Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey guys,

Well i was cruising through LLL reptile in Escondido....when i saw this totally SICK baby Egyptian Uromasystx.....I totally fell in love with the little tyke....

Now before you go thinking that i am some total noob, let me fill you in on what i have kept in the past....

4 Panther Chameleons
8 bearded dragons
1 Giant Leaftailed Gecko
1 Blue Tongue Skink
2 Chinese Water Dragons
2 Mellers chameleons (produced one CB 1 myself)
3 Leopard Geckos

I consider myself pretty herp savy....

What would you guys say is a minimum cage size? Who is a good person to buy from? Is there another uromaystx that might be better suited for me (i have a spare 55 gallon tank)?
Im open to ideas and opinions....
-----
Eric

I fight for the unconventional
My right, and its unconditional
I can only, be as real as i can
The disadvantage is
I never knew the plan
This isnt the way just to be a martyr
I cant, walk alone any longer
I fight, for the ones that cant fight
And if I lose, at least I tried....
(Slipknotulse of the Maggots)

Whether uros are for you depends greatly upon what you want in a reptile and are able to provide for the animal.

gallons is not a great way to determine if an enclosure is appropriate. Please measure the length & width of your 55 gallon... 2x3 feet is a good **starter** tank for an egyptian baby. That's the minimum size for small uros, it's necessary for you to have this much room to establish a proper environmental gradient.

Egyptians are pretty massive critters, compared to the other species, usually over 20 inches long, the biggest ones top out at 30 inches! For an enclosure size for juvies or adults you should plan on a minimum size enclosure 2x the uro's length by 3x the length of the uro. for a 20 inch uro that is a minimum of 3x5 feet. for a 30 inch uro that is a minimum of 5x7.5 feet. If you have that amount of room, you then have to consider heating that enclosure. I don't know about you, but I am not ready for that level of commitment, no matter how great egyptians can be.

Why don't you look into malis and ornates? You will probably need to upgrade from a 55 gallon 'breeder' to a 2x4 enclosure, but it should be okay for 1.5 to 2 years...

IF you decide a uro is right for you, and that is only after doing a lot of research (a good care sheet to start out at is deerfernfarms.com) please get one from a reputable breeder. There are a lot of unhealthy wild caught uros available at petshops and reptile shows.

--benedita

I would definitely not buy a uro from a pet store.Your best bet is getting it from a reputable breeder like Doug Dix of deerfernfarms.com.I purchased my uro from him and was extremely happy with him as have many other people.Egyptians will need a very large cage as they can get to almost 3 feet in length.I would say they are more of a display pet.You can't keep them out of there cages for long as their body temp.would drop.Why not get a mali or ornate uro? Male mali's can get up to 16 inches when fully grown and ornates tend to be a bit smaller.Before you buy one do some research,research and more research!
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Cajit

URO'S RULE ALL!!!

1.0 Mali Uromastyx (OZ) DOUG DIX

Yeah, I'm HERE TOO ! I have an Egyptian female, large girl and always growing. Like the other posters said you could start with your 55 if ya get a youngster but when they begin to grow, you have to go as big as you can with these monsters.

And one thing I would like to mention, NOT SO COOL PART, if you have any problem cleaning up MESS than these are not for you , LOL when big they leave quite a large load and if your not around, and they walk in it all day you have an enclosure to clean as well as a very large lizard to scrub

I'm here all day so I pretty much get the wiff when it first happens. They have large appetites also, so lots of salad is a must. My girl gets pretty antsy if her food is not there each day.

They are awesome, no doubt but so need time and work to keep them happy and healthy as does any animal. You have to do your reading, continue to ask questions and decide for yourself if you would have the time and space for one of these COOL creatures!

Cleo, female egyptian

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PHEve / Eve

Contact PHEve

Yeah I also Have to agree you would be so much better off and happier if you decide on one to get it from a breeder. The breeders on top of the Uro page are very well known and reliable.

I know my buddy Linsday Pike from Urotopia, usually has a nice one ore two. Babies and sometimes an older one. I had just seen one in the Kingsnake classifieds from Linsday, I belive a 2 year older.
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PHEve / Eve

Contact PHEve

She's a beautiful behemoth!
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Cajit

URO'S RULE ALL!!!

1.0 Mali Uromastyx (OZ) DOUG DIX

From your list, you certainly have far more experience with reptiles than me, and my uromastyx is my first (and only) reptile and he's happy and healthy. I'm sure that someone with more experience can easily keep a uro.

I do not want to get a reputation for defending pet stores since I've made some similar posts in the past, but for what it's worth, Bruce came from a chain store and he's perfectly healthy. One nice thing about buying from a store in my opinion is that you can actually see the animal you are purchasing. Not pictures, and not a description. You can see the actual animal. I had every intention of buying from a breeder (non naming), but there simply wasn't any customer service there. Multiple emails went unanswered so i started shopping locally. Plenty will disagree with me on this point, but that's my $0.02.

JR
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BRUCELIZARD.COM Curious? Thought So.

Well guys im going to totally get one! I am in the process of setting up a cage for the dude.....planning on a 3'x5'x1'......would this work? If not, tell me, because i dont want to get all excited and then have to get rid of it! UGH! But actually i might just downsize then to a mali or somethin....

Anyways, in case you guys didnt know LLL Reptile isnt your everyday reptile store....they are very smart and honest and i feel comfortable buying from them....BUT i am planning on buying from a breeder.....breeders ONLY breed uros....so they are D@MN geniouses....

Hey PHEve i dont mind huge terds to clean up....pros/cons right! LOL....Didnt know you dropped by here.....thats SICK DUDE!

BTW what do you guys use for a substrate? Im thinking of going with sand because i have used sand for a while and are comfortable working with it.....

Keep it real and relaxed dudes!
-----
Eric

I fight for the unconventional
My right, and its unconditional
I can only, be as real as i can
The disadvantage is
I never knew the plan
This isnt the way just to be a martyr
I cant, walk alone any longer
I fight, for the ones that cant fight
And if I lose, at least I tried....
(Slipknotulse of the Maggots)

A 3'x5'x1'? The 3x5 might be big enough (I would go bigger), but 12 inches probably won't be enough height for an Egyptian cage. I would aim for at least 2 feet in height, otherwise you risk them burning themselves if they glass dance.
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Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Saharan Uros (Joe and Arthur)
3.1 Mali Uros (Spike, Turtle, Tank, and Lilly)
1.1 Ornate Uros (Scuttlebutt and Shazzbot)
2.1 Green Anoles (Bowser, Sprocket, Leeloo)
1.1 Felis domesticus (Roscolux and Jenny)

I would build a larger enclosure then 3 by 5 and at least 2 feet high for an Egyptian.If you decide to use sand use washed and screened play-sand it's sold in most hardware stores in 40-50 pound bags.I also run it through a fine screen myself to make sure there are no large pieces they missed and it helps cut down on dust.Buy one from a breeder it may cost a little more but that breeder will always be available if you have any questions or problems down the road.Good luck!!!
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Cajit

URO'S RULE ALL!!!

1.0 Mali Uromastyx (OZ) DOUG DIX

Like, totally, we're all "dudes" now?

I recommend you do not purchase from the store you saw the sick one at. The Uro I received from them came with parasites, worms and 2nd degree burns. Look around a lot if you are going to make a purchase, be sure that they sell healthy animals and guarantee it.