monitor?

[hailmike]

what's a good starter monitor, and don't say ackies even though the red one's are amazing. i've wanted one for years and just don't want to go out and get one that's going to get close to seven or eight feet in length. i'm looking for one that'll stay around three to five foot if not less. thanks for your input folks.

 

[Vicious_Fish]

Well....ackies are good, lol! So are Timors. Both species don't get much bigger than 2 feet.

 

[Rass]

Savannah or Black Throat. BT's get big but not bigger than what u want. I don't know if your dead set on a monitor or not but Tegus are cool too.

 

[happymidgetpaul]

Boscs and Black Throats are definitely not good beginner monitors, I'm curious, why have you decided against ackies?

 

[snakebite22]

argus monitors and dumerils monitors

 

[happymidgetpaul]

Dumerils

 

[BSMM]

First ask yourself some questions before you decide on anything
Why due you want it
Whats the biggest cage you can provide
Can you take care of it
Did you look up the animals needs/requirements to thrive
Due you plan on breeding in future
How much money are you looking to spend


If you dont plan on breeding then dont get any of the indo or African species, then your options are down to AU species as there all CBB and argus but only get the CBB ones as there healthier.

Bryan

 

[varanio]

First ask yourself some questions before you decide on anything
Why due you want it
Whats the biggest cage you can provide
Can you take care of it
Did you look up the animals needs/requirements to thrive
Due you plan on breeding in future
How much money are you looking to spend


If you dont plan on breeding then dont get any of the indo or African species, then your options are down to AU species as there all CBB and argus but only get the CBB ones as there healthier.

Bryan

I think that the reason behind him posting is indeed to get more information, and to get some advice on what to get. So before he starts asking himself the questions you propose I think what the OP needs is a little guidance as to where to start.

You touched on some valid points, but before all that he needs to look at certain issues.
Budget being the # 1 factor, what is your budget? How much can you afford initially?
Caging the price of the animal intital food bill. Cage décor and substrate can all be found for free if you live in an area that provides soil and hollow logs etc..
Now your long term budget goals, how much can you afford every month? Food, electricity being the two biggest wallet busters.

He stated he didn’t want something to be huge, but didn’t want something small like ackies. Argus are good, but they are aggressive feeders and they will need a lot of money for their long term keeping, being that argus aren’t very expensive to purchase. I think that getting a WC indo species is also a bad unless it is a hatchling that was collected from a WC female. ONLY EXCEPTION …. Wild caught Indo species are going to be super flighty from the start and the OP will have a bad first hand experience with a monitor, due to the uphill battle that one embarks with WC monitors.

My suggestion to you would be V tristis Tristis, they are a tad bit larger than ackies and are about the same price. Varanus Flavirufus full blooded stays smaller than argus and is more mellow, but is steeper than ackies. Ranging to about 700 per animal. Google the word varanus and you will get a full list of all the different types. Get some pictures of them and see what suits your liking. Remember to keep in mind the requirements up front and in the back end once the animal is purchased.

 

[CTU2fan]

Good post Alex.

I know it gets tossed out in the many "ackies rule!!!11!" posts you'll find on kingsnake and other places, but the smaller species really are cheaper in the long run, if cost is a concern. While some of the larger species (sav, nile, salvator) can be had rather cheaply, the cost to house and feed them properly is going to eat up the savings pretty quickly. If I was starting out I'd probably choose an argus.

Re: happymidgetpaul's post, my first monitor was a savanna and I couldn't have been happier. I wouldn't recommend them as first herps, but if you've got enough herp experience to be able to choose a quality animal to start with I don't think they're a very difficult monitor at all. If it's just the WC vs. CB issue then of course that's a fair point...but other than being difficult to find CBB I don't see a huge downside to savs vs. other varanids.

 

[varanio]

Good post Alex.

I know it gets tossed out in the many "ackies rule!!!11!" posts you'll find on kingsnake and other places, but the smaller species really are cheaper in the long run, if cost is a concern. While some of the larger species (sav, nile, salvator) can be had rather cheaply, the cost to house and feed them properly is going to eat up the savings pretty quickly. If I was starting out I'd probably choose an argus.

Re: happymidgetpaul's post, my first monitor was a savanna and I couldn't have been happier. I wouldn't recommend them as first herps, but if you've got enough herp experience to be able to choose a quality animal to start with I don't think they're a very difficult monitor at all. If it's just the WC vs. CB issue then of course that's a fair point...but other than being difficult to find CBB I don't see a huge downside to savs vs. other varanids.

yes, those that have more experience are able to deal with the patience needed to get wc species to come around, but for novice its always best to go cbb or ch....its just the clear cut choice so that owner and animal have a better overall learning curve, with less frustrations.