MarkB or any other Albig enthusiast -

[V.hb]

Hey Mark (or others)

You mentioned that alot of shellfish are a good treat for albigularus. Recently i've been able to acquire an array of shellfish from clams to crawfish.


The clams seem awfully hard, the shell is like a bloody rock. Do albigs have the ability to get through the shell? do they eat it? How about squid, anything beneficial to that? If you can possibly post what kinds of seafood seemed to be beneficial for your albig's i'd appreciate it. Thanks!

[mbayless]

Hi Vhb,

Shellfish have alot of minerals, vitamins, protein that all animals use....clams? - the bigger animals can eat them, no problem, but if yure feeding it to smaller animals, use a hammer and crack them good before serving.

WASH all shellfish in cold water before serving - it should be used a 'dessert', not a every-day meals, except maybe to waters, dumerils, melinus, etc...squid are OK, but they may not 'like it' - the ink should be removed if possible.

I have offered them crayfish, prawns, shrimp, snails, clams, trout, fish heads, fish tails, whole crabs, sardines, anchovies, mackerel - that is as far as my memory goes on this....but other items would work too - if they like it, and they most likely will, give 1-2/month. Its good for their skin.

Unfortunately it comes 'out' smelling worse than going in! So beware.
cheers,
markb

[V.hb]

Thanks alot for the quick response Mark!

They would be for big (5-6 ft) albigs. I just felt as if the shell might be too hard, they're like rocks! But I suppose their jaws are like hammers themselves.

They eat the shell also? Or do they disect the clam?

Thanks again!

[Tim and Julie B]

I tried squid with mine it was a squid tube. It loved it! Although now that I think about it, it has never turned down anything I have offered! LOL I feed fish once or twice a month. Can they eat it more often. I finally got those rescue savs to eat fish. They looked at it for an hour before eating it. Same as when I tried to give them mice for the first time. I guess eventually it looked good enough to eat but they didn't recognise it as food right away. I am going to get some clams tomorrow that sounds cool.

[kap10cavy]

My blackthroat loves crawdads, he has even worked out dealing with the claws. He will grab a claw and shake until the claw is in his mouth and the crawdad is thrown across the cage. He eats the claw and does it again to the other claw, then he eats the rest of the clawless crawdad.
He does seem to like fresh trout, but it's expensive in Bama.

Scott

[mbayless]

roadkill works too - but it smells - they go for snakes, and watch what they do with a dead rattlesnake (be careful though as the venom can still kill if it scrapes you!!!!).

markb

[Tim and Julie B]

Originally posted by mbayless
roadkill works too - but it smells - they go for snakes, and watch what they do with a dead rattlesnake (be careful though as the venom can still kill if it scrapes you!!!!).

markb

Whoa crazy! I can't wait to see Julie's reaction when I ask her to stop for a dead quail! LOL

Hey Mark I have been meaning to ask do Savs or Wht throats eat scorpions in the wild? I am guessing they do because they eat other inverts.

[mbayless]

Yes, the Savanna/Bosc monitor eat the black emperor scorpion in the wild, and in captivity - and so does the White-thropat = BE SURE to feed them only African scorpions, as they may react to venom of N. American types; I would avoid feeding them scorpions, for nobody really knows how the scorpion venom - if it can penetrate their tough skin or not? - and feed them cochroaches, etc...
markb

[V.hb]

Mark, I gave the largest albigularus a large clam. She inspected it for a bit and then bit into it breaking the shell and exposing the innerds. She ate the inside then toyed with the shell for awhile. The shell disappeared, so I'am assuming she ate it, or burried it.

Thanks for the advice, much appreciated!

[mbayless]

Sure, Glad to help - it just occured to me that monitor lizards eat crayfish in the same manner as they eat crayfish! They look the same, crunch when you bite them.....and full of bug protein.....

markb

[mbayless]

Sure, Glad to help - it just occured to me that monitor lizards eat crayfish in the same manner as they eat crayfish! They look the same, crunch when you bite them.....and full of bug protein.....

markb

[M_surinamensis]

If you've got access to live shellfish... I seem to remember reading someplace (This is going to send me diving into books for the next week until I figure out where) that mollusks generally expell the entire contents of their digestive system on a fairly regular basis. Since most the ones we consider food types are detritus feeders and can potentially carry parasites or all kinds of entertaining bacteria; leaving them in CLEAN water (with heavy volume filtration and a nice powerful UV sterilizer for instance if you absolutely can't put together a single flow system) while live for a duration of time will result in the expulsion of most the nasties that they might be carrying.

I'm *fairly* certain it was originally brought to my attention as a way of providing safer food items for triggerfish. If you're shellfishing personally or buying fresh (live) prey items, it's worth looking into. If I remember I'll poke around here and see if I can figure out where I found the broad information and a more specific list of the durations involved for individual shellfish species.

[mbayless]

that is interesting - but shellfish for albigularis does not have to be a daily affair - now if you have V. niloticus and especially V. ornatus, then I think it would apply! A little sand never hurt anybody - dont you remember those picnics at the beach on those gusty but wonderful days? You got a good bite of sandwich, with sand, and soda-pop w/sand.....
markb

[V.hb]

The clams i'am using are storebought. They're relatively cheap and very clean. (Have to be as they're sold as food) They're live also. I clean them anyhow when I get home under cold water before feeding. And mark you're right, coming out smells much worse than going in!!! hahahaha. Thanks guys, great reading all the posts

[mbayless]

Hi all,
I meant to say that how they eat crayfish is the same manner they eat scorpions.....and most monitor lizards eat them in the same way, here or there, and with green eggs and ham!
markb