Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi guys,

I had posted a question about ackies down a few days ago...nobody answered, so i thought id ask again.

i'm primarily a bd and chameleon keeper, but im thinking about trying an ackie. Ive been getting some help at chats, but i was just curious if any of you kept them and if you could give me some insight as to their personalities. I know theyre not going to be as calm as my bds, and i dont THINK Theyll be as standoffish as my chams, but any insight y'all could provide is great.

I've been doing a lot of reading, looking at caresheets, etc. I just need a little help and firsthand experience.

Thanks again,
Jamie
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Jamie A. Stine and the Gang:

1.1 Bearded Dragons (Lancelot & Guenivere)
1.0 Giant Frog Eyed Geckos (Peanut Butter)
0.1 Borneo Short Tailed Python (Ezmerelda)
0.1 Red Tailed Boa (Buffy)
1.0 Short Tailed O'possum (Jethro)
1.0 Greyhound (Hank)

Save a life, adopt a retired racer!

Sure!!!

Hi Jamie,

Ackies are great. They are pretty squirmy little guys when young but as they grow they become easier to handle. My wife didn't care for them as babies. They wiggled all over the place and ran like mad. (can you blame them)? Now they are hands down her favorite monitor and she is a Beardie person too. They remain active and very inquisitive. They are a blast to watch in a community setting. I would recomend at least two.

I absolutely recomend them to you whole heartedly. Check out Pro Exotics for care, some good pics, and of course to purchase them if Robyn has any left. They sell fast.

Any other questions, let us know.

Gene

Here is a pic of my little guys right after I got them.

You breed them right? If so do you think you'll be selling any in the future? Thanks.

Hey,

I wish I bred them. Truthfully I have what I believe is a young pair so hopefully sometime in the near future I may see some eggs but as of yet I have not.

Wish I could help, but if you're really interested try Robyn @ Pro Exotics.

Later, Gene

Thank you!

Ive read the caresheets and stuff about caging and stuff at pro exotics and ive come up with an idea! *gasp* I have to find a place to PUT it, but i was going to get the largest rubbermaid water trough (i have horses, thats where this whoel thought came from)which is about 5' long x almost 3' deep x about 24 inches wide and find some sort of dirt to put in it. our soil here in dallas is too sandy i think, but i'm looking into that. then i'm going to take some glass and build a cage type thing around the top to give them a little hight, make room for a couple of retes stacks and other hides like cork and things, water dish, etc. but im not sure whhat im going to puton the top to keep them in.

those 130 degree basking spots are a little daunting too... i'm thinking mabye metal halide bulbs, ive been talking to someone about those and have heard good things.

Any input?

toss me in the right direction?
it will probably be a year befor ei can get any, gotta save the money for all that dirt!

Thanks again,
Jamie
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Jamie A. Stine and the Gang:

1.1 Bearded Dragons (Lancelot & Guenivere)
1.0 Giant Frog Eyed Geckos (Peanut Butter)
0.1 Borneo Short Tailed Python (Ezmerelda)
0.1 Red Tailed Boa (Buffy)
1.0 Short Tailed O'possum (Jethro)
1.0 Greyhound (Hank)

Save a life, adopt a retired racer!

I didn't know these work well for reptiles. I'm curious to know what are the good things you've heard? They put out a blueish light that's good for growing ... humm the reptiles might look nice under it too but I'm not aware of much UV output or anything. Are you thinking about the mercury vapor UV heat type bulbs?

Err they're good for growing plants/vegetables that is.

They are an expensive bulb used during the growing season. They basically mimic the summer sun, and do it quite well. Usually the metal halide set up is a conversion type, so you may change out the MH for an HPS(high pressure sodium)to promote budding/flowering.-The HPS mimics the autumn sun.

I have pondered using these lights, however the drawbacks are

1. Even with the hood, the spectrum from these is only best at a few feet.
2. Imagine staring at the sun. These things are that strong. I cant imagine what long term effects these kinds of lights can have on your reptiles eyes.

