# taming my nile monitor



## thebugfreak (May 24, 2010)

i am currently taming my nile monitor and i dont see any progress yet. i have been trying very hard and all i got were bloody fingers.

lets hope that by the end of this month, i can get it somewhat docile. 

if anyone wants to give me any tips on taming it, id gladly take it. what i do is i keep it on a leash and have it with me for at least 4 hours. sometimes hes chill, but most of the time, he will go crazy, crap everywhere, and bite anything. 

i hate how it bites.


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## Toirtis (May 24, 2010)

How big and old is it?


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## Crysta (May 24, 2010)

If it's just bloody finginers shouldn't be too big ^^ 

hm well I wouldn't start out taming him on a leash, that just makes them hate you more, like three of the four of my iguanas where already very docile, but once I introduced the leash well, they really don't like it so I stopped using it everything went back to normal. 

#1 Get some tough gloves.
The best thing to start off is doing something around the cage during the day for about 2 weeks, like play your computer or something, and you will see a massive calm down of you presence being around him. Then after those 2 weeks, start some 20-40 minute aday holding time near the cage (with gloves!) ....after you got it calmed down abit, try to introducing the leash ( but it might really hate it! lol )

Starting four hours of hands on holding time with a defensive critter is not the best way to go, it's very stressful for them.

Also Niles have a very big tendency to be nasty anyways ( I know theres some docile ones out there) especially when they are older with no previous get together time. 

It also depends on your body language as well, not just the monitors. If your trying to make him docile while you are showing stress of impatience, it won't work. Be calm! They, like most animals are very sensitive to moods.

I also have a sexist iguana, he hates males, whips and bites them all he can (poor bro and dad + male visitors) but if its me, or some other girl around them the lizard is as docile as can be. 

Also, if you noticed me type docile its because niles, like all other reptiles, are a wild animal and they will never be 'tame' if its pissed off it will surely be grouchy and defensively bite you no matter how nice you where to it in the past. 

good luck!


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## thebugfreak (May 24, 2010)

CentipedeFreak said:


> If it's just bloody finginers shouldn't be too big ^^
> 
> hm well I wouldn't start out taming him on a leash, that just makes them hate you more, like three of the four of my iguanas where already very docile, but once I introduced the leash well, they really don't like it so I stopped using it everything went back to normal.
> 
> ...


its a little over a year old. about 1.5-1.75' long. 

i dont like to use gloves. it restricts the movement of my fingers and hands too much. lol. the furthest ill go are latex gloves when im handling my pets, but i dont like latex gloves much either. even when i had to force feed my rattlesnake to get it used to mice, i used my bare hands and the snake hook and some tongs. 

the nile is in my room and i always study there. but it still is aggressive somehow. hopefully it will settle down. usually, it goes crazy for a while then after about an hour it calms down and i can handle it no problem. and i dont think the leash bothers him much because he is indifferent to it. only when i put it on, sometimes it throws a fit, but after its on, its like mehh. but i want it to be comfortable with me at all times. hopefully i can do that. my friend has a croc and nile monitors. they are both super docile. 

thanks for the tip though.


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## fangsalot (May 24, 2010)

niles are notoriously VERY difficult to "tame".thats why i always worked with water monitors..soo much easier.ive seen one "tame" nile in my life.i think success has to do alot with individualle personality of the lizard.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Crysta (May 24, 2010)

thebugfreak said:


> its a little over a year old. about 1.5-1.75' long.
> 
> i dont like to use gloves. it restricts the movement of my fingers and hands too much. lol. the furthest ill go are latex gloves when im handling my pets, but i dont like latex gloves much either. even when i had to force feed my rattlesnake to get it used to mice, i used my bare hands and the snake hook and some tongs.
> 
> ...


Yep they enjoy to freak out. Probably had a crazy impression of humans. lol
Maybe it goes crazy for an hour and then is too tired to care later. Then its got its spunk back after a short rest. 

Um, I don't know if niles can smell the blood/old blood on your hand and be attracted to that...or somewhat of a feeding response to biting...ect... 

and I feel it is very irresponsible to not wear gloves anyways, you're just setting yourself up to get injured and be impaired later to care for your pets. 

Call him Crazy Spunk and be happy he portrays his personality with the name? lol


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## thebugfreak (May 24, 2010)

fangsalot said:


> niles are notoriously VERY difficult to "tame".thats why i always worked with water monitors..soo much easier.ive seen one "tame" nile in my life.i think success has to do alot with individualle personality of the lizard.


yeah. the nile monitors are highly aggressive. but i still love niles a lot. but these are highly intelligent animals. i remember reading an article of a study a group of scientists did with the niles and they could decipher color and can count numbers up to 7. pretty good for a reptile. they also can also distinguish one person from another and other things. i forget. i wish i had the article with me.



CentipedeFreak said:


> Yep they enjoy to freak out. Probably had a crazy impression of humans. lol
> Maybe it goes crazy for an hour and then is too tired to care later. Then its got its spunk back after a short rest.
> 
> Um, I don't know if niles can smell the blood/old blood on your hand and be attracted to that...or somewhat of a feeding response to biting...ect...
> ...


im careful with venomus animals that i have, but i noticed that wearing gloves were more dangerous for me. because it was a lot harder for me to control the animal and it got a lot more complicated. so i just use my bare hands now.

Reactions: Informative 1


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## Toirtis (May 25, 2010)

fangsalot said:


> niles are notoriously VERY difficult to "tame"..


