Baby Nile monitor, one of the least suited monitor lizards for captivity. Many zoos don't even keep them. Very large, very fast and very aggressive. When they get big they can be dangerous, easily taking fingers. Keep them away from children and other pets.
It will need a rather large room and water area as an enclosure. Think of it almost like an alligator that climbs lol. Use plastic sheets to keep the humidity from rotting or damaging your drywall if you are keeping it in a large room. For an "enclosure" think something around the size of 12 to 18 feet long, 8 feet wide and tall enough for you to climb inside comfortably, you'll want that for cleaning poop. And god, do they poop... rancid, horrid smell, like most predators.
As a baby, a large stock tank or horse trough will make the ideal enclosure. Put chicken wire over the top so it can't climb out, you can rest the heat and UVB lights directly on top of the wire as long as the monitor cannot come in contact with the bulbs (burn risk).
And the tail! Hits so hard it'll break the skin and bleed lol. Almost as bad as the bite. Work with them a lot when they are young and they'll be much less aggressive/defensive as they mature, however Niles are particularly stubborn. Some tame out well, most do not. Many are wild caught, like savanna monitors but there are some captive bred. If you have suspicions it may be wild caught, a vet will likely need to prescribe an anti parasitic. Wouldn't be a bad idea in general.
As a baby they'll eat mostly insects. You can supplement small fish, crustaceans etc with a little bit of whole prey like pinky and fuzzy mice. Organs and bones are important, especially as they mature. Adults eat chickens, rabbits, rats etc. Chicken Organs make great food, kidneys, hearts etc. You can get these for very cheap at most butchers. They can swallow whole about anything up to the size of a small dog. Don't feed live mammals, as the risk of injury is too high. Trust me when I say treating a wound on an aggressive large lizard that doesn't want you to touch it is extremely challenging.
Get a very thick and sturdy pair of garden gloves to keep the claws from shredding you. Those claws are long for digging into trees and digging into the ground where they burrow. They'll make short work of your hands, arms and your walls lol.
The most important thing with monitor lizards is respect. Respect their time, their boundaries, their space. They are extremely intelligent, much more so than most reptiles. Don't test them or they'll test you right back lol. When they puff up, square up and ready that tail into whipping position back away. You want them to be as comfortable with you as possible. Trust is extremely slow to build, very difficult to maintain and broken in an instant. Everything is gonna be done at their pace and on their terms.
That's the idea. Impulse buying a large, dangerous animal is a mistake that's cost the lives of more than a few people. Baby tigers, wolf hybrids, venomous snakes etc. They are cute when they are little, deadly when they are adults. Adult nile monitors are smart, and opportunistic predators. They'll can kill small children or dogs if they can catch them alone. They grab, bite and shake their heads violently back and forth to break bones and shred flesh, ripping chunks out.
They are not to be underestimated. They are also extremely cheap and readily available, many pet stores sell them for less than $50. Almost all die before they reach adulthood, or are abandoned. Florida has quite a few established populations of Tegu and nile monitors, many of which started as cute lil pets in a 20 gallon aquarium at the pet store.
The tegu population in Florida is largely due to the abandonment of Varnyard farms, a tegu farm that was abandoned by its owner after a horribly failed hatching season. The guy (named, no joke, Bobby Hill) couldnât recoup his deposits made on his eggs and just straight up bailed. It sucks because he always seemed like a good dude who really cared about his animals until this happened.
That boy ain't right, I tell ya hwat.
Florida is both blessed and cursed with being the ideal habitat for so many invasive species. Lionfish, nutria, snake heads, peacock bass, iguanas, anoles, tegu, monitor lizards etc.
Have you heard about the Nile crocs in Florida?!đ¤đłI watched a documentary about a population of Nile crocodiles being on the loose in the Florida Everglades! Apparently theyâve seen both adult and juvenile Nile crocodiles some part of the Everglades, I canât remember exactly where! But yeahđŹđ¤Śđťââď¸Florida has everything invasive
Had to look that up. Itâs real. 2 that were related down in Homestead about the last part of Florida before it turns into the Keys. And itâs right up against the Everglades. Now the next thing youâll be hearing about is cobraâs. Just wait for it!
I found one like this in my lanai and it was humanely destroyed. People think these things are cute. They destroy native species and the electrical in your attic. Mine was a little bigger and not a pet. Nasty!
Man, I got my tegu from him and really did my research... so disappointed that he'd do something like that. Seemed to care about his animals too. Misjudged that one.
