Here they are more Thyssa pics......DUW

[purplemuffin]

I think the biggest problem with 'tame' monitors is people confuse sick ones for tameness.. Sort of like sick iguanas.

I've seen so many youtube videos of people claiming their savannah monitor "sleeps" on them, when in actuality it is closing its eyes out of fear, trying to 'make it go away' sort of. It's a bad sign the monitor is very stressed! But we see it as a human thing, and confuse the stress for comfort. That means a lot of poorly kept monitors.

Another problem with monitors is there is a heck heck HECK of a lot of wrong information, even if every other caresheet is right, the monitor caresheet is often WAY wrong..like saying Savs should eat rodents as a staple.. Thank goodness that idea is finally going away, the things are complete insectivores in the wild. (I'm very against rodent feeding in savs..one day when I have one, he/she will eat 90% insects hopefully. I'm already getting ready to start a variety of roach and millipede colonies for my future friend!)

The unfortunate thing about monitors is that they are so hardy. They go through so much pain and live still for years and years. This makes keepers think they are right and it is okay for them to keep treating their animals this way.


This is why monitor keepers are so touchy.. They love their animals and they see a lot of people do a lot of bad things with their animals, so they get very defensive. I have known people with actually tame monitors, but usually true tameness doesn't come for years and years, they are too smart, they are unlike other reptiles. We have to earn their respect, and more often then not, we don't, so monitors remain mean despite being perfectly healthy! Right now the only thing you've shown is your monitor outside the enclosure, and it's a fairly new addition to the home, so some people are going to be wary of the animal's well being. They are very easily stressed, they just show it differently than other reptiles often times, and stress doesn't always mean hissing and tail whipping!

I'm sure you are taking very good care of your monitor, but I understand other monitor keeper's points.. It takes a lot of work to care for monitors and it is very different than other reptiles, and yet they are so often impulse buys(of course they are, they are all beautiful!)