True, and with yours at already a year old, you have an uphill battle that you may never win....and with a lizard that is going to be bloody scary at 4', much less its eventual 7'+. All I can suggest is what CentipedeFreak said, and keep up with it...daily....and make sure of the gloves...a 4'+ nile can mess up your fingers enough to require amputation.


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## Crysta (May 25, 2010)

All your fingers are to niles is little vienna sausages that get more delicious with every 'nibble'


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## thebugfreak (May 25, 2010)

CentipedeFreak said:


> All your fingers are to niles is little vienna sausages that get more delicious with every 'nibble'


as long as there arent any permanent damage, ill take it. id just have to be more careful.


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## DeathsPyro12 (May 25, 2010)

Problem is, its a Nile. It will take a mircale to even remotely trust you, also the monitor you are thinking of in the counting study was a White Throat monitor counting up to 6. But if you are wanting to try gaining trust with your monitor stop picking it up. Sit by the enclosure for long periods of time,  actually watch the monitor AND do things around the enclosure, a good idea when to start interacting with it a bit more is when the monitor is the one decideing to check who and what is outside the enclosure. Try putting your hand in the enclosure and see if he tries checking it out. Also what is the setup like for his enclosure? The fewer hide spots, more stress, less chance of it warming up to you since it can't retreat at its own comfort. Try tong feeding to after it is used to you being outside the enclosure more, mine is only a juvie but already it is tong feeding and playing chase the pinkie around(I move it with tongs it is not alive).


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## thebugfreak (May 26, 2010)

DeathsPyro12 said:


> Problem is, its a Nile. It will take a mircale to even remotely trust you, also the monitor you are thinking of in the counting study was a White Throat monitor counting up to 6. But if you are wanting to try gaining trust with your monitor stop picking it up. Sit by the enclosure for long periods of time,  actually watch the monitor AND do things around the enclosure, a good idea when to start interacting with it a bit more is when the monitor is the one decideing to check who and what is outside the enclosure. Try putting your hand in the enclosure and see if he tries checking it out. Also what is the setup like for his enclosure? The fewer hide spots, more stress, less chance of it warming up to you since it can't retreat at its own comfort. Try tong feeding to after it is used to you being outside the enclosure more, mine is only a juvie but already it is tong feeding and playing chase the pinkie around(I move it with tongs it is not alive).


i got good news. now it only hisses at me. and occasionally tail whips at me. but it dosent really bite any more. even if i put my finger in front of it. YES


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## snakecollector (May 26, 2010)

*Try an Asian Water Monitor Next Time!*

Asian Water Monitors look almost identical and tame down much easier. I will admit I love Niles too but I usually can't tame them completely. As they get larger they tend to calm a little but never "look" forward to you unless it is feeding time . When they are small in the wild they are on the "menu" for evrything so they tend to be really defensive. Even Asian Water Monitors tend to be defensive when they are little.

Good luck taming your monitor, they grow fast and are awesome when they get 3' and up. Hope you have a really big enclosure, that cute little tail whip gets pretty serious at 4' 

John


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## Bigboy (May 30, 2010)

You're expecting something quite unrealistic from that lizard.  Its not even worth saying anything else to you.


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## naturejoe (Jun 11, 2010)

*taming not impossible*

Get it to feed from some tongs, not fingers, on a regular basis.  When you build up a relationship that way you can try reaching and touching with your other hand until it no longer flinches when it is touched.  Then try handling early in the day when it is still cool, so it likes the warmth of your body.  Do this in the cage so when it wants to go it can.  Forcing it to interact will make it not trust you.  Monitors are very intelligent and curious so take your time.  It may not ever be like a bearded dragon, but you can certainly forge a good mutual relationship with it.  Given its potential size, a good understanding at the least is very important with them.  Good luck.


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## Renton44 (Mar 22, 2019)

I know that this is an old post, but seriously? 7 - 20 months is exactly when you want to start socializing this species. Prior they are predisposed to panic and possible traumatic experience imprint. Nile Monitors like any other animal that is a prey till a bigger size has the natural inclination to fear being eaten when they are small. 

Currently my wife has a Nile and he is very socialized he is about a year old - I would not allow her to do anything more than talk to him and move around the aquarium. Also he is fed in his enclosure a lot will criticize this since the two popular thoughts are: feed him in his enclosure and he will mistake your hand for food, and feed him outside and he learn to want to be handled. I have owned lizards and snakes my whole life and can count the amount of bites on one hand. So obviously that is inaccurate. 

After he settled down from the flight period at about 7 months old, she and I would talk to him with the lid open several times a day. After a few weeks of that we would talk to him then hold him in his enclosure for around 15 minutes, no petting just talaking and lifting him off the floor. 

A couple of weeks later we would pull him out and wrap him in a towel. Take him to a different room and just watch TV and chat with him covered (safe place). A couple of weeks later the towel was around him but his head was out of the towel so he could see - at this point we calmly would pet his back and head. A couple weeks later the towel was gone and he was calm and seeking attention. 

These days he lets us know when he wants out by scratching a piece of drift wood in the enclosure. We get him and he will spend ample time relaxing across one of our laps or over our shoulder. This is not my first to get to this point. You just have to be patient and understand why they act like they do. 

Best of luck to anyone who reads this socializing their Nile.

Reactions: Like 2


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## mantisfan101 (Mar 22, 2019)

Should’ev tried when they were younger or maybe try with a tegu at first, but I agree with the others this’ll take a while.


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