Somehow, his lack of feet is actually the least of my worries if he were released into the wild. While Metric is a wild animal (not a domesticated species) he’s not a wild individual (he is captive bred, like nearly all if not all jeweled lacertas in the US). He wasn’t raised to have good wild instincts, and as well as living an ocean away from his native range releasing him could introduce diseases and parasites into the wild that the local population is not able to handle. Responsible pet reptile owners source their animals either from rescues or from reliable, vetted breeders. While all pet reptiles are descended from wild animals, it is becoming less common to find wild caught individuals as people become more informed and protections are strengthened on the import and export of truly wild animals. #reptiles #lizard #petreptile #animals #snakes