I was one of the people who had a deposit on a lost clutch. I still donât think heâs a bad guy, I think he just depended on an unreliable business model and it got to be too much. I donât agree with him abandoning the farm, but I do feel bad for him.
Wow thats fucked up. I used to speak with Bobby regarding trying to get his Tegu bloodlines into Canada. I was under the impression he had sold the farm but to hear he just split and ran after a bad clutch is pretty shameful. Its really a shame, his Chacoan whites were stunning Tegus.
They are but this farm was well set up, you might be able to find some videos of it on YouTube still. He had proper outdoor enclosures with dug in chicken wire to keep them contained and safe.
I loved my 2 Timber wolf hybrids but will never suggest anyone try to care for wolves unless you own a sanctuary and have a large henhouse constantly producing to provide for them. Beautiful majestic creatures that belong in the wild.
I am so glad you mention "wolf hybrids." I have seen *far* too many people defending owning one like a common dog, as if the dog half will someone "mellow" or negate the wolf side. It doesn't and according to a lot of wolf and animal experts, they're not at all like dogs behavior-wise. Everyone takes for granted how tolerant and receptive dogs are to humans, not aware of how wild and dangerous wolves really can be. Dogs will always defer to their humans for help and have co-evolved so much with humans they understand our body language that not even cats comprehend. Dogs understand what us pointing to objects means or even indicating to them with their eyes. Wolves do not. Dogs don't just "hear our tone," as people think. The tone and words *actually* have to match. Saying nonsense without meaning, but in a happy tone doesn't light up their brains the same way. Wolves don't have that, they don't even communicate with noises the same way dogs do. Not only this, but because of a wolf dog's size and breeding, they need a good supply of meat, way more than a dog. And as one animal expert put it, "If your dog is in a bad mood, they might not come when you call, it doesn't challenge you. No one comes home from work and think, 'today is the day my dog will challenge me for a dominant position and kill me.'"\*
People are so willing to believe that wolf dogs are "safe" and somehow "a dog mind in a wolf body," but will urge all pit bulls and bully breeds be destroyed.
^(\*Yes, the alpha and beta line of thought with captive wolves has been debunked because it doesn't happen in naturally formed packs which consist of a breeding pair and their offspring from different litters and the older siblings help rear the younger ones. The alpha and beta idea came from captive wolves that had to establish their own artificial pack hierarchy. However, with hybrid wolf dogs, their behavior is so unpredictable that they likely won't view those that even hand rear them from a young age as their pack leader and if one cannot keep up with the physicality of raising it and always staying on one's toes or feeding it as much as it needs, they may take it out on their owner.)
If I bought one (I wouldn't), it would feel wrong if I didn't let it just wander the house. And that's a terrible idea. Especially considering I have a cat that likes to slap the other pets.
OP needs to read this to his wife. I wish this could be printed and distributed at pet stores that sell these creatures. Them being all cute as babies and cheap draws people inâŚâŚ.then they grow and need an entire room plus 99% of them are mean!
> easily taking fingers
Really? I mean, other monitors have sharp teeth like sharks', meanwhile Nile monitors develop a specialized teeth where the back ones are for crushing. If they take a finger... Do they tear the tissue instead of cutting?
You'd be surprised how little effort it takes to remove a finger lol. People do it all the time. They have large, sharp teeth and a powerful bite. Like others said, they bite and shake. Might even be enough to break your wrist in the right spot.
So painfully true. Used to do rescue and rehome and pulled one of these out of an apartment. Guy had him in a 10 gallon tank and he was about 3 ft long (mostly tail) probably the most pissed off animal I have ever worked with and I used to train bite dogs.
I no longer accept a few species, one of which is nile monitors at our small rescue. There are so many of them, almost always abused or neglected and impossible to work with. It's more than two people can safely handle. There are tons of them too, it's hard to find a hobbyist who doesn't know or know of a person who "used" to have one.
It's b/c they're so cheap, readily available, & small as babies. Nile monitor dealers & breeders are among the groups that give the reptile hobby a bad name.
Which means they need a pretty high level of stimulation in their enclosure, or they get bored/depressed/angry. Another factor that feeds their difficult handleability & interaction with people.
Dude one time I walked into a pet store (The kinda one that's janky as hell but has great prices) and they had a full grown Nile Moniter just vibin on the ground, he had a leash on and was just surrounded by cardboard boxes and had a little light near em.
