horned lizard

Question
Hi I have a horny toad and I whant to now how to tell if its a boy or girl can you plz tell me.

Answer
Hello Jacob:

The most important thing I can tell you about this guy is to go to a pet store and buy a book on their care and read it at least three times from cover to cover, after that, you need to get more books and read them.  This lizard is a lot of work and it needs specialized care so please do your part and make sure you know all the requirements and provide them.

Now I will try and answer your question, I said try because I deal in venomous snakes and rarely handle lizards.  I believe you are talking about the Texas horned toad (Phrynosoma cornutum)?  In young toads, it is tough with out using a probe but in older adults, males have enlarged femoral pores near the cloaca, usually the pores have a yellow color.  There are two large post anal scales just past the vent on males.  while females pores are small, there is a Hemipenal bulge at the base of the tail in males which is vacant in females.  Females have a thinner tail , unless you have more then one for comparison, its a tough job.  I have been told that males have a purple blotch mark on the dorsal area but I can not swear to this.

I apologize for reading you the riot act at the top but I always do this with young reptile owners, most have no idea as to what is involved in the keeping of reptiles, it is a big job when done right and if not done properly, the animal suffers and dies a painful long death.  I have been working with snakes for over 40 years now and before I get a new species, I read everything written about them so their new home is ready when they get here.

Here are a few things that I do know about horn lizards but you will have to get a book to learn more.
#1: They usually eat harvester ants in the wild which you can purchase over the Internet or have a pet store order them for you.  Until then, it may eat crickets, meal worms and other live reptile food
#2: They need play sand from Home Depot to dig around in with several small rocks scattered about on the floor of the tank.
#3: The cool side of the enclosure needs to be in the upper 80's to low 90's and the warm end needs to be in the upper 90's.  It must have proper heat but NEVER use a "Hot ROCK" inside the enclosure, they are dangerous and will eventually burn the lizard.
#4: You should be able to take the enclosure out of doors on warm to hot days for fresh air and to get the needed sunlight.
#5:  It needs a UVB light source, it should be a minimum of 20+ UVB provided, 50% is best.
#6: It will not drink out of a water bowl!  You need to mist it with a spray bottle containing room temperature water, NOT straight from the tap, it will be far to cold and injure the animal.
#7: It should have some place to hide inside the enclosure, a small cereal box with an opening just large enough for it to crawl through is fine.
#8: Handle as little as possible
#9: They live in arid warm country, keep the humidity low and the inside of the enclosure clean and neat.
#10: Do NOT take it outside in a glass tank, the heat will build up and cook the lizard, a wire screen enclosure with a sand floor is best.

Well Jacob, this is about all I know concerning Horned Toad Lizards, I wish you and your new friend the best of luck and watch out for each other.  If I can ever be of further service, e-mail me direct at  specializedvenoms@gmail.com and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

                                        Joel