Need caresheets on large monitors

[denial]

Hi guys I have wanted a water monitor for at least 2 years lol and really thinking of getting a water and a blackthroat and I would like to look over some care sheets about temperatures and feeding and housing and talk to some people that are experienced in monitors. Like housing for example i was going to house them vision cages while they are juvies wll that be suffecient?

[Lorelei]

Check out Dan with Tarpit Reptiles - he has some really good info on his website - always responds to email too! He works with a lot of monitor species.

http://tarpitreptiles0.tripod.com/

[The Snake Guru]

I have some experience with Blackthroats, But I haven't kept Waters so I can't help you out with that one.

~B~

[denial]

thanks guys. Yea brad I have had my eye on a water for at least 2 years but I saw a blackthroat and feel in love with them to lol so im thinking of one of each but ill probably start with just one so I can get the feel for monitors I ve never kept them before but Ive kept caimen and they were not always sweet lol still have the scars on my hand lol so what is your take on blackthroats ? How did you like keeping them

[ffollett]

The link that Lori posted is to the guy we got our savs from. He was one of the first to produce black throats in captivity.

We are actually going to be seeing him today I will ask him about donating some caresheet info for the site.

[denial]

thank you

[The Snake Guru]

I really loved my Blackthroats.....they are constantly cruising around looking for food, but they really do need space, personally for a full grown adult a 8ftx4ft enclosure would be what I consider minimum (floor space)

As far as for keeping....they are pretty easy, backround temps of 80 up to 95-98 degrees for the hot spot. If you have the room an enclosure with a deep substrate works nicely they love to dig, and the natural digging behavior keeps thier claws filed down.....which is nice since clipping them can be a real chore! LOL

They eat pretty much everything, chicks, Mice, snakes, snails, frogs, love raw eggs (though it's messy)...hardboiled is easier, shrimp, fish fillets, hissing Cockroaches, well you get the idea....The biggest problem with these isn't getting them to eat...it's getting them to STOP eating! LOL Weight should be monitored carefully, Monitors are prone to over eating and becoming Obease....this is very bad since it cuts thier lifespan down in about half. If you can get yourself in the frame of mind that just because they look hungry...doesn't mean I have to feed them....you should do just fine.

They are pretty cool though....I know I really enjoyed mine, and if I ever get into lizards again, I'll probably have another one.

~B~

[ffollett]

When we got down there Dan was out of the shop. I talked to his wife and will shoot him an email. He had one baby black throat there that was really laid back.

[denial]

lol Dont worry about the feeding good lord my burms act like they havent ate in years every time I walk into the room lol its crazy. Man I dont know if I could feed them roaches lol I hate those things lol they freak me out. I could only imagine how hard it would be to trim nails on one lol I tried to trim an iguana one time and good lord my arms looked like raw meat after that lol. But I have noticed alot of adults I have seen have looked a little obese. Now how often often do you actually have to feed them I heard every other day is good now is that good or do they need to eat every day?

[The Snake Guru]

Personally I gauge my feedings in direct porportion to how the animal looks. Scheduled feedings are in my opinion kind of a farse, they give you idea of what to be feeding but every snake, lizard, turtle, ect. has differnt metabolisms even within it's own species...not only that but especially with Monitors certain foods have a higher fat contents than other. But to answer your question when young thier metabolisms run a bit faster so smaller meals frequently suit them well, but as they grow this should be cut back, every other day, every couple of days....let your eyes guide you, as you have already noticed a lot of the Monitors in captivity already range from slightly plump, to grossly over weight...LOL They should active, lean, mean hunting machines, good body tone is easy to see. Not sure if this really helped or caused more questions...but it my personal feeling on the subject.

~B~

[denial]

Im pretty sure I know what you mean. Pretty much the same with certain snakes you can see a snake and tell if its muscle or fat. I swear my female green anaconda is nothing but muscle its harder to get her off you when shes wrapped around you then my big albino green burm and the conda is only 4 feet lol. But once again thank you for all your help. Im really looking forward to working with them. Have wanted one for around 2 years now lol

[herpivore]

This probably isn't any help, but... :lol:

I have an approximately year & a half old Mali Uromastyx and feed her a mix of frozen vegetables or a frozen blended mix of vegetables, Mazuri tortoise diet, & T-Rex Uromastyx dust. She gets about a tablespoon of vegetable mix, or slightly less in the form of frozen mix. I feed her every 2-5 days, according to her appetite (she eats the dried stuff, too).

I know monitor lizards need to eat more often, as they're meant to be hunters & eat live food, though meat tends to last members of the animal kingdom longer than vegetation. I generally hear/read that they need to eat at least every 3rd day. I suppose that depends mostly on their rate of development (adult vs. juvenile).

