Savannah Monitor Wont Eat

[Walker14]

so i got a savannah monitor recently and ive offered it crickets and mealworms (still a hatchling but a little bigger) and its taken them only twice. its been a few days now and its starting to lose weight but not a lot. i emailed the guy that i got them from and he said give it a pinky mouse. does that sound good or is there any other way?

[StormSerpent]

What size enclosure is he in? What are his temps like? What's in the enclosure? With a little more information, someone is bound to help.

[Walker14]

hes in a 12"x12"x36" i believe but hes also with another monitor. his temps are normal. hot side is close to 100 and cold is 75-80. in his enclosure is a hide on the hot side, a rock, another hide on the cold side, and a water dish

[Michelle.C]

First off, temperatures shouldn't be below 110 with a Savannah. Ideally, you want to shoot for more like 130 degrees. Anything less than 105-110 degrees and they can not digest properly.

Next, I really wouldn't house them together. One is likely bullying and intimidating the other.

What are you using for substrate?

Pinky mice are fine to feed a hatchling, occasionally. If offering him one gets him to start taking food, go ahead. Just keep in mind that Savannah Monitors require a variety in diet.

Please search google, yahoo, whatever search engine you use for "Savannah Monitor Care" and research about these guys! These are complex animals that require time and money to live happy, healthy lives.

A few Care Sheets, etc.
http://savannahmonitor.org
http://www.wnyherp.org/care-sheets/l...ah-monitor.php
http://varanus.nl/
http://www.varanus.net/forums/

I hope your little guys do well for you.

[Walker14]

what about if its in shed? hes still in shed and i think it could be something that affects it? and i brought the temps up theyre fine now. so what should i do?

[shimmer]

Michelle.C is right on a lot of things but you want the surface temperature at 110-130. For hatchlings I would keep it a 110 since they are a bit more fragle then an adult. I strongly suggest getting a Pro Exotics temp gun!! With shipping it is around $30 and trust me it is a required tool for any monitor, tegu, or herp. Shedding really won't affect a monitor's diet unless they aren't shedding properly. Make sure the humidity is around 50-60%!! Your monitor might be dehydrated the best way to chek for that is to gentle pull the skin on it's back and if it does not return back right a way you need to soak your monitor asap and get the humidity correct again.

[Walker14]

k so i still havent gotten him to eat and he is losing weight. what can i do to help? theres still no problems with the heat and humidity anymore.
i also forgot to mention, that when i got it, it came with another monitor. could the other one be a problem? that one eats like theres no tomorrow and hes active, i let him swim a few times a week. i do everything with him, to the lethargic one. the only time he'll be awake for more then a minute, is when hes soaking.

[dr del]

Hi,

You did mention he was in with another monitor - the advice seemed to be to seperate them to rule out dominance issues?


dr del

[mumps]

You say he came with "another monitor". Same species? Same size?

I'm willing to bet you are dealing with a large parasitic load in an imported, dehydrated, stressed animal. Get a fecal done and treat accordingly. Separate the two monitors, or you'll have two sick lizards.

Looks like you have done no research into this acquisition before you purchased. The tank is way too small for one lizard, let alone two.

Good luck.

Chris