Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Does anyone have any info on Brown Rough Neck Monitors (or Black Rough Necks as well, I suppose). How large do they get, what does their diet consist of, caging requirements, and most importantly, temperment (In general...I have a texas ratsnake who is tamer than my cornsnake, so I know each animal is an idividual).

Thanks!!!

- Jenn
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- JENN ROSE -
www.jennrose.com

0.1.0 classic corn~ "Pumpkin"
1.0.0 leucistic texas ratsnake~ "Worm"

I have a pair. I feed mostly mice, but I do offer some crab, crawdads, or shrimp. The temperament of mine is calmer than any other type I have owned. They are so calm that I can pet them on the head. That is something I would not try with a lot of the monitors I have kept. Their main drawback is a tendency to eviscerate their prey. I strongly recommend them to anyone looking to start keeping monitors.

My enclosure is 4x4x7 with a lot of climbing area, deep substrate, and a place to soak in water. They love to be in water, trees, and in a burrow.

I can’t answer max size since I don’t have a very large one. Mine are 3 feet long and about 2 pounds. There are larger ones

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Ed

Dum's and Rudi's are both great monitors, assuming you can get healthy, strong individuals. that is the real opening challenge.

they are typically available only as wild caught monitors, they stress very easily, acclimate very poorly, and die very quickly.

there have been some u.s. captive bred Dum's available recently, those would be a MUCH better choice to start with, but as a first monitor, i would not recommend either species.

they are challenging to establish, and you must be able to read and react quickly to the animals to get them started on the right foot. if they are your first monitor, you may not even understand the language of the communication, much less be able to react quickly enough to stave off disaster.

as a third or fourth monitor experience, they are much easier to understand and keep successfully. i love the species, but i don't love that 95% of them die within a short time of new customer acquisition. be careful : )
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robyn@proexotics.com

Pro Exotics Reptiles

Thank you for this. It's nice to hear info from someone who "isn't trying to make a sale". I handled a Dumeril at a petstore near me today. It was a wildcaught sub-adult. It appeared quite healthy...although I am well aware that I have not read up on monitors nearly enough to be able to identify the signs of an unhealthy lizard, aside from anything that would be blatently obvious. He was a joy to interact with though...calmed right down in my hands, and wasn't headshy in the least. I absolutely adored him...but the well-being of the animal is my top priority...and if they're not an ideal "starter" monitor, that's good to know, and changes things alot.

That being said, I wasn't handling him with an intent of purchasing him. It was more out of a curiosity of what it was like to interact with one in the first place. Of course the guy at the store was telling me how easy they were to care for...but he also has bills to pay.

I have no intention of getting one at this time, because I have no where to put an enclosure large enough (if I were to ever get a monitor, I'd want to be able to give it as much room as possible...I'm all for spoiling my pets.) I also would want to purchase one from a breeder...not wildcaught. And yeah, I really don't know how to read their body language...all I currently have experience with right now are snakes.

What, in your opinion, does make a good starter monitor?
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- JENN ROSE -
www.jennrose.com

0.1.0 classic corn~ "Pumpkin"
1.0.0 leucistic texas ratsnake~ "Worm"

I commend you on your willingness to learn and your desire to do what is best for your future captive (there are many who could benefit from this mentality). Best of luck... you are setting forth with a terrific mindset and I'm certain that Monitor keeping will be a wonderful experience for you when the timing is right.

Jennifer Guerra (formerly Jennifer Webb)
Jungle Gems Exotics
www.JungleGemsExotics.com

Jennifer is right, that approach is great to hear.

let me restate, the Black and Brown Roughnecks (Dumeril's and Rudicolis) are great monitors, in the right situation.

a wild caught animal like the one you saw can look "ok" for a couple of weeks after arrival, it is the next month or two that is the most difficult. anorexia, parasite load, parasite treatment, stress, poor husbandry by a keeper that doesn't have enough experience, that all combines to create the death blow to these poor monitor choices.

monitors can be very rewarding and a lot of fun to keep. if you have interest in the monitor world, start with the Ackies. a smaller monitor, only captive bred, lots of personality, comparitively hearty, and the perfect choice for a beginner.

Ackies are easily our overall choice for a pet monitor. read more about them at our site, in our caresheets and FAQ. we don't have any Ackies for sale now either, so no sale motivation here. our primary goal is to see that folks have a great reptile experience, making the right choices, at the right times, with access to the right information : )
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robyn@proexotics.com

Pro Exotics Reptiles

Thanks so much. I'll definatly look into Akies.

Yeah, it makes me crazy seeing people diving into reptile keeping, only to either kill the animal, or have the animal end up in a shelter months later. My boyfriends idiot brother once found an Albino Cali Kingsnake infront of his house (I think it may have been an escaped pet, because I know it's not that common to find albinos just crawling around). He brought it home, put it in a cage with no heat, and it became sluggish. He then threw in a live mouse wich, a. was far too large for the snake, and b. wasn't stunned in the least, and it attacked and killed the snake. Of course, I didn't find any of this out until months after the incident, and it infuriated me to no end. And I hate looking at Animal Shelter sites and seening the countless Iguannas, Monitors and large snakes that people buy and abondon once they grow too big.

I seem to be the complete opossite and tend to research for months on end before actually getting anything, but it pays off, because my snakes are healthy, growing like weeds, never refuse a meal, and are puppy dog tame.

Again, thank you so much for taking the time to respond and offer so much information. It's greatly appreciated!
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- JENN ROSE -
www.jennrose.com

0.1.0 classic corn~ "Pumpkin"
1.0.0 leucistic texas ratsnake~ "Worm"