Co-inhabitant Thoughts

[angelrose]

wow, now that's an enclosure. one of them will be lucky 8)
I have a savannah and tegus and I don't let them roam around together at the same time. the savannah is a big sweety but very powerful. how about a strong divider in there :?:

 

[hoosier]

This is a really bold statement, but I'd say the toughest monitor is probably the argus.

i have to agree with you. most of the breeders i have talked to say that the argus is pretty hardy and forgiving towards the mistakes of the keeper. its one of the reasons i choose to get one of these mini tanks. 8) v.panoptes horni also has to be my favorite monitor so i agree %100 with you :-D

 

[shiftylarry]

My first monitor was an adult female argus. It was a few years back. I thought I had done my research, but I'd really just been misinformed by ignorant pet store owners and wholesalers. If I'd made the same mistakes I made with my argus with my Rudicollis, he'd be dead for sure.

Dorton: You still need to provide some lighting just in case. It's pretty easy. I recommend using outdoor fixtures with 45-65 watt halogen flood bulbs. I can't guarantee things will work out. Really experienced keepers have lost monitors when they kept them outside. As a general rule, putting your monitor outside isn't something you try if you don't have a lot of confidence in yourself.

Don't forget also that you will either need a solid bottom, or a fence that extends a minimum of 4 ft into the ground. It's not uncommon for savs to have 6 ft burrows in the wild. Don't forget about ground temperatures. They can get pretty cold. Monitors are very smart, but they aren't good at recognizing cold.

The benefits of sunlight are great. Reptiles, even carnivores, are known to synthesize calcium from sunlight through their skin. I just want you to understand what the possible consequences are. If you do house him outside, almost all keepers use a wooden "hot box" that the monitors can retreat to.

I'll try and get you the email of a guy named shay who houses his argus outside in the summer.

-Chris