Reptile & Amphibian Forums

what kind of monitor does everyone have and size of enclosure and what kind of substance do u have like sand, bark etc.

We've got a baby savannah (more a hatchling than a baby really) She/he is currently in a 15 gallon tank (someday will be introduced to a 10x3x2 water trough) and right now we use paper towel otherwise we'll use stick on tile or linoleum if we ever build a big melamine box or we'll use aspen shavings if he/she goes into the trough.

We currently feed he/she pinkie mice and crickets...but someday she'll move up to chicks, adult mice, certain raw meats (watch not to leave the meat out for more than an hour or so as it will develop salmonella)

hope that helps.
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Chris Vanderwees

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np

I agree with dk- don't keep your little bloke on aspen shavings.... give them something to dig in, like dirt, sand, dirt/sand, etc... as they would in the wild... Aspen shavings are very dry and do not hold moisture well.. Keeping them on that stuff can be a death sentence, as with a screen cover to an aquarium... Monitors need adequate moisture/humidity- I do not feel that you can keep optimal humidity levels in the setup you've describe.. Dehydration, in my opinion, is the leading cause of death to captive monitors, especially imported animals.. I would suggest changing the substrate to something diggable(burrowable), deep, and correcting the cover situation, so that watervapor(humidity) doesnt' escape throgh the screen...
The Odatriad

i have a trio of argus/flave crosses, one blacthroat monitor, one savannah monitor and two bearded dragons, i use sand for the dragons, i use peet moss/sand/cypress mulch for my crosses and cypress mulch/peet moss for my savannah and BT. i just started using the moss/mulch/sand mix and is working out very well, easy to clean and the lizards really seem to like it. I also have a dumerils boa, and use lizard litter for her, which i also used to use for everything else but it got way to expensive.