# Spencers vs lace monitors?



## kr0nick (Aug 15, 2011)

Hi all I have been reading a few old posts about keeping both these species and both crocdoc and serpent tounge have metioned that spencers monitors have a lesser arsenal of weaponary. But I don't quite understand could someone please explain the differences and pros and cons of each if you have a spare moment thanks.
Also is there any other larger monitor species that are kept in captivity ?


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## pythrulz (Aug 15, 2011)

just pm crocdoc he will help you out theres no one better to talk to about monitors than him I have heard that spencers can be less aggresive as for arsenal they both have big claws that could easily slice your skin and teeth that can bite you


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## kr0nick (Aug 15, 2011)

Thanks mate appeciate it


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## lizardmech (Aug 15, 2011)

Spencers have smaller claws and teeth. I'm not sure but I think spencers may also not have the same serrated teeth as lace monitors. Lace monitors apparently have some type of serration on their teeth that make them even more damaging than others.


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## XKiller (Aug 15, 2011)

As hatchlings I find spencers alot more skittish and scarse but they are verry hesatis to bite they will only huff and puff will rarely bite when approached wich IMO makes them a great 1st larger monitor extreamly inqusitive monitors to keep in captivity defentley a favourate of mine, lace monitors I would not advise unless you have had previous experance as they are alot more prone to biteing if approached or scared and have tallon claws that can cause serious damage as adults.. And can be very dificult to 'tame' them down, but in saying that both get my vote as I keep both and are defently with all the time you put into them. Shane.


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## crocdoc (Aug 15, 2011)

I think most of it has been covered. Spencer's monitors tend to tail-whip rather than bite, although if you move slowly enough with lace monitors and never restrain them they're quite disinclined to bite, too. The difference is if you were to restrain them the lace monitor will bite long before the Spencer's. Lace monitors get larger and are more active, so will need a much larger enclosure as adults. On the other hand, they're really hardy and can be kept in a cooler climate than Spencer's monitors. The other large species of monitor kept in Australia are the perentie, _Varanus giganteus_, yellow-spotted monitor, _Varanus panoptes _and the medium sized sand monitor, _Varanus gouldii_ (and _Varanus gouldii flavirufus_, the smaller desert race), Merten's water monitor, _Varanus mertensi_ and mangrove monitor, _Varanus indicus_. Most of these don't make good first monitors except the sand and Merten's water monitor.


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## kr0nick (Aug 16, 2011)

Hey shanewright that was exactly what I was after thank you heaps.



crocdoc said:


> Jesse, try not to take this the wrong way but, rest assured, you *ARE* getting your ambitions mixed up with your capabilities. Abort the notion immediately. Do not get a lace monitor if all you've ever kept is a turtle. There is no comparison beyond them both being reptiles. It isn't about specific care and regular maintenance, it's about a large, fast moving reptile with sharp teeth that will injure you permanently if you misread the cues and stuff up. All of the research in the world isn't going to give you the experience you need in gauging reptile behaviour. Heads of biology at universities aren't the people you should be speaking to, either. Even their field assistants, who are probably doing the hands-on work, will be trapping and or catching wild lace monitors rather than looking after captives. Captives have a much greater potential to cause damage than wild monitors because people working on wild monitors tend to restrain them to prevent injury. Even the understanding that your captive is not going to be a 'touchy-feely pet' doesn't take away from the fact that you'll still have to enter its enclosure for feeding and cleaning and even really 'tame' monitors will sometimes switch into 'food-brain' mode at inappropriate times. They'll catch you off guard if you've had little reptile experience and that's where the injuries happen. As you read this, take a good look at your hands and ask yourself if you can afford to risk losing functionality of one or more digits, for that's pretty much what's at stake with a bad bite.
> 
> I repeat, do NOT get a lace monitor. This is coming from someone that has very 'tame' lace monitors and has been breeding them for years (and is also a trained biologist, if that's important to you). This is not a personal attack, but someone giving advice on the basis of experience with the animal in question.


 
Hey crocdoc I found this post of your just before checking mine. It is to this right now I have decided not to get a large monitor.
Thank you very much for laying it out plain and simple lol.
Thanks everyone for their input
Hayden


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## Tassie97 (Aug 16, 2011)

[video=youtube;INTxp4So0ZQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INTxp4So0ZQ[/video]
that may help


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## Scleropages (Aug 16, 2011)

I keep spencers and Laceys , the spencers claws are more like a dogs claws and the laceys are more like a cats. 
Spencers seem to be a bit more "user friendly" if you don't want to get cut up .. I am sure both would give you a nasty bite if they where that way inclined.
I would take tail wiping and blunt claws over sharp claws any day! 
They are both very awesome animals that can do alot of damage.


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