Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I put a tablespoon of hamburger meat in there, sirloin i think, and she ate it up. I am just using that to get somethin in her stomach since she wont eat mice right now because they scare her since she is adjusting to her new cage. Hopefully she will eat mice again soon, does anyone see a true problem w/ feeding her hamburger meat just to make sure she has a little something on her stomach until she gets used to her environment??

Scared of mice? No monitor is afraid of a bowl of chopped up mice. Beef lacks the nutrients it needs. Go ahead and get a mouse, and a sharp knife and cut it into bite size pieces.
Kevin, you are making this harder than it is.

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

I really dislike confrontation, but you are making me sad for your monitor.

ARE YOU BLIND?????? People have given you good advice (no hamburger!) yet you do exactly as you please anyway. WHY ASK?????

Maybe you could tell the forum what happen to the other multiple sav’s you have had. 16 is a young age to have gone through a few already, wouldn’t you agree? I’m not trying to be mean, I’m concerned about the living thing in your care. Time to WAKE UP and smell the lizard poop! A monitor is a commitment of 10+ years, Don’t treat them like throw-away pets. This is not a pet that WANTS to be petted, held or cuddled. They are not a pet that eats pre-packaged food, they need to consume whole animals and insects, (not just meat and fat). If that’s what you want please get another type of animal!

GOODLUCK!
-H-

Kevin, believe me, listen to these people, I have a little baby savannah that wouldnt eat ANYTHING. Whole fuzzies, chicken, fish, mashed crickets, live crickets, live fuzzies, live mice, grasshoppers, beetles, nothing. When Scott said that a monitor will not be afraid of chopped up mice, it got me thinking. So what did I do? Double checked my temps and humidity, made sure those were good, then chopped up a mouse, put it in a dish and bingo. Little guy ripped right through it. This has the first time I've seen it eat in about 2 weeks, and the person who had it before me hadn't seen it eat for about a month before that.

What im saying is, try the chopped up mice, i'm pretty sure if it will take hamburger, it'll take chopped up mice.

Good Luck

Your sounding like me, whats is that all about.

Maybe I can help you. I believe this fella has been doing this for some time now. Between one and two years worth. He does the same thing. Hes asks a question and continues on his merry way, He will continue to ask the same question for many weeks(or maybe it only seems like many weeks. Then he immediately goes on to a new problem question.

It appears this fella does not care about monitors. He only cares about them for the socializing they bring. So all your help is not to the benefit of the monitor, but serves his purposes of attention well.

Most have quit responding to him, but there always seems to be a big hearted person that comes along and responds. All this attention does is prolong the torture of the monitor and then he just gets another. After all, they are only a means to a goal, him getting attention. Anyway, those are my thoughts, take them for whatever they are worth. Cheers FR

Not care for my monitor?? That might be the most ubsurd thing I have ever heard. If I didnt care why would I ask questions?? If I didnt care, I would just let her die.

I sound like you? hahaha, about time wouldn’t you say? Thanks for the compliment

I think he cares, he just doesn’t understand. Different people have different ways of learning, and some of us just have to do things the hard way before the light bulb will go on….. As long as someone on the forum reads my posts and uses the information in a positive way my words will never be wasted.

Besides, I like the attention…lol
-H-

Hey, let me know when/if you are attending any Cali shows, It would be great to get together for a beer (no tequila this time!) and chat. Just in case I haven’t made it clear, THANK YOU!!!!! You have helped me immeasurably with my monitors, I'll buy the first round!

Stimulate eating.
Avoid the idea of dogfood, catfood, or peoplefood.
Listen to Holly, as she said to you, youve had a few and they are gone, why is that? Dont keep making the same mistakes over and over. Maybe you should learn what you did wrong, correct your thinking and learn a while before getting anymore monitors.
If you want to save that animal then keep it correctly.

the 2 that are "gone" did not die. they were sold or given to other people who wanted monitors, they had no problems, no sicknesses, and they surely did not die.

Monitors eat when they are hungry enough, if it's not eating it's not hungry or something is wrong. Sure monitors get food preferences, but it's usually only the ferocity that things are pounded down, not ignoring food altogether (as long as the size of the food item is appropriate and the monitor is hungry).

Something is wrong, fix it, and your monitor will happily eat crickets and/or mice. Overall food is not all that important. They can go without food (as long as water/temp options allow) for a long time. Even if food was the top concern, hamburger wouldn't solve anything anyway.

Worry about why/what is causing your monitor not to eat, not what your monitor is not eating. I'd put money on a combination of overly watchful owner stressing it out with a touch of an insecure/inappropriate cage.

--Robert

thank you for your reply, you got your point across w/ out bashing me. did u mean cage or age??lol my cage is fine, temps are good, etc.

I doubt the cage is fine, more than likely it is part of the problem. A cage is not only to confine the monitor, but also to provide the tools it needs to survive (temps/hydration) and feel safe (hides). If the monitor was eating, growing, acting normally then maybe you could say the cage is fine. A cage can be made to be not fine, by constantly tearing through it and pulling the monitor out. It should be a safe place in the monitor's mind.

