Reptile & Amphibian Forums

1. How many can i house comfortably in a 46 gallon enclosure.

[img]http://www.repticzone.net/images/53261/Image005.jpg[img]

( I know collards are desert lizards but my previous set up was tropical.

2. Can i handle them like bearded dragons or do they bite alot.

3. Do they need uvb

4. is it rare for them them to reach 15 inches.

here is a pic

That tank is okay, but collareds really need more foot space than height. A 40 gal. breeder type tank wold be better.

You should read a good care sheet, or even several. Yes, they do need UVB, and they are more Semi desert than desert, True desert lizards need much higher temps that would cook collareds. Here are some things that you MUST have to successfully keep collareds:

UVB- I only recommend two types of UVB bulbs.
Mercury Vapor -- Either a Megaray or T Rex Active UVB. These are the best bulbs on the market, but they do produce heat. You have to be super careful about using these on a tank that has a smaller foot space than 36 inches and height of 18 as they can be too hot unless you rig it someway and check temps often.

Reptisun 10 TUBE or Reptiglo 8 TUBE -- These are the only florescent UVB bulbs that I recommend based on studies. But with these bulbs, you need to also provide a good BRIGHT basking bulb, such as a regular bright household bulb or a halogen if more heat is needed.

Temp Gun -- You really have to keep careful tabs on the temperatures in a collared viv, because they need a fairly wide temp gradient. They need a BASKING SURFACE temp of 105-110 to be able to dgest properly, and a cool side in the 70s. The analogue stick on therms and the strips that you commonly see in pet stores can be off by as much as 20 degrees, so please stay away from these.

Here is the best care sheet on collareds, written by our own beloved mod, Eve. Have a good look at it and try to get your viv set up before you get your babies. That will help them adjust.
http://www.suncharmers.com/id15.html

A 46 gallon tank can comfortably hold 1 male and 2 females, you don't want to overcrowd the tank and DO NOT add another male. The males are territorial and you would be asking for trouble if you added more than one male. Switch to playsand as a substrate and switch to a desert setup, yes they do need a uva/uvb/heat lightsource. You can handle collared's just as long as you acclimatize them to you and your surroundings, someplace lizard escape proof without any obvious hazards.

Hey Rosebuds,

I've heard that some bulbs, like the Reptisun tubes, need to be replaced after some time because their UV quality degrades. I've had one of these in use for about a year now. Do you have any thoughts or suggestions about this?

Thanks for giving us the URL for the UV guide. That looks good...but I haven't really studied it in detail yet.

Yes, any florescent tube that you use needs to be replaced every 6-8 months. The MVBs can run 18 months. Thats why they are so much more economical in spite of the fact that they cost slightly more than the Reptisuns.

ZooMed is currently offering a tool to test your uv bulbs.

Where?? I need that! I have Megarays of various ages all over my house and I lost track of which was which after we evacuated. Are they free or at least cheaper than a UV meter?

Just by looking at it, it seems to be the same as a Solarmeter. Definitely NOT free. The Solarmeter is fully worth the price - mine has paid for itself more than once in the time I've had it (several years now). I don't know if the ZooMed device is actually the same thing, but it looks similar.

As a side note, without a UVB meter, most MVB lamps should be replaced after 12 months. A Mega Ray (Westron, T-Rex Active Heat) is probably the only one I would trust for any length of time after that.
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Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Saharan Uros (Joe and Arthur)
3.0 Mali Uros (Spike, Turtle, and Tank)
1.1 Ornate Uros (Scuttlebutt and Shazzbot)
1.1 Collared Lizard (Ripcord and Rorschach)
2.0 Green Anoles (Bowser and Sprocket)
1.1 Chubby Housecats (Roscolux and Jenny)

Yeah, I run my megarays for 18 months, but Bob Mac said that he tested a three year old bulb, and it was still putting out adequate levels of UVB. You certainly can't expect that of every bulb.

Do you have links for these meters? The cheapest one that I have found is $180.

The ZooMed product is called a "UVB Digital Ultraviolet Radiometer" visit www.zoomed.com and type is ST-6 in the search area.

I did find that mater at the zoomed site, but there isn't a price because they don't sell directly to the public. Do you know of a store or online supply that sells these? I have searched most of the usual places. Bob at Reptileuv.com sells the solarmeter. I am interested to see if the zoomed is cheaper.

Ok Rose I should have an answer for you in a couple of hours regarding the pricing at least here in Southern California.

I guess I better be thinking about some new bulbs soon! MegaRay it is!

Thanks

Worth noting they recommend you dont use thermostats with the MV bulbs, and as they get so hot they arent recommended for use in small vivariums in case of overheating.
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www.collaredlizards.weebly.com

1:0:0 Desert Collared Lizards
1:1:0 Auriceps
1:1:0 Texas Collared Lizards
0:2:0 New Mexico Collared Lizard

That is a good point. I just temp check often with my temp gun.