Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i walked outside to go to work tuesday and found a box with what i beleave to be a savannah monitor he or she is 12" long seems to be well feed. i put it in a 20" long for now two basking lights temp seems to be around 75 in the tank as a whole. eat about 10 large cricketts today what books are out there i have alot of animals but no reps 3000 gal. of fresh water fish living viv with gekcos and tree frogs i need help bought the supplies to build an enclosure yesterday i am thinking from what i have read a 6 2 2 will work but anyone that can help me out would be nice thank you already proexotics and monitor FAQ

dustin

So you don't know where this monitor came from? Was it in a shipping box, or just a box that somebody left on your doorstep?

You should probably take it to a herp-vet and have it checked out since you don't know where it came from.

you should get the cage hotter than that savannah monitors are from africa which is hot make sure the cage is at 80 to 85 with the basking spot 100 degrees and I agree with the other guy that you should have him checked out because most savannahs are import animals and carry lots of parasite diseases or find out where it came from if you can

the vet is seeing me on sunday, seems really tame but it just maybe cold i have read that cold monitors seem to be tame till thir matb. warms up to opreating temp i think i will be able to keep a higher temp in the new enclosure. i get things droped off at my house all the time people know that i spend alot of time and money on the animals i do have so thay think once thay dont want them i do i have had guenni pigs, rats , a russian tort, my 5 ear old beagle came that way well i am really excited to say the least i hope to have it for years to come i was thinking about getting out of fish anyways

thanks dustin

The basking spot should be from 130-150 or however much surface temps it will use to bask on and that hot spot should be at least STV size, keep in mind though air temps around that surface should be around 86f. Keep a water supply clean and fresh to drink, they are semi arid to arid grassland/ woodland monitors (most for the pet trade are found in or around farmers fields) so they dont soak normally when they are set up right. I agree see a vet because if your not sure what a healthy bosc should be or do it may be sick and you wont know as they hide it very very well as a matter of fact until almost the end. Deep dirt to dig and tunnel in gives them a sense of security, as well prevents moisture loss. You dont want a high temp over the entire cage as the animal wants to regulate its temps from cool to hot when it wants to, therefore you allow the basking lights on 24/7 so it decides when it wants to bask etc. Good luck monitors when healthy are very active inquisitive and intellegent.

thanks i have read alot in the last week. right now i have starw for it to burrow in but when i finish the new set up i am going to the dirt i live in utah so i can get my hands on the bronze stuff proexotics talks about in their Q&A