# Feeding help



## Lambbosbread (Apr 28, 2014)

Hey there, I recently purchased a 5 month old varanus gouldii and I was just wondering how much I should feed her and how often, I have owned other reptiles before but first monitor, I have read monitor books and care sheets I'm not stupid I just want to make sure I'm doing everything right for her.So any feeding help would be great. I started of with live crickets but she wasn't even trying to get them and they would end up climbing to the top of tank(big plywood cage) so I started feeding them to her dead,is this the best method? Or should I just try pinkies? She lets me hand feed her.any help would be awesome




What you find is the best food.
how much.
how often..


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## ThatGuy (Apr 28, 2014)

"The diet of hatchlings and juveniles often consists mostly of insects and small lizards but generally varies more with age. Adult monitors will prey on mice, large insects, small agamids and geckoes, smaller varanids, snakes, and carrion."

That is a piece I took from the article on Varanus gouldii in the aussiepythons wiki. I have little experience on captive lizards but sand goannas or "race horse" goannas (as we called them in Murchison) used to love being thrown raw chicken scraps and we often saw them sniffing arround the chicken pen, I thought for the eggs. I wouldn't suggest carrion as this would most probably cause a captive animal to become ill but maybe seeing as it is so young trying something a little easier to catch like some nice fat meal worms could sate the appetite of our lizard friend.

As I said I am no pro but I hope this helps you in some way.


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## sd1981 (Apr 28, 2014)

For all of my monitor hatchlings, I serve up chopped up rats, chopped up day old chickens, and whole food items (small monitors need it chopped really small, chop when frozen, less messy that way) I have never had any monitor refuse it if the temps are right and they have their privacy etc... If temps are kept right, you can basically feed them plenty and they'll eat continuously and grow like weeds....


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## hector (Apr 28, 2014)

As mentioned above, chopped up adult mice, rats and day old chicken.what temps your basking spot.


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## whyme (Apr 28, 2014)

sd1981 said:


> for all of my monitor hatchlings, i serve up chopped up rats, chopped up day old chickens, and whole food items (small monitors need it chopped really small, chop when frozen, less messy that way) i have never had any monitor refuse it if the temps are right and they have their privacy etc... If temps are kept right, you can basically feed them plenty and they'll eat continuously and grow like weeds....



this!!!!


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## Lambbosbread (Apr 29, 2014)

Oh ok so you suggest adult mice rather then pinkies? Is that due to the fat ratio ?My basking spot is high 50s , with hot side 35 dropping to around 27 on cool side , tank is 2000mm L x2000mm H x1600mm W.


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## hector (Apr 29, 2014)

Monitors need the devolved bones, organs and fur of adult mice, pinkies dont have much nutrition. Temperatures are ok. Does he have plenty of hides and deep sand?


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## pinefamily (Apr 29, 2014)

Tried chopped weaner mouse for our juvenile ackies. They hardly touched it. Fed them whole pinkie mice. Straight down the hatch. 
Yes there might be more nutrients in the bigger rodents, but as long as they are eating.....
They also eat dusted crickets (well, the crickets keep disappearing from the enclosure).


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## whyme (Apr 29, 2014)

pinkies do squat. Chopped furry things work better. If they take pinkies, follow with something grown.


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## Bluetongue1 (Apr 30, 2014)

There is a popular misconception that pinkies do not contain sufficient nutrients. This is not correct. Please refer to the following website to validate this... http://www.nal.usda.gov/awic/zoo/WholePreyFinal02May29.pdf

What pinkies lack is roughage – fur, tough indigestible skin and thick sections of bone, all of which are not digested. Consequently these materials are eliminated as wastes. The digestive systems of vertebrates are geared to expecting waste and without them it results in health issues. However, young animals are not so prone to these health issues until they start to get a bit bigger. At the same time, Introducing chopped up adult mice to a juvenile’s diet, so it is getting lots of roughage, is perfectly OK.

Blue


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## Lambbosbread (Apr 30, 2014)

hector said:


> Monitors need the devolved bones, organs and fur of adult mice, pinkies dont have much nutrition. Temperatures are ok. Does he have plenty of hides and deep sand?


Yer about 1 foot deep ,she is still small.lots of hides


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