Legless Lizard

[Professor T]

I just got a 2.5 foot european legless lizard aka sheltopusik. Anybody have any experience with this species?

I have it in a 66quart WalMart tub with cypress mulch substrate, and a water dish. I was told it eats earthworms, crickets, and mice. After it rolls a bit when first picked up it calms down a gets very docile to handle. I know about its ability to drop its tail, I won't let that happen.

Any husbandry tips would be appreciated

 

[Gary O]

Here is some info I found

http://www.digimorph.org/specimens/Ophisaurus_apodus/

http://kaweahoaks.com/html/lizard_legless.htm

I have seen a few of these in the trade. I know they love there pinkies lol. The twisting thing as you have found will stop once he/she has been handled a bit.

 

[Love to Foxtrot]

I love this species! I have one named Boris . When I first received him, he had a lot of parasite problems and was not very vigorous, but after being in my care for almost a year, he is doing very well. He has become very used to handling and rarely rolls when I carry him around. He is a large individual at about three feet, and he LOVES nightcrawlers when I hand feed them to him. He also feeds well on f/t mice and canned low-fat dog food. My veteranarian thinks that he is very intelligent because of the way that Boris seems to "think" about and "study" things. I have always thought that he is quite smart because honestly he recognises his name from all of my other animals' names, and responds accordingly, and he does seem to think about things that he is doing or about things that are happening around him. I am a huge fan of this species and I am glad to see that other people are keeping them too!

Aubrey

 

[Ravnos]

I have one named Gumby. I agree, they are very smart. I did a few experiments with food items and found that no matter how many live food items (meal worms, crickets, earthworms) I put in the bowl - he will only kill enough to fill him up. And he kills how many he wants first, making a big pile of corpses, -then- eats them. Its really quite amusing to watch.

I also keep mine in on cypress mulch, mixed with a little organic humus to let it 'stick' and allow him to make tunnels.

My question is, do you guys keep UV on yours? I've found some conflicting information on this, since they are burrowers.

Rav

 

[Love to Foxtrot]

I do not keep Boris under UV lights because he hates any type of bright light above his tank and will not come out of his hide box! I tried it for a week and did not see him once until the lights were turned off. Also, I have never seen any proof that they benefit from UV because of their chosen lifestyle.

Aubrey

 

[Professor T]

Club Sheltopusik

Thank you all for sharing your experience, I already share your enthusiasm for this species. I was happy and a bit surprised to find other sheltopusikeepers.

I agree with the opinion that UV light isn't necessary on these lizards like it would be for a desert species (brearded dragons) or a tropical species (iguanas). This is just my opinion based on their natural habitat.

I have a few more questions. What size tank do you keep them in? Do they do well at room temperature? Is it common for them to rub their nose to the point of scaring?

 

[Wade]

We have one at the nature center that we use as a program animal. We do give it UV during the day, but it's probably not needed. We also provide a 60 watt lamp at one end for heat. Other than that, the cage is at ambiant room temperature, around 78 most of the time.

We feed him earthworms every other day and pinkies once a week. He gets really excited about the pinkies. Once he had a problem with little sores appearing on his skin, and we figured out that uneaten crickets were nibbling on his skin. Now, we only feed crickets from forcepts and no longer let them loose in the cage.

Also, my understanding is that unlike the North American legless lizards, they do not drop their tails, at least according to one article I read.

Wade

 

[Mojo Jojo]

A good story to tell a kid is that legless lizards are actually kids that were turned into a snakes by witches.

Bring one home right after the kids get done watching Scooby Doo and tell them that they need to clean their room so you don't take them to the witches house.

Jon

 

[Weapon-X]

re

whoa! those are neat, i can't beleave i never really heard of them before, they don't sound hard to keep really, pretty unique reptile i'm gonna do some reading on them and maybe get one sometime looks cool. Jeff

 

[Weapon-X]

re

do you guys know where i can find one of those for sale? i did a search and could'nt find any for sale ? are they rare?. Jeff

 

[Wade]

They're not super common, but I see them offered from time to time. European herps are often not easy to come by in the US, but I think they are bred here sometimes. If I remember correctly, they are bred by Agama International for one.

