Reptile & Amphibian Forums

my nile has 2 hides, one 1/2 hollow log on the warm side and a plastic one on the other side, she uses them both and has gotten into the habbit of pushing her plastic one into her water and hides in it in her water, i pull it out almost ever day when i clean her water! she seems to be as well adjusted as a nile can be, i think she just likes to be cozy in her hide and soak too! anyone else have a monitor who rearanges the furniture?
when i get some pics ill have to put then up, its just to funny!
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hanging out under heat lights burns up my brain cells!!
here for good
1.0.0 canadian homosapien
2.0.0 dogs
0.2.0 cats
1.2.0 boas
1.1.0 ball pythons
0.0.1 albino corn
2.0.0 western hognose
1.0.0 russian tort.
1.0.0 vield cam
1.0.0 sav monitor
0.0.1 nile monitor
1.2.0 beardies
3.1.0 leos
0.0.1 pygmy hedgehogs
0.1.1 parrots
(and some fish and stuff)

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signature file edited, contact an admin. 11/1/05

To me, that would seem as if your animal is super nervous, likes to remain out of sight of you, and your humidity is not sufficient.

You are anthropormphizing your monitor(he must like moving his furniture around), and in the process you are missing out on the cues and signs it is giving you, which would suggest that things are not right.
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Treemonitors.com

Hope you take this the right way, but your posts seem hypercritical. Your points are valid, but your delivery makes you seem like a real tool. Maybe you could lead with a gentle hand instead of a sharp tongue.
I think your advice would be better received.

i just erased all i had written because i dont need to justify myself to you. im a vet tech and know what im doing, been dealing with herps for over 10 years. i just though this was cute and maybe it would make someone smile, we read enough on the boards, and there is enough in the world to make us frown!
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hanging out under heat lights burns up my brain cells!!

I am sorry to see that you cannot take a little bit of constructive criticism(isn't that what forums are for?). You can go on and on, and believe that this is a cute little behavior and how it makes you smile everytime you see your animal do this, but nevertheless, your animal is trying to tell you something about the conditions you are offering it.

I also apologize, for I was not aware that you were a vet tech. I hereby stand corrected; after all, vet techs are leading authorities on varanid husbandry, due to the sheer volume of varanid patients they see on a daily basis, and through the wealth of knowledge of varanid ecology and physiology gained in vocational schooling. My deepest apologies.

You made a post regarding a certain behavior you whitnessed in your captive. I answered with what I believe you are whitnessing, based on my experiences keeping varanids(isn't that what forums are about?). Why come to a forum for opinions or advice when you don't want to hear the responses given to you, or already have the answers you want to hear up in your head?

I took the time to reply to your post because it seems as if there are issues concerning your husbandry which are off, and my goal was to help your monitor not become another statistic; adding on to the hundreds of thousands of nile monitors which are killed each year by inexperienced keepers.

Your attitude will not get you far in understanding your captive, nor will it get you any future responses or suggestions next time around. I tried to help you with constructive criticism, but I guess it was not what you wanted to hear. Good day
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Treemonitors.com

As a schooled and graduated veterinary technician myself (as of 5 December 2005) and having worked with many veterinary technicians at so-called herpetological veterinary practices (truthfully, these clinics just decided one day that they would see reptilian patients), I will be the first to acknowledge that even many "specialized practices" have very little experience with reptiles much less any real knowledge of Varanus spp. I recently interned for a local veterinarian who is one of three that specialize in avian and reptilian species in the area. This veterinarian knew little to nothing about reptilian husbandry and would treat patients according to the symptoms and not the underlying problem (never once addressing potential husbandry issues). Sure, a veterinarian can prescribe Claforan or Baytril for a URI but does that actually solve the problem when a two foot lizard is crammed in a filthy ten gallon aquarium with no heat source in the middle of winter? I will not delve into the inadequacies of this particular practice, but it really peeves me when people use the "I'm a Vet Tech" line as their sole summary of qualifications. I've heard this line so many times from so many people who have no idea what they're talking about. The real truth is that most common afflictions of captive Varanids (and certainly other species) can be countered simply by providing for the animal's basic husbandry needs.

In essence, I concur, Bob.

Jennifer Guerra
Jungle Gems Exotics
www.JungleGemsExotics.com