Why monitors aren't for everyone.

[Jmugleston]

Monitors are beautiful lizards, but they are not the best pet species by far. One of our Varanus yuwonoi sustained an injury so I am taking her out daily for treatments. She bit the syringe last night and these fell out:

Not the largest teeth, but enough to make you wish you had bought a bearded dragon. Now add claws and the difficulty of providing a proper cage and you can see quickly how they can be a handful.

 

[moose35]

i know what you are saying...i used to have a pretty big female water monitor.
she was dog tame and i used to hand feed her...but 1 day she clipped 1 of my fingers just barely with 1 tooth and i was cut wide open.
it scared me then to think what she could do if she really wanted to.

but i still loved her.
i need to find some pics now huh?


moose

 

[Dyn]

Me and a friend have 2 croc monitors one 6 1/2 the other about 5 1/2 foot long that we are planning on breeding. I'm more into the snakes mainly retics, but he LOVES monitors.

These are monitors that not just anyone would have. While I havent been bit. I have been clawed by them when we have to remove them to clean their cage. I would HATE to be bitten by one after seeing their teeth and what they do to a rat in just one bit.


There are some monitors that anyone interested in a medium sized lizard can deal with. Mainly the ackies they dont really excite me much but I am planning on getting a breeding trio of yellows and reds because they are so nice.


And wow I just looked up Varanus yuwonoi (I'm not that great with scientific names of monitors besides V. salvadorii and V. salvator). They are really awesome. Could you post a few pictures of her if you get a chance?

 

[Jmugleston]

Yeah the smaller monitors are great pets. I currently work with ackies and tristis specifically to sell them to beginning monitor keepers. The other species (crocs, niles, waters, etc) are definitely not good pets and should only be kept by the few of us that are crazy enough to devote the space, time, money, and sometimes blood.

Here is an older pic of one of my V. yuwonoi. I have a trio now, but I'm trying to acquire a few more that I found recently.

Good luck with your V. salvadorii. They are incredible lizards. I have a few scars on my arms from a couple mistakes I made a few years ago with one of my croc monitors.

 

[Dyn]

beautiful lizards

once you get them breeding I'll probably be interested in some babies.

 

[zonbonzovi]

Hey JMug- would you mind putting up a list of beginner species & provide a link for basic requirements of them? I'm not interested in getting one anytime soon, but for possible future reference/determining if I'm a good canidate for ownership...

 

[andy375hh]

My friend had a Nile monitor that was about 5 to 6 feet long in a custom enclosure and it got mad one day and smashed the glass and the side of the 3/4 inch plywood like it was nothing. They are fun to watch eat though but definently not for everyone.

 

[Jmugleston]

Hey JMug- would you mind putting up a list of beginner species & provide a link for basic requirements of them? I'm not interested in getting one anytime soon, but for possible future reference/determining if I'm a good canidate for ownership...

Based on adult size, price, and ease of care the best choices for a "pet" monitor would be:
Varanus acanthurus (Ackies) They range from about $250.00-$300.00
V. tristis tristis(mourning or black headed monitors) a bit more skittish than ackies, but not difficult to care for.
V. timorensis (Timor monitors) Another small monitors that is a typcially a bit cheaper than the others.

The other dwarf monitors are quite a bit more expensive so I didn't include them here. None of the larger monitors should be a first step into varanids. The biggest problem with keeping monitors is they are very active lizards. They eat a lot, and they need a lot of space. The dwarf monitors seem to be more forgiving for the most part. Plus they give you the same personality of the bigger guys, but not nearly as much hassle. It's 2 am. I'm a bit tired. I'll post links to carsheets of the easier to care for monitors later this week.

On the other end the absolute worse pet monitors that are sometimes in pet stores are:
V. niloticus. They get big and they don't typically tolerate their keepers.
V. salvadorii Same as above only bigger and in my opinion even more dangerous.
V. salvator They can be nice, probably one of the most calm of the giants, but they get too big for most. An eight foot cage is not large enough for a 6 foot lizard. They need room sized enclosures.
V. prasinus Care is too specialized for most newbies.
Pretty much any monitor that gets large. Until you have experience with the smaller species, it is best to stay away from the larger ones.

 

[dragonblade71]

Monitor lizards certainly do require respect. Some years ago on Thursday Island (an island off Australia) part of a man's ear was bitten off by a monitor lizard. The guy was an artist who liked to live amongst nature though I have no idea how he got himself into that unfortunate situation.

 

[micheldied]

yeap...they have some nice dentures.
i kept a hatchling i found for a bit.
he regularly whipped me and bit me once.
with a head no longer than 2" and such tiny teeth,he really did a lot of damage.
at least he didnt run when i held him.

 

[BorisTheSpider]

Had one once . Very painful bite .

 

[dtknow]

not much care info on Timor monitors out there. Also, I understand they are flightly(and tend not to tame) and reach 4 feet TL?(seems pretty big compared to ackies etc.)

How about the Savannah monitor? Varanus exanthematicus? I understand it reaches about 4 feet thick bodied and it mannerisms is similar to a tegu. This being the most common monitor available we better cover it in this topic.

 

[Jmugleston]

not much care info on Timor monitors out there. Also, I understand they are flightly(and tend not to tame) and reach 4 feet TL?(seems pretty big compared to ackies etc.)

How about the Savannah monitor? Varanus exanthematicus? I understand it reaches about 4 feet thick bodied and it mannerisms is similar to a tegu. This being the most common monitor available we better cover it in this topic.

Timors are lacking in information, but see V. similis or even V. tristis for similar care instructions. They are shy so multiple hides (especially with multiple animals) will help them settle in. They shouldn't get more than ~2 feet.

Savs are bigger. They require more room to roam, dig, etc. They eat larger prey (more expensive...much more expensive to feed properly) There are a number of good "care guide" style books for savs. I wouldn't recommend a savanna monitor for a first time pet monitor though.