Help Me Out Monitor Lovers
- Thread starter Morax
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They like cooked chicken too. I would say raw but, with all the pathogens out there on uncooked chicken it's not worth the risk.
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What about feeding him some of your fingers.. ;P
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Whoa Careful What You Feed This One!
Savannas in the wild eat insects, lizards, eggs, etc. Rodents are not a major part of their diet. Many times vets will see overweight savannas that have had problems due to being fed high fat diets (rodents only). Make sure you give the animal variety which includes arthropods. Hissing roaches are great for them and a colony is easy to set up so you can keep the supply coming. Chicken is not the best since it is only muscle and not a complete diet. Instead look up what is known as the San Diego Zoo Turkey diet. This is a mix of supplements and ground turkey and is good as a supplement but is not meant to replace whole food items. Use unfertilized eggs and dog food sparingly. They have been linked to problems in Varanid health also. A better route for your lizard would include mainly whole items: rodents, birds, insects along with the turkey mix. Quail are cheap and easy to locate so they are another way to provide a good diet without risking your lizard's health.
Joey
Savannas in the wild eat insects, lizards, eggs, etc. Rodents are not a major part of their diet. Many times vets will see overweight savannas that have had problems due to being fed high fat diets (rodents only). Make sure you give the animal variety which includes arthropods. Hissing roaches are great for them and a colony is easy to set up so you can keep the supply coming. Chicken is not the best since it is only muscle and not a complete diet. Instead look up what is known as the San Diego Zoo Turkey diet. This is a mix of supplements and ground turkey and is good as a supplement but is not meant to replace whole food items. Use unfertilized eggs and dog food sparingly. They have been linked to problems in Varanid health also. A better route for your lizard would include mainly whole items: rodents, birds, insects along with the turkey mix. Quail are cheap and easy to locate so they are another way to provide a good diet without risking your lizard's health.
Joey
I like to feed my monitors a variety of roaches, raw ground turkey and mice.
It's best to feed young V. exanthematicus mostly on insects. Be sure to use supplements, like miner-all or repcal. Also it is especially important for young savs to have lots of UV light. If they do not get any UV they will have alot of bone problems like missing fingers and nails and more. Feed it daily if possible.
It's best to feed young V. exanthematicus mostly on insects. Be sure to use supplements, like miner-all or repcal. Also it is especially important for young savs to have lots of UV light. If they do not get any UV they will have alot of bone problems like missing fingers and nails and more. Feed it daily if possible.
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What size would you consider a young sav? I know Nick in person, so if he doesn't get to see this thread I can tell him what he should and shouldn't do. Currently his monitor is at 25" and doesn't have a UV light, but he does have a basking heat lamp.
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I wouldn't worry so much about the UV.
Most of us that have kept monitors for a while don't use the UV I never have. They still grow and reproduce without them. Check pro exotics' web site. They have a good care sheet for savanna monitors. It explains the basking temps, the diet, and the lack of need for UV. The only difference is I feed all my growing monitors daily regardless of species.
Most of us that have kept monitors for a while don't use the UV I never have. They still grow and reproduce without them. Check pro exotics' web site. They have a good care sheet for savanna monitors. It explains the basking temps, the diet, and the lack of need for UV. The only difference is I feed all my growing monitors daily regardless of species.
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Do you have a link to their website?
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Website with good Sav. caresheet
Here is a link to the caresheet.
http://proexotics.com/care_savannah.html
Here is a link to the caresheet.
http://proexotics.com/care_savannah.html
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Awesome, thanks alot. I'll get that to him asap.
A 25'' Savvanah is not what I would consider very young. Hatchlings are the ones who need UV most, as it seems to be very important for all the hatchling savs I've had. Even at 25'' UV lighting would not hurt, you don't need to spend much money to get it. Many UV bulbs go for $20 or less. In my Experience savs need UV especially at a young age. If they are not provided with it they will potentially lose digits and nails and in extreme cases have major bone deformation. However after about the 10-15'' inch mark the UV light becomes much less important to the animals well being.
I looked at thier caresheet and although they claim not to use UV lighting they say they use halogen bulbs. Halogen bulbs are UV even if the box you get them in doesnt mention it.
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The UV provided by you over-the-counter halogen bulb is minimal at best. Not near the amount recommended by those that swear by UV bulbs.
UV is important in regards to Vit. D3. It can also be provided through their diet. Most will attribute calcium problems to improper levels of UV. If kept warm enough, the monitors will get the Vit.D3 they need form their diet. You can get UV bulbs and I don't think they will hurt at all. They just cost a bunch of money that could be spent on a larger cage. Why waste the money on an item that is not needed? I have raised dozens of monitors without the use of UV but my experience is nowhere near others such as Frank Retes who has raised many monitors of many species without the use of UV.
As for digit loss, look more at husbandry issues i.e. heat and humidity. Too little heat and the monitor cannot function normally. Calcium is not taken up and delivered to the growing lizard. Legs bones, jaw bones and the bones of the digits usually suffer first. Too much humidity opens the animal up for more bacteria growth and such. Too dry and retained sheds can cause constriction of the extremities thereby leading to necrosis.
In conclusion, if you are really worried about it, but a UV bulb and have it elevated 18" above the monitor and allow exposure for 6-10 hrs a day as recommended by ESU and the other light companies. Or, look at those producing monitors and copy the methods that make them successful. A common factor with breeders is not UV bulbs. As for lighting, make sure the animals have a large enough enclosure and access to a proper thermal gradient and they will be fine without the use of UV bulbs. If you purchase UV bulbs and use them as directed, they won't hurt, but they are not essential. This is an old argument that was popular years back, but most don't subscribe to the idea that UV is needed for a monitor's proper growth/development/metabolism.
So here we have two opinions. Take it as you want. One swears by UV lighting, the other says it is not needed. Look around at breeders and see what they are doing. If they are producing healthy animals from eggs to adulthood and then getting those adults to breed, maybe they are doing something right.
Joey
Frank uses alot of natural light, seems to work very well for him and he is very successful. I haven't said all species need UV but I have noticed that savs under 10'' do alot better with it. My black throats on the other hand don't use UV and do great without it. Actually I rarely even supplement them and they grow like weeds. Is UV essential? Doubtful. Do some species prosper in it? Definately. Most animals that I have don't seem to need it at all. I don't exactly "swear by it" as you say. I haven't written any books on UV light and I'm not claiming to be the authority on the subject. I'm just describing what works the best for me.
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That sounds reasonable.
Yeah I can accept that answer. That is what I like about forums. You can post your side of an issue and support as you wish. Now the reader gets to look at these and decide after further research what they should do for their pet. Nice talking with you.
Joey
Yeah I can accept that answer. That is what I like about forums. You can post your side of an issue and support as you wish. Now the reader gets to look at these and decide after further research what they should do for their pet. Nice talking with you.
Joey