Sav Question?

[Big K]

Hey guys, I recently purchased a savannah monitor saturday at my local reptile expo, He is just a baby (5-6in long), Iv have some monitor experience as Iv had a few tegus and savannahs in the past. All his temps are correct (basking spot of 115-120, 60-70% humidity) He has a few hides with plenty of aspen to burrow, a nice water dish that he can fit his whole body in, and I dont think his cage is too big where he would be stressed. My question why would he not be eating? I dont think he is sick, because he is very active, exploring every square inch of his enclosure, and you can just tell when a reptile is sick. He is very curious, so curious he seems to show no interest in food (meal worms, eggs, raw turkey) he just looks at it and continues to explore, having savs in the past I know they dont pass up on food often, especially eggs. Do you guys thing he is just still getting used to his new home? Any advice or opinions would be very helpful.
Thanks, Kyle

[Skiploder]

Hey guys, I recently purchased a savannah monitor saturday at my local reptile expo, He is just a baby (5-6in long), Iv have some monitor experience as Iv had a few tegus and savannahs in the past. All his temps are correct (basking spot of 115-120, 60-70% humidity) He has a few hides with plenty of aspen to burrow, a nice water dish that he can fit his whole body in, and I dont think his cage is too big where he would be stressed. My question why would he not be eating? I dont think he is sick, because he is very active, exploring every square inch of his enclosure, and you can just tell when a reptile is sick. He is very curious, so curious he seems to show no interest in food (meal worms, eggs, raw turkey) he just looks at it and continues to explore, having savs in the past I know they dont pass up on food often, especially eggs. Do you guys thing he is just still getting used to his new home? Any advice or opinions would be very helpful.
Thanks, Kyle

His basking temp. is too low. Additionally, aspen is an unsuitable substrate for an exanthematicus. He needs at least 2' of diggable, humidity holding soil/sand mix to burrow into.

Depending on whether he was imported or not, he may also be carrying an internal parasite load. He needs to either be treated prophylactically for parasites common to savs or you need to take a fecal sample in to an experienced reptile vet.

I would scrap the raw eggs, turkey and worm and either try crickets or roaches and use those as his staple for the time being.

Bump his basking temps up to a minimum of 130 degrees and get him into an enclosure capable of supported a couple of feed of soil/sand substrate and see if that gets him moving. While you're dialing in his husbandry, figure out whether you have a parasitized animal and treat accordingly.

[Big K]

Thanks man Ill give that a try, There is so much different info on the internet for basking temps, I have a radient heat panel that should crank those temps up, and a bag of soil (not treated) here that I will throw in his enclosure, Iv always just used aspen for all my reptiles enclosures because it holds humidity well, but I put the soil in and give that a try. Appreciate the response, Ill swing by the pet shop tonight and pick up some crickets.
Thanks, Kyle

[Skiploder]

Thanks man Ill give that a try, There is so much different info on the internet for basking temps, I have a radient heat panel that should crank those temps up, and a bag of soil (not treated) here that I will throw in his enclosure, Iv always just used aspen for all my reptiles enclosures because it holds humidity well, but I put the soil in and give that a try. Appreciate the response, Ill swing by the pet shop tonight and pick up some crickets.
Thanks, Kyle

An RHP is going to have a hard time hitting 130 to 155.

[Big K]

yeah Im just going to use it in addition to the lights and heat mats to help bump the temp

[Big K]

Hey man I got the temps up, put the soil in, and got him the crickets, he went nuts on them, thanks for the help.
Kyle

[infernalis]

Read my site, every page, the most comprehensive complete data you need.

Savannahmonitor.co

Follow what is there and in no time you will have a little lizard on steroids that sucks down everything that moves.

Be sure to click on all the purple words to open handy light box illustrations.

No need to worry about conflicting information either, I have consulted with the worlds leading Varanus experts including Daniel Bennett who has authored the finest Savannah Monitor book published to date.

[Big Dave]

My sav loves to dig in the dirt. Get black topsoil from a garden store, JUST black topsoil, no additives at all. Mix in some sand if you like. My sav Sambuca should have been named Pigpen. The only drawbacks are your gonna get dirty when you pull your sav out if his enclosure and it hides their colours as they are always muddy, but that's a small price to pay in exchange for a happy healthy animal. I keep my basking spot around 145. I also have a rubbermaid in his enclosure with a couple of inches of water in it for him to soak and poop in Believe me this helps soo much when it comes to cleaning. As I am sure you are aware their poops are among the rankest.

[infernalis]

Their poo stinks so bad, you can tell from 3 rooms away they just dropped one.