Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was wondering what one of the smallest monitors was, that is in the pet trade. I looked for a list online with sizes and everything but couldn't find it. The reason I want something that stays fairly small( nothing over 5 feet) Is because I don't have the room to have a huge animal. One other thing is that I can't have a huge cage. I can have a fair sized cage if I build a vertical one. Thanks in advance!
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1.2 Leopard Geckos ( King Henry, Elizabeth, Mary,and Lily
1 Cat ( cat)
1 Hamster (sunflower)
0.1 Pictus Gecko

The ackies, or ridge-tailed monitors, are not only one of the smallest (average is about 2 feet), but also the best. These little guys are just a ton fun! It's funny to watch them move around in their cages, and they have great interaction potential. All of the ones sold in the US are captive breed, meaning no initial vet visits (of course if they get sick, you'll have to take them to see one), and they are tough as tanks. They may be expensive (up to $300), but you can feed them crickets their whole life IIRC, and just watching them is worth it! The one that I have (his name is Little Spaz) is a blast to watch and play with! You really should check these little guys out.

N/P

I also put in my vote for the ackies. I just got my babies, and I've already spent hours watching their antics. They're so small and so bold. Check them out.

Leslie

I have a Storrs, which is only 12" stl and I also have 4 yellow and 2 red ackies of various sizes, with the largest around 22" stl. As almost everyone will say, ackies are the way to go. They are fun, with a ton of personality and hiding from humans is just not part of their personality. They are bold and inquisitive and quite friendly. The other day when I was putting water in one of their cages my big male came running over, flicked my hand a few times and proceeded to rest his head on my hand and he will not hesitate to crawl right up your arm when you open the cage. He is a real character and I love him. Have fun and do your research before you buy anything. Good luck!

Pam

Most Aussie species are dwarfs or medium sized monitors. Ackies are awesome, there are many others and with Aussies monitors you know their CBB. One local version of the mangrove monitor grows to 6ft, the others average 3-4ft, argus are great and dont seem to ever exceed 5ft. There are baritji, beccarii, bengalenis (if you could find one), bogerti, brevicauda, caudolineatus, doreanus, dumerilii get up to 4.5ft, eremius, exanthematicus 4 ft, flavescens, flavirufus, gilleni, glauerti, glebopalma, gouldii, griseus, jobiensis, kingorum, mertensi, mitchelli, pilbarensis, prasinus,primorius, rosenbergi, scalaris, semiremex, spenceri, storri, telenesetes, timorensis, tristus, and Im probably missing a few, but thats a quick list I could find by opening one book for 20 minutes, I guess further proof that people dont want to take time from their lives to even learn a little about an animal before buying one, the internet is full of info on these guys, its why caresheets are so popular, because books take too long to read, convenience.

The price has to be resonable since I am 16 and don't have $300 to spend after car insurance and all that. But if I did have that much I might look into the more exensive ones. We have a local reptile show that runs every month (Dixie Reptile Show). I love reptile shows, the animals are usually much cheaper and taken care of alot better. We have a show next Saturday, but I am going to read up on the one I want before I get it.
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1.2 Leopard Geckos ( King Henry, Elizabeth, Mary,and Lily
1 Cat ( cat)
1 Hamster (sunflower)
0.1 Pictus Gecko

if you cant afford 300 dollars i would get one, thats just the inital price which is nothing compared to the proper care,caging ,feeding,feeding, and feeding its very expenisive

Yeah, it will get expensive. Wait until you are making more money to get one, and in the mean time, research the differnet types of monitors out there. That way, when you can afford it, you can get the right one for you.

caging, lights, and the possible hundreds of dollars in vet bills can be expensive...

plus large monitors can cost $20 a week just in food.. I have a growing Albig that was 7 inches total length last nov. and is now about 4' long... he eats like a horse and is always hungry for more.

and cage size should be 2 x length long for floor space... so a 5' monitor should have a 10' long cage (at least)..

plus before you get a monitor you should spend 100 hours reshearching and reading before you think about getting one... I feel sorry for the animals that go to a home before the owner is FULLY ready to take on all responibilities involved in proper care... can you aford to spend $1000 on vet bills in an emergency?

You can aford what you want then. The animal is the cheapest part of the purchase, except with a dwarf like an ackie, where the cage is cheaper. The food and ohh my vet bills to a good qualified herp vet can break the bank. Seriously at your age and your financial situation consider the $300 a cheap purchase for an ackie most CBB monitors are way beyond that, or wait until you can afford it.

My friends parents know a specilalty vet that deals with only exotics and I have been taking my animals to him for the past 2 years. Nothing to seriouse yet, but I will wait a while. I decided to stick with snakes till I have a little more room and some money coming in.
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1.2 Leopard Geckos ( King Henry, Elizabeth, Mary,and Lily
1 Cat ( cat)
1 Hamster (sunflower)
0.1 Pictus Gecko

Open any phone book and you'll find lots of vets advertizing "Specializing in Exotic Pets"
Most mean birds, turtles, a few snakes and anything furry, but walk in with a monitor and you get the look "What the hell is that?"
We had to call Auburn University to find a qualified herp vet that knows anything about monitors. I was happy when one of the first question he asked was about our enclosures, substrate, temps col dide and hot, basking temps, and humidity.
One vet we called accually asked if we could bring in some books that deal with our critters.

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

Wait. If you're in HS you shouldn't have a monitor. I learned the hard way. I'm now in college and, while the snakes aren't too expensive, the monitor IS! I swear, that one sav cost me more per week than all my snakes together. It also takes up more space.

If you've got a job, you can likely swing it in HS, God knows I did. But wait till you're in college, paying rent and tuition, and car insurance. If you go the workforce rout, good luck maintaining it while earning lousy wages for the first few years and paying for health insurance, rent, etc. Wait another 5 years. It'll be easier all around.
Don't wanna be a buzzkill but learn from me.