Varanus Plunge

Hey guys,

I'm thinking about taking the plunge into the Varanus genus and am torn which species to start with. I know ackies are great and can be kept in a 6x2x2 as a trio which I am highly considering. I've also considered savs', timors and possibly blue tails. I have a large amount of experience with reptiles though I know Varanus are a whole level of themselves.

I guess I'd like to see what people have to say about Blue tails. I've read some old threads and caresheets, some even 8 years old, and have read they can give you the empty cage syndrome, be extremely flighty and are not appropriate monitors to be able to handle (as if any species of Varanus really is...).

What would people suggest for a interesting, semi-handable, and an all around good captive? Im sure ackies will be screamed at me. But will a blue tail make a decent captive?

Thanks, Connor

i use to have a lot more experience with varanus before i started college and had to sells them, ackies will make you want to watch the cage constantly to see what they are doing and how they interact with everything in their environment. blue tails are pretty skid dish same with timors,(little experience with both mostly just volunteering at reptile places) but i had black rough necks and argus monitors. once i get a house i will be getting another rough neck i could watch him for hours as he just climbed everything in his cage. my adult female argus was content with just sitting on the couch as i rubbed her back, my adult male argus would walk where ever he please and if you stopped him, he would tripod look around, drop down, hiss and then try to tail whip and lunge to bite you. monitors are unlike any reptile, when you look into their eyes you feel as if they are thinking of what they are going to do next and they are unpredictable. and 95% of monitors do not like to be handled, they will tolerate it for some time. my female argus was fine sitting next to me if i picked her up she became a brat.
if i was you i would look into ackies, friendlier of the monitor sp., easier to care for, not a huge size, cage size is reasonable compared other monitors.(my argus pairs cage aka a room in my house), and come in either reds or the yellows. and I'm 99.9% sure there all U.S.C.B. blues/timors not to many people breed them, so chances are you will find lots of W.C. and maybe 1-2 U.S.C.B.
read P.E. monitor FAQ great info on ackies and other monitor sps you may like(the only problem is you are in NY like me AKA no water,black/white throats, niles, crocs.)
and read some books on them, the books are kind of dated but still some good knowledge in them
Monitors,Tegus, and related lizards-bartlett
care and maintenance of popular monitors and tegus-michael balsai
Monitors(the biology of Varanid lizards)-dennis king and brian green
trust me you can never do to much reading on Varanus sp

best of luck and keep us posted

Tom

http://i1075.photobucket.com/albums/...t/DSCN0541.jpg my female before she got sold and before she was filled with eggs:mad:
http://i1075.photobucket.com/albums/...t/DSCN0547.jpg told you she like to sit on the couch
http://i1075.photobucket.com/albums/...t/DSCN1042.jpg my rough neck which would sit outside in a tree(had to be on a leash or he would just keep climbing:colbert:
http://i1075.photobucket.com/albums/...t/DSCN0544.jpg and believe it or not the rough neck was about 2.5 ft long in this pic and he looks like a baby compared to my female argus:O
they were never allowed to be with each other my friend just wanted a size reference pic of both of them so i brought the female out for a quick pic

Tom

I have ackies and an ornate. If you don't want an enormous lizard, ackies are great in an enclosure like the size you mentioned. Anything but dwarf species and that size is waaaaay too small.

If you're interested, though, I prefer the ornatus.

Chris

EDIT: By the way, 1nstinct, I just love your female argus. Must have been really hard to see her go...

Thanks for the replies and advice guys. I love the dwarf monitors due to their relative ease of care and small enclosures though I would also like a good sized monitor.

What would you guys suggest as an enclosure size for a blue tail monitor?

And 1nstinct, I love the female argus. They will definitely be a species I keep in my latter years. I love species from Oz and the unique tripoding is just that much better.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by redstormlax12

Thanks for the replies and advice guys. I love the dwarf monitors due to their relative ease of care and small enclosures though I would also like a good sized monitor.

What would you guys suggest as an enclosure size for a blue tail monitor?

And 1nstinct, I love the female argus. They will definitely be a species I keep in my latter years. I love species from Oz and the unique tripoding is just that much better.

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For a blue tail I would go no smaller than 6' tall, 6' wide, 4' deep, in all honesty.