im getting an ackie next weekend!

YES!! we went to the serpentarium today and my mom said i can get an ackie next week! i already have everything i need except for the dirt and my dad is bringing a 5 gal bucket of dirt from our property for me so i have that covered. here's a pic of the cage im gonna use:
http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d1...a/100_1965.jpg
i only have one question; temps aren't supposed to drop below 80 at night and i know i cant leave the light on and i was wondering if i can use a red infrared heat bulb to keep the temps up at night. i know you're not supposed to do this for a bearded dragon because it bugs them when they are sleeping, but i was wondering if you could do this for an ackie.

P.S. im gonna build some cool retes stacks for it.

Red bulbs are no problem. I know monitor keepers that use white lights 24/7 with no problems.

Congrats on your Ackie btw!

really? all day and night?

i know, before i knew i could get one but now i know when! yaay! lol.

Yes.. I was researching blackthroat monitors some months ago and asked some experienced monitor keepers. They said that as long as they have a dark hide to go into, it makes no difference.

wow, cool. the dirts gonna be deep enough for them to burrow so it'll be fine. thanks April.

ooh, one more thing. when should the ackie outgrow a 30in x 1ft x 1ft cage? im thinking me and my dad will build it a nice 3ft x 2ft x 2ft cage.

That may be big enough for it as an adult.. they recommend a 30g long as a minimum.. that is a few inches longer (3') but I'm not sure. You may want a longer and deeper (for burrowing) cage eventually.

I would not use a daylight 24/7.. Monitors will need a proper photoperiod just like a ball will:) I would take a look at www.proexotics.com

thanks Matt. ive been using proexotics caresheet and FAQ. so would the red bulb plan work out?

Matt - the guy who told me that breeds monitors and has a bunch of them so I dunno.

I can't imagine any animal doing well with a 24/7 light cycle. That just doesn't sound right to me.