By Jessica Robison

Moapa Valley Progress

Home True Value Hardware staff Nick Lewis, Jaden Peterson and Rod Probst show off some of the live reptile collection now on sale at Overton’s Home Hardware. Photo by Jessica Robison.

Home True Value Hardware in Overton is selling reptiles as pets. Store owner, Randy Tobler said that he has been eager to sell live animals at the store for some time.

“We’ve looked into selling live animals for a while,” Tobler said. “We already carry reptile supplies, crickets, and frozen rats and mice and we’ve had several customers ask about live animals.”

While attending a retail animal show in Las Vegas, he was given a deal on a reptile case that he could not refuse. The owner didn’t want to carry the case back home, so he offered it to Tobler for a great price; fully stocked with a green iguana, milk snake, bearded dragon, ball python, leopard gecko, corn snakes, water dragon, and a king snake,

Since that time, the store has been able to do a regular business with these animals. Now added to the collection for sale are a red-eared slider turtles and a sulcata tortoise.

“The turtles are very popular,” Tobler commented. “All of our reptiles are basics and are easy to take care of. The tortoise is the only exception. We didn’t plan to sell tortoises but we had a special order.”

True Value is willing to make special orders for other reptiles. “Just talk to us and we’ll get a price that will match other stores,” Tobler said.

All supplies needed for the reptiles can be found inside of the local store. This includes heat lamps, habitats, water and food dishes, thermometers and humidity meters, decorations, substrates, and more.

They also have plenty to feed the animals including crickets, worms, mice, and rats for the meat-eating reptiles.

“If we continue to have the valley’s support, then we plan to order fish and birds next,” Tobler said.