Think you want a lacey?

[diamond_reptiles]

You think you want a Lacey?
Firstly I just want to say that I have kept alot of Lizards (Blue Tongues, Bearded Dragons, Gidgees, Ridge Tail Monitors, Spencer Monitors, Water Dragons, Garden Lizards, Water Monitor plus more)

These are not a first time pet. They take ALOT more work then any other lizard. They can do more then a hell of alot of damage and most cannot be tamed. Not like your other lizards.
IF you want a Lace Monitor, please spend a few years researching and gaining experience with other Lizards, there are to many people who get a Lacie and then sell it because 'It bit them' or 'It scratched them' or 'They cannot hold it'.

For example:
My Lacie is 2 years old, she is kinda hand able. Once out and in my hands she is fine. Though she tolerates it. (Before people ask, she likes to be out and likes to lick my face and has a wonderful personality). She will take alot of time to tame down as previous owners were horrible to her.
These monitors can take years to tame. Alot of work needs to be put into them. Not a quick 5 minutes like bearded dragons and blue tongues (More like 2 minutes)

There are ways to tame them and they are NOT EASY!
Plus their food aggression can be very...well...lets just say dangerous at times.
They can be expensive to feed. ($15 a week for me)

I personally feel that these animals can be trusted after THEY TRUST YOU but as I said above: Time and Patience.


If you want a Lacie, make sure you have serious experience and time to give it. Plus dont be a sook if it bites or scratches you (No offence to anyone)

Respect the Lacie, trust it.
Let them respect you, let them trust you.

- Cheers

 

[Boiga]

Don't ever trust a lacie.

 

[Shotta]

is this referring to a recent post or something?,i don't think anyone would be stupid enough to buy a lacie without prior knowledge or experience

 

[cridon96]

I think the word "Tame" gets thrown around to much.

I used to have two lacies and they where fantastic, used to come out follow me around the house and even sit on the sofa with me and watch a bit of TV however I don't know that I would describe them as "Tame".

Lacies are a lot of work and will eat you out of home but they are such a rewarding animal to own and admire (often watching you as much as you watch them) as long as you respect them and remember what they are capable of.

I do agree not a good lizard for first timers and should be avoided unless you have the time experience and space to keep them properly, remember that little lizard you see in the shop will grow and grow and grow.

 

[diamond_reptiles]

I've been reading on other sites, and previous posts about people getting Lacie's without using the brain 1st.

 

[Ramsayi]

Letting a lacey lick your face? Might be wise to have a rethink about letting it do that.

 

[serpenttongue]

There are still idiots out there taking wild ones from the bush without ever having experience with them.

Like I've always said: if you're thinking about keeping a lace monitor, first visit a lace monitor keeper and be present during feeding time. This is when you'll see what lacies are all about!

I will never trust a lace monitor......ever!

 

[crocdoc]

Alot of work needs to be put into them. Not a quick 5 minutes like bearded dragons and blue tongues (More like 2 minutes)

Force handling is a sure way to fail with lace monitors.

I personally feel that these animals can be trusted after THEY TRUST YOU...

My first bit of advice: Never post about a topic until you've had more experience than a couple of years. My apologies for being a bit rough on you, but your advice is dangerous.
My second bit of advice: Never trust a lace monitor.

I've got a pair of monitors that are almost 14 years old. They are as calm (I'm not about to use 'tame' unless it's in apostrophes) as any lace monitor you'll ever see to the point that I let them out to wander around my home on most days and work on my computer while they cruise around. After 14 years there is one thing I can say for sure: I trust them less and less each year. The 'tamer' they seem, the more dangerous they are as the more complacent people become with them. I only let them out because I am familiar with their behaviour but I stopped letting them out when friends visit many years ago.

