Arka Mukherjee
New Member
Hello everyone, I bought a sand monitor about 6 weeks back and was wondering if anyone can give me any recommendations on how to care for him.
My first topic is based on vitamins. Could anyone recommend some products for Multi-Vitamins and calcium supplements to me and where to get those (It would be easier on Amazon). Wondering if I should get calcium with D3 or without.
Secondly, I have a few questions on his behaviour. He is very active, running around, climbing, jumping and exploring but he seems to have a low food drive. From others recounts most monitors have a more aggressive and excitable approach to feeding. Correct me if i am wrong but is this normal? He has never refused food from his bowl. I feed him every four to five days and have started to feed him with tongs. He is still very skittish but not the reactions i have heard about with other's new monitors. Also he has never threatened to bite me, only been bitten once for grabbing the back half of his body by mistake for maintenance. From what I have heard they seem to be very inclined to bite. I have been trying to get him used to my presence by working on a table next to his enclosure and he can somewhat tolerate me slowly rubbing his back and under his neck(Still with a lot of hissing and puffing). Can I have some tips on training him to be a bit handleable and tolerate me.
The next topic I would like to talk about is the enclosure(Pictures Attached Below). Got a ceramic heating bulb on the left side, a UVB in the middle. My Sandy's claws still seem a bit long, any tips about that? Would love some feedback and please feel free to criticize anything from the above because what matters is giving this magnificent animal the best possible life. Any tips for humidity etc? Planning to upgrade indoor enclosure start next year.
The last topic I would like to ask about is for planning for the future. I would like to create a naturalistic outdoor pit in my backyard for him, (when he manage to gain some trust and gains some more size). I would like to use native plants from the sand monitors range, use sandstone rocks and create fencing from wooden frames with polycarbonate roofing. I live in Lalor Park near the Blacktown area NSW so can I have some tips on when to take him inside, construction, how to stop him digging too deep and appearing in the neighbors gardens. I plan to use heating to compensate for the lack of heat(except for the middle of summer)
Sorry for posting so much but I want to make this perfect as he is my first monitor. Feel free to criticize on anything I said once again and thanks to anyone who is replying!
My first topic is based on vitamins. Could anyone recommend some products for Multi-Vitamins and calcium supplements to me and where to get those (It would be easier on Amazon). Wondering if I should get calcium with D3 or without.
Secondly, I have a few questions on his behaviour. He is very active, running around, climbing, jumping and exploring but he seems to have a low food drive. From others recounts most monitors have a more aggressive and excitable approach to feeding. Correct me if i am wrong but is this normal? He has never refused food from his bowl. I feed him every four to five days and have started to feed him with tongs. He is still very skittish but not the reactions i have heard about with other's new monitors. Also he has never threatened to bite me, only been bitten once for grabbing the back half of his body by mistake for maintenance. From what I have heard they seem to be very inclined to bite. I have been trying to get him used to my presence by working on a table next to his enclosure and he can somewhat tolerate me slowly rubbing his back and under his neck(Still with a lot of hissing and puffing). Can I have some tips on training him to be a bit handleable and tolerate me.
The next topic I would like to talk about is the enclosure(Pictures Attached Below). Got a ceramic heating bulb on the left side, a UVB in the middle. My Sandy's claws still seem a bit long, any tips about that? Would love some feedback and please feel free to criticize anything from the above because what matters is giving this magnificent animal the best possible life. Any tips for humidity etc? Planning to upgrade indoor enclosure start next year.
The last topic I would like to ask about is for planning for the future. I would like to create a naturalistic outdoor pit in my backyard for him, (when he manage to gain some trust and gains some more size). I would like to use native plants from the sand monitors range, use sandstone rocks and create fencing from wooden frames with polycarbonate roofing. I live in Lalor Park near the Blacktown area NSW so can I have some tips on when to take him inside, construction, how to stop him digging too deep and appearing in the neighbors gardens. I plan to use heating to compensate for the lack of heat(except for the middle of summer)
Sorry for posting so much but I want to make this perfect as he is my first monitor. Feel free to criticize on anything I said once again and thanks to anyone who is replying!
