Bosc Monitor advice, please.

tracy_84_uk · 08-18-12, 07:10 PM

Hi there Im new to the forum. We got two male bosc from our local pet shop which had been handed in due to the owner moving away. They were kept in an aspen 4ft tank in the pet shop and had long nails suggesting they had been kept on hard ground previously. Before people get at us we were told to keep them on aspen but we did change to soil/sand. we got them a 10ft tank and for a while they grew loads and became big and healthy. then one of them had a prolapsed bowel and went downhill quickly from then. we eventually had to get him put to sleep, after blood tests etc the vet diagnosed a tumour on his liver. that period was extremely hard and broke our hearts. after that we read up loads more on setups etc so that our other bosc would have optimum conditions but ever since his brother died he is just a poor soul. he has a water tub for pooping in which he does, he gets up and moves a little around his tank but often hides under his wooden logs with just his head showing and just watches whats going on. he eats about once a week but the two of them never had the appitite theyr supposed to have not from the day we got them. temps r all fine humidity at about 50-60% we make sure we soak the soil etc to keep this up. im afraid the damage was done long before we got them. anyway we decided that we would get him some company and was promised that the little bosc was female. (i know this is not always the answer and before i get told off for that too - i will give them seperate enclosures if i have to). she is completely different to ours. she has a great appitite and will try and jump in with the locusts or whatever bug shes getting. shes extremely alert and digs like crazy!!! our two guys never had an appitite like that nor did they ever dig. the odd thing is that she is half the size of him and jumps on his back alot. which makes me doubt she is infact female. he doesnt seem to care much and runs away rather than fights with her. so im after some advice. does she sound like she is actually a male? should we seperate them or give it time? the one thing i see different in our guy is that since she has came along he is burrowing now in his soil/sand. he would never do this before. when she was first introduced, he would see her being fed and would wander over and eat too but thats calmed down a bit too. wer not sure of ages due to them being handed in but i think hes about 14inches long and hes over 1000grams i think. he seems a bit dehydrated at his back legs but doesnt seem to be losing weight like we seen with the other one. also when we took the other to be put to sleep we got him checked over and the vet took bloods etc and said he was healthy.
so really im just after some advice because I want to give them all the best life I can. Ill admit we have made some very bad calls but i want to make sure the same thing doesnt happen to willow and pepper (may have to rethink the name if shes a he). Thanks

infernalis · 08-18-12, 07:56 PM

Did the vet test Uric Acid levels??

Gout sneaks up and kills without much warning.

Please read over my web site, it outlines the optimal conditions to make a Bosc thrive.

Pirarucu · 08-18-12, 08:52 PM

You say temps are fine, but what exactly are they? I've heard people say their temps were "fine" but their hotspot wasn't even 100°F.

jarich · 08-18-12, 10:38 PM

What is your basking temperature and what are you using for the basking light?
What are you using to measure the temperature?
How deep is your soil/sand substrate?
Might just be easier actually if you give us a picture of your enclosure. Are you able to do that?

It sounds like you either have too low a basking temperature or your monitor is dehydrated, but its difficult to tell without more information.

tracy_84_uk · 08-19-12, 01:21 AM

we use a solarglo bulb 125w and the basking temp is about 120-130oC. i check ambient temps too and they vary from 75-100. as well as the solar glo we have two other lights which we have small watt bulbs in just to help create temp gradient. substrate is top soil/sand its not quite deep enough but is deep enough that both can completely submerge themselves. I will try get some pics.

DiscoPat · 08-19-12, 10:59 AM

You should probably use a cluster of smaller wattage bulbs like 50W to 75W and move them close to the basking spot to get the right temperature for basking. A high watt bulb will dry out the air inside of the enclosure.

Also I don't know if you addressed this but Does your enclosure have any screen walls tops or vents?