The not eating is a symptom, it's not the core problem. You need to find the problem (and it ain't the type of food). If you don't like or are not capable of figuring things like this out, monitors are probably not for you. No one can really help, you need to figure it out, it's your monitor, in your cage, everything to find the answer is right in front of you. First and foremost, I would determine if the monitor was dehydrated.

--Robert

Hate to interupt Roberts post but he should have mentioned this.
If it is dehyderated, don't start grabbing it and sticking it in the tub. This will just cause more stress and more stress will mean more problems.
Check your temps and humidity levels, then double check.
I believe the lizards problem is stress. Teenagers have no patients,I know I was one a long time ago.
I told you before Kevin, cut up some mice, put them in a shallow bowl and leave the monitor alone for the rest of the day.
You might even want to cover the glass with something so it won't be able to look out.

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

Done. Humidity about 50%, temps are good, and i covered the cage, made sure she had plenty of water, and furnished the fileted mouse. Thank you for your patience, and not being a jerk like FR.

Kevin, you have to understand Frank. he has seen 100's if not 1000's of people come to this site and others and do what you are doing.
You ask for advise and keep the thread going or come back in a couple of days and ask something you should have known before getting the critter.
He would have ignored your post if it wasn't for Holley posting.
He, like me have a soft spot for the fairer sexes.
Too bad they like him more. hahaha
Don't try top take the easy way out, find out what is causing the problem and fix it.
I can only gues what the problem is.
My guess is an impatient teenager that won't give his lizard time to adjust, which equals stress.

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

ok id bump up the basking to 130 if u would and yes fr.scott and some other ppl but very few r the best on these forum. becuase they understaid monitors and im geting up there lol still very far away from fr tho so i hope u help your monitor i just got a new one today that makes 4 sav 2 nile 3 bts and an water thanx

I am nowhere near the best, I just learned over the years how to take care of them where they don't die or get sick.

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

yes i know that what i meant do u know that lol u and fr and sHvar r the most inteligent people on this forum in my point of view lol

k dood we have sat here and told u what to feed that savannah in your care but you aren't listening to anything anbody says . ground beef is very fattening for a lizard and lack of nutrients . so in actuality by giving your sav ground beef you did more bad than good for her . if you don't heed people's advice in here they will give up on you i have been watching YOUR problem and u just aren't listening to anybody in here . why come ask for advice if you don't take it . ground meat is a staple food not really even a staple . i would not give my sav ground beef unless it was a last ditch effort and you didn't even try the advice that was given to you .
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The monitors shall devour you and your babies

sorry i must correct myself i would give the hamburger but not really as a food for him to eat just like you know a treat . but that would be really rare .
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The monitors shall devour you and your babies

exactly, at the time i could not get a mouse, the store was closed, so yes it was a last ditch effort, that i did 1 time, not everyday, i'm sorry but she hadnt eaten in three weeks and i just thought she needed atleast a little somethin on her stomach.

im not trying to be a jerk oe an a hole but u keep saying my temps r fine!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! what r the bloody temps just tell me what they r and dont lie please! amd that was not a last diched effert or what ever she could have went to the next day to eat a mouse ok im sorry but u do not understaind mnoitors at all lol anyways what r the temps please dont lie good bye.

ambient cool side is 75 degrees, basking spot 115-120

With FR you have to understand he's one of those people that knows A LOT LOT LOT LOT LOT LOT about monitors and will not hesitate to voice his opinion in a straightforward and sometimes "mean" fashion. If I were you I would take it into consideration he doesn't need to post on these forums. I will gladly anyday take any words of wisdom from FR if it was an insult or help. Respect your elders, especially the ones with a very large monitor, haha.
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1.0 Savannah Monitor - Artimus
2.0 Emerald Swift - Jesus, unnamed
1.0 Baby veiled Cham - Sir August De Winter 1-20-05 RIP
1.0 Green Iguana - King Arthur
1.0 Rose-hair tarantula - Bill
1.0 Basilisk - Adam
0.1 Water Dragon - Lady

I tried to go back and figure out your setup, and figured it would be easier if you just listed the answer to the following questions:

1) Enclosure demensions (LxWxH in inches)?

2) Heat source(s) (wattage)?

3) Substrate?

4) Hide(s)?

5) Water Source (size, depth)?

6) Placement of enclosure?

7) Age & Size of Sav?

You'll be taken far more seriously if you provide detailed answers to questions, rather than just saying "everything is fine". Include any other details you can think of, even if you don't think it effects your sav's eating habits.

Keeping monitors is alot of fun but it's the details that can make or break the hobby. It's hard for me to even imagine a sav that won't eat, but then again, our sav is a cute little piglet!!!

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Tammy

0.2 Ball Pythons
0.0.1 Dwarf Caimen
0.0.1 Baby Sav
0.1 Siamese Cat (Rescue)
1.0 Yellow Lab (Rescue)
0.1 Bernese Mountain Dog (Rescue)