Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have recently rescued 1.1 mali's from the humane society. I have never owned two at a time that lived together. I have given them two weeks to acclimate, not messed with them, and only ensured they had appropriate food, otherwise have stayed out of their enclosure. I kept them seperate to acclimate individually, and today I attempted to introduce them to each other. They immediately did what I thought might happen and began the fighting ritual, flared flat bodies, head to tail and tail to head, the female began biting the male's tail and I immediately seperated them again. Is this worth attempting again? Should I give it a longer trial, if so how long? Is there a particular way to do this? After I sperated them again, in the same cage where I have a removable wall that keeps them apart, they began to dig frantically towards each other. I was not sure if they wanted to fight again or what. Thanks

It sounds to me like you got a pair that doesn't get along. They may not have even tolerated each other very well when they were together before you separated them. Not all uros can live in pairs, and sometimes it's just hit or miss whether you get two that stand each other or two that fight. My guess is that once they start to fight, it's over and you'll have to either get two separate tanks, take one back, or try to find someone responsible to adopt one off your hands. Even two that get along for a few months can randomly turn violent.

Some other members might have some sort of trick to make em get along, but I've never seen a reply to a "uros fighting" thread that even suggests it.

Introducing lizards to one another has to be handled much the same way as introducing Cichlids, especially if you're introducing a male to a female (I'd rather go female to male). Change everything around in the enclosure so that neither has a territory to defend. Offer numerous hides. Start them out on neutral ground. They should be of relatively equal size. Still expect some initial posturing but give it a few days unless it gets too nippy.
Even still, some just won't accept each other.
One thought I have for pairing is to introduce them right before brumation (if brumation is in your plans). I'll bet a dollar to a donut that the groggy "awakening" will produce a couple lovers.
Just thoughts...