of Environment and Heritage within the National Parks and Wildlife Service.
If you’ve acquired a licence and feel like you’re ready to adopt a reptile of your own, consider adopting a scaly friend from RSPCA NSW.
Even captive-bred reptiles are still essentially wild animals, which means it can be difficult to maintain their physical and mental wellbeing in your home. It is important to carefully consider whether you can provide them with the specialised husbandry and housing needed to mimic a reptile’s natural habitat, meet their ecological requirements, and keep them healthy by providing opportunities for positive mental experiences.
Reptiles need specialised treatment and care from a veterinarian experienced with reptiles, which may not be widely available. It’s a good idea to research how far away your nearest specialist is and find out their fees for routine or emergency consultations.
So, you’ve decided that a reptile is the right animal for you. But what kind of reptile would fit into your home? There are some species that are not suitable as pets, especially for anyone new to keeping a reptile in their home. Does the species’ inherent characteristics fit in with your lifestyle, personality, and home? The key to knowing the answer is research.
If you require additional information on providing a scaly friend with care, explore the RSPCA Knowledgebase to find out if we can help. For a comprehensive list on the species of reptile you’re allowed to keep as pets in NSW, consult the NSW Native Animal Keepers’ Species List.
The reptiles that people usually start with as companion animals are pythons, dragons, skinks, and turtles. Other reptiles such as geckos, legless lizards, monitors, crocodiles, and venomous snakes require more knowledge and experience.
In NSW, you can keep some native dragons, geckos, lizards, snakes, and turtles as pets. However, under current laws, you may only care for native reptiles that have been bred in captivity and purchased from a licenced breeder or dealer. This helps protect Australia’s reptile species and their ecosystems, as well as keeping you, your pets, and household safe. You can find the full range of native reptiles you are allowed to keep as pets on the NSW Native Animal Keepers’ Species List.
No. Due to the risk of local extinctions, it is illegal to take a reptile from the wild. It is also illegal to release a reptile into the wild, as they may starve or upset the local ecosystem.
RSPCA NSW rehomes a range of adorable animals, including dogs, cats, birds, fish, pocket pets, and more! We can help you find a scaly friend at one of our shelters and adoption centres. Thanks to our ongoing partnership with Petbarn, you can also adopt RSPCA NSW animals from select Petbarn Adoption Centres.
Please note that although we update our online lists of available animals every day, there is a chance that the animal you are interested in will have found a home prior to your arrival.
When deciding whether to adopt an animal companion of your own, remember to first consider the potential cost of caring for a pet. While there are no universal requirements when adopting a forever friend, different animals will require suitable homes to meet their behavioural or breed-dependent needs. As such, it’s important to ensure your lifestyle and living situation can accommodate for an animal companion.
When you’ve finally decided to adopt, don’t forget to arrive at our facilities with a photographic identity document, complete with your name and current address. If you already have a dog, you may need bring them in for a meet and greet to ensure they’ll get along with the newest member of the family.
After every canine or feline adoption, we promptly reach out to new pet parents to offer support via phone or email, offering advice, referrals to our teams, or access to additional helpful resources. Whether we continue to follow up is entirely up to you, and whether you’d like us to keep checking in to provide advice to help you and your new pet.
Though we strive to ensure that new adopters feel supported when adjusting to life with their animal companions, our support channels are always open to any animal lovers in need of assistance. From general over-the-phone advice to referrals to our behaviour or veterinary teams, we have plenty of options available to animal guardians looking for support.
If you’d like some help with your animal companion and need to reach out to our teams, feel free to contact us at (02) 9770 7555.
To ensure your animals are ready to be transported in emergency situations, make sure that you’ve adequately prepared your animals and travelling equipment. Be aware that some pet-friendly locations may not actually allow reptiles, meaning it’s important to take the time to locate evacuation centres that will welcome your scaly friends.
Having an emergency kit prepared will greatly increase the likelihood of safely evacuating your animals during crisis situations. Your emergency kit should include any items that will help you transport and care for your animal should the need to evacuate arise. This includes:
Please note that turtles will require additional items and attention when being evacuated, as they can be sensitive to changes in their environment. Be sure to keep your turtle out of direct sunlight to prevent overheating during transport and look out for signs of stress during transportation, as turtles can be sensitive to drastic changes in their environment. Turtle keepers are advised to also prepare the following:
During emergency situations, access to veterinary care may be severely limited. That’s why preparing an animal first aid kit to accompany your evacuation kit is essential to ensuring you’re ready for any injuries or health emergencies that may arise.
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We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the lands on which we live and work. We recognise and respect the enduring relationship they have with their lands and waterways, and particularly acknowledge the vital role animals have played in Indigenous life, stories and culture for tens of thousands of years.
The RSPCA is an independent, community-based charity providing animal care and protection services across the country.
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The RSPCA is an independent, community-based charity providing animal care and protection services across the country.
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