# How do i clean a cage that a savannah monitor died in?



## batmanjosh5000 (Feb 26, 2013)

(irelevent story to the qeustion but..) About 3 months ago i purchased a sav (his name was Otto) from petland discounts. I was able to see that he wasnt so healthy, but i decided to buy him anyways because i thought that i could make him better and i wanted one rlly badly. Even though i had the temps 110 at the basking 85 ambient and 75 on the coolside with 60% humidity, several hides, a big water bowl on the hot side, and offered crickets, wax worms, and pinkies, and i never handled him once, he died within a week and a half of having him. Petland discounts was very nice and gave us our money back. But now im going to get either a tegu or sav in march and im not sure how to clean it. Is 5% bleach good?


----------



## TeguBuzz (Feb 26, 2013)

I can't answer your question, but Im sure the answer will be found on Google.

I can however tell you that in your post you indicated one major thing that could have caused him to die sooner than expected. I'll leave you to figure it out, and if you can't - then a sav is definitely not for you. What were you housing your sav in and what do you plan to house your future sav or tegu in? 

Here's food for thought, you will not find all the sav questions you have here. Check out the links we have posted for you countless times, and learn. 

Your tegu questions will definitely be answered here, but not everyone on this forum as monitor experience, let alone savannahs.


----------



## Strange_Evil (Feb 26, 2013)

I personally use zoo med wipe out, it's a bit more on the expensive side when cleaning multiple cages so most people tend to not use it, but I don't mind. There are household items you can use to clean but you have to use with caution. 

Read this for mote info on using household cleaners , http://www.anapsid.org/cleaning.html

With the Bosc, your first mistake was buying it. A lot of people buy reptiles and try to nurse them back, it sounds harsh but don't waste your time or money. It's rather hard to find healthy specimens when it comes to monitors, don't waste your cash on something your goon to pay a fortune in vet bills for and it still dies. Look for an established monitor or if you can a CB at least CH monitor. In all do more research before thinking of getting another monitor or larger lizard in general, 110f is way to low if you ask me, and a glass tank is no cage for a monitor, some people do it and I use to be one of them but from experience and research I can tell you a glass tank is no enclosure for a monitor.


----------



## TeguBuzz (Feb 26, 2013)

Strange_Evil said:


> 110f is way to low if you ask me, and a glass tank is no cage for a monitor, some people do it and I use to be one of them but from experience and research I can tell you a glass tank is no enclosure for a monitor.



To the OP - this quote tells you why your last savannah died. I suggest you choose a reptile other than a savannah. And if you plan on housing your future tegu or savannah in a fish tank, don't buy either. Seen enough kids housing their large lizards in what was made for a fish, quite fed up with it. Have your adult enclosure ready before you purchase either one.

Did you know that if cared for properly, and fed a healthy diet with all the essentials in housing, a savannah monitor grows ONE INCH a week. Are you ready for that?


----------



## batmanjosh5000 (Feb 27, 2013)

batmanjosh5000 said:


> (irelevent story to the qeustion but..) About 3 months ago i purchased a sav (his name was Otto) from petland discounts. I was able to see that he wasnt so healthy, but i decided to buy him anyways because i thought that i could make him better and i wanted one rlly badly. Even though i had the temps 110 at the basking 85 ambient and 75 on the coolside with 60% humidity, several hides, a big water bowl on the hot side, and offered crickets, wax worms, and pinkies, and i never handled him once, he died within a week and a half of having him. Petland discounts was very nice and gave us our money back. But now im going to get either a tegu or sav in march and im not sure how to clean it. Is 5% bleach good?


Thanks for the advice! and Ya i kept him in a glass tank, but the humidity levels on the hydrometer said it was sixty cuz i misted it twice a day and used moss, when he gits bigger im gonna have his adult enclosure ready,im already in the process of getting the supplies for it. as as far as husbandry issues go, ther are so many different opinions so i just follow by my book "savannah monitors" by mark k bayless, because he clearly sates that he had many savs and theyve seemed to live so he must be doing somthing right and he went so far to write and publish a book about them, so in my opinion its not a bad idea to follow him, and he says glass tank when there younger is fine if u have a basking spot of 105, ambient at 90, and when their younger they need high humidity but when ther adults it can be anywher form 20%-50%. Im aware people disagree with this but i think this guy most have an idea of what hes talking about if hes owned so many


o ya and i forgot to mention, the pet store was keepng him in a small glass tank that didnt rlly have a basking spot and a cool side, it was to small it was probably all he same temperature of 85 (because they told me thats good temperature but i knew that wasnt true), there was no humidity, the water bowl was always dirty, and they used walnut shell substrate, so i have a feeling that being there for 4 months might have killed him


----------



## laurarfl (Feb 27, 2013)

I'm not going to get into the sav debate, because I don't keep them. However, regarding the disinfection of the tank, 10% chlorine bleach sitting for 20 min should be sufficient. Chlorhexadine would be better.


