nile monitor after day 1

[Freebody]

well i got it yesterday it is about 2 1/2 feet seems to be in perfect health.never been held in its life im told never had nails cut fed live food im told....<:mad:. last night he sat in the tank and tail whipped and hissed at any movment but today i held him all day and bathed him tried unsuccesfully to feed him and after the 1st attack he made.. not fun with no gloves he is now stopped hissing and he let me give him a belly run as he slepped on my chest on the couch he actualy closed his eye and gave a few little cat naps when i put him back in his cage just now he just gently slipped off my hand into his pool slowly swam across to his cave and is chilln. his nails are so sharp they stick in my skin right through my sweater going to cut them asap. he seems to really like getting pet he let me pull off all his dead skin off his neck and sides of his face seen his eye squint a little a few time so he was enjoying it.. But he is still the same way he was last night if any other person or anything come within 10 feet of him he tenses right up and hisses they walk away and he put his head back on my chest and relaxes and lets me continue petting him.. :) i like that he just likes me lol little guardian.. altho i hope with my proper training he will learn to acomidate people that dont halnde him directly are around. oh yeah im am shocked at how powerfull it is it only attacked me the 1 time i tried picking him up he tailed whiped me and turn grabbed him hand leaped and flattend his belly on my arm and dug his nail in and i could not bend his little 2 inch legs had stand there as he chewed on my nuckles and run the bath water over his head till he just let go and jump into the tub water and sat at the bottom on the tub looking at me... now i use gloves<<< he hasnt tried to bit me or tail whipp me since tho he does hiss at me if i try to block him if he is walking off to far. wish i never waited all these years to get a monitor.

[infernalis]

Sounds like you are off to a good start.

I will be very eager to hear all about this experience as time goes by.

Never had a Nile, but we will always have a Savannah or two around.

Monitors are so cool, just like snakes, but they can hear us, they blink and close their eyes, and they just seem like they have more going on in their heads than the average snake does.

[Aaron_S]

You've had this animal for a day, it didn't eat for you, and you handled it for an ENTIRE day. It's not called "tame" it's called stress. You're better off leaving the animal alone for a few days and getting it to eat before you proceed to "proper training".

[infernalis]

You've had this animal for a day, it didn't eat for you, and you handled it for an ENTIRE day. It's not called "tame" it's called stress. You're better off leaving the animal alone for a few days and getting it to eat before you proceed to "proper training".


I have to agree fully.

My apologies for not even thinking....

That animal has been through a lot already in just a day, please slow down.

Niles live a long time, you can get better aquainted with it after it settles in and starts to trust you.

[Freebody]

how long till i hold him again i held him today and he sat under a blanket as i pulled his legs out and cut his nails but still wont eat i know hes stressed out because he like to hide his head but wasnt sure if its best to just leave him or if it made a difference or best to just spend a Hell of alot of time with it. ill let him chill for the next few days. but not sure how to get him to eat he was swimming with the fish today as they cirlced his head no interest in them and i was sitting with it on the couch and i tried rubbing liver and cod fish chicken on his mouth and all he would do is lick it and turn his head the other direction. he is a little obese so im not really concered at this point but 2-3 more days and i got a problem on my hands.

[infernalis]

Ok someone correct me if I am too far off here.

Monitors can go fair periods of time without eating, In nature there are times when pey is scarce, so there is no need to push the feeding issue unless the animal is obviously losing body mass.

Can you please post up some photographs of your set up?

Your Monitor will do so much better if there is not much traffic around the enclosure, and you should give the lizard a few days of no handling, zero, nada.

Make sure the animals enviromental requirements are up to par, and leave it be to settle.

Once you leave it undisturbed for a bit, the lizard will begin to explore it's surroundings and hopefully acclimate a bit.

This poor animal is confused and scared right now, and the only cure is some quiet and solitude.

When the monitor is no longer scared, it will begin to think about eating.

