I'm just gonna sit here and talk about topics and bigginer mistakes in reptiles.

If you're new to reptiles, having a skim through might be helpful and maybe even interesting!

That being said lets begin!

Calcium sand (I consider this very important):
Calcium sand should NOT be sold as a substrate to reptiles. Whilst not poisonous, which is good, calcium sand clumps together when wet. Which means when a reptile ingests sand, wether they be hunting or tasting their enclosure, it can build up in the gut eventually killing them. For smaller reptiles, such as geckos, this is extremely dangerous. Other sand alternatives are available but please do your research.

So now your probably thinking, What substrate should I use then?

Well I'll cover good substrates for popular reptiles

Geckos-paper/paper towels, reptile carpet and slate rocks as well as some brands of sand (please do research)

Other substrates to avoid with geckos- wood chips/shavings and gravel are also on the no-no list for geckos

Royal pythons-cypress mulch and coconut fibre are good for controlling humidity though like above paper is great too.

Other substrates to avoid for royal pythons: under no circumstances have these animals in pine or ceder these cause health problems in a variety of reptiles, gravel is also a bad choice.

Bearded dragons- Reptile carpet or even a plain enclosure, paper is also good.

Substrates to avoid with bearded dragons-coconut fibre, wood chips and most kinds of sand.

What do I use:

I have two reptiles a corn snake and a bearded dragon

My corn snake has aspen (great for snakes that love to burrow, not great for holding moisture)

My bearded dragon used to have reptile carpet but now has a plain enclosure with climbing branches, hides and so on

Don't trust what a pet shop says (Mostly the big ones):

A pet shops job is to sell you things so it would make sense for them to lead you to believe certain things that meant you would buy more. A good example is calcium sand, you go in, see a few lizards with calcium sand and think, hey i'll get that too. Its better to do your own research instead of relying on a pet shop intirely.

Do not buy reptiles from pet shops (once again mainly the big shops):

Expanding from the last point, buying reptiles from a pet shop is seen as bad.
Not only would they cost much more then if you were to buy from a breeder but reptiles in pet shops are often under weight, stressed and possibly ill.
If you insist on buying from a pet shop please schedule a health check with your nearest exotic vet.

Live feeding:
Please do not feed live vertebrate unless nessicary.
For example in your animal refuses dead and will starve
Your animal is wild caught and so on
Live feeding of vertebrate can cause uneeded pain and can even injure your reptile.

FOR GOODNESS SAKE DON'T PAINT YOUR SNAKES!

Please do not paint your animals, even if its cool, even if its non-toxic. It can cause stuck shed, stress and put your animal through ALOT of discomfort.

Why would you paint such an already pretty animal?

A disgusting example from instagram:

Look at the stuck shed in this one! :

May I add this is the same poor snake

Wild caught:

I do not support wild caught reptiles. This is unhealthy for the animal and very stressful please only rescue wild caught, don't buy.

I could go on forever....

So if you guys have questions about your reptiles please ask!