Hatchling Sav Monitor

[medusasmorphs]

Hey guys thought I'd share some pics of my new hatchling Savannah Monitor. I think she's only a couple weeks old about 6in from head to tail. Beautiful colors and design as well as fun to watch and interact with!!





http://www.ball-pythons.net/gallery/...3/dsc02607.jpg

[daniel1983]

The sav looks underfed. The tail looks almost depleted of fat reserves in the last picture.

Monitors are great reptiles to keep, but make sure your husbandry is providing what they need or they will not last long.

Got any pictures of the enclosure? I see some nice climbing branches in there, but was looking for an overall view

[medusasmorphs]

Hey thank you for the info Snake Proof and I think I should give some background. So a friend purchased 2 Ball Pythons online from a breeder when the snakes arrived a hatchling female monitor was in the package as well (who throws in an extra lizard without notifying the person on the other end?). My friend who didnt know what to do with the extra lizard, didnt even have an extra cage so he called me and I'm acting as a foster parent until I can find her a proper home. But like most animals I rescue or care for never end up leaving, I'm sure some of you can relate.

I'm feeding her large and small vitamin dusted crickets as well as meal worms. I have her in a 20gl tank right now because she is so small, one side of the cage fluctuates between 80-90 degrees F and the other side has an UTH and 100w basking light above it. During the day temps range from 120-130 degrees F on the hot side. Ive had other lizards and they required a light spectrum of UVA/UVB so I also applied that here as well. I know this 20gl wont last long so I have a 55gl and 75gl that she will be moved into, from there a custom enclosure will be built for her.

In the cage is a walk up water bowl, easy to get to and climb up on, two hides on each side and some branches for her to climb on and the substrate is repti cage carpet, not my favorite but its what I had immediatly around when she was brought over.

She is active during the day but also naps alot, she spends more time on the cool side then on the hot and she loves chasing the crickets around but i guess if she is skinny the extra exercise isnt needed right now. Ive been reading my eyes off in order to provide a sufficent habitat for her to thrive in so any tips or info would be greatly appeciated!

[daniel1983]

It is very irresponsible for a reptile breeder to send an animal that was not purchased. They were probably trying to get rid of savs that they no longer wanted. Do you have the name of the breeder?

My #1 priority in that cage would be getting rid of the screen top. An small aquarium with a screen top is good for making beef jerky...not keeping reptiles. Even though a water bowl is provided, the high heat and the screen top can quickly dehydrate an animal.

I would go buy a small piece of plexiglass for the top, fill the cage up with some dirt and lower the wattage of the heat lamp.

Here is a picture of a proper aquarium setup for monitor lizards. I do not keep my monitor in tanks, so I swipped a picture from Neal Egge.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...4284copyNE.jpg

And when you setup the sav properly.....it will quickly outgrow that tank

[Rapture]

When I first got my blackthroat monitor as a very small hatchling, I set him up in a 29 tall glass aquarium with a screen lid and heat lamp. I placed a large, tall branch in a position where he could climb it to get closer to the heat source. The screen lid was partially covered with large books just to weigh down the lid, otherwise crickets would escape. I used moist bedding which probably helped with the humidity, provided a large water bowl, and fed him regularly. The set up has worked well for him, but I could have just gotten lucky. He was pretty small when I got him but not as underfed as yours. Yours probably has a higher risk of becoming dehydrated. Another thing you may want to do is to soak your guy daily to make sure he stays hydrated. It's good that he is showing interest in the crickets. Hopefully you can get him back on track with no problems.

[medusasmorphs]

Ok thanks guys for taking the time to help and I will be updating so in the future any new comments/suggestions are always welcome!

I found the name of the breeder or at least what he goes by "Stranglehold Herps" out of South Carolina. I did a google search and dint find anything immediate. When I called my buddy to see if he remembered where he purchased his 2 pastels from he said his snakes were underfed as well and had weird burns or markings directly on top of their heads. He called the breeder and he said it was Rub Burns from shipping... The whole situation is sketchy but hopefully the snakes and monitor well thrive and live a better life then they were.

Thanks again guys.

[Mike Schultz]

Cool lizard

sketch breeder D:

[blackcrystal22]

Ok thanks guys for taking the time to help and I will be updating so in the future any new comments/suggestions are always welcome!

I found the name of the breeder or at least what he goes by "Stranglehold Herps" out of South Carolina. I did a google search and dint find anything immediate. When I called my buddy to see if he remembered where he purchased his 2 pastels from he said his snakes were underfed as well and had weird burns or markings directly on top of their heads. He called the breeder and he said it was Rub Burns from shipping... The whole situation is sketchy but hopefully the snakes and monitor well thrive and live a better life then they were.

Thanks again guys.

Riiighht. RUB BURNS! Obvious solution. Your friend should've asked where this savannah monitor came from? Haha.
You should as your friend if he knows his name, that could help narrow him down.

[bonheki]

Your husbandary looks like it needs some help.
Lets start off with the reptile carpet take him off that imedietly! Put him on a 75% dirt 25 sand mix. Savanna monitors love to burrow. You basking spot should be around
125-135F. Then cover most of the screen with aluminum foil. Savanna monitors are not from the desert they are from grasslands.
Yea he does look underfeed. Start feeding large crickets and meal worms or super worms. 6days a week.