Mongrove monitor

[BlueTongueNewbie]

ya all i got are books and web stuff, most of the stuff i read is on adults, my guy fits in my hand. i just want him 2 be happy

[BlueTongueNewbie]

here was his for sale pic, my web cam aint working

[BlueTongueNewbie]

omg i was trying to feed him some meal worms, and he crawled into the old cup of the last batch of meal worms, its empty and he went 2 sleep, there is no lid on it, omg hes so cute, hes curled into a little ball and when i rub his head his tail wraps around my finger.

[razeraze]

You are scaring the heck out of him. I would suggest you don't handle him at all, but see if he will take food from you, holding hemostats. Did you read the link I sent you on diet? Try to get as close to a natural diet as possible but do not feed goldfish. Make the substrate at least 8 inches deep and it should be made of soil, cypress mulch, peat moss and play sand.

Expect 3-4 feet TL in a year, if fed properly and not frequently stressed by handling.

[BlueTongueNewbie]

Originally Posted by razeraze

You are scaring the heck out of him. I would suggest you don't handle him at all, but see if he will take food from you, holding hemostats. Did you read the link I sent you on diet? Try to get as close to a natural diet as possible but do not feed goldfish. Make the substrate at least 8 inches deep and it should be made of soil, cypress mulch, peat moss and play sand.

Expect 3-4 feet TL in a year, if fed properly and not frequently stressed by handling.

ya i read it, idk what 2 feed him i tried meal worms and all that, im just go get some pinkies i guess.

[BlueTongueNewbie]

finnaly, i called up a zoo and asked them what 2 feed him. they said to try dead or live pinkies and feed him 3 times a week about 2-4 pinkies each feeding.

also shes mellowed out she climbs up my arms and relaxes alot more now. ive decided on incu as her name. i took her to the vet, as i posted. and shes clean, the vet guy couldent tell if it was male or female. said to come back in a month or two. tommarow, im moving her into her new cage, im also gonna go pick her up some pinkies. i got some of this bark/mulch stuff, should i mis it with anything?

uhm, i let her swim in the bath tub ^_^, god she was happy, shed stop float poke her head at me and dive.

shes so beutiful, she has just the most beutiful and soft skin, shes gentle yet strong, this is an amazing animal, no.....an amazing marvel of nature. she likes to run around still but more when she is in her cage, im trying to find some plants(live) that i got a list of from the zoo.

i hope you guys are proud of me im making it so this anmal is happy and healthy, im gonna make this reptile a prize for any keeper, yet im not giving her up.

id like to thank raz, hes the main reason, i even know what im doing, i know he may not like me, but hes one smart mofo, and he knows what he does, and he does it well

[ssjsmits]

Great! I'm glad you are really putting the effort for the monitor. Good for you.
.
Give it a nice, long life.....with you!.

[razeraze]

A lot here.

First the zoo was wrong, do not feed a mostly pinkie diet, because rodents are high in fat and I believe not good for monitors smaller than Salvators, Albigularis, Salvadorii, Komodoensis. If you are going to offer rodents do it about 1 time a week, make the other 6 days fish, crabs, insects, worms, snails or other prey on the list I gave you. Here it is again.

"mangrove swamps they prey largely on crabs (Dryden 1965, Uchida 1967, McCoy 1980). They also take small mammals, snails, birds and their eggs, other lizards, the eggs and young of turtles and crocodiles, slugs, worms and a variety of insects (Tanner 1951; Swanson 1976; Webb et al 1977, Dryden & Taylor 1969, Losos & Greene 1988). In captivity they prey avidly on fish and these are probably taken in the wild where conditions permit. Traeholt (1993) noted that water monitors appeared unable to catch fish in deep water, but mangrove monitors appear to have no such problems and in captivity have been known to polish off large (and expensive) shoals of rainbowfish in just a few hours (Behler, pers.comm.). The fact that prey animals are taken from underwater, on and below the ground and from trees testifies to the ubiquitous behaviour of this monitor lizard. They swim and dive as well as any other goanna, can climb with great agility, leap from high trees or rocks and can dig proficiently (Hediger 1943, Bustard 1970). In some areas they spend most of their time in the water, either resting or looking for food, whilst elsewhere they are more terrestrial in habit." This is from Daniel Bennetts site here: varanus indicus

Here is another one: "The diet of V. indicus consists of small mammals, insects, crabs, bird eggs, birds, and other lizards. A study done in the Northern Mariana Islands and the Territory of Guam between the years of 1989 and 1991 showed the diet of V. indicus, in non-urban settings, consisted of 45% arthropods, 13.6% terrestrial crabs, 27.2% scincid and gekkonid lizards and their eggs, 4.5% of Ramphotyphlops braminus, and rats made of the rest of the diet, at 9.1%. In urban situations, additional food in their diet included domesticated chicken eggs, squid (a common fishing bait), and aluminum butter wrappers."
Form here: Mangrove Monitor Lizards

I would also suggest getting a new vet. You will not know the sex until the monitor is 2-3 feet TL. That will not happen in a month and may never happen if you keep handling it. Get it to come to you for food other than that leave it alone.

[BlueTongueNewbie]

im not holding him at all, i rub his head when he basks, and he dosent mind

BUT HE REFUSES TO EAT!!

i got pinkies, shellfish, ive tried meal worms, im go get some crickets 2 marrow. he has a basking spot that varys depending on how high the branch he climbs, he has a pool of water, and about 7 inches of substright which he burrows in.

[razeraze]

Originally Posted by BlueTongueNewbie

im not holding him at all, i rub his head when he basks, and he dosent mind

BUT HE REFUSES TO EAT!!

i got pinkies, shellfish, ive tried meal worms, im go get some crickets 2 marrow. he has a basking spot that varys depending on how high the branch he climbs, he has a pool of water, and about 7 inches of substright which he burrows in.

Do not touch him and post a pic of your cage. Leave the food in a bowl over night and be sure the room is quiet and dark.