Wade

 

[Weapon-X]

re

ok cool, thanks wade, i guess that would explain why i can't seem to find any just with a random search. jeff

 

[Professor T]

Re: re

Originally posted by Weapon-X
do you guys know where i can find one of those for sale? i did a search and could'nt find any for sale ? are they rare?. Jeff

Jeff,

I got mine at Ben Siegel Reptiles in Sarasota, FL. Try the link below:

Ben Siegel Reptiles

 

[Professor T]

Originally posted by Wade




Also, my understanding is that unlike the North American legless lizards, they do not drop their tails, at least according to one article I read.

Wade

Wade,

Would you grab yours by the tail, and let me know if it drops it? I'm really curious about it, but I'm afraid to try it. If you saw the movie "A Christmas Story", then I double dog dare you! ;P

Thanks for all that great information. I fed mine a pinkie mouse, 4 wax worms, and a cricket today. Mine is in my classroom at 68-70 F, and its active and eating, so they can take it cool.

They are the funniest reptile I have ever owned. =D

 

[Wade]

Well, I've never actually tried to get it to drop it's tail, but we do handle it frequently in the course of doing our programs. It will roll and writhe around when it gets sick of it, but the tail has remained firmly attached.

Our NA legless lizards (and most legged as well), on the other hand, will drop tail with very little reluctance. Hence the common name "glass snake" as it appears to "break" in half!

Wade

 

[Professor T]

Double dog dare!

Originally posted by Wade
Well, I've never actually tried to get it to drop it's tail, but we do handle it frequently in the course of doing our programs. It will roll and writhe around when it gets sick of it, but the tail has remained firmly attached.

Our NA legless lizards (and most legged as well), on the other hand, will drop tail with very little reluctance. Hence the common name "glass snake" as it appears to "break" in half!

Wade

OK then, I'm going to skip the triple dog dare, and go right to the triple sheltopusik dare! I triple sheltopusik dare you to grab it by the tail

 

[da_illest]

Originally posted by Ravnos
I have one named Gumby. I agree, they are very smart. I did a few experiments with food items and found that no matter how many live food items (meal worms, crickets, earthworms) I put in the bowl - he will only kill enough to fill him up. And he kills how many he wants first, making a big pile of corpses, -then- eats them. Its really quite amusing to watch.

I also keep mine in on cypress mulch, mixed with a little organic humus to let it 'stick' and allow him to make tunnels.

My question is, do you guys keep UV on yours? I've found some conflicting information on this, since they are burrowers.

Rav

that thing looks like a monster in a movie! it's pretty freaky but cool

 

[Phillip]

I'm not sure if Bert ( Agama International ) still breeds them or not but he is as knowledgeable about them as anyone and is real good about answering questions if you drop him an e-mail or call them.

Phil

 

[Professor T]

earthworms

Mine eats wax worms, crickets, and pinkie mice well. But earthworms seem to be a favorite. When I hold a prey item on forceps, it opens its mouth and takes it in slow motion

These shelopusiks are too funny for words.

 

[Love to Foxtrot]

My Boris does the same thing when I feed him nightcrawlers from my fingers. It seems like he tries to avoid biting my fingers on purpose, and he has never even come close to nipping me. I'm glad because he has an unbelievably hard bite when I have had to try to give him dewormer. He once clamped so hard on a tongue depressor at the herp vet's office that no one could get it out of his mouth until he decided to give it back, and when he released it, it was crushed!
As far as food preference, Boris has stopped eating everything except canned low fat dog food, nightcrawlers, and f/t pinkie mice. Not the most balanced diet, but it is keeping him in good weight.

Aubrey