Reptile & Amphibian Forums

sorry for the near duplicate post but this isnt quite the same.

i have been lurking for a week or two just kinda checking things out and ive glanced at the classifieds, and i think ive fallen in love with green tree monitors... well blue and yellows also after seeing the picture from the post below

so i was looking into learning about them and i couldnt find a hole lot of info, could someone give me the basics, things like how long do they last in captivity, how big do they get. as i understand they are the smaller of the monitors but still get 3 to 4 feet is that right? is that 3 to 4 feet include the tail or no?

i also am wondering about enclosures... what kinda of size requirements are we dealing with? i know the big guys need alot of floor space but tree monitors being arboreal need more height, but do they also need width and lenght?

i know thats kinda alot, but any help would be fantastic maybe point me at a few care sheets or something
-----
-Stephen-
-Step-
-Steve Lightning-

0.1 soon to be wifey (hopefully)
1.0 rotwiler/chow (Boomer-wifey's pooch)
1.0 norm corn (Jake aka grumpy old terdhead)
1.0 col redtail boa (Switch, formally known as Dixie)
0.1 ball python (Bella- wifey's baby girl)
0.1 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (Saphira)

hopeful for not to distant future:
--Brazilian rainbow boas
2 or 3 more? maybe a breeding trio or two pair
-- something for the wifey... my list got to big...

The tree monitors do hold a certain magical allure don't they? As much as you may want to dive in head first with working with these guys I would exercise some restraint. I think you may have a better experience in the long run if you start with a captive bred monitor and practice your husbandry skills with that first. Perhaps an ackie or even one of the gouldi complex monitors. I don't feel that the Tree monitors are actually harder to keep than other monitors but they are less forgiving of your mistakes. Make those mistakes with a forgiving captive bred monitor and then move on the trees. Whatever you choose good luck.

Nate

"The tree monitors do hold a certain magical allure don't they?"

yes they sure do!

i understand you concern about about seeing someone get over excited about something and jump in only to wind up over their head. in my defense thats not quite the situation with me. i know it might not seem like it in my first post, but to be 100% honest the likelyhood of me actually getting one is slim and none... as awesome as i think it would be to get one, its just not practical for many reasons. but putting all that aside whats the harm in learning about them? i did the same thing last year when a friend from another forum posted a picture of her chameleon... i still dont have one, yet would still love to get one but probably wont be for many years if even at all.

im just looking for info thats all, just want to learn about it. so how about it?
-----
-Stephen-
-Step-
-Steve Lightning-

0.1 soon to be wifey (hopefully)
1.0 rotwiler/chow (Boomer-wifey's pooch)
1.0 norm corn (Jake aka grumpy old terdhead)
1.0 col redtail boa (Switch, formally known as Dixie)
0.1 ball python (Bella- wifey's baby girl)
0.1 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (Saphira)

hopeful for not to distant future:
--Brazilian rainbow boas
2 or 3 more? maybe a breeding trio or two pair
-- something for the wifey... my list got to big...