----------



## TegusRawsome80 (Feb 27, 2013)

"The pet store kept them in an awful enclosure so I can too". Essentially all I learned from your post other than that you clearly don't take advice well. Mark Bayless was a great guy and a good keeper but times have been rapidly changing in the monitor world and husbandry has completely changed since that book was published. Follow Savannahmonitor.co. They need basking spots up to 130-140 and humidity levels at 60-80% for their whole lives. Your substrate was wrong. You shouldn't have to mist everyday for humidity. Your substrate should hold it. You NEED at least a foot of substrate for babies and at least two feet for adults. It should be a sand and soil mix. If you cannot provide this, DON'T GET A SAVANNAH. They cannot thrive in a fishtank. If you plan on housing them in a glass tank at any point in their lives please STOP right there and DON'T GET A SAVANNAH. They are not for everyone and you have shown that you have no idea what you're doing and have already killed one through your lack of knowledge and your improper care. If you don't believe what any of us are telling you go post on a monitor specific forum with your story and some questions.


----------



## TeguBuzz (Feb 27, 2013)

batmanjosh5000 said:


> so i just follow by my book "savannah monitors" by mark k bayless, because he clearly sates that he had many savs and theyve seemed to live so he must be doing somthing right and he went so far to write and publish a book about them, so in my opinion its not a bad idea to follow him, and he says glass tank when there younger is fine if u have a basking spot of 105, ambient at 90, and when their younger they need high humidity but when ther adults it can be anywher form 20%-50%. Im aware people disagree with this but i think this guy most have an idea of what hes talking about if hes owned so many



With that attitude, you're going to end up with another dead savannah monitor. The information you have is quite outdated and it amazes me how you refuse to accept that. How about we direct you to some monitor forums? I'm sure they'd love to have you there. I joke. If you were to post this on a monitor forum and stray away from today's experts' knowledge, I'm sure they would mince you into a dozen pieces. You would probably be banned just for saying you had a monitor that died and that you kept it at 110 degrees. 

How old are you? I feel your mind hasn't matured enough to comprehend anything we're trying to tell you about these savannahs. You have clearly failed to read all the info that could be found in the links we have previously posted for you. Instead you are resorting to a book that has outdated, and wrong information. 

If you keep your future monitor (I hope not), in the conditions you have described - I guarantee it will die on you. And if it does, I will be sitting here, on my iPad - criticizing you for what you have done - and I wouldn't be alone. What you are failing to understand is that monitors require ADVANCED care. You clearly are not prepared for a savannah. Have you had any prior large scale lizard or monitor experience? I highly doubt it.

If only James.w were here, he's the type of guy Austin and I need here in this thread to help us set you straight, seeing as nobody else is acknowledging it. 

In my opinion, you are not ready for a savannah. It is NOT okay to house them in something that was made for a fish, ie a fish tank. It is NOT okay to house them in the temps you have posted. And you should NOT have to mist twice a day to keep humidity up. 

Take our advice. Either READ the links we have posted for you ENDLESS times, and learn the proper care for a savannah through time, or DONT get one at all and save us the trouble of finding out that it died to your failure to meet its requirements.


----------



## Deac77 (Feb 27, 2013)

These guys are right we've come a long way in the monitor world and learned alot in the process. Did that book tell you most Savannah's don't make it to their 1st birthday? Or that most are morbidly obese? Did it say anything about them being a calm docile lizard that will be ok with being held? Because a healthy sav is like a jack tussle in crack.

Just take it with a grain of salt and listen to them they are right and have kept them before as well and far more recently than a outdated book


----------



## nepoez (Feb 27, 2013)

I recommend reading this site before getting a sav: http://savannahmonitor.net/



batmanjosh5000 said:


> batmanjosh5000 said:
> 
> 
> > (irelevent story to the qeustion but..) About 3 months ago i purchased a sav (his name was Otto) from petland discounts. I was able to see that he wasnt so healthy, but i decided to buy him anyways because i thought that i could make him better and i wanted one rlly badly. Even though i had the temps 110 at the basking 85 ambient and 75 on the coolside with 60% humidity, several hides, a big water bowl on the hot side, and offered crickets, wax worms, and pinkies, and i never handled him once, he died within a week and a half of having him. Petland discounts was very nice and gave us our money back. But now im going to get either a tegu or sav in march and im not sure how to clean it. Is 5% bleach good?
> ...


