uro question

[emilsmee]

ok i just got 2.4 juvie niger uros today and was wondering if a 70gal (4' x 2' x 2') is big enough for them all. i'm also confused about whether they're communal or not. they all get along perfectly but a really reputable site says you should not house them together, even a male with a female except when they're going to be breeding. we've had them at the store before and they've always been communal then too... anyway i was just really confused about what the maximum number of uros i should have in a 70 gallon is. i was thinking of splitting them up into two trios (selling off one of the trios because i only have room for the one 70 gallon tank right now). let me know what you guys think or have heard...

thanks,
emily

[Nicki]

I think they need the maximum amount of space possible!!! I'd say that's far too many for that space. I have 2 juvenile malis in a tank that size and it's about as small as I would want it to be for them. They co-exist alright, but each has it's own space, own basking, own hides, and own food.

In my opinion, bigger would be better for a trio. You'd want to make sure each is able to have its own territory. 6 is far too many for that small a space.

I know that some breeders keep them separately to avoid fights. They will fight if kept in too close quarters. Both my malis have injuries (missing tail tip and missing toe) from their litter mates when they were babies, and I suspect that there were too many uros in too small an area and that they fought.

If you keep any uros together you have to keep a close eye on them and separate them if there's any sign of aggression, and if any are not healthy (as the stress may cause them to stop eating if they aren't happy).

Hope this helps....
Nicki

[Rhonda]

I keep an adult pair of uro geyri in a 65gallon. They get along great! The only time I separate them is for winter cooling. They even made little baby uros this year! however 6 uros in one 70gallon tank is too many! I might house an adult trio in a 70 gallon. you shouldn't house males together either they will eventually fight.

[thegeckolady]

hi there. my BF just got into uros... they are communal, actually, for breeding it is good to have males competing against each other for the females. he has had his uros for a while and the more he adds to the tank, the happier they seem to become. also, we've noticed that the males are gentlemen when it comes to feeding time...they make sure the females get enough to eat.

[manville]

lets see some uro setups

[thegeckolady]

i feel so silly... when you said uro- I thought you meant uroplaytus as in satanic leaf gecko! sorry about that, please disregard my previous post!

[Gillards]

If you keep them together just keep and eye on them and seperate them if needed. We have one pair of nigerians that do great together but another that don't. We house all of our Mali's seperate!
Lorraine

[emilsmee]

http://www.ssnakess.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=25901&password=&sort=1&cat=500&page=1

http://www.ssnakess.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=25835&password=&sort=1&cat=500&page=1

http://www.ssnakess.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=25900&password=&sort=1&cat=500&page=1

those are first night pics, now they've got an awesome hide box that makes the tank kinda multi-leveled. a lot better than when i initially had it set up with just a large piece of corkbark. they're all eating well and sleeping together, even the males get along perfectly. i haven't noticed any aggression whatsoever... maybe they've all been together for awhile and are just used to each other now. *shrug*
i've been monitoring everything; temps, stools, behaviour, eating habits, activity, sociability, etc... everything seems fine and they all seem fine. hehe and when i take one out and put him back in he runs to the basking pile for comfort, lol. maybe i have weird uros... i have weird tarantulas, cats, and frilleds, why not weird uros?? *grin*

[Nicki]

Well, they sure are cute. I wish you luck with them!

Are they all yellow phase geyri?

[emilsmee]

nope the one male is fluorescent orange! my camera just can't capture his colour tho...

[manville]

very very nice uros