Hands down...monitors dont need UV. No need to take risks on this one.

Michelle

I think you are on the right track personally. I don't know about the metal halide bulbs though. I have had lots of success with simple outdoor floodlights. They can produce a great hot spot and for only about $5.00 ea.

I am not exactly sure what you mean by the 130 degree basking spots being daunting. My hot spots are usually upwards of 150 and again that is using just everyday floodlights. I have thought of running them through a dimmer switch but I don't see the need as I am seeing the animals use the higher temps too.

Best of luck, Ackies are truely one of the greatest little monitors out there.

Gene

I think the reason people think 120s are daunting is because they are used to hearing temps on the news. We're not suggesting the climate is 120 where these animals are from. What's important to understand is that temp on the news is taken in a different way so it gages air temp. When we're talking basking temp it's directly in the light on a heated surface. For example here in Minnesota 80 degree sunny day I got over 130 when I put the temp probe on the street surface in front of my house.

I also thought she may have meant that those temps were difficult to obtain with out the use of special or costly bulbs. When in fact it is all too easy to get the right temps and higher if you're not careful.

Thanks,

Gene

Thats what i was thinking, that it had to be 130 air temp. I wouldnt be surprised if my bd's basking spot is 120 on the spot, i know the air temp is 115 directly under their bulb.

I assumed they needed high levels of UV the way my dragons do, so its nice to know they dont, that will reduce my lighting bill significantly.

Yard spots are a good choice, do you just use regular clamp lamps, or do you ahve them suspended over the basking areas?

I had also thought of using the Active UV or mercury vapor bulbs, but again, theyre very expensive. I dont even use them on my dragons cuz of the prohibitive cost, and i work in a petstore!

Still thinking hard on this, thanks for all the info, sorry if im being annoying.

Talk toyou soon,
Jamie
-----
Jamie A. Stine and the Gang:

1.1 Bearded Dragons (Lancelot & Guenivere)
1.0 Giant Frog Eyed Geckos (Peanut Butter)
0.1 Borneo Short Tailed Python (Ezmerelda)
0.1 Red Tailed Boa (Buffy)
1.0 Short Tailed O'possum (Jethro)
1.0 Greyhound (Hank)

Save a life, adopt a retired racer!

Monitors don't need UV. In fact I have heard in many cases they are not out in the open any more than they have to be. My monitors are much happier to "bask" in warm spots that are either under things or have some sort of visual barrier.

The hot spot is actually the surface temp. It took me a long time to figure that one out becuase of the varience. I have used clamp lamps but in truth I don't like them because you have to either cut a hole in the top of the cage or some how mount them very securely inside of the "box".

I really prefer the cheap little light fixtures for outdoor flood applications. They have a ceramic housing encased in plastic. Or you can get ceramic flush mount fixtures and wire them yourself. Either way allows you to securly mount the lights inside the "box".

You can even use multiple fixtures in a cluster, triangle, or line to increase the size of the basking area. I may have some pics of what I am talking about. If I can scrounge one up I will attach it to this post. If not I will try to get one and include it in a later one.

Best wishes, Talk to you later.
Gene

These show the cheap little walmart fixtures I got for about $5.00. They still have the ceramic fixtures to compensate for the heat of the bulbs.

Is the front of your cage open? From the pic it looks as though there is no barrier...

-Michelle

[bleep]n set up by the way!

Thanks!!

Yes the cage is open. I used a piano hinge on top so that it opens up instead of using doors or opening down. I built that cage from the scrap of the big cage I made for Yoshi.

I can email you some pics of it and other cages if you like but I don't have room in my KS account to add more pics right now.

Just let me know

Gene

Thanks! Feel free to e-mail anytime!

All the Best,
Michelle

Little, hungry, full of attitude, intellegent, active as you could never imagine, and gutsey creatures to. They are great, they are the best species to start with to properly learn what a monitor is, wants, and needs.I really like my red ackie, and they dont need a cage the size of a room as an adult like most medium or large species.