Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have had a huge male Ukraine Giant Legless Lizard(Boris) for a little over three years now, and I think he is one of the most fascinating creatures I have ever owned . He is around 4 feet long now, and so much fun to keep. How many other people here have them, or have had them? I don't know anyone else who has experience in keeping this species, and I am always looking for other enthusiasts to talk to about care/husbandry/breeding?/etc.

I just got one so I haven't had much expierience with them, but so far mine is neat. I keep mine in a glass tank with bark substrate and some moss with a hide at each end, large water dish, a UTH and a basking bulb during the day. What do you feed yours/how often? Just want to make sure I'm doing everything right

You will really enjoy keeping this species! Boris is very picky, he prefers to eat canned dog food(only beef flavor, and only one kind of texture!), nightcrawlers, and leftover pinky mice chopped up. When I used to be able to get Waxworms, he loved those, too. Other people say that their Sheltopusiks eat things like crickets and mealworms....but not Boris. Also, he seems to do best at room temperature around the mid 70's, and he HATES basking lights, so I got rid of it. If it becomes too hot, he gets really agitated and tries to soak in his dish, so I just keep him at room temp. He is on Repti-Bark right now, and he seems really comfortable on it. I kept him on newspaper for years(vet recommendation for parasite checks), but I like him on the Repti-Bark. I feed him about twice a week, a little less often if he is getting too fat. He seems to fall down more often when he is climbing if he is overweight!
I hope this helps you! Let me know if you have questions about anything else, and I can tell you what I know!

Thanks for the information. I tryed dog food and mine likes it too. It's so much easier than feeding him strictly insects.

I got a pair literally an hour ago! they are pretty coool. i cant wait to set up their enclosure.

the female made a squeaking noise when i picked her up and spun around. i read that they are not the most handelable animals.

anyone have success breeding them?

thanks

Lizard

I have a small group of them

I've fed them earthworms, slugs, crickets, tropical roaches, superworms, butterworms, silkworms, hornworms, beetles, quail eggs, and the odd pinky mouse...but their ultimate favourite is garden snails, haven't met a sheltopusik yet that could refuse them! try them, and watch your lizards smile at you lol....just make sure they are small enough for them to crunch up. Adult apodus have no problems crunching any size garden snail...

Dog food can only lead to renal system problems over time therefore I'd advise against it, try to stick to live and natural prey items.

There is very limited information out there about this species as it is often overlooked as a cheap or throw away type reptile.....very unfortunate for such a great and responsive lizard.

I have made some observations while keeping them that are not written anywhere, however I want to work with them longer, attain more specimens, and cross reference a few people before coming forward with some of my findings.

very interesting captives indeed, good luck everyone!

Chris

Hey Chris,

thanks for your information. I just got a pair Friday. the female stays hidden in the substrate alot (cypress mulch). the male, he is more bolder and tries to get away. i fed him some nitecrawlers today but the female didnt seem interested.

I dont have any heat source on them as it's pretty warm out and it doesnt seem to be bothering them.

do they need a large water pan?

also, i put in some crickets but they dont seem interested. they dont seem that quick to me so I dunno how they would catch a cricket! when the male would eat the worms he did it pretty slowly and deliberately. no sudden lunges or anything.

did you have any success breeding yours?

i grealy appreciate any info you can give to us.

Steve

Hey Steve,

At first, they will seem shy and sluggish...give them time, if they are fresh WC's(which they most likely are), they've been through a hell of a lot before you bought them....I usually keep mine in a snake rack when first acquiring them, with a few inches of mulch, a water bowl, and a hiding spot....cork bark works well...this keeps them from being disturbed and stressed.

After they've somewhat acclimated to captivity, you can move them to a minimum 40 gallon aquarium with a small heat pad on one end...I'm experimenting with a few specimens and UVB bulbs, so stay tuned...

One thing is for sure, they don't all eat the same prey items at first....some prefer nightcrawlers, others superworms, silkworms or crickets. No sheltopusik will refuse a garden snail or small african giant land snail! Snails will always get a trouble feeder going.

Try feeding them from a pair of hemostats, this is sometimes a good trick...rub their nose a bit with the food item, and they'll taste it with their tongue....this is sometimes enough. I've also had experience with them get irritated enough to grab the item and start slamming it around.

After a few weeks your slow, sluggish lizard should become a voracious killing machine. The cricket that seemed impossible to be caught before, will get hammered in seconds. Don't throw a bunch in the enclosure, better to feed them one at a time(they get confused with too much action lol)

You should also de-worm your shetopusiks a few weeks after they start eating, and once a year after that seeing as garden snails and nightcrawlers harbor parasites...

Spray them with water before bed and in the morning and you should have one happy healthy lizard. Hope all this helps everyone.

I haven't bred them yet, but it sure is a goal of mine for the near future...

all the best,

Chris

Chris,

Thanks for the info. yesterday I did the get female to eat a little. I have them for now in a 50 gallon storage container with a water dish and cypress mulch for substrate w hich they like to burrow into.

I tried hamburger; and i got the female to eat a piece from my hand but she didnt seem interested after that. the male eats anything i offer. he loves nite crawlers and he eat the hamburger no problem. i heard dog food can give them renal probelms so i dont want to offer meat too often.

I know about them liking snails, just havnet gotten any.

my lizards have gotten more active. the female especially tries to crawl up and out of the cage. i can pick them up now and they dont seem to mind if i do it gently and not suddenly. i did put in some crickets but never saw them eat; the crickets are gone so they must have eaten them...

steve