Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Just got my 4 yr. old male Mali (The General) a nice 5 yr. old female mate (Martha). She looks to be acclimating fine to her new environment. She does seem very timid at times but it doesn't look like my male intimidates her very much. She will not eat with him though. She usually waits for him to finish. So I guess my question is--> what should I expect in the next few weeks. What should the behavior of a new pair be like? How do I know if things aren't working out?

Thanks to anyone who can give a bit of input.

well, it is usually best to quarentine the new animal for a month or two to make sure it does not have any illnesses that it can give to the other animal.
i have been told it is good to take both lizards out of the cage, clean the cage and sort of redo it and put them both into the cage, like it is a new territory for both of them, so the one who has been living there won't feel so protective of it.

you just have to watch their behavior, like are they both eating, does one seem to hide and only come out when the other one is not out, check their sides for hard spots to make sure side-nipping is not going on. the male might headbob which is like funny little push-ups and he might try to rub his scent all over her too.
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vonnie
***The scientific theory I like best is that the rings of Saturn are composed entirely of lost airline luggage.
— Mark Russell***

Very cool, thanks for your response. They seem to be getting along very well. I had changed the set-up of the enclosure prior to placing the female in and there seems to be no territorial disputes.

i have a funny question, do the names of your lizards have anything to do with george and martha washington?
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vonnie
***The scientific theory I like best is that the rings of Saturn are composed entirely of lost airline luggage.
— Mark Russell***

Yep. I had the General first. He he had a bunch of battle scars on his head and tail from being in the cage with a few other males at the petshop. I've had Uro's before, so I bought him to get him out of that mess. After buying the female a week or so ago, the name Martha only seemed proper.