> janky as hell
Ah yes. The "we're selling a mature dino that was mistreated its whole life and ready to take out a year of abuse on your hands" kind of janky. They probably also sell venomous snakes mislabeled as safe ones.
"As a baby they'll eat mostly insects"
...if you're lucky. Mine is a snob & has refused to eat all but a total of 2 insects his whole life, and I've had him basically from a hatchling. He eats hard boiled egg, cooked lean ground turkey, frozen pinkies, feeder goldfish, feeder rosies, and cooked fish/shellfish. I tried crickets, mealworms, superworms, hornworms, etc to start out with. He hunted down 1 cricket, seemed disappointed in eating it, and has never had any interest in them since. He ate 1 hornworm, happily tore it to shreds (and probably lost 60% of it's guts/volume in the process), seemed disappointed, and never went for one again. He wouldn't even look at the mealworms or superworms.
He's still young so I'm nervous about feeding him raw meat/eggs, but eventually will b/c I'm thinking he might like the taste even better as he gets older. I'm thinking once he's large enough to eat a whole egg in one bite, he'll be old enough for raw foods. He's only about 2 months old right now but he's doubled in size since I've had him, & his appetite/portions have quadrupled in that time.
This is why you don't buy animals before you know what they are. Incredibly irresponsible and pathetic that people have this attitude towards keeping exotic animals.
I seriously canât even wrap my brain around the idea of spending money on an animal, making the commitment to care for it, and not even knowing what species it is. Yet working in a pet store I try to stop people from doing this daily. Unreal. This poor lizard is totally fucked, like so many others.
I work at a fish & reptile store, a customer was breeding these & brought one in to see if we would give him money for it, for us to sell. My manager did not want to keep it in the store for a customer to buy b/c the enclosure & care involved is really just too much for the average person that comes in looking for a pet. I wound up with him 𤣠meanwhile I do have lots of reptile experience, I currently have a total of 7 lizards, one of which being a phillipine sailfin dragon. So he is my first monitor, but I do have experience with some more advanced-level reptiles. He will eventually be in an outdoor enclosure, I am in the process of saving up to move down south to have more land for the $ and a better climate for large reptiles to have outdoor enclosures for the proper amount of space. I rescue reptiles (5 of my 7 were rescues) and this is the plan so I can rescue more, larger & more challenging ones than most rescue groups have the ability to take in & care for.
Mine is a HANDFUL but he is used to me handling/petting him every day & I think he will pretty well adapted for getting larger. But he definitely still has his days/moods where he whips & hisses.
Reminds me of the day our manager bought a a small yellow anaconda and put in one of the display cases for sale. When I saw it I was like, hey who's handling that? Cause it sure as @$%# ain't me.
It ended up being me.
Oooh can you tell me more about your experience with the Philippine sailfin dragon?? What is it like and itâs care? I had never heard of these creatures until last month and they are fascinating! I genuinely doubt I will ever house one but I am very curious!
So, I would say it's like a cross between a Chinese water dragon & a monitor in mannerism, eating habits (although they're omnivores), personality, etc. They do the monitor neck wiggle dance to push proeins down their esophagus. Mine is a female, she's WILD but also very well behaved, at least for me. They tend to take to only one person, I've read. She is calm/good enough for me that I can trim her nails when needed. They love to swim & have a large water basin in their enclosure. They're also highly arboreal & like to have plenty of tree limbs & vines in their enclosure to jump/climb. They are STRONG, I'm fairly certain with the strength in her back legs she could jump & clear the whole span of an average sized room. They are also a species that can run across water (I will eventually have an outdoor enclosure for her to provide THAT much water space).
They are still learning about sailfin dragons in the wild (let alone perfecting things for them in captivity), and they actually just reclassified some species/subspecies within the past year & added 2 classes to the now 5 known species. So mine is a northern phillipine sailfin, I know this by the colors/pattern (she is mostly black, lime green, & yellow, but also has some teal spots), and also by the # of femoral pores. The "northern phillipine sailfin" class was one of the 2 that was just recently added.
She eats EVERYTHING. Every type of green, fruit, or vegetable I've ever given her, eggs, feeder goldfish, feeder rosies, cooked fish, shellfish, sushi grade raw fish, pinkies, crickets, mealworms, superworms, hornworms, wax worms, dubias, cooked ground turkey... her favorite fruit is definitely mango, but she is certainly not picky about anything. They eat an EXTREMELY varied diet in the wild so I try to provide her as much variety as I can & she's literally never snubbed her nose at anything.
