Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Like many of you probably read before I'm taking care of an adult Savannah that came into my local animal shelter. He's around 3.5 feet and 12 lbs. I have been feeding him two thawed mice every other day. Does this sound like a reasonable diet? If it is the right amount would it be better to give him one small mouse a day rather than 2 every other day? So far no contact from his owner although he came in in great health.

Also, do Savannahs require high amounts of UVB as many other reptiles are speculated to need? I have been taking him outside for sunning into one of the empty dog runs and he just walks around for about half an hour, sometimes going into the small kiddy pool but most of the time just basking or trying to find a way out (he tries to put his head through every hole of the fence systematically). He does not have a light, just a heat pad, in his temporary cage.

Peter

Ok.....

If you plan on taking care of him right, I'd suggest a light, and some dirt for a substrate. The daily time in the sun can't do any harm, but I'd advise no hole checks, if its chain link I bet there could be a burr somewhere

I feed my savannah mostly roaches, and a rat every 1-2 weeks. I feed madagascar hissers. They contain less fat which is an issue with with boscs/savs, in captivity they get very obese

The critter looks great in the shots I've seen of it I'll take it

Good luck!

Oscar.

Here check these sites out and it should answer just about ALL your questions from feeding to whatever else. From what I understand monitors don't need UVB because the food they eat has has what they need to prevent deficiency. Lizards like Iguanas especially need it as the are vegetarians and don't get it in sufficient amounts from the food they eat if at all. Which is why feeding whole prey items is so important. Next thing is they may mention substrates. From reading waaaay more than I write on this site dirt, and topsoil/sand mixtures seem to be liked. Some may also put vermeculite to add to the humidity, etc............
Here you go....
1.http://my.pclink.com/~dkelley/monitors.htm#fee
2.This one is better---http://www.anapsid.org/savannah.html
3.http://www.abhp.com/Savannah Monitors.htm
4.http://www.redragons.50megs.com/savannahcare.html

Hope this answers alot of your questions.
LATER

I read the care sheets and it still left me a bit confused, that is why I asked about the quantity of mice. In the article "on the savannah monitor diet" Balsai states that he believes there is no problem with "rodent biased diets when used responsibly." He says this a number of times but never really explains what level of feeding is responsible. Hence my question. I'm still not exactly sure what is a responsible level for a rodent based diet. I know overweight Savannah's are prone to fatty liver disease if they are not fed consisently as their bodies will mobilize fat reserves and cause shock to the liver. So ideally I would like to feed him small amounts often so he will lose a little weight (he seems a bit fat at 12 lbs but not hugely, he moves well) but still have food to digest.

As far as substrates goes right now he is on newspaper. In fact almost everything about his housing is inadequate: he's in a large dog crate with a heatpad and no light. The animal shelter I volunteer at is poorly equipped to deal with reptiles as they do not get many in. If I had the means he would be running around in an 8 foot enclosure with a few feet of dirt so he could burrow to his hearts content. There's a room opening up in my house which we are turning into an office which means more space in the garage, so I may be able to give him a decent home by the end of the month if nobody calls.

Peter

Ok, i can see the frustration you're occuring due to this being totally unexpected. But in situations like the one your in, you have to make decisions based on what you see fit. We can give opinions but it is ultimately you that has to decide what may be best for the animal. For one the feeding factor can solved relatively simply. The husbandry is what I'm worried about. The stress of being n a "dog kennel" can cause stress to make the whole thing worse regardless of what it is supposed to eat. If it gets stressed enough it might not hold any of the food down, may not eat, or any other number of problems. The next thing is temperature. I know you are trying and have nothing else but I think you need to act quickly. The dog kennel has to many holes and is virtually impossible to hold the heat in. This is taken directly from pro-exotics caresheet on black throat (as savannahs are exactly the same). Here it is-----
"Temperatures are another crucial factor (along with proper hydration and nutrition) to a healthy monitor. You cannot afford to make a mistake in this area, as it can mean life or death for your animal. You also cannot cut corners in this area. Toss out your dial thermometers, and stick those color changing strips on the bottom of the trashcan, that is where they belong. You can get terrific digital thermometers from Pro Exotics for $15. These come with a probe, and they have a Min/Max reading as well. You can mount the base of the thermometer inside the cage, in an area away from the basking spot, to measure the ambient temperature of the cage itself. Move the probe around the cage, check the basking spot, check the hide spots, check the "favorite" spot, check the far end of the cage. Check it all, and know what is happening. Find the range of your cage, from hottest spot to coldest spot, use the Min/Max reading to check your night drop, and make sure these temps fall within the parameters you have set. If they don't match, do what you need to do to get them there. Changing a hot spot from 95°F to 130° F is often as simple as raising the basking spot a few more inches toward the basking light. (Upgrade your temperature capabilities with a Temp Gun.)

We use basking spot temperatures of 130° F for the Blackthroat babies, with ambient cage temperatures of 85° F. At night, it is important that the temperatures do not drop much below 80° F. If you insist on allowing the temps to drop below 80°, you may start to court respiratory infections, so it is important to use red bulbs, ceramic bulbs, heat panels, or whatever it takes to keep those temps up and your monitor healthy. Many large monitor breeders, including Pro Exotics, often run daylight cycles and temps 24 hours a day. This keeps temps up, metabolism high, and our monitors stay in the best of health. You don't have to run a 24/7 day cycle, but look at your night drop closely when brainstorming about your lethargic (or mouth bubbling, or non eating) monitor."

Going back to feeding, this is directly from : http://www.anapsid.org/savannah.html
" Adults (three or more feet in length) can be fed twice a week, adjusted as necessary based on weight gain and amount of exercise. Obesity in savannahs, a serious health condition caused by improper husbandry, is all too common in captivity. You will have to use your judgment, observing how the monitor looks, taking into consideration the temperature and amount of activity. Start with a couple of mice or weanling rats a week."
Which then explains that there is no magic number that will work 100% perfect. YOU have to decide. If your animal is slightly obese then cut the food intake down to smaller items once per week. Since the cage is so very small I seriously don't think that it is exercising very much. Which then throws us back in the husbandry area.
This is getting long so I'll cut it here. Hope this gives you a better idea. You have to decide on what you are going to do short term and more importantly long term. If you are going to keep it then ASAP go to a home depot, lowes or where ever, and build an enclosue for under $100 bucks and in 1 afternoon. Then you can proceed to figure out how the animal is responding to the amount being fed, You see. It's not as bad as you think....
LATER

I read the care sheets and it still left me a bit confused, that is why I asked about the quantity of mice. In the article "on the savannah monitor diet" Balsai states that he believes there is no problem with "rodent biased diets when used responsibly." He says this a number of times but never really explains what level of feeding is responsible. Hence my question. I'm still not exactly sure what is a responsible level for a rodent based diet. I know overweight Savannah's are prone to fatty liver disease if they are not fed consisently as their bodies will mobilize fat reserves and cause shock to the liver. So ideally I would like to feed him small amounts often so he will lose a little weight (he seems a bit fat at 12 lbs but not hugely, he moves well) but still have food to digest.

As far as substrates goes right now he is on newspaper. In fact almost everything about his housing is inadequate: he's in a large dog crate with a heatpad and no light. The animal shelter I volunteer at is poorly equipped to deal with reptiles as they do not get many in. If I had the means he would be running around in an 8 foot enclosure with a few feet of dirt so he could burrow to his hearts content. There's a room opening up in my house which we are turning into an office which means more space in the garage, so I may be able to give him a decent home by the end of the month if nobody calls.

Peter