[The Snake Guru]

Im pretty sure I know what you mean. Pretty much the same with certain snakes you can see a snake and tell if its muscle or fat. I swear my female green anaconda is nothing but muscle its harder to get her off you when shes wrapped around you then my big albino green burm and the conda is only 4 feet lol. But once again thank you for all your help. Im really looking forward to working with them. Have wanted one for around 2 years now lol

Absolutely! I think you'll enjoy them as well. You'll do fine.

~B~

[SteveW]

Hi Daniel,
Pro Exotics has pretty good care sheets on their web site. I have also dealt with Dan from Tarpit and he is a really good guy and knows his stuff. Ben Seigel usually has a pretty good selection of monitors and I have personally dealt with him several times. I have kept many species of monitor over the years. I would recommend a blackthroat over a water. I've also kept and bred Argus monitors. They are a great mid size monitor. Dumerils are another species I've had good luck with. They don't get too big and are generally pretty docile. Let me know if I can help in any way. Are you having any luck with the albino greens? Steve

[Dylan]

I'm trying to control myself here. Pro Exotics has one of the best care sheets out there. I'll give you the basics.

Brad was correct on cage size. I'd go bigger for both species ( I like giving my monitors running room ).

Brad was almost completely correct on the temps. You need to make sure you have a basking spot that reaches at least 120 degree's. If you don't they will not digest their food correctly. Alot of people neglect the hot spot.

Feeding. I've always been a fan of looking at the monitor when feeding. Expect to feed as a baby at least 2 smallish mice or rat pups a day. Sometimes more sometimes less. 2 dozen crickets every 2 days would be good. I don't do crickets so I couldn't give you a for sure. This is only for when feeding waters/blackthroats. If you feed a Savvie like that it'll pop.

[denial]

Hi guys thanks for the replys I think I have decided on a black throat I have been read everything at pro exotics and think that the balckthroat is the one for me. Yea I heard about how fast savs can get obese. And steve thanks so much ben actually has a bt I have been looking at for some time. Very nice colors. And the albino greens are amazong man I love these guys.I have seen them locked up twice. I swear they are like 2 big babies lol they were a little shy for the first week around here but now they are much better. Im fixing to move sometime between december to feb. and we will have an extra bedroom so that means more room for the critters lol so you let me know if you go to get rid of the labs lol cause ill be down there in a flash lol. Also dylan does it need to be a 120 hot spot or does the whole cage have to be that high?

[herpivore]

Dylan, Wow! Do Niles eat that much too? That's awesome! :D :D :D

denial, Yep, just the hot spot needs that high temperature - the rest of the cage can get down to the 80's during the day, and lower at night, I believe. My Uromastyx needs similar conditions - she really doesn't wake up until 10am or so when she's nicely warmed up (her cage drops to about 75-78 at night - she gets really groggy! It's so cute :) )
Oh, forgot to mention... I use a few slabs of rock (limestone, I think) around her cage, and they soak up the heat nicely. She loves sitting on them under the heat bulb with her eyes closed :lol:

[The Snake Guru]

120 hot spot or does the whole cage have to be that high?

Agreed Hot spot only....you want to create a temperature Gradiant just other reps.
Also on the flat rock idea (good one by the way there Andrew!)

Try to get your hands on some Red Slate, it's a very dense rock and difuses heat evenly.

~B~

[herpivore]

The stuff that I use is pretty even, too. Also it was free, as it's available by the sides of highways whenever they blast through a hillside ;)
I've picked up buckets 'n buckets of that rock in crushed form for aquarium gravel, too (marine & hardwater fish like african cichlids just love it for digging, plus it keeps the pH way up there).

[Dylan]

Dylan, Wow! Do Niles eat that much too? That's awesome! :D :D :D

denial, Yep, just the hot spot needs that high temperature - the rest of the cage can get down to the 80's during the day, and lower at night, I believe. My Uromastyx needs similar conditions - she really doesn't wake up until 10am or so when she's nicely warmed up (her cage drops to about 75-78 at night - she gets really groggy! It's so cute :) )
Oh, forgot to mention... I use a few slabs of rock (hard sandstone, I think) around her cage, and they soak up the heat nicely. She loves sitting on them under the heat bulb with her eyes closed :lol:

A baby nile will pretty much eat until it dies. They don't mess around, same thing with waters. They grow fast and eat a shit load. I got out of monitors about 2 months ago. I had 5 adult animals and the amount of money it costs to maintain that many is simply amazing. The amount of time is just insane.