Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My newly aquired juvie prefers rodents only, he might eat a few crickets and not much else. Is this a bad thing?

Hi, if the monitor is fully supported it`s not a bad thing at all. Can you give a few details of how you`re keeping the animal; size and type of enclosure, ambient and surface temps, humidity, substrate etc, and besides the rodents and insects, what else have you been offering, and finally, can you put a few photos up? Sorry for all the questions, but it`s important to have all these details. Thanks!

All conditions are text book.I've had him for less than a month. He has a good appetite for a little guy, he's about 7"stv and 80 grams. He's not as active as I thought he might be, but looks and acts healthy. He doesn't come out until about 10 am and heads for his bed about 4. Shows no interest at all in digging, and spends most of his time basking or in between peices of wood. 1st monitor, so don't know what to expect. He is a very friendly animal and will take food from your hand.

Hi again scoflaw,
just for the sake of it, will you give details of ambient and surface temps, and what you use to take the measurements, also the humidity range throughout the enclosure, and lastly, can you put a few photos up? Thanks!

These guys eat a good number of things including mice crickets roach's birds and most other bugs. The pair I kept for years ate small rats mice and crickets for the most part but occasionally I gave them hissing roaches which they seemed to like chewing on as well. They were quite a bit bigger than what you describe yours to be so stick to the smaller items. What size cage is it in? They need a lot of room with descent vertical space. Proper hide spots are critical. When i switched out wooden boxes for actual hollow logs it made a huge difference in their comfort and security. Provide branches for climbing and a basking spot of at least 150 degreesF. They really appreciate a deep layer of leaflitter at least eight to ten inches deep. Kept moist this will help maintain sufficient humidity which is very important with this species. Of course this all demands a good sized cage to be sure but that's what it takes to keep these guys properly. Hope this helps some. How are you keeping it now?

He seems to be doing quite well. Got my set up, like you described. I too, have the substrate moist for humidity. He wants nothing to do with the floor of the cage, spends his time up high basking or in the middle, wedged in between branches and bark.
Not sure if he needs dirt in his cage or not.

So if this monitor is not a digger then what will occupy his time?

Owned this guy for a month now and he has not shed, although he eats constantly. Can I assume he isn't growing if he's not shedding? He is active and healthy appearing

What sort of hide spots do you have for it? These guys usually are rather secretive and stress out if they cant feel safely out of view. I usually placed cut branches of leafy bamboo in as well to give them additional cover that they seemed to appreciate. Also be sure to provide a water container they can stretch out in. As for the flooring it will give them something to dig around in. That will come trust on that! What temps are the basking sites and what's the humidity of the enclosure? As for the shedding don't worry just yet. How often are you feeding it? Young.monitors in proper settings should be eating at least once a day. If the temps are right they will metabolize the food quickly and grow like weeds. If not they get fat and unhealthy. Vitamin and calcium supplements are important as well. Hope this helps! Guy

Rough necks are very misunderstood and very little is known of the wild habits. I read a paper by Daniel Bennett reviewing literature on rough necks, and it almost seems like no two have the same food preference. Just stick to what you know and experiment with different stuff. Try larger insects, like roaches and grasshoppers. The insects your offering might be to small for his or her liking. Monitors can be simple to keep, or extremely confusing. Rough necks are extremely interesting lizards, they just look like aliens! I want to work with them some day and I would love to try to breed them. Gook luck! And read, read, read, and then read a little more.
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Jason