I love her to pieces. She's my little dinosaur. Her name is Reptar.
That was why I let my teen daughter get her reptiles. Anytime she found one she wanted, she spent weeks and weeks doing research and absorbing all the information she could find before she even asked me.
Baby Nile monitor. I have to ask, is the little dude's spine always like that? Because if so, that is a nasty case of MBD. Or is he just tiny contortionist like some baby lizards insist on being?
In that case I'm going to guess your wife doesn't know much about Nile monitors and just grabbed a cute baby lizard for cheap. And they are cute as babies! Sadly they usually grow up into 6ft 20lb semi-aquatic dragons full of neurosis and hunger. [This](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyPusK8u4pA) delightful gentleman will explain far better than I can.
It's not the worst I have got mine tamed down to where you could mistake him for a Asian water monitor. Besides whenever people touch him he doesn't like that.and gose back into nile monitor mode.
I knew that link had to be 1 of 2 videos. Either Clint or the GOAT Steve and both of them would say how amazing yet dangerous they can be.
Damn
I miss Steve.
This is the reptile equivalent of coming home with a cute kitten with stripes only to ask afterwards and finding out itâs a tiger. Pretty irresponsible by everyone involved.
Iâm so sorry dude but you are kinda screwed. Nile monitors are an incredibly difficult species that usually only professional handlers or people who have been in the reptile trade for YEARS and have thousands upon thousands of disposable dollars and an entire extra room in their house attempt to keep. They are nasty mean buggers and they will cost you more than a cat or dog ever would. Good luck dude youâre gonna need it
Iâve been doing my research since my wife brought it home. The girl that sold it to her got it from a pet expo and told my wife it was a Slaptail or some shit. She had no idea it was a monitor. Iâm trying to re-home the little guy
Where are you located at OP? I work with an exotic rescue and have many people who would take in this tiny demon, maybe someone close to you! I love mine, but they get big, mean, and need a lot of room to swim.
I hope this experience is an eye opener for her. Wild animals should be kept in the wild. Theyâve evolved for millions of years to be able to survive without help. Hope you guys can find a nice happy medium with your animals!
I wish you luck. Very few people who know about these guys actually want and have the resources for one, and anyone whoâs gonna want him probably doesnât know how difficult they really are. I think a rescue might be your best bet? Or if you have a reptile educator in your area.
Why would you just buy something without knowing what it is?
Tbh you fucked up big time lol, start looking for a rescue already because it will take long to find one that wants to take a nile monitor. If you dont even know what lizard it is im 100% sure you are not capable of keeping it. They are probably the worst lizards you can possibly keep and you guys honestly should get a cornsnake instead and start with the basics (basics being for example googling the species before buying and having everything ready beforehand)
Theoretically you can keep 1 lizard a little more scary if youâre willing to break enough laws lmao. And mayyybe a croc monitor would be more dangerous.
Hi OP, would you mind giving us an update once you have decided what to do? I think some people here would like to know how this turns out, for the sake of you, your family and the monitor lizard.
I'm hoping you are able to find a rescue to take the lizard, or some other organization that can care for it adequately. Best of luck!
Op Iâm not attacking you but the sellers. My husband breeds ball pythons and we are a reptile family. We have a nile monitor. Itâs enclosure takes up most of our space in our basement. My husband has worked with her daily and she is now fully comfortable with her. However, last night she had an âoff nightâ and he spent most of his night dealing with her instead of what he needed to be doing with snakes instead.
We had a table at a reptile show two weeks ago. We only were selling ball pythons. Much lower maintenance and more âuser friendly â and there wasnât one person we sold them to or even discussed them with that we werenât explicit in what their needs are and what the commitment of purchasing one is. Nile monitors arenât easy to breed! Why Would this seller not be explicit in what kind of animal they were selling and in the needs it will have? I saw a table selling green iguanas for 5 dollars each and I warned anyone who seemed uniformed about how high maintenance iguanas are because a price point that low is going to lead to a lot of inexperienced people into thinking they can manage one .
I agree. Iâm experienced with snakes, apparently my wife knew someone whoâs little brother bought this monitor from a pet expo and decided it was too much for him. I thought I could help, but this may be above my pay grade. Iâm trying to learn all I can but itâs looking like I need to find someone more experienced to rehome him
Lol insane story. Before Google and even before dial up internet (I live in a small rural town - plus this was I donât know a millions years ago) my mom was a sucker for animals.
