First reptile expo in Spokane draws lizards and people by the hundreds

If an animal slithers or crawls, you just might have found it Saturday at the first Spokane County Reptile and Exotic Pet Expo.

The selection was not for the faint of heart. Snakes, geckos, iguanas, lizards, frogs, toads, turtles, scorpions and tarantulas were all there in one of the gyms at The Warehouse on Hamilton Street. And once you bought a new pal to display in the living room, you could stop by other booths and pick up some rats for food or a display tank and other supplies.

Greg Bertsch picked up a pastel vanilla ghost ball python. It will join the six other snakes, frogs, gecko and tortoise Bertsch already had at home in a special room.

“I’m just a collector,” he said. “It’s a lot of fun.”

Bertsch is a teacher in Post Falls by day, but he enjoys his unique collection because it’s different. He’s been known to travel to reptile shows as far away as Portland and is pleased to see one in Spokane. It makes it easier to add to his collection.

“It’s just a hobby,” he said. “I relish feeling weird, I guess.”

Craig Taylor, owner of Exotic Reptiles Unlimited, organized the expo because he was tired of always having to drive long distances to reptile shows to sell the ball pythons he breeds. The baby snakes are about 12 inches long, but females can get as big as 5 feet long.

Taylor said it’s better to buy exotic pets from people who raise them and care for them every day than to get a reptile at a pet store. And if there are any problems, people can call the vendors and ask questions.

“You really know what you’re getting,” he said.

Taylor was hoping to attract at least 500 people to the first-time expo but said he hit that number by noon Saturday. Whether it was the rain or the allure of a unique pet, people were coming in steadily.

One of those people was Janelle Keleshian, who enthusiastically browsed the tables.

“Right now I’m here to look,” she said. “I do like the leopard gecko a lot and the ball pythons.”

Keleshian still has to convince her mother, who is afraid of snakes, that a slithery friend is a good idea.

“I just think they’re independent animals,” she said. “They’re very beautiful.”

It’s not unusual for people to be fearful of snakes and lizards, Taylor said.

“Reptiles are different,” he said. “It’s a split, either you love them or hate them.”