Choosing Tanks & Containers

If you’re planning on keeping exotic pets, then with very few exceptions, you’re going to need to do some thinking about tanks. A trip to even a fairly small pet shop can leave you reeling with the variety of containers available to house your pets – and the range of sizes, shapes, materials and price tags attached.

When it comes to exotic and unusual pets, all tanks are not the same and there are many factors which you need to take into consideration in making your choice – so how do you go about choosing the right one?

Know Your Animal

First and foremost, you need to know a bit about your chosen animal. It might be an obvious point that the real purpose of all tanks is to provide a suitable environment for your pet, but it’s one worth making – if only to reinforce its importance. That beautiful tank in the window may well live up to its “Ideal First Terrarium” label – but not necessarily for your particular species, so the value of doing your homework thoroughly cannot be overstated.

Some of the issues are obvious; aquatic species will need a good water-tight tank, while climbers are going to want some height to allow them to follow their natural behaviour – and probably tanks with strong, secure lids too! For terrestrial and burrowing species, the floor area is often more important than the tank’s depth, so you need to bear this in mind in making your selection.

It’s also important to consider both how active your pet is, and how big it’s likely to grow – remembering that if you’ve bought a baby, you may have to change tanks a few times before it gets to full size.

Ease of Equipping

Another factor to consider is how easily tanks allow you to add any necessary additional equipment your pet may require.

Many tanks come with openings in their lids which are purpose-made to take various items such as heaters, light fittings, thermostats and filters. If your chosen pet doesn’t need anything more than a tank and a warm room, you might want to opt for something which doesn’t – particularly if you think escape might be a problem.

Glass or Plastic?

Both glass and plastic tanks have their fans and in many respects it’s a matter of personal choice, although there are one or two considerations which can influence the decision. Large all-glass aquarium tanks, for example, become phenomenally heavy once filled up with water, while plastic ones are more difficult to clean without scratching. If you’re thinking of using heating pads under your tank, then heat transfer can also be an issue, while if your tank’s internal environment is much warmer than the temperature of the surrounding air, large expanses of single-glazed glass will lose heat fairly quickly.

Tanks on a Budget

Elaborate – and often rather expensive – purpose built tanks are not always necessary or appropriate; for many animals much more humble surroundings can be as good, if not better, places to live. A range of plastic containers, large glass jars and the like can often be very successfully used to house your pets at a fraction of the cost of tanks bought from the pet shop. However, if you do opt for this approach, it’s even more important to make sure you choose wisely.

It’s as well to avoid any second-hand plastic containers, however tempting or apparently perfect, unless you are sure you know their history. Anything which may have held chemicals, soap, cleaning products or similar substances are likely to be a problem; no matter how well you clean them, the plastic itself can often hold traces of its old contents and your pets may suffer as a result.

Old glass jars are a safer bet, since they can usually be very successfully cleaned; large catering size jars are particularly useful for a range of small climbing pets, though they are not always easy to come by unless you know someone in the business.

The clear plastic lunch box, in its many sizes and shapes, is probably the most versatile and useful of all budget pet containers. Sold in a huge number of outlets, including supermarkets, normally for just a few pounds, they are ideal tanks for a wide range of small exotic pets – particularly many of the invertebrate species. The only essential modification is to drill a series of holes in the lid for ventilation – and if you’re planning to use yours without its lid, as a small aquarium for little creatures such as Triops, even this modest amount of DIY becomes unnecessary.

When picking your plastic box, check to see that its really meant for food storage; anything that has a small fork and a glass symbol – usually moulded onto the base – can be used, safe in the knowledge that no chemicals are going to leach out and harm you new pet.

Choosing your tank is all part of the fun with a new pet, but with the selection available it can sometimes seem a daunting task. However, if you know as much as possible about your animal’s needs, picking the right one shouldn’t be too hard.