Reptile & Amphibian Forums

the temp has dropped where i live so i can no longer take my adult stubborn sav outsitde to poo. she is pretty much 'potty trained' to poo outside, which is weird. as far as the inside set up goes she is in a 6x6x5 high 50 percent humidity 85 degree temp 140 basking spot 78 cool side. During the summer when i did not have time to take her out to poo she actually held it in until i had time which was about 2 weeks (she blew up like a blimp) I took her to the doc and he gave her a shot which didn't really do anything and eventually i had to just take her outside for her to explode, so i fear for the winter when i will not be able to.

any suggestions?

Thinking about building her a bigger cage but even so i don't know if that will solve it. her enclosure now isn't exactly small.

Before I started taking her outside she pooed in her cage fine. She did it in the same corner of her enclosure, but never had any problems until she started going outside to do it.

If you can't take her outside, try soaking her in lukewarm water in the bathtub. That will get any lizards to go. I used to soak my iguana in the tub everyday so I don't have to clean up the cage too often, but after I stopped, she held in her poop just like yours. They are creatures of habit. She was so used to going to the bathroom in the bathtub. But after awhile they will just let it go like mine. Now everytime mine wants to the bathroom, he climbs down from his perch an goes on the bottom of the cage and that's the only place he will go to the bathroom if he's inside the cage. I'm so lucky he decides to go on the bottom so I don't have to clean up his perch. I would imagine monitors are the same way, a creature of habits. Give him time and he will start going to the bathroom all by himself.

I would think that if it won't poo in the enclosure, there is something worng with the set up.
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www.frogfreaks.com

Me Too! But seriously, I don't think there is. The only thing i can think of is it's not big enough? but she used to poo in it so maybe it is. I just don't know.

The lizard isnt potty trained, what you are seeing is a lizard that spends its life mostly indoors, but when taken outdoors the fight or flight responce becomes stronger, part of which is to lighten oneself by relieving the bowels to prepare for flight. When you take them outside into the open they are vulnerable to attack by predators (instinct is always there, after all they are wild animals) they become nervous, more alert, and need to be able to escape in a split second. This is how many monitor keepers have escapes, monitors are pretty fast especially when they are within a short distance to cover (If not you have a slow, obese, cold monitor).
Over the years Ive taken a few outdoors, and have noticed that the largest monitors Ive had and the larger species are much more confident outdoors and in the open, most medium sized monitors run at the first sign of freedom and being exposed to the open sky (keep in mind that raptors are their primary predators).

And most people think that they become very defensive because of the UVB rays the sun puts off...haha...

I had a Sav and it did the same thing, If I put it in the grass it would relieve itself, however I also made something in his cage it was a big plastic container and he would go in there also, he just didnt like to go to the bathroom where he lived! I mean i know you've smelt that... especially if you walk into the room after its been there a few hours! I wouldnt want that anywhere near where I slept =) I just think its preference. I have a water monitor now and it always goes in the tub I have for him and then i just take it out and wash it, makes it simple and he washes himself off everytime. Maybe if you take him to a different room with some kind of substrate or a baby pool with some dirt or kitty litter in it he might go in there?

Im not sure if that will work either though because mine would roam the house and be fine in every room but soon as he felt that grass he was alot lighter... I would try the tub like the other person said or just a seperate container in his cage in the corner or something.

Monitors are wild animals, not dogs.
1.Monitors spend most of their life hiding or concealed to prevent predators from attacking and eating them.
2.Individuals that do not live to reproduce have failed in their quest to carry on the species.
3.Monitors live in places where their most common predators are birds of prey, and their own species, or larger monitor species.
4.Monitors do not like being in the open, they are afraid to be snatched off of the ground by raptors and eaten.
5.Ever notice that a monitor outdoors watches the sky and runs for cover at the sight of a bird of prey, and sometimes at the sight of an airplane.
6.The natural responce to being exposed to an open sky, to no cover and concealment, the natural responce to the threat of wild predators is the fight or flight responce, what do wild animals do when the try to run from threats, they relieve their bowels to make themselves lighter.

Its not the grass under their feet, its not potty training, its not the nice swim in the pool, its not because they dont want to crap where they sleep, dont try to anthropomorphize them, they are not people, nor are they dogs.Its a natural responce by a wild animal to a typical threat, millions of years of natural selection, and programming to survive.

Large constrictors do the same thing by regurgitating their meals to make them lighter and faster to escape.
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www.frogfreaks.com

Actually almost every snake Ive ever met will do that, to regurge to get away. In fact some nervous snakes will do that 3 days after they ate, yuck does it stink horribly. Some lizards that eat large meals will do that also if pushed to that point. They will power puke, and spray crap all over you if they can to get away, much like a snake.

I didn't know about other snakes, I just remember reading something about pythins and it mentioned it. I know that monitors can and will power poop at you.
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www.frogfreaks.com