How old is your reptile?

Could it be true that 75% of reptile pets die in their first year? No, we didn’t think so either.

That’s why we interviewed reptile keepers from around the UK to discover the age of their oldest reptile. And everyone we spoke to told us about healthy, long-lived animals.

Okay, so this wasn’t a scientific study. But the responses certainly reflect the scientific literature, because there is plenty of research from credible sources to totally debunk the 75% myth.

Check out our video about the 75% myth to learn more.

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SCRIPT

What's your oldest reptile or the oldest reptile you've ever kept?

Strontium and she's a leopard gecko and she's 16 years old.

Burmese python, 15 years old.

Estimated age is ten and he's a Kimberley rock monitor.

He's Marshmallow, he is five years old. He's a black-eyed leucistic royal python.

The oldest reptile is a Hermann's tortoise called Plod. I've had him for about 20 years the lady I got him from had him for 85 years.

He is 25 and he's a royal python.

Eight or nine and it's a mangrove monitor.

She's probably a good sort of eight to ten years old.

Reggie is five now.

Reggie can't be five because there's research that says 75% of pet reptiles die in their first year. Do you believe it?

No I don't.

I have over 30 reptiles and all of them are over one so I don't know where that statistic comes from.

With my three snakes they're all over the age of one. I don't know where that statistic's come from.

Do you have any faith in that research?

No I think it's a load of ****.