Puppy yoga and cat cafes are great places to meet your future pet.

But where do you go if your ideal pet is a Gila monster or an African Sulcata tortoise?

That’s where Southern Arizona Reptile Rescue & Education on East Speedway comes in handy.

With approximately 90 reptiles, the rescue is on a mission to find homes for these reptiles, many of them abandoned by their previous owners. Since its inception in 2018, the non-profit, run by Cressi Brown, has taken in over 2,000 reptiles.

Finding homes for reptiles of all shapes and sizes is already difficult, but Southern Arizona Reptile Rescue & Education gives itself a bigger challenge by not doing impulse adoption. This means that owners need to do research and prepare their homes before being able to adopt the reptile. 

“[We do] no impulse decisions because that’s how most of them [reptiles] ended up with us in the first place,” said Brown. 

Brown said people interested in adopting need to educate themselves and make sure they are a good fit. That includes telling Brown about their lifestyle and resources to care for the reptile, including assembling enclosures and sending pictures of the reptile’s future home to Brown. 

This shows the rescue that the future owners are willing to put in the work and are committed to giving the reptile their forever home. 

“Anything that is trendy in the pet trade is going to also be highly populated in the rescues,” said Brown. 

These pets include ball pythons, leopard geckos, bearded dragons and African Sulcata tortoises. The snakes and lizards require a tank or enclosure for their homes. Within these tanks, different species need different resources, such as greenery, a thermal lamp or mat, a hiding spot, a water dish and rocks.

Reptiles also require a unique array of food such as dead rats and mice, crickets, and vegetables. Brown spends her morning preparing salads for many reptiles, including an endangered Lewis Hybrid Iguana. 

In 2002, there were only 10-25 Lewis Hybrid Iguanas left in the wild. Today there are almost 2,000 in the Grand Cayman Islands, and many more in the pet trade around the world. Brown’s iguana also does tricks; whenever she asks him if he’s a good boy, the iguana bobs its head.

Having endangered species can make it even more challenging for Brown to find their perfect home as a unique reptile often needs a unique owner. Brown is always looking for someone to show interest in these species as they don’t get as much attention as the “trendy” reptiles. 

Brown has adoption events twice a month at the Park Place mall and Bookmans East Entertainment Exchange to get people interested and excited about reptiles. She brings unique reptiles and reptile ambassadors, conditioned and properly socialized reptiles, to the events. 

Arizona Sonoran News is a news service of the University of Arizona School of Journalism.