You'll never get a defensive bite out of either of them. It just wouldn't occur to them to bite in self defence. Even getting a hiss out of either one is hard. However, their feeding response is undiminished and even after 14 years I am frequently reminded that I am only one silly mistake away from a serious bite requiring hospitalisation, with a possible loss of fingers or toes. I've had enough 'wake up calls' to remind me of what they're capable of. Something as ordinary as dropping an electrical cord on the floor while putting an iron away has been known to trigger a feeding response in one of them and within a fraction of a second I have a large, hungry lace monitor, whose head is darting back and forth, ready to bite the first thing that moves, right next to my thong clad foot. I now more often wear boots when they are out, for that very reason.

Lace monitors are not 'pets'. Your monitor 'licking' your face is not being affectionate. Curious, perhaps, but not affectionate. I would not let mine near enough to my face to do that, either, because one day one of them (the male, most likely) would pick up the scent of lunch on my lips and my face would be history, pronto. I probably might have let them tongue flick my face when I had only been keeping them for a couple of years, though, when I thought I knew what lace monitors were about. Like you.

Plus dont be a sook if it bites or scratches you

If you do cop a bite when your lace monitor is full size, it's possible that you will not be a sook, but as you are recovering from hand surgery and coming to the realisation that you have permanent damage to the functionality of one of your hands, you will probably wonder how you got there. My advice is to not put yourself in a position in which this could happen.

 

[JAS101]

You think you want a Lacey?
Firstly I just want to say that I have kept alot of Lizards (Blue Tongues, Bearded Dragons, Gidgees, Ridge Tail Monitors, Spencer Monitors, Water Dragons, Garden Lizards, Water Monitor plus more)

These are not a first time pet. They take ALOT more work then any other lizard. They can do more then a hell of alot of damage and most cannot be tamed. Not like your other lizards.
IF you want a Lace Monitor, please spend a few years researching and gaining experience with other Lizards, there are to many people who get a Lacie and then sell it because 'It bit them' or 'It scratched them' or 'They cannot hold it'.

For example:
My Lacie is 2 years old, she is kinda hand able. Once out and in my hands she is fine. Though she tolerates it. (Before people ask, she likes to be out and likes to lick my face and has a wonderful personality). She will take alot of time to tame down as previous owners were horrible to her.
These monitors can take years to tame. Alot of work needs to be put into them. Not a quick 5 minutes like bearded dragons and blue tongues (More like 2 minutes)

There are ways to tame them and they are NOT EASY!
Plus their food aggression can be very...well...lets just say dangerous at times.
They can be expensive to feed. ($15 a week for me)

I personally feel that these animals can be trusted after THEY TRUST YOU but as I said above: Time and Patience.


If you want a Lacie, make sure you have serious experience and time to give it. Plus dont be a sook if it bites or scratches you (No offence to anyone)

Respect the Lacie, trust it.
Let them respect you, let them trust you.

- Cheers

dude you are an accident waiting to happen , never ever let a lace get anywhere near your face . I don't care how " tame" it seems , its one food response waiting to tear your face apart . dude that's one 0 from a 000 phone call to say my " tame" lace has just ripped my face off .

 

[The_Geeza]

Diamond has made quite an impact for a newbie tonight

 

[Radar]

Some good info in this thread, thanks.

 

[eipper]

If you continue to allow it lick your face you will end up assisting the bank balance of a plastic surgeon

 

[serpenttongue]

Before people ask, she likes to be out and likes to lick my face

This has just reminded me; a month or so ago I saw a photo on FB of a young lad letting his lace monitor lick his face. I don't suppose that was you?

 

[ReptiBeck]

This has just reminded me; a month or so ago I saw a photo on FB of a young lad letting his lace monitor lick his face. I don't suppose that was you?

Wouldn't have been. He only just got this lacey.

By the way, its not a big lacey, im sure he isnt going to let it near his face/head when its bigger...! its only about a foot long...about 1.5 feet with tail.

