Abraxas, the new addition

[Little B-Py]

Well my fiance and I went to the local pet store where we got her snake (0.1). They had a B&W Tegu but it was 275, so she looked a little further down the line at a cute little thing that looked like it needed some help and lovin. That cute little thing was a savannah monitor. They had just got him in a few days ago, shipped in from their supplier. They are having to treat him from worms right now so we are letting them fatten him up for us. his name is Abraxas. He looks like a little dragon, which i'm sure you already know, so we gave him a dragon name. Here is a pic of the little fella in my fiance's arms.

[Melicious]

Not that's an adorable savvy. Can't wait to see more pictures.

[Little B-Py]

I just can't wait til he's fattened up. I want him a little porker when we get him. lol Already got a 30 gallon waiting for him, just gotta get the supplies together to get his home prepared.

[daniel1983]

Already got a 30 gallon waiting for him

I hope you are not serious about a 30 gallon tank. That sav needs much more room than a 30 gallon. For it's current size, I would have in at least a 4 ft x 2 ft x 2 ft. enclosure. When it gets about fully grown(which could be in 4-6 months if cared for properly), the monitor will require a fairly larger enclosure(I would go 8 ft x 3 ft x 3 ft minimum) to be properly housed.

I would also watch it on the 'fattening up'. If not fed properly, savs are prone to obesity....which in turn leads to fatty liver(and/or other issues) and eventually death.

I suggest picking up a copy of The Savanahh book by Ravi and Bennett. It is the best out there and will give you a much better understanding of the animal.

[tmartin2347]

nice pick up.

[allergenic]

I hope you are not serious about a 30 gallon tank. That sav needs much more room than a 30 gallon. For it's current size, I would have in at least a 4 ft x 2 ft x 2 ft. enclosure. When it gets about fully grown(which could be in 4-6 months if cared for properly), the monitor will require a fairly larger enclosure(I would go 8 ft x 3 ft x 3 ft minimum) to be properly housed.

Agreed. To go further, aquariums are for fish and very poorly suited to monitors, which need humidity and deep soil-based substrate.

I would also watch it on the 'fattening up'. If not fed properly, savs are prone to obesity....which in turn leads to fatty liver(and/or other issues) and eventually death.

Agreed. From the not-too-revealing photo, the Sav looks thin and dehydrated. Concern should be more about the parasites being the reason for the emaciation and less about feeding more food to "fatten up".

[Little B-Py]

They are working on feeding him mice with worm treatments to get rid of the parasites so we aren't gonna get him until he is looking more healthy and eating regualarly.

Can he not start off on the 30 with plenty of substrate for burrowing and hides to keep him happy until I can build him a full size? Me fiance and I are looking at getting our own house pretty soon so he will basically have his own room to himself. A glass aquarium would hold humidy quite well since that is what both of our BP's are in and I pretty much never have to mist in there to keep the humidity up. Since it's a glass bottom that is actually holding water now i'm pretty sure it would have no problem with soil based substrate since it currently has 30 gallons of water and about 3" of sand along with about 10-15 lbs of live rock on top of it.

[Little B-Py]

Can anyone point me in the direction of pics of a full sized enclosure? I have an idea but I want to see one completed.

Also, this doesn't look much longer than a 30 gallon, maybe a bit taller but I think that's about it.

The snake isn't a guarantee right now, it all depends on whether he decides to eat and gets rid of the parasites so until then it's a maybe.

[daniel1983]

From the look of the picture, the sav is at least 12" long. Since a standard 30 gallon aquarium is about 36" long x 18" wide x 12" tall, there will not be much room inside for the animal once you put substrate and hides in the enclosure. It may work for a month or so, but that would about it. When fed properly savs grow fast, you could have a 3 ft.+ monitor in a 4-5 months.

That is just my opinion though.

I would really suggest picking up that book....i think they sell for around 10-15 dollars.

[Little B-Py]

but for a short amount of time would it work?

where can i get the book?