Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Originally i had a thin layer of sand in the bottom of the cage, i went to my pet store and bought a bag of Jungle Mix Lizard Litter, it looks like potting soil almost, the girl there that raises all of the reptiles said that i could pour all of that in w/ the thin layer of sand and just mix it a little, do yall agree??

Dirt, real dirt, not organic top soil(recycled tree bark), not recycled corn cob, recycled paper, but dirt, real top soil from outdoors, sift the rocks out and clumps. Make it deep, deep enought that your monitor can burrow down underground, and hide and thermoregulate, as well escape you. They need this. You can add a 10% or less amount of sand as a mixture to stiffen it and cause it to hold a burrow better. Sand is one ingredient in a desert, but guess what niether of your monitors are desert dwellers. Bosc monitors (sold in the US pet trade as a Savannah monitor) are semi-arid to arid grassland/woodland dwellers that live in woodland areas as adults, and farmers fields (99% are found there)as hatchlings. Petstores make their money from all of the supplies and worthless light bulbs they sell you, not from that inexpensively priced animal you buy, after all didnt they tell you it needed UV lights, desert sand mix, jungle litter, etc etc? Good luck.

Welcome to the forum. You are now in that funky place where you can ask a question - and generally get an answer from very experienced keepers. Keep in mind, that the answers you get here may often counter what the 'pet shop' tells you. You'll have to decide who you think knows better. For the benefit of your animal and it's long term health ... choose wisely.

I also own a juvenile sav - and can tell you that he's pretty happy with good 'ol dirt. Think of it this way, your little monitor is a bonified eating, and crapping machine. You will invariably be removing substrate as the animal defecates. You can either go buy more to replace it, or go dig some up for free. For the overall benefit of your animal, being able to dig, a substrate that holds moisture well, and is very easy to clean up - go get a shovel and a bucket.

Best of luck with your new monitor.

Well mom wont let me dig in the yard lol, and i think our dirt has been treated w/ pesticides anyways, but the "stuff" i have in the cage now resembles dirt pretty much, it is sturdy enough to form borrows, and easy to scoop when he poops. Its a mixture of a small amount of sand to give more stability, and jungle litter which holds some moisture, just enough actually, now i know that dirt is what most people use, but is there anything WRONG with using this substrate, i know everyone has their own opinion, but is there anything HARMFUL about this substrate?

Hey, it's better than sand or pine shavings.
How's the rest of your setup? Again, keep in mind that there is likely to be a difference in what a pet store may have recommended that you purchase, versus what will be effective for your Sav.

In the immediate term, what you have should not cause direct harm to your animal. That said, I would not add a great deal of sand, either silica or calcium carbonate based - to the mix. If ingested frequently, and over the long-term, it has the potential to cause problems for the monitor.

Keep in mind, whatever you are using for an enclosure right now, will likely become obsolete as your monitor grows. When you have graduated to an 8 foot long enclosure - and make no mistake, if you plan on raising this guy you will need something this size to house him, buying 10 bags of Lizard Litter at a time is not going to be cost effective.
Hopefully your mom knows, that she will be keeping company with a 4 foot long lizard within a few years. I'm assuming you already knew this ... right?

thank u for answering my question. Yes i am WELL AWARE of the size and cage requirements, and so are my parents. I also raise baby monkeys(capuchins, spider monkeys, etc) and cougars, and tigers, and bears, and a number of reptiles. We do educational programs w/ exotics all over alabama. i knew what i was getting myself into, and i am very ready for the responsibilty.

thanx for your help

kevin

That's great, must be some very rewarding work.

Best of luck with your newest addition to the menagerie. Chances are, if you just browse this forum, you will find plenty of questions from other Savannah owners that have been responded to as well. But, if you don't find what you are looking for - definitely ask.