Posted by:
holygouda
at Wed Oct 17 18:58:18 2007 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by holygouda ]
Okay. Just so you know, I don't keep Melinus, but I think lots of this information will still apply to you.
You say it is a terrarium, does it have a screen top? If so, cover it with something. That, in conjunction with your heat lamp will wipe out any chance of you keeping humidity in. I just remove the screens and use wood to cover, but just covering it with something should work okay. Get the humidity up! Its important they are not dehydrated.
Try to get your basking spot a little higher...like 130 degrees. You can do that by raising the level of the substrate. I would also try to get the cool side of the cage to be cooler than 80(mid or low 70s). Using a lower wattage bulb(45w) or multiple bulbs will allow you to build a basking spot close to the bulb and heat that specific area instead of the entire cage. Offering your monitors a large range of temps and humidity will allow them to choose what they prefer. They are smart and know what they need.
Cypress mulch is not ideal but it's not the worst. Regular dirt works great. Some people cover the dirt with leaf litter, but I have not tried that. I have also tried the sand/topsoil mix and to me it seems that the dirt got the most usage. The idea is to use a substrate that will hold a burrow. Cypress mulch doesn't do that.
As far as hides, logs don't do much. Allow them to completely hide from everything. A dark, very tight place they can squeeze into. Build a stack with random pieces of wood they can wedge themselves into and not be seen. They love love love to hide.
I have a feeling it is regurgitating because it is stressed. Don't touch them. Cover the cage with a towel if you need to. Let them get situated before adding yourself into the equation. Open the cage just to feed them, clean and humidify.
See if they will eat when you leave the room. I had a monitor that would regurgitate when I was around but would eat when I left. I think he hated me. haha.
I would recommend feeding whole prey items such as mice/rats...etc. Crickets are fine too(I recommend supplementing insects) but my monitor stopped eating those after a couple months old. Eggs and ground turkey are less ideal.
See if any of that helps. Good luck, dude.
And post some pics of your wonderful species! After they are eating and no longer stressed of course.
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