Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have tried to find a monitor species to fit me as a 13 year old boy living in hot CA. I have tried a white throat and black throat monitor but was quickly discouraged quickly because they are too big for me and i do not have the room necessary to accomodate one. So as of now I have found two canidates which are the Timor monitor and the Savannah monitor. Perhaps you people could give me some invice on which one to consider getting. Thanx.

PS if someone could give me some pics and a caresheet of each that would be wonderful.

The two monitors you named may not be best for you. Reason being that almost all savs are wc and may have a lot of stress, paracites,or other health problems. I don't know too much about timors except they are very shy and flighty and if your looking for a monitor that will sit with you forget timors. All the timors I have seen have been flighty. A better choice would be ackies they are small and tame, Ive never seen a mean ackie. Look on google.com on their care sheets, or try proexotics their link is at the top of the page. An ackie would probably be best suited for you.

One more thing... you said you were 13. Nothing wrong with that at all. More kids should be into reptiles. we need more people in the herp world. But think long term here.... What will you do with the animal when you go to college? I hope not dump it in some shelter or let it go(sad i knew someone who did that once.....poor monitor). Also you probably do not pay for the electricty and water bill for your animals right now but you will have to when you move out and its not that cheap. I am in no way trying to tell you to give up on monitors or reptiles in general, but it kills me when someone treats reptiles wrong and they abandon them like they are worthless. Do not take this the wrong way i am not trying to steer you away from monitors I just want you to think long and hard about the monitor subject and wheather or not its right for you. Maybe a monitor is not for you right now because your young maybe not maybe im wrong. Maybe it will be better to wait till you have your own place. But if you do decide to get a monitor an ackie is the best choice if you want a pet as I stated above. Hope that helped, and please do not take it the wrong way.

Mike

I totally agree with you on how we need more people into herps and I assure you i would NEVER just abandon a living thing like that it is cruel. It a resposibility that I am totally ready to take on considering I already own a cat and a uromastyx wich I take care of very well. I have been asked by many people what I will do with my pets when I go to college and my dad totally loves lizards and all animals in general so he has told me he would have no problem with me leaving my lizards there untill i get a house. I greatly appreciate your concern but I assure you I have already thought about that.

timors are great little guys. cheaper than ackies and with alot of gentle interaction with them they become pretty relaxed, but i agry that you can't watch tv with them.

Well kid, good luck on your perfect monitor. I myself am a teenager, I just got a baby Sav, savs are great lizards, but I wouldn`t recomend them.
They are crack ups though, mine, Moko, will whip, and hiss, and make vain attempts to bite with his little jaws. Oh, and Mike, you are totally right on people, and hers today. I get so angry when I hear someone say, I hate snakes, or lizards. A kid in my Bio class tried to kill a snake with a rock that wasn`t even bothering him, how my blood boiled...But back on Savs, and such. Good idea not going with the V. Albigularis (Black, and White throats) They are very wonderful, and beautiful creatures, but they get big, as has already been said. Most Savs get the rep of easily tamed, wich alot are, but there are some. I bought mine, because I knew the risks, costs, and requirements. My sav is great though, good health, was underweight till I started spoiling him. Now, I do not know as much as most people here yet, so I won`t give out much advice.
Do lots of research on your two canidates, and what not. And decide what you want more. I say go with what you think you can handle. See, I was worried at first too, my little one is in a 55 gallon mansion right now, but he`ll get bigger, so I decided to build him a cage. 6 or 7 feet. Cool thing is, you don`t always need glass, I`m going to use a firm, strong, and durrable mesh for it. More air for him. But anyway, I hope you get a good one, monitors rule. You live in CA too eh? Me too. What part, and do you have aol IM? If you do, give me an instant message, I`m always egar to have people to discuss reptiles with. My aim is darklordtyrant, that goes for other people here too. If anyone wants to talk. Good luck man!

The timor monitor is not the best monitor for what most newcomers to monitors want. Timors do not generally tolerate being handled well. Nor are they ones who will sit out and let you watch them and remain calm. Some do, but most will run away and hide. That's probably not what you're looking for.

A savannah is realistically probably what you will end up getting, if you choose to go the monitor route. They're nice animals, but they do get medium sized. It will require a large enclosure in a very short time (no matter what you're told, if you keep them healthy they grow very quickly). They eat a lot as well. Your parents might say they're willing to pay for it, although you really should check with them. Also, they need to know that it will cost a lot to feed a growing monitor. We're not talking a few dollars a week, but more like $10 or so a week when it gets on rodents. It really depends on what the local stores sell rodents for. You could order frozen, but you have to buy in bulk and store lots of frozen rodents in your freezer and dish out a lot of money upfront (it is cheaper though).

Also, they do live for a long time. Although you will say this will not happen I have seen lots of very dedicated younger people get monitors and then lose interest in them when they hit 16 or so. Not everyone does (in fact, I became more dedicated once I could drive to better stores), but many a reptile (and pet in general) suffers when their primary keeper turns 16. Just something to think about. Make sure you will continue to provide care for it when you get your license, and your parents will care for it if you go off to college.

I would recommend you look into ackies as well. They are more expensive up front, but in the long run they are cheaper than savannahs. Very few stores carry them, and you would probably have to order them online. Something to consider.

Good luck.