----------



## frost (Feb 27, 2013)

bleach is ok if you insist on putting it in a tank but i suggest that you dont use bleach in a regular made enclosure. bleach is a pretty powerful cleaner used that is overused and the chemicals can seep into the wood or w/e you use to build it. a simple soap and water solution is good enough to clean most things.


----------



## batmanjosh5000 (Feb 27, 2013)

frost said:


> bleach is ok if you insist on putting it in a tank but i suggest that you dont use bleach in a regular made enclosure. bleach is a pretty powerful cleaner used that is overused and the chemicals can seep into the wood or w/e you use to build it. a simple soap and water solution is good enough to clean most things.



Thanks! i like the soapy water idea


----------



## TegusRawsome80 (Feb 27, 2013)

I like the you not keeping any more monitors idea. After you KILLED one animal through your awful care, why would you put another one through the exact same thing?


----------



## TeguBuzz (Feb 27, 2013)

Hey! Here's a GREAT solution batmanjosh. Leave the enclosure dirty and don't clean it. There's no point. Go ahead and get the savannah monitor, put it in that FISH tank, and see what happens. My near sure fire gut tells me it's going to die anyways in your uneducated care - so why waste time cleaning the cage from the LAST one that died in your "care" - if you even deserve that term.


----------



## Dubya (Feb 27, 2013)

I gotta go with a mild dish detergent. I would scrub all over with Dawn. Or maybe Palmolive. Other than that, listen to the other posters.


----------



## Ripkabird98 (Feb 27, 2013)

TeguBuzz said:


> Hey! Here's a GREAT solution batmanjosh. Leave the enclosure dirty and don't clean it. There's no point. Go ahead and get the savannah monitor, put it in that FISH tank, and see what happens. My near sure fire gut tells me it's going to die anyways in your uneducated care - so why waste time cleaning the cage from the LAST one that died in your "care" - if you even deserve that term.



Why even bother with a fish tank? Sell it for $10 bucks and use a Rabbit Cage thats all rusty and broken from the dumpster. It should hold humidity, right?!


----------



## TegusRawsome80 (Feb 27, 2013)

Great call!!!^^^


----------



## BatGirl1 (Feb 27, 2013)

*Re: RE: How do i clean a cage that a savannah monitor died in?*



Dubya said:


> I gotta go with a mild dish detergent. I would scrub all over with Dawn. Or maybe Palmolive. Other than that, listen to the other posters.



Hmmmm... haha. I getcha '. Haha

Sent from my ZTE-Z990G using Tapatalk 2


----------



## Dubya (Feb 27, 2013)

BatGirl1 said:


> Dubya said:
> 
> 
> > I gotta go with a mild dish detergent. I would scrub all over with Dawn. Or maybe Palmolive. Other than that, listen to the other posters.
> ...


----------



## BatGirl1 (Feb 27, 2013)

Shhhh... laura might be watching. Haha

Sent from my ZTE-Z990G using Tapatalk 2


----------



## laurarfl (Feb 27, 2013)

No, I'm not into that. HA!


----------



## BatGirl1 (Feb 28, 2013)

Oh! Laura! Haha...good one!  <3

Sent from my ZTE-Z990G using Tapatalk 2


----------



## carr65 (Apr 15, 2014)

To Disinfect a cage use a 10% bleach and hot water solution or you can go to a vet that specializes in reptiles and purchase the cleaner /disinfectant from the vet . Now for the savannah monitor that died a few things were wrong the first being you purchase a sick savannah monitor,the second you kept it in the same conditions as the pet store ,you did not do any research to see exactly what temperature monitors require for both basking and cool ends of the enclosure ,humidity levels etc..... .I have a 2 foot water monitor his enclosure is set up as follows basking spot is 130 degrees f cool end of enclosure is at 85 f heat is provided by a zoo med 100 watt MVB ,a zoo med 10.0 flourescent bulb is at the cool end of the enclosure, i am using a cypress mulch coco fiber mix for substrate because monitors love to dig , i have a FR stack under the MVB so the water monitor can have different levels of heat as it wants and needs it ,a ultra therm heat mat connect to a helix thermostat set at 95 degrees f to supply heat at night when the lights are off . I also have a misting system installed in the enclosure to not only provide humidity but to mimic the water monitors natural environment .


----------

