Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My post about my overstock of roaches has lead to some good ideas of maybe incorporating another monitor into the mix.

Current setup -
4ft 7 year old male Sav monitor
8'L x 3'W x 8' H cage (see picture) 8x3x2 stock tank base
Sav been in this cage for 2 years

Is this cage big enough for a second monitor? Other than the need for 2 basking spots, 2 or more hides, etc, what other necessities exist?

What types/sex of new monitor is best? I am guessing female, but I am not looking to breed. Would it have to be another Sav?

Thank you for your help

The first rule is there are no rules LOL. They might get along for a month then fight and one gets maimed or killed.

I think it should be big enough for them to get away from each other if they want to. Sometime a look or a dominant gestures and posturings for the more dominant one can stressed out the submissive one greatly. It can stunt the growth and make him/her ill later down the road. I always provide several basking spots and hiding places in a set-up of more than one lizards just so everybody can get out of each other face; this will reduce fighting and injury by greatly reducing stress and allow the animals to get a long very well. But this is harder to do with larger lizards like iguanas and monitors. This is why most iguana keepers prefer to keep a single iguana per cage. Let's face it! Some lizards do better in a communal set-up and some don't.

I wouldn't mix different species.

What about males vs. female. It makes sense that male/male would be more risky than male/female, although females can get pretty rough, but are they dominant?

I don't have experience myself with monitors, but just by seeing the forums, I can say that yes, even male and female may fight.

There are quite a few tricks to avoid that, I would give it try.

>>What about males vs. female. It makes sense that male/male
>>would be more risky than male/female, although females can
>>get pretty rough, but are they dominant?

In my experience, the reactions are highly idiosyncratic and depend on the personalities of the individual monitors. Sometimes the monitors just "click" and get along like best buddies. Sometimes they hate each other. I had one female argus that got along great with one male but would attack my other male (despite him being three times her size) and didn't really care for the other female. I've had groups of savs that were happy hanging out from the moment they were introduced. If there is a sex bias, I don't have a large enough statistical sample to analyze it. The big thing that will make a difference is if the monitors are raised together from hatchlings. Only once have I seen monitors raised this way not get along (this was with a pair of ornates).

Luke

like others have kind of said I don't think there are "rules"

if yours is a male, I would get a female, I think you would deal with less issues there, but watch for egg binding ect

I just added a larger more docile sav to the cage with my smaller sav who is a butt head, but I think a bunch of his issues are because he is blind in one eye. I always feed them separate, and have seen/heard a little hissing/posturing, but nothing bad

I really think it has to do with the individual animal/s and set up, if I could find the pics I would put them up, I once had a sav that lived with 2 iggies! he ran the lower half of the cage, they had the top, (though somewhere there is a pic of them basking together) worked out well, and after that cage was sold (coulden't get it into the next place) on of the iggies lived with the sav mostly on my patio (with time inside, odd situation to explain at midnight, but it worked for them)

good luck!
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hanging out under heat lights burns up my brain cells!!

There are methods or techniques that can be applied to this area of husbandry. Rules, not so much. After all, its behavior, which means rules may not work.
As mentioned, raising them from as young as possible is one method, and it does not matter if they are the same species or not.

Also introducing them when they are cool or in a cooling period, off feed etc. As in, during the winter. Then letting them warm up together. This works too.

Actually what sex they are does not matter, you can keep females with females and males with males and every combination inbetween.

There are bad methods like placing them together when they are hot or extremely hungry.

Or males together with a cycled female around, not good ideas.

Yes it can be about individuals, but nearly all can and do enjoy(benefit from) being with other monitors. Gives them something to do. Monitors like to be active and around activity. Keeping them in solitary confinement is just that. Cheers

Thank you all for your helpful information. It really helps me think about possible situations.

Right now, my sav pretty much hangs out on the ground and under the lights up high. He's not that great of a climber, so he doesnt move around on all the extra limbs and branches that I have installed in the cage.

If I was to add another monitor to the environment, to me it makes the most sense to get one that likes to climb and can take advantage of the open space up high in my cage, since its 7 feet tall. I am thinking I could build some hides and basking spots up high for another lizard. Any ideas on what kind of monitor would be ideal for this situation?

The below pics are old. I have added a huge tree stump on the left that the sav uses for a hide. He doesnt climb up on top of it, but lays around the base. I also have some branches leading from the ground to the basking area. The sav doesnt use these, he prefers the long way, to the right and up the log to the basking spot.

I'll try to add more current pics soon. Thank you again for all your help