Some albigularus observations

[V.hb]

Around a year ago I purchased a female albigularus, roughly 2 feet long at the time of purchase. She was incredibly shy for a very long time, in fact so shy that she would only accept food and eat it in her hide, only to come out and bask with extreme and total privacy; she spent most of her time in her hole she dug. Anyways; over the past week she has had a complete turn around. Varaciously hunting food and eating like theres no tommorow, absolutly no stress at all. I figured I'd post this to possibly help those who keep this species and even others (salvator's in particular which ive found to be very shy and difficult to acclimate) Give your lizard time to adjust, sometimes it takes 2 days, or in my case a year! they do come around, and letting them do what they're comfortable with is the best method of acclimation IMO.

[V.hb]

I'll also add, Ive never once handled this lizard. I probably still won't handle her until shes like this for a period of time. I rarely hold any of my reptiles to begin with, as I feel it is unnatural; Espeacially to a large lizard.

[crocdoc]

Good post. People rarely post about just how long it takes for some monitors to habituate to our presence and how patience usually pays off.

I've never been one to follow the 'handle it until it stops struggling' method of getting monitors used to me and have waited for the animals to approach me. My experience with V varius is that the males will come around eventually and soon become so accustomed to me that I can let them roam around my place when I am at home (this is not to say that I trust them, however, for they wouldn't hesitate to bite if I smelled of mice or moved a hand too quickly).

Females tend to be a little more on the shy side, but my four year old female is just now starting to approach me to lift her up and let her out for a wander, too. This is how the shots I posted earlier of the pair mating on the rug in front of the tv came to be. That's after four years. She still doesn't particularly like being handled, but is okay with crawling onto my outstretched hand. If I had gone with the 'hold it until it stops struggling' method, she'd have quickly turned into a distrustful, wild, defensive monitor.

[V.hb]

Very interesting David.

I found that my post might be useful for some of the people who constantly post about their feisty varanids, and when they will calm down.


I've found males to be the more aggressive ones with albigularus. My male will actually charge me given the opprotunity to. Once iam upclose however; he calms right down so its likely a strong food response.

Wish I could work with lacies. Maybe someday :)

[Tamizan]

I handle my sav....a lot.....he likes "South Park" we watch it every night together LOL, but, when i got him from the store, he was a "Bring back", they said if he was to stay there, and never be bought he'd probably go though less stress, but they said i was a promising owner (only 13), so they said to bring him, whenever we had trouble/he was sick, AND we got free feeders for 3 months! Hell that place was nice, probably becasue thats the amount of money i saved them, but anywho...when i got him, he was a compleat *** LOL, always bit me, very aggressive, but after letting him have his "grace period" for 4 wks, he calmed down, and i handled him everyday since :D it felt so good LOL.....now that he's 35'' i wish i still had free feeders LMAO

[V.hb]

haha Tamizan, sometimes the handling routine works however; i stil prefer to leave them alone. But it worked for you, and no kidding about free feeders, I wish i had them too !!!!

[Tamizan]

Yeah, he now eats 4 mice a day, time to slow it down, or he's gonna get chubby! LOL