Chris has kept snakes and lizards for years and has wanted a lacey since he was younger, hes talked to me about them enthusiastically since i met him last year, he knows plenty about them and has very close friends who actually breed reptiles including monitors-waters, lacies, all the big breeds. he has experience feeding and handling them, even big adults.

Chris is very passionate about his reptiles and his first lacey-the pet hes wanted since he was about 10-especially has him ecstatic. he never wrote "i let her lick my face" he just said that she 'likes to'. ive seen the lacey do this, and he doesnt let it right at his face, just on his shoulder and its tongue flicked and would make contact with his face.
he is very careful handling the lacey, always keeps a hand on her back in case she did anything so he could grab and pull her away, and as i said he has experience handling monitors, including an adult lacey (monitor staying on the ground of course)

now i know some of you guys are totally correct and im not necesarily taking Chris' side on this, but just clarifying as he is a great friend of mine and dont want his first experience on aps to be a negative one!


Excuse the grammar errors...its late and im tired

 

[Trimeresurus]

He only just got it and is offering advice?

Will be interesting to see 'Think you want a scrubby? ' or 'Think you want a coastal tai' if he ever gets them.

 

[whyme]

This was from a ft long lacie. And I stress, it was NOT a bite. It was a glancing kiss!!!!

 

[Londos1990]

>.<

 

[insitu]

is this referring to a recent post or something?,i don't think anyone would be stupid enough to buy a lacie without prior knowledge or experience

plenty of people do, then post pics handling it as a hatchling then a year or so later start asking for advice on how to manage it and usually dont listen, then put it up for sale a few months later, pretty sad for the animals really! but most people see photos or demonstrators at expos etc with BIG lizards draped over them like puppy dogs and want to just go buy one like that, unfortunately it takes a lot of years to get to that stage, as for the kid that posted the thread the intention is there.......... be careful dude they arent animals you want to learn from your mistakes from

 

[Ramy]

Chris has kept snakes and lizards for years and has wanted a lacey since he was younger, hes talked to me about them enthusiastically since i met him last year, he knows plenty about them and has very close friends who actually breed reptiles including monitors-waters, lacies, all the big breeds.

No one is trying to pick on him, however it's hard to read that original post without being amused by the irony. Enthusiasm doesn't equal experience, unfortunately. And while the spirit of the OP is good, it does contradict itself. That irony is what people are seeing. Well, and this;

If you want a Lacie, make sure you have serious experience and time to give it. Plus dont be a sook if it bites or scratches you (No offence to anyone)

Better advice might have included Be prepared for bites and scratches to be vicious. The term "sook" implies crying over paper cuts, not realising your mistake in buying a lacey after a bad bite.

 

[ReptiBeck]

plenty of people do, then post pics handling it as a hatchling then a year or so later start asking for advice on how to manage it and usually dont listen, then put it up for sale a few months later, pretty sad for the animals really! but most people see photos or demonstrators at expos etc with BIG lizards draped over them like puppy dogs and want to just go buy one like that, unfortunately it takes a lot of years to get to that stage, as for the kid that posted the thread the intention is there.......... be careful dude they arent animals you want to learn from your mistakes from

it may take years, but you have to start somewhere...the risk is there, but what pet doesnt have risks?! yeah, it could cut you deep enough to bleed out in minutes, but a dog could do that too. a large snake could. i have a horse, a 600kg beast that could kill me with one flinch!
also, he isnt exactly a 'kid'

- - - Updated - - -

No one is trying to pick on him, however it's hard to read that original post without being amused by the irony. Enthusiasm doesn't equal experience, unfortunately. And while the spirit of the OP is good, it does contradict itself. That irony is what people are seeing. Well, and this;



Better advice might have included Be prepared for bites and scratches to be vicious. The term "sook" implies crying over paper cuts, not realising your mistake in buying a lacey after a bad bite.

Yeah, i do agree. and i think this was more of a venting thing for him rather than giving advice, to be honest. oh well.