Argus Monitor!

[SnakeCharmr728]

I have been wanting an argus for so long & finally got one! Won her in a raffle. Shes 2months, captive bred by a reputable store near me (East Bay Vivarium) I have her set up in a 40gal right now just because we are moving in a few weeks and no point of setting up and then tearing down a couple hundred pounds of dirt and sand, once we are moved she will be in a custom built wood 5x4 that allows for deep substrate and multiple basking areas....
Once shes bigger I plan on constructing a stock tank/wooden box type enclosure, like these: http://panoptesv.com/HBD/tricks.html

She has been great for me so far; Ive had her 2 weeks now and she has been tong feeding great! She isnt shy at all... She loves her roaches and crickets! She has also had rodents and crawdads so far. yum yum!

excuse the fuss on her mouth lol

 

[larissalurid]

You won her in a raffle! How lucky! She is beautiful :]

 

[Deac77]

These are on my top to buy list

 

[Steven.]

The only thing that makes this monitor even more attractive is that it was free. Awesome argus

sent from my phone to your eyes

 

[chitodadon]

How much do the cost hand are they tamed like tegu

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[SnakeCharmr728]

How much do the cost hand are they tamed like tegu

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Usually about $225-250 .... and no, they are almost impossible to tame, they are full of energy and do not like to be handled, even if worked with from a baby its very difficult to tame them.... With lots of work you can get them to where they will tolerate you, but being picked up and carried they dont like. Im going to be working with her a lot though so we'll see how it goes...

 

[tegus4life]

Gorgeous!

 

[DavidRosi]

Absolutely beautiful. Love the basking "sprawl"; always makes me laugh when my Colombian does his "starfish sprawl"
[attachment=5470]

 

[SnakeCharmr728]

Some more pics! Shes really filled out since I got her 2 weeks ago.... Shes pounding 5+ dubia roaches and 2-3 fuzzies a day...

 

[KritterKeeper]

I was just wondering if you still have this girl and how shes doing...

 

[SnakeCharmr728]

Yup still got her and shes been a pain in the ass to say the least. She was the runt out of her clutch and she hasnt grown much. She started off strong then started being a super picky eater dispite having perfect husbandry. Shes recently started having a stronger appetite but shes not like my other argus's which are very in your face/not shy kind of species.

 

[KritterKeeper]

Oh sorry to hear that but glad shes starting to get better ..You have more than one then? How are they in general to deal with? There are a handful of monitors ive been really looking into and think an argus might be the one i end up getting..

 

[SnakeCharmr728]

I have her, a pair of argus x flavi x goulds monitors and a savannah monitor. Those are mine, but plenty others come and go through the rescue.

Argus are incredibly high strung, they are often called the "adhd" monitor. They arent shy like how niles and waters can be. They are very in your face and will test your limits. If you back down, they will push you farther. They are INCREDIBLY food aggressive. Argus are often recommended as an intermediate monitor because they arent as big as niles/waters/blackthroats however since they are so active they do require just as much space as the larger species. Males will still get 5.5ft, females 3.5ft. so your still looking at a 10x4x6 as a minimum sized enclosure with multiple basking areas because of the large space, 2-3ft deep of dirt (a must, no exceptions!) and huge food bill.... They eat nonstop, their activity level burns off calories quick and they are literally garbage disposals. My crosses are smaller because of the Flavi in them so the male is 3-3.5ft and my female is 2.5-3ft and they both get 3 adult mice, 1-2chicks and about 50 roaches DAILY... and thats just enough to keep them at good weight. Infact its very hard to get an overweight argus if temps are good. They EAT and EAT! lol

I really suggest starting out with a savannah if you dont have any prior varanid experience. A lot of people over look how awesome they are to keep because they are so common, but when kept correctly and that means HIGH heat, HIGH humidity and deep substrate then they will keep you on your toes. They can be handleable but it takes time, patience and trust. Those puppy dog tame savs you see at expos, etc are cold stressed savs. Properly heated ones wont be lazy calm fat monitors lounging around. The only downside to savs is that they do require a high invert diet so a good producing roach colony is a must.

Let me know if you have any questions!

 

[KritterKeeper]

Wow.. thanks! I guess i didnt realize they were quite that active. In all honesty what i really want is a water monitor but im afraid of the food bill. Sounds like an argus wouldnt be much cheaper at all. I dont take these things lightly and would never just go out and buy something without tons of research. I spend hours online going over everything i can find if im interested in something but sometimes its hard to get a good idea without talking to actual people who currently have one so i appreciate your answer.
I understand saying i should start with a sav, and this will go against what alot of people think, but i dont like 'starting' with an animal that isnt what i want to end up with if that makes sense. If i got a sav then i wouldnt be able to get the lizard i really wanted until i didnt have the sav anymore and i wouldnt rehome something like that. I personally do not like the look of a sav. Theres just something about the face i dont like and i know that sounds stupid but it is what it is.
Would you happen to have any other midsized monitor suggestions(aside from ackies)?

 

[Deac77]

MAYBE consider a V. Melinus (yellow monitor or quince monitor common name) but they are still super shy and get roughly 6 foot. Any monitor over the 3.5 foot mark with proper heat and husbandry will eat you out of house and home they are not lazy animals they will be on the move none stop

 

[SnakeCharmr728]

V. Rudicollis, black roughneck monitor would be a good choice or dumerils monitor

 

[KritterKeeper]

Ok thank you both. Ive looked a bit into the roughnecks before but not so much the dumerils so ill check em both out and see if one would work for me.

 

[Deac77]

Like i said dont expect a sweet monitor even healthy sav's are bipolar lol