Rex, sav monitor

[jdpFL]

[attachment=3147]One month growth....7/21 to 8/29. Btw, humidity stays high, he just loves the water dish....i.e. Potty....

[attachment=3148]

I LOVE this silly little lizard!

 

[babyyitslove]

Very cute!!!

 

[jdpFL]

Thanks, baby!

 

[Rhetoric]

Insane how fast they can grow with proper care. I love how noticeable the spots are when they're tiny

 

[dragonmetalhead]

Awesome monitor!

 

[tora]

I really need to do more research on savs, they're adorable creatures!

 

[jdpFL]

Thank you thank you! He is about to outgrow his enclosure....he's in a two by two cube aquarium with a solid lid, no screen. Topsoil/sand mix about four to six inches deep, (his burrows are CRAZY....elaborate!)...has a tile for basking, couple water dishes and hides. I need ideas now for his permanent setup....or can I put him in a huge one while he's still small?

 

[james.w]

Yeah you can go ahead and put him in a huge one.

 

[jdpFL]

Thanks james! Do you know if they will tear up decorations like a tegu, or could I put plants in there? And I need to do wood, not an aquarium, correct?

 

[james.w]

Yes definitely a wood enclosure. If you wanted you could build a 4x4x4, but make it easily expandable so when needed you could go 6x4x4 and then 8x4x4.

They will destroy plants, I use fake plants in my monitor enclosures.

 

[dragonmetalhead]

I always wanted a monitor when I was a kid but my mom always said no. In retrospect I'm glad because the species I liked best was the Mile and one of those would have eaten me, lol. When my uromastyx die I'm thinking about getting a little ridge-tail monitor to put in their tank.

 

[herpgirl2510]

He is really cute. I hang real pothos plants from my ceiling on the cool side. My savannah does not destroy things like my tegus do. My girl does not tear things up like my tegus do. She is more slender and agile not so heavy footed like my tegus. I hope yours is less moody than mine and more pleasant to be round.

 

[jdpFL]

So far he's got an amazing personality, herpgirl....we shall see with time, lol. I try to be really gentle, handle him daily, make all the handling positive experiences, and as my husband says..."be the substrate"....lol, just letting him sit where he fels comfortable. He's just a baby, so it makes it a lot easier. Although I'm fully aware he may turn into a spaz later, I'm hoping he will continue to trust me. As of now, I kind if holds him cupped in my hands. He will peek out and rest his chin on my palm, looking around, and if someone walks by, scoot back into my hand, like a little hide. Haha! Won't work when he's bigger though.

 

[herpgirl2510]

I did not raise Lilo I got her when she was an adult. Sometimes working with adult lizards it takes alot longer for them to totally trust you. She was supposed to be super mellow but I think his husbandry is off. She has gotten alot better but she is a monitor not a tegu.

 

[jdpFL]

Update: Rex will now come to me when I open his enclosure....flicks his tongue a few times, and slowly crawls into my hand. He has a larger enclosure now, but this time I kept his "stuff" in the same places, and even dug him a burrow in the same spot as his last one. This tremendously helped with stress of moving to a new tank...no sign of stress this time! He eats like crazy, and seems happy and active. Don't get me wrong....he does NOT love to be held, but he does love to be taken out for feeding, lol. He will sometimes tolerate sitting on my arm or lap, but will dart at movement or noise. I <3 this silly lizard!