ANAHEIM – Max Morehead, 8, and his 10-year old brother Alex already have a leopard tortoise, two bearded dragons and two golden crested geckos as pets in their Newport Beach home.

So it’s no surpise that the brothers on Saturday found the North American Reptile Conference & Trade Show at the Anaheim Convention Center to be pure nirvana.

Having already purchased food and cages, Alex and Max were combing the rows of exhibiters for chameleons to add to their slithering menagerie.

“The bearded dragons are the best pets because they don’t run away, they are totally calm with children and are easy to take care,” said their father, Larry Morehead.

Morehead was figuring on spending up to $600 at the show, which features about 125 vendors selling captive-bred, non-venomous reptiles from snakes and frogs, to iguanas and geckos, to turtles and tortoises.

Show promoter Bob Ashley expects close to 8,000 visitors to attend the two-day show, which concludes Sunday. Hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $8-15, free for children under 5.

Prices for the reptiles range from about $10 up to tens of thousands of dollars, Ashley said.

For that reason, the show draws all types – from “soccer moms” to serious breeders, he said.

Fountain Valley-based reptile dealer Prehistoric Pets was among the largest exhibitors.

Garrett Hartle, sales manger for the company, said reptiles sometimes have a bad reputation because they are believed to be dangerous.

“A lot of people don’t realize how big the reptile world is,” Hartle said. “They used to be the alternative pet. Now they have gone mainstream … Some make better pets than a cat or a dog.”

Among the reptiles on display at the Prehistoric Pets booth was a breed of snake called platinum albino titanium. The cost: $50,000.

Who would spend that much on a snake? Collectors and investors, Hartle said.

“It’s living art,” he said.

One booth was manned by workers from Reptile Rescue Orange County, a Lake Forest-based non-profit that does exactly what its name implies.

When a stray rattlesnake is slinking around your house or you have a creature that has grown beyond your control, you call Reptile Rescue, said Jordan Luck, who works at the organization.

“That cute little boa you see at the pet store … two years from now it is six feet long,” Luck said. That is when Reptile Rescue comes to the, well, to the rescue.

And when they are not out rescuing reptiles, the organization stages educational demonstrations at schools and kids’ parties, Luck said.

Contact the writer: Contact the writer: lponsi@ocregister.com or 714-704-3730