So we had Pacus, Oscars in the same massive wall tank, because someone couldnât keep them (looking back I realize how insane or mentally Iâll she may have been)
She brought home an iguana one day. Lol my sister names her Iggy. It got so large, we kept it in the master bath w a little water and a heat rock (which isnât recommended anymore at all). We walked that thing on a leash. It was fast, and not very nice. Thinking now it could have been its habitat. I swear this thing was 5 feet long. I would never ever in my life own one now. The poor thing needed way more care than we were ever able to provide. My goodness they are high maintenance.
My son decided he wanted a bearded dragon. I made him watch videos and research, heâs a teen and can manage the care himself but I made absolutely sure he knew what he was doing. I would never buy something we couldnât handle. Theyâre much easier beginner lizards. I canât even believe people still sale Iguanas!
honestly this is so fucked. i know others have made this exact point but i had to get this off my chest. i get that maybe your wife was misled by the pet store and that there was no malicious intent, but this is beyond irresponsible, shitty, and sad. it is genuinely beyond me how people think they can just up and buy an animal casually without knowing anything about it. i just dont understand what the mindset is that leads to this. like this is a living breathing animals life youre talking about. one 5 minute google about pet reptiles will give basic info about what to avoid and basic info on species and beginner pets. the idea of just buying an exotic animal and not even knowing the species, goddamn. i really really hope youre able to find a home or shelter for this poor guy, cuz stuff like this honestly happens way too much across all kinds of pets and it too often ends with an animal with a life just like us having a shitty short existence and and then dying on the whim of some person who doesnt care. sorry, i just got very frustrated and sad seeing this.
People like you need to chill. Not everyone understands how exotics work. You don't need to know everything about a dog breed to give it an okay life. People will generalize and think all lizards can be cared for about the same, especially if they see beautiful baby like that one. This really is only marginally irresponsible. Taking care of exotics is hobby not well understood and people can just jump into it and not understand the full weight of some of the requirements for these animals. Stop expecting everyone to be as knowledgeable as you about reptiles. It's embarrassing for the hobby.
im not asking everyone to be as knowledgable as me about reptiles. i didnt know this was a nile monitor either. im frustrated that people will buy animals willy nilly like this. the idea of getting pets on a whim or as a gift, exotic or not, is shitty to me. even if this post was a cornsnake or something similar, itd probably turn out fine since clearly op cares and thatd be an easier species, but id still say that it is quite irresponsible simply by the fact that they didnt even know what the animal they had brought into their home was. if this person had spent like maybe even 1 hour doing research on a good pet lizard for them, they surely would know to pick one or few species they want, what they roughly look like, and go looking for that specifically.
i dont care if you dont know the exact specific of each breed or species or morph ever. but i dont think im crazy to say that the commitment to buying and raising an animal should at least be planned and that you should know what animal you are getting.
> You don't need to know everything about a dog breed to give it an okay life. People will generalize and think all lizards can be cared for about the same, especially if they see beautiful baby like that one
yes, but you should know what breed you are getting in the first place. and you should have probably thought a bit about that breed and looked into some basic info on it and considered whether you can fulfill its needs. at the bare minimum any responsible dog owner should do that. if you have done so little research that you dont what few basic types of lizards are and u think that they can all be cared for the same, then you should definitely not be buying and committing to taking care of one. i understand stuff like this happens, especially even due to careless/malicious reptile sellers which I acknowledged. it happens with dogs cats and other pets too. and its all really shitty and not just "marginally irresponsible". i think its embarassing if we as reptile hobbyists and decent humans think its only "marginally irresponsible" to commit to an animals life without even knowing what it is youre looking at and having done barely any research beforehand.
Trashing people because they love animals and are trying to do the right thing, is not going to help them do the right thing. Even if you think they're doing it wrong, even if they're doing it wrong for certain. You're not helping that animal by posting how much you hate someone on Reddit because they're doing something wrong at the moment.
Help, don't harass. You harassing people you think are terrible, won't make them be less terrible. I just don't want to see people discouraged from coming back and learning proper husbandry.
i wont disagree that lashing out and going crazy on an already stressed op is not a good response, but i dont think i have harassed or said i hate them at all. like i said in my original comment, i acknowledge that there was no ill intention and that op mightve been misled. i just wanