Reptile & Amphibian Forums

this is my new bosc monitor. He is about 8-9 inches long and he just had his first pinky before this pic was taken.

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My herps:0.0.1 savannah monitor 1.3leopard geckos,1.0.1 green iguanas, 0.0.3 chinese water dragons, 2.2 fire belly toads, 0.0.2 green tree frogs, 0.0.1 egyptian toad

that looks like one of those iquana kingdoms or worse yet it could be a hampster cage?

both have problems. the problems are humidity and heat. they don't hold either.

even an aquarium with a plexi glass top would be a thousand times better. you can do that for about 60 bucks total ($25 petco aquarium, sheet of plexiglass cut to size at home depot, $35 tops, probably a lot cheaper). of course that is just a starter cage, you would need a new one soon, you just don't want to put your baby in a cage so big that you couldn't take care of either at this stage of your monitor keeping.

if you have any other questions about specific husbandry don't be afraid to inquire here. we would think less of you for not asking, not for asking.

andrew

it is actually like a birdcage but its longer than it is tall thats why i used it. i live in southern california and the temperature outside has been over 100 degrees the last few days so i didnt even need the heat lamp. my whole room is humid because of my other animals so im set in that area also. thanks for the input
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My herps:0.0.1 savannah monitor 1.3leopard geckos,1.0.1 green iguanas, 0.0.3 chinese water dragons, 2.2 fire belly toads, 0.0.2 green tree frogs, 0.0.1 egyptian toad

bird cages are for birds and i find it hard to believe that you don't run AC in 100 degree weather. What will you do in the winter just turn on the heat lamp? If you'd like to keep that monitor alive i'd suggest you take Andrews suggestion, hes attempting to help you but i guess you can't see that.

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James Grigsby - " When you try of all your forces to make your own way, you will help some of others and will be helped by others. As long as you do not make your own way, you cannot help anybody, and nobody can help you. " (Shunryu Suzuki)

we do run the AC just not in my room and i shut the door. i had him in a glass tank and he would sit next to the basking spot not directly on it so i thought maybe it was to hot so i should put him in this cage to let the heat escape.
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My herps:0.0.1 savannah monitor 1.3leopard geckos,1.0.1 green iguanas, 0.0.3 chinese water dragons, 2.2 fire belly toads, 0.0.2 green tree frogs, 0.0.1 egyptian toad

Do you by any ODD chance use thermometers? The ambient temp should be 85 degrees, basking (surface) 120 to 150 degrees. Too hot is when the air temp is above 90 degrees. They love heat and only bask when they are cold or have a full stomach which is why yours probably didnt in the tank.
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James Grigsby - " When you try of all your forces to make your own way, you will help some of others and will be helped by others. As long as you do not make your own way, you cannot help anybody, and nobody can help you. " (Shunryu Suzuki)

thank you for the facts i will use them. Yes i used a thermometer and it read about 105 air temp. I was using one 100 watt direct beam heat bulb about 7 inches away from the basking surface. now its about one foot away from the surface in the barred cage. Here is a quote from melissa kaplans savannah monitor care sheet under housing "Stay away from open-mesh enclosures as these monitors must be kept warm and, unless you live in a consistently warm environment yourself, it will be costly and complicated to get such an enclosure heated to the proper temperature." Thanks again for the input
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My herps:0.0.1 savannah monitor 1.3leopard geckos,1.0.1 green iguanas, 0.0.3 chinese water dragons, 2.2 fire belly toads, 0.0.2 green tree frogs, 0.0.1 egyptian toad

here is another quote from an earlier post by vcreations "if you have any other questions about specific husbandry don't be afraid to inquire here. we would think less of you for not asking, not for asking." But apparently this doesnt mean anything according to his next post.
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My herps:0.0.1 savannah monitor 1.3leopard geckos,1.0.1 green iguanas, 0.0.3 chinese water dragons, 2.2 fire belly toads, 0.0.2 green tree frogs, 0.0.1 egyptian toad

it was your reply to my first post when i wrote that.

i guess that is hard to see, but if you would look, it is directly below and soon after my first post.

just remember, some of us here keep monitors on a regular basis and have for a little while, that is more than melissa kaplan can say i am willing to bet.

andrew

Instead of changing enclosures you could have changed wattage of bulbs as well as added a plexiglass top to the enclosure. Melissa was correct in the fact that screen tops plus heat will dehydrate a monitor very quickly unless the substrate is sprayed 3 to 4 times a day. But the point is keeping heat and moisture in, bars let it escape, thus my concern. This isn't about being wrong or right rather having a healthy, thriving and long living animal. If this is what you are looking for please try and understand this is not a complicated matter or something worthy of debate.

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James Grigsby - " When you try of all your forces to make your own way, you will help some of others and will be helped by others. As long as you do not make your own way, you cannot help anybody, and nobody can help you. " (Shunryu Suzuki)

thank you for the advice, But one more question, what if i put plexiglass around parts of the barred cage?Would that work?
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My herps:0.0.1 savannah monitor 1.3leopard geckos,1.0.1 green iguanas, 0.0.3 chinese water dragons, 2.2 fire belly toads, 0.0.2 green tree frogs, 0.0.1 egyptian toad

You'd need a lot more plexi than you would for an aquarium because you'd have to cover all sides, top and bottom as well as drill a few small holes in the sides(not top!) for air exchange.

On the other hand if you added the top to the aquarium and drill 3 to 4 holes in it, it bmay be a bit less expensive and time consuming.

PS IF you dont already have it get this book, its a must have with all up to date info on savs. They sell it @ mampam.com and maybe even proexotics.com for $12.95

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James Grigsby - " When you try of all your forces to make your own way, you will help some of others and will be helped by others. As long as you do not make your own way, you cannot help anybody, and nobody can help you. " (Shunryu Suzuki)

I've had Adisa for 11 months now, shes 1 year and few days old. Not really an accomplishment but shes still thriving. I also have 3 other savs as well as a water monitor and the reason im telling you this is because i want you to understand that what i speak is a product of experience and lots of mistakes.

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James Grigsby - " When you try of all your forces to make your own way, you will help some of others and will be helped by others. As long as you do not make your own way, you cannot help anybody, and nobody can help you. " (Shunryu Suzuki)

thank you monitorman. How big of an aqurium would he need for now?. the main reason i used the barred cage was because it is equal to about 40 gallons. My rooms air temp is around 90 degrees and the sun is down now.....my point is that what the cage is made of doesnt really matter as of temp and humidity. I do have a tank that is a 20 long i can put him in if that is the better choice. Thanks again
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My herps:0.0.1 savannah monitor 1.3leopard geckos,1.0.1 green iguanas, 0.0.3 chinese water dragons, 2.2 fire belly toads, 0.0.2 green tree frogs, 0.0.1 egyptian toad

I can only tell you what i use and what has worked for me in the past. For hatchlings: they tend to do better in a smaller set up with very little open floor space with a cool side of the cage where the water container is (away from heating element) at around 79, 80 degrees. I tend to use a retes stack under the basking area as well with the top being 130 degrees ,each level underneath drops 10 degrees. This is for thermoregulation. Monitors need or prefer different temps at different times for different reasons so its best to offer as many options as possible. I have 3 hatchlings at present in a 30 gal with a wood top( 4 small holes drilled in the wood for air exchange). Im sure yours would do fine in the 20 long. I'd suggest you get some sort of rheostat to control and maintain your temps as well and a temp gun to be sure of your surface temps.

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James Grigsby - " When you try of all your forces to make your own way, you will help some of others and will be helped by others. As long as you do not make your own way, you cannot help anybody, and nobody can help you. " (Shunryu Suzuki)

Try using this instead of the rock.

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James Grigsby - " When you try of all your forces to make your own way, you will help some of others and will be helped by others. As long as you do not make your own way, you cannot help anybody, and nobody can help you. " (Shunryu Suzuki)

they don't care. they are still too busy reading old books that need to be thrown from the shelf that I am still teasing someone for writing.

there is a new edition of giant lizards coming out soon though, i am kicking his butt into writing some good husbandry stuff and getting some good opinions from some top breeders like one back east.

looking forward.

OH, back to the point, yeah they don't care.

I went over to a guy's house the other day to get a jungle carpet male and he had a sav in a small chameleon cage on newspaper with a 40 watt bulb 2 feet over its head.
I told him I would take his sav off of his hands and he said I was a cheap ba$tard and that I was just criticizing him. I said, no I have expensive and cheap animals with nice cages that allow them to live, yours won't. lol.

andrew

Dude, just because your a cheap ba$tard mean your not allowed to critisize?lol
I know what you mean though, some people don't listen because you aren't telling them what they want to hear.
Don't give up though, someone else might read a post and see a problem and fix it.
So keep banging your head ogainst the wall, have a beer and type away.

Scott
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Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.