[Freebody]

ok my tank set up is 7'x6'x 3'wide it had a shelf with a set of heat lights that are low enouph to provide 110d basking spot i have a heater at the top the provide the entire enclosure with 65 d temp it has a small dog crate in the back to hide in which he chosses to hide behind...go figure hehe he has a 35 gallon shallow pool im using my snakes aspen which i2 3-4 inches think,I wet down to provide good humidity around 65% goes up and down as to when i mist it ill change the beddign and put in a misster later but this it it for now. as far as i read this is perfect for him :) i read they eat every 2 days but the guy i got it from said he fed it 1 time a week if that.i just read thye can go awhile with no food but its not good but i feel better about it now ill leave him be untill i see he is active and i have the tank in my living room i rad that his seeing people around not attacking him and kkeping there distance from the cage is the best thing to calm him down as far as his fear of us as preditors. thanks any help is good help :) ill move him into a seperate room today.

[Aaron_S]

Make sure your enclosure has a lot of hiding places. I really am not a monitor person but any reptile would like to have a hiding place that they feel secure in. Dog crates are fairly large and open, that's why it's behind the crate. 65d temp is also way too cold for these animals for the average temperature in the enclosure. That could be another factor in it's lack of eating. I would go do some reading, get a book and see what they say. I'm also sure if you used the search function on this site that you'd find some very informative posts.

[Freebody]

sounds good just turned the temp up to 75 ya i figured the crates opening was big so i put the entrance facing the side of the cage to the back wall
i plan to take out the crate and put somthing that it can burrow in like soil with a cave over it with a small entrance is what i had in mind.65 is way to cold? it not his basking area just the temp of the cage he has a 3 feet by 3 foot spot over his crate where its 110 degrees 65 is the cold spot on the other side away from the heat lights. what about his water do people heat this or leave it room temp?

[infernalis]

Our monitor is fond of shoe boxes.

Every pair of snakers and boots comes packed in nice cardboard boxes.

heck any cardboard box that is just barely big enough to contain the lizard.

I gives them a sense of security similar to going down a burrow.

Every couple weeks the box will be trashed, but hey they are free.

[Freebody]

i took out the dog crate when i put a new plate of meat in there today and put a smaller box in with a towel covering most of the entrance and put a towel over the shelf as well so he can hid under there as well but hes still has not moved into it, i was going to put him in it but i fig leaving him alone is leaving him alone lol. he is just so beutifull oh yeah hes an ornate nile :) sooooo nice looking

[infernalis]

he is just so beautiful oh yeah hes an ornate Nile sooooo nice looking

Not that I doubt your word in any way, but where are the pictures???:rolleyes::D;)

[Freebody]

NP my pleasure :)

[marvelfreak]

Nice looking monitor and set up.

[infernalis]

That is one handsome Monitor. Sure do hope this all goes well, looking forward to seeing this animal grow and flourish for you.

Thanks for sharing

[Freebody]

thank you :)
last night at around 12 am he came out and checked out his new cage and looks like he had eated a few of the small chucks of meat i left out for him surprised he didnt eat the feeder fish in his pond tho being how he was moving around for a few hours.

[Aaron_S]

Well thanks for the pictures. I'm glad the monitor looks ok right now. I doubt it will remain that way.

Your enclosure is a large size and that's great, except it's really tall without using any of the height. Secondly, do you think where this animal comes from that the entire area is full of ONLY 110 or 120 degree hot spots and the rest is freaking cold? That's why 65 degrees is too low. That's too low for any exotic reptile! 75 is better but still low in my eyes. It should be 85 at the very least and that may still be wrong.

You need more substrate. Something he can burrow in and not just a thin layer. You need like 4 - 6 inches of dirt. You didn't really do any research on this did you?

[infernalis]

Captive Care Information Food & Water

Nile Monitors eat meat. Hatchlings and juveniles should be fed a diet of various insects, including crickets (http://www.the-lizard-lounge.com/content/insects/crickets-care.asp), silkworms (http://www.the-lizard-lounge.com/content/species/nile-monitor.asp#), grasshoppers, roaches, etc. Make sure to dust insects with a multi-vitamin supplement. As they get bigger, baby can be offered as well. Adult Nile Monitors should be fed a diet of frozen and thawed mice and rats. Other food will be eaten as well though.

Lighting, Temperature & Humidity

You will have to provide your Nile Monitor with a very wide ranging gradient. The cool side of the enclosure should be around 77 degrees F, with the hot end reaching around 95 degrees F. They will also need a large basking spot, able to cover their entire body. This spot should be kept around 120 degrees F. Remember, the Nile Monitor is from Africa, it's hot there! UV lighting is not necessary for Nile Monitors to be healthy, but many people use it anyway. The main concern for these great lizards is the heat.

Housing

Nile Monitors need a very large space. Full grown Nile Monitors will need an entire room, or similar spaced area to live a healthy and happy life. Make sure the walls are made of wood, or other hard material, as these Monitors will dig their way out of anything softer (drywall). Use dirt as a substrate, and make it deep. Your Monitor will want to dig and burrow. A depth of 2 feet should suffice.


Basic care copied from another site.

Sounds very accurate to me.



(http://www.the-lizard-lounge.com/lizards.xml)

[Freebody]

yes i did LOTS of reasurch this is a temporary set up the guy i got it from was abusing it, it was in a 1.5" square box its tail didnt even get to be straight so i rescued it!! i had a tank i had my retics in so i made room for him i planned on getting one when i buy my house but im not going to let the poor thing die just because i didnt have soil for it Yes i know it need soil like i said im using my snake aspen simply becasue its all i had on such short notice !! thx for saying you certain its going to not last what kind of comment is that my tank was at 65 D which in america is well over 90 look im in canada so now my tank is 2 hot !!!. the tank is so tall becuase i didnt build this tank for my monitor i built it for my arborial snakes which are now in a different tank if i had known you would be trying to prosicute me for this i would never have come on asking for help !! r=thx arron your help is not helping your just accusing me of being a bad owner which i resent all my animals i have are in perfect health and perfect conditions and i love them dearly, this nile is new to me on short notice or it would have everything it need to be healthy and happy. :mad:

[Freebody]

i came here asking for help not pretending to be a profesional and as an expert you should be not talking down to be and ridicululing my effort on makeing a perfect setup, talk down to the idiots that dont seek help and just let there pets die.

[Squisher]

Hey anyone see the Eagles game tonight? Yeah me neither! This is WAY too interesting!

[emseeKAY]

agreed hahaha :P

[infernalis]

i came here asking for help not pretending to be a profesional and as an expert you should be not talking down to be and ridicululing my effort on makeing a perfect setup, talk down to the idiots that dont seek help and just let there pets die.

I admire that;):D

[Aaron_S]

I never claimed to be expert. I actually said multiple times that I am no monitor guy.

Secondly, I'm in Canada too and it's understood that you talk in Farenheit when talking about temperatures.

[Aaron_S]

...i put a new plate of meat in there today...

If you want me to actually criticize you then tell us, what kind of meat did you give the animal? That doesn't sound like the crickets,worms and possible rodents that was posted in the caresheet. Can you give us a link to your caresheet?

I admire your intentions on "rescuing" the animal. Sad part is, until you set up the enclosure properly and get the diet right then the monitor needs to be "rescued" from you as well.

[Freebody]

most of what i know is from the book Nile monitor writen by Rob Faust << good book lots of info ,an various different website and write ups on wikipedia and other such site the thing that gets me is there is conflicting information, 1 site says feed them rodents where as another site says just rodents is not good ? < this is the thing im talking about the plate of meat i gave his was a veriety of a few things i wasnt sure what would catch his attension so i put in a few diff things on his plate all of which i have read on diff sites and the book, i gave him slices of beef heart,trout,chicken,and i made the ground turkey mixture and put a little of that on which is made of ground turkey raw cooked whole eggs including shells with vitamin and calcium and bone meal, some other people add a few vegies to the mix and some take out the bone meal and vits and use High grade dog food = to the amount of turkey used. some feed them ground chicken necks, sandiago Zoo feeds there monitors this turkey mix for serveral years. this is to consist of around 50% of there diet the rest is fish trout shrip crustations crabs as well as the odd rodents which i read are completey up to the owner if they chose to feed them. the turkey mix can be made cooked or raw but eggs unless they are fertized eggs from a farm your cook them cant remeber the reason off the top of my head its been a few years but it causes some health problem which could be fatal after long periods of time. the book has the recipe they use at the zoo which doesnt include the vegies and dog food< :P.

[infernalis]

The only thing is, remember wiki postings are open to public input and interpitations.....

I would rather trust data from places like pro exotics who deal in reptiles.

I am doing my best to ferret out some info from folks I know, and if I post something you already know, Then we will just leave it on the board for others to learn from.

[Aaron_S]

most of what i know is from the book Nile monitor writen by Rob Faust << good book lots of info ,an various different website and write ups on wikipedia and other such site the thing that gets me is there is conflicting information, 1 site says feed them rodents where as another site says just rodents is not good ? < this is the thing im talking about the plate of meat i gave his was a veriety of a few things i wasnt sure what would catch his attension so i put in a few diff things on his plate all of which i have read on diff sites and the book, i gave him slices of beef heart,trout,chicken,and i made the ground turkey mixture and put a little of that on which is made of ground turkey raw cooked whole eggs including shells with vitamin and calcium and bone meal, some other people add a few vegies to the mix and some take out the bone meal and vits and use High grade dog food = to the amount of turkey used. some feed them ground chicken necks, sandiago Zoo feeds there monitors this turkey mix for serveral years. this is to consist of around 50% of there diet the rest is fish trout shrip crustations crabs as well as the odd rodents which i read are completey up to the owner if they chose to feed them. the turkey mix can be made cooked or raw but eggs unless they are fertized eggs from a farm your cook them cant remeber the reason off the top of my head its been a few years but it causes some health problem which could be fatal after long periods of time. the book has the recipe they use at the zoo which doesnt include the vegies and dog food< :P.

Great you actually did some research, well from what I can gather from that ridiculous "paragraph". You should attempt the mix and leave out the other stuff. From what I understood from you the first part of your meat plate wasn't recommended so I would stay clear of that.

EDIT: Infernalis is also correct. Don't use wiki for any kind of credible source. If you tried that in school or anywhere else they wouldn't believe you had any sources since any Joe Blow can add or edit the information.

[Freebody]

I agree i do know alot more then i let on, it just i want to be 100% im an avide animal lover and nothing makes me more mad than when you go to a buddies house or pet shop or somthing and see animals in poor health and trapped in small cages when it can so easily be fixed with a little anitiative and care. i look forward to reading what you dig up for us :).
ya some food sources i read sound far fetched or just sound good but are not good for them, like an example ferrets cant digest the vitn n minerals and protiens out of plant products and grain cause them to either bind right up or have servier diaria and stops the absorption of what meat products are in the food, yet lots of food companies put this in there diets as cheep filler and say its good for them but scienfically it is BS, or milk for a kitten is good yet when they are cats its bad yet some people swear its good and feed them it and then have problems.this is the example that i dont want to face with my nile thinking im doing it right and have his health plumit even know my heart was in the right place.

[infernalis]

Hows it going??

Any updates?

[reptile king]

thats i nice monitor, i hope you know that your going to need a bigger set up, im in the process of making a 3foot tall by 8foot by 4foot for my water monitor

[Freebody]

hes doing great now eatting properly now and hes mobile during the day infact my comp is beside his cage and hes just chilling under his heat light watching me and hes not puffing himself all up or anything :) when i hold him he hisses when i first pull him out but he doesnt wip at my hand he just stays calm and doesnt run but lets me know hes not vey happy about what going to happen but after a couple min as long as he not right out in the open ie have to watch 360' he will just fall asleep and puts his arms and legs right back like hes basking :P hes so cool to watch walk around.
yes i know he will get a full bedroom when i get my own place :)
he oddly has not eaten the feeder fish i put in his pool he swims in there with them swimming by his head pays no attension to then, looks like i got pet fish now 2 lol been feeding them dog food and trying my best to keep the water oxyginated with a wisk once a day untill he finaly decides to eat his new friends lol

[Freebody]

oh i said it was an ornate nile well actually i dont know what it is i read that ornates have 5 rows from hip to shoulders which mine has but they should have a pinkish tongue where as mines got a black tongue like the common niles but the common nile is supposed to have 7-8 rows? the book i said in my last post The nile monitor by robert fuast says that the tongue typically stays the most consistant between the two species which to me means it really could be either one but from what he says mine is most likely a common nile :) but the other little treads and post i read i have not read the work typically like he says it they all say it definitively black for common pink for ornate there are other things like the btm jaw on the ornate is more of a boxier shape but i can see the differance in comparison pics lol

[infernalis]

So glad this is working out.

Keep up the great work!!

[crocdoc]

That's a common Nile. The tongue colour is a dead giveaway, but it also has 7 rows of ocelli on its back (you include the ones right above the shoulders and hips).

[Squisher]

I too am glad things are looking up. Proper husbandry however is also a key element in this working out for the both of you.