Savannah monitor in need of care!

[infernalis]

I never doubted you for a minute, I'm just passionate about Savs.

[bighog85]

I don't blame you, she is one of the coolest animals I have ever had. And I am saying that about an animal that is not even acting normal, lol. I will keep you all posted and ask more questions as they arise.

[Geckogal]

Poor lady, Well they say savs cant get mbd but my leos got even though they dont need uvb, when they get parasites it messes with their calcium absobsion but i dont know if the same applies to savs, i just gave my leos sunlight 15min a day and had them on higher dose of calcium they doing just fine now and improved behond my expectations, hope this helps

[allergenic]

Mr. 85,

It would help tremendously if you post photos of your entire setup. 90% of monitor health problems can be overcome with proper husbandry. 90% of health problems can be caused by improper husbandry.

If you'd post some photos, some suggestions could be offered.

Take care.

[allergenic]

Originally Posted by Geckogal

my leos got even though they dont need uvb, when they get parasites it messes with their calcium absobsion but i dont know if the same applies to savs,

Monitors are the polar opposite from leos in terms of husbandry.

Originally Posted by Geckogal

I have my sav in a glass tank for now till he gets a bit bigger,

Glass tanks are horrifically bad for monitors.

Originally Posted by infernalis

Fill a bathtub so you have just enough WARM (Not hot) water that the monitor can still stand up without swimming, they like water.

They don't take in water through soaking. For a sick monitor, handling it and putting it in the bath is going to stress out the animal, which is going to add to the problem, not relieve it. As I said above, 90% of health problems can be solved by correcting husbandry errors. Putting the monitor on soil, feeding it a proper diet, stopping any handling, making the enclosure humid, and providing a number of lower wattage basking bulbs with no use of screen to let humidity escape will all cause a turnaround in the monitor's health.

Water should be made available inside the enclosure, however, which a dehydrated animal will gravitate toward (and this animal is dehydrated).

Originally Posted by infernalis

I would go see a qualified vet ASAP and have the lizard checked out.

Again, that's going to stress the animal out tremendously, and you're going to get conflicting husbandry advice from vets, as they don't keep monitors and are likely reading the same outdated caresheets as most people on the Internet. Correcting husbandry errors is where the solution is going to lie.

Originally Posted by bighog85

I fed her a couple hard boiled eggs when I first got her and then she ate two mice yesterday.

This diet needs to be corrected. Savannah Monitors are primarily insectivores and as that monitor is already plump and dehydrated, switching to primarily insects is going to help. Mice have too high a fat content for this monitor.

Just a side question, is that a sore on the side of the animal?

[Geckogal]

Originally Posted by allergenic

Glass tanks are horrifically bad for monitors.

Why are glass tanks bad? My monitor is stil a baby?

[infernalis]

Savannah Monitors are a reclusive animal that live in burrows, a glass tank offers no privacy to the animal.

do you have a hide or some soil so the little one can find some privacy?

I dropped Allergenic a PM, and I am doing some additional research here, Daniel Bennett has a book on Savannah care, I myself am guilty of not getting a copy.

Hopefully I (we as a forum) can get all the facts straight and provide the best most accurate and informative data for Savannah keepers so our pets can flourish and thrive.

[Geckogal]

Yes his got a hide and a large waterbowl, spends most of his time in the water though, his tank is in the corner of a room so he doesnt really get much spectators exept me. Thanks for ur help, i have a big enclosure for him i just have to fix it up first.

[bighog85]

Here is a picture of her enclosure right now. Keep in mind that I have had her for only a few days. I have indoor/outdoor carpet on the bottom for now, but my plan is to line the inside with frp panels and then put about a foot of dirt/sand in the bottom for substrate. My thought is also that when I do that her elevated basking area will act as a cover for a hide. I am also in the process of ordering some roaches to start a colony to feed her from. I agree about the mouse being high in fat thing, so I don't intend on feeding her those much. What is the best thing to do for an overweight sav? Just feeding insects? Have any of you ever thought about building like a box with a pipe coming out of it to bury in the dirt? This would act as a solid hide that wouldn't have the possibility of collapsing or anything.

[bighog85]

No I do not think they are sores. I think the guy that had her before me would put like mice or rats in with her and they got a hold of her a few times. They appear to be healing.

[allergenic]

Originally Posted by bighog85

Here is a picture of her enclosure right now. Keep in mind that I have had her for only a few days. I have indoor/outdoor carpet on the bottom for now, but my plan is to line the inside with frp panels and then put about a foot of dirt/sand in the bottom for substrate.

Hey man. Got your PM, thought I'd just reply here. Enclosure looks great in structure, good that you have it all enclosed with the lights inside. There's two places you might run into trouble though.

Mainly it's going to be too dry. I realize you probably know that already though, since you're talking about putting soil in there. The soil, if you keep it somewhat moist, will help tremendously with keeping humidity. The other thing is that that vent on the left side is going to be too big, you're going to lose a lot of humidity there. I built an Argus raise up enclosure with a similar sized vent, and wound up covering the whole vent over since I was fighting dryness. Learned the hard way. It's also positioned at the top of the enclosure, the greatest escape spot for humidity.

You're going to want 1-3 small vents down at substrate level. The best thing you can do vent-wise is get one of those round doorknob saw "blades" you attach to a drill and drill 1-3 holes in the wood, then fit those round plastic drain vents into the holes, you can find those in the plumbing section.

Also, I was wondering what size bulb that is, what wattage. Instead of a single high wattage bulb you're going to want to maybe use a fixture with multiple arms and have several lower wattage bulbs, roughly 50-60 watts. That will spread out the basking spot to make a basking area. A single high wattage bulb will also make it drier, and you'll be fighting with humidity levels there also.

Originally Posted by bighog85

My thought is also that when I do that her elevated basking area will act as a cover for a hide.

That makes sense, yes.

Originally Posted by bighog85

I am also in the process of ordering some roaches to start a colony to feed her from. I agree about the mouse being high in fat thing, so I don't intend on feeding her those much. What is the best thing to do for an overweight sav? Just feeding insects?

Roaches are terrific, the more you order the quicker your colony will be set up. And yes, a diet comprised primarily of insects will be great for it.

Originally Posted by bighog85

Have any of you ever thought about building like a box with a pipe coming out of it to bury in the dirt? This would act as a solid hide that wouldn't have the possibility of collapsing or anything.

Yes yes I know exactly what you mean. That's not a bad idea though they will dig also.

It looks like everything is coming together. Once you cover that vent, provide some moist soil, keep the humidity up, make sure there is fresh water in the enclosure like there is in that photo, hopefully things will turn around.

Good luck, gotta run.

[infernalis]

Good sound advice, Thanks Allergenic.

[bighog85]

The other thing is that that vent on the left side is going to be too big, you're going to lose a lot of humidity there.

Ya I realized that when I took the picture that it looked that way, but there is actually not a vent in there at all yet. It is just a reflection. Once I figure out where my soil level is I will add a couple of vents exactly like you said.

Also, I was wondering what size bulb that is, what wattage. Instead of a single high wattage bulb you're going to want to maybe use a fixture with multiple arms and have several lower wattage bulbs, roughly 50-60 watts.

Right now the two bulbs that are on the basking site are 90 watts but I think I am gonna lower that to 65 watt. The red bulb is just in there until I get a radiant heat panel to provide the rest of the ambient temps.

Roaches are terrific, the more you order the quicker your colony will be set up. And yes, a diet comprised primarily of insects will be great for it.

I found a site called The Feeder Store that seems to be the best and cheapest place to get roaches from. I am going to go with the dubias since they seem to be popular. If I just order 100 with multiple guaranteed adults would that be fine to start or should I get more?

[bighog85]

Alright everyone, I think we are making some progress. I spent all day today lining the bottom 18 inches of the walls and then put about a foot of dirt in the enclosure. She is already showing some more activity than she has before and she is starting to thermoregulate on her own. Hopefully I can get a roach colony going and get her going on those too. The dirt is keeping the humidity just above 60% which seems to be a good number. Any other suggestions anyone?

[infernalis]

need roaches??

I have a Dubia colony, can spin off a few.