This is just my 2 cents. You and your caiman NEED to form a bond while it is young. You are the only companion it will ever have. I can only speak from personal experience but, if you get one, understand that your caiman will be afraid at first but will learn to recognize you very quickly, will associate you with food and cleaning, etc. However, this can only happen if it is in close proximity to you a few times a day. Your Dwarf must become familiar with you and your movements in a non threatening way. That is why I think the first year, or maybe longer, in a glass terrarium is good for the bonding that must take place for the both of you to be safe. If you build an enclosure don't make it so large that you have trouble finding the little thing. Start small but proportional. Provide a hide of some kind. Dwarfs don't bask in the sun, are mostly nocturnal, and spend most of the daylight in a burrow. I've attached two photos. The first is the 75 gal. setup that lasted about a year before he outgrew it. The second is the enclosure he is in now. He has outgrown this one and I am building the next, and hopefully last, environment for him and hope to move him in next spring.
