Reptile Sitter Peninsula
Ask around the Peninsula for someone who will actually come to your home and care for a reptile, and you hit the same wall most exotic pet parents do: there is almost nobody. The listings you find are either boarding facilities that want you to pack up and transport your animal, or generalist sitters who work mainly with dogs and cats. And for a reptile, transport is not a small thing. A bearded dragon’s enclosure is a carefully calibrated little ecosystem — a basking spot dialed to the degree, a UVB bulb on a schedule, a humidity range held steady. Move all of that, and you are not just inconveniencing your pet; you are dismantling the system that keeps them healthy. What most reptile parents actually want is simple: someone who comes to the reptile, leaves the enclosure exactly where it is, and knows what they are looking at. That is the gap this page fills, from Daly City down to Redwood City.
House of Guineas Pet Care is based in San Francisco’s Inner Sunset, and our team of exotic pet caretakers travels down the Peninsula to provide in-home reptile care. Your dragon stays on its own basking rock, your gecko keeps its own humidity, your python holds its own warm hide, your tortoise grazes in its own space — and we come to them.
Why Peninsula Reptile Owners Choose Us
- Veterinary background. Our veterinary-informed team brings backgrounds spanning wildlife rehabilitation to exotic veterinary hospital work — our founder, Alexandria, previously worked at Bay Area Bird & Exotics Hospital and volunteered with the House Rabbit Society administering subcutaneous RHDV2 vaccines. That clinical standard means every caretaker on our team is trained to catch little problems before they become big ones.
- Species specialization. Exotic pets and cats are all we do — reptiles, small mammals, and birds. That kind of focus is genuinely hard to find on the Peninsula.
- Clinical-grade care. We can read a temperature gradient across an enclosure, confirm the basking spot and UVB output are where they should be, monitor humidity against your species’ target range, and recognize the early signs of illness before they become emergencies.
- Flexible scheduling. Early-morning visits before an SFO departure, evening lights-out checks, mid-day misting or feeding — we build the schedule around your reptile’s routine and your itinerary, not the other way around.
Reptiles We Care For on the Peninsula
- Bearded dragons — the most popular pet reptile we see, and one we know well
- Leopard geckos, crested geckos, and other geckos — from belly-heat leopard setups to room-temperature, high-humidity crested habitats
- Ball pythons, corn snakes, and other non-venomous snakes — because the Peninsula sits outside San Francisco’s city limits, the common constrictors that SF prohibits are perfectly legal here under California state law, and they are among the reptiles we care for most
- Turtles and tortoises — aquatic, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial, each with their own water quality, basking, and UVB needs
- We also care for many other lizards — text us about your species and we will tell you honestly whether it is in our wheelhouse
If you are in San Francisco proper, where the city’s municipal code prohibits keeping boas, pythons, and venomous snakes, see our San Francisco reptile sitter page for what we cover inside city limits.
What In-Home Reptile Care Involves
Reptile care is environmental care first. On every visit our caretakers confirm the temperature gradient — a proper warm-side basking spot and a genuine cool-side retreat, so your reptile can thermoregulate the way they need to. We verify that the UVB lighting is functioning, since inadequate UVB is one of the most common and most preventable causes of illness in captive reptiles. We check humidity against your species’ target range and mist when the setup calls for it. We handle feeding to your animal’s schedule — fresh greens, appropriately sized insects, thawed feeders for snakes, calcium and vitamin dusting, and gut-loading where needed — and we spot-clean the enclosure so waste and uneaten food do not sit. And through all of it we are watching: appetite, activity, shedding, posture, and the subtle early signs that something is off, so we can flag it to you before you land.
Peninsula Cities We Serve
Our caretakers travel throughout San Mateo County, with the 101 and 280 corridors putting most of the Peninsula within easy reach:
- Burlingame
- San Mateo
- Foster City
- Redwood City
- Hillsborough
- Millbrae
- Belmont
- San Carlos
- San Bruno
- Daly City and Pacifica
Wherever you are on the Peninsula, text us and we will confirm we can reach you.
Pricing for Reptile Visits
- 30-minute visits start at $85
- 60-minute visits start at $115
- Twice-daily care runs $140–$190/day depending on visit length and the complexity of the setup
The Peninsula falls in our travel tier, so a surcharge of $15–$25/visit applies depending on distance — cities closer in often see the lower end.
A full substrate change can be a standing appointment, not a weekend project. Many Peninsula reptile families keep routine care on a regular schedule — weekly or every-other-week visits where their caretaker refreshes the substrate, logs temperature and UVB readings, and gives a gentle wellness check, so the enclosure stays just right and basking time carries on undisturbed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you care for ball pythons and corn snakes on the Peninsula?
Yes. Because the Peninsula sits outside San Francisco's city limits, ball pythons, corn snakes, and other common non-venomous snakes are perfectly legal to keep here under California state law, and they are among the reptiles we care for most. We handle thawed-feeder scheduling, humidity and warm-hide checks, and shed monitoring. (Inside San Francisco, the municipal code prohibits these species, so our SF service focuses on the reptiles that are legal in the city.) Text us at 415-484-6493 with your species and setup.
Can you maintain my reptile's heat and UVB schedule?
That's the heart of every reptile visit we make on the Peninsula. Your caretaker confirms the temperature gradient end to end — basking spot, cool side — checks that UVB lighting is doing its job, and tracks humidity against your species' target range, misting whenever the setup calls for it. Heat and UVB problems are among the most preventable causes of illness in captive reptiles, which is exactly why they get checked on every single visit.
What if my reptile needs medication or assist-feeding while I travel?
Medication and assist-feeding are part of our standard service. Our caretakers are trained in oral syringe feeding, topical applications, and administering medications on a set protocol, and our team's exotic veterinary hospital background sets the bar. If your reptile is on a complex protocol, share it during the meet-and-greet and we will match the schedule exactly.
Do you travel to the Peninsula, and is there a surcharge?
Yes. Our team travels from San Francisco down the 101 and 280 corridors to serve Burlingame, San Mateo, Foster City, Redwood City, Hillsborough, Millbrae, Belmont, San Carlos, San Bruno, Daly City, and Pacifica. The Peninsula falls in our travel tier, so a surcharge of $15–$25/visit applies depending on distance. Text or call 415-484-6493 for a quote specific to your address.
How much does a Peninsula reptile sitter cost?
Reptile pricing tracks the complexity of the habitat more than the size of the animal. A single bearded dragon or gecko setup usually fits a 30-minute visit at $85 — temps, UVB, feeding, spot-clean — while multi-enclosure rooms, misting-heavy species, and insect feeding days often call for a 60-minute visit at $115. Twice-daily care runs $140–$190 per day. The Peninsula falls in our travel tier, so a surcharge of $15–$25/visit applies depending on distance. Text 415-484-6493 with your species and setup for a firm quote.
Ready to line up care for your reptile? Call or text us at 415-484-6493 and we will get a Peninsula meet-and-greet on the calendar. You can also read more about our in-home exotic pet care service, or browse the full FAQ page. For species-specific fundamentals, see our reptile and amphibian care guide, and if you are still getting set up with a vet, our Peninsula exotic veterinarians directory is a good place to start.