Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Has anyone had success taming a nile monitor???

Yes, the vast majority of people get them so "tame" that they don't even move and start to smell bad (dead ones don't bite).

Don't get a Nile you are not ready for one if you are asking that question. There are many better choices out there that will be a more rewarding experience. Niles are demanding captives if nothing else due to their large size. Most newbs will reply that they can handle it but how could you know if that is your first monitor. Better to make your first monitor something like ackies that are more within the range of the average keeper to provide for.

Steve

Can Niles be "tamed"? Possibly.

If you're asking that question tho, there are way better choices for a pet reptile, and honestly, if you want something *tame*, go get a gecko or a dog or something. If you want a tame pet, a monitor (esp a Nile) is not the animal for you, no matter what you might say. (by tame, I mean something you can touch without it biting/scratching/pooping on you)

Note:
Nile Costs:
5 mice/day (bought wholesale, approximate 4 month supply @ 5/day cost me $253) (Side Note: Mice alone are not an optimal diet.)

Caging:
New Nile cage- 8' circular feed trough, surrounded by wood/FRP. Estimated cost: $650-&0 , not including the 1-ton substrate needed.

(side note: trough measurements are 8' diameter x 2' deep, which is a real pain to get through most doors- its gonna require me to take my sliding glass door off the tracks to fit it through and even then, itll be hard).

Estimated Time Spent Maintaining Cage PER DAY:
Min. 2 hours

And thats just the tip of the iceberg.

END of STORY

Nile ... You = dead nile

Get an ackie.

as mentioned to other people on this forum i had niles and other monitors before and now have crocs and burms I was wondering if anyone had one that was really tame so way to judge the book by its cover guys... I have kept enough animals to the point that niles are the least of my worries

Satire my friend, reread carefully.

Hi nile keeper, so you got that trough? Hows it coming along?

Roger

um... I had niles and other monitors before and now keep crocodilians I was just wondering if anyone has one that is truelly really tame......

Ah.

Well, I cant say for certain, but Ive seen pics of Niles calm enough to sit on people's shoulders and such (the one i saw was about 4.5' and seemed relatively docile).

Im guessing, like most species, some are "friendlier" than others. Though with Niles, im guessing that a "tame" animal is the exception to the rule and a very unlikely find.

That question shows inexperience, which tends to kill an awful lot of Niles. I would tend to think many monitors will interact with you quite nicely without being "tame". I don't think trying to "tame" a monitor is a good idea when the vast majority of people are struggling to keep them alive for more than a few years, much less healthy and reproducing. Many of the methods for taming are just stressing the animal out and contributing to an early death. Which is why when people start talking about taming their monitors it puts many of out backs up. You wind up with a huge lizard that doesn't fit your expectations and is a ton of work to take care of. I wonder who loses out here? Plus why Niles? You are trying to play the lotto (to borrow what FR said about this a few post down in regards to timors)and bank on finding the one in a million healthy, tame Nile? There are other species out there that will allow better interaction, more manageable and some are even captive bred. If a tame monitor is what you want why not start on the right foot with one that is known to have a better disposition?

Steve

Nop! But nil’s are quit successful at taming keepers.
Thia alone makes them exelent captives.

Oh yeah... they'll tame you up pretty bloody fast.

If you arent used to an animal tail-whipping, hissing and possibly biting, Niles can be very, uh, *surprising*...

Take the advice given to you.
I don't think anyone here is meaning to be caustic, they are just
expressing sincere and legit concerns about Niles.
Niles do what they want, when they want. Their husbandry
and needs are more demanding, especially if you want a healthy Nile. "Healthy" means that insdie of a year you will have about
a 4'long eating machine with a ravenous appetite.
Niles are very alluring due to their wicked looks and cheap prices. After that, their novelty wheres off for most and only
puts another "show" or "display" animal out there in a world
of too many already.

Ackies, Savs and Tegus all make great candidates if you are looking for a good mid-sized handleable lizard.

Good luck!
E

to answer your question, yes many people have owned 'tame' nile monitors. They are great lizards and not the god-awful monsters some would lead you to believe.

Problem is many noob owners get them because they are relatively cheap and look so good...and end up mistreating them (poor diet, poor enclosure, poor husbandry in general) and eventually killing the poor animal. Or releasing them causing undo legislation that hurts us all. The same can be said for most larger monitors though.

I suggest you read up on this forum and check out proexotics.com for good honest monitor husbandry info. Look through this forum for anything FR says and read it through, good stuff.

Tom

My Niles seem to have exceptionally good memories. I've had both of them eating from tongs and coming to me as if they were curious about what I was up to. I've even had one of them climb right up my pantleg. However they both absolutely hate being handled. From time to time it's necessary to do so. Every time I do they run away and hide for days sometimes more. Things absolutely have to be on their terms for them to thrive in captivity. Also, neither of mine have ever taken to change very well. As they grew, yes about 4' in a year, they each occupied 2 different cages, the third being large permanent enclosures,(one has a whole bedroom to himself) and with each change they stopped eating and hid all the time and it took weeks for them to allow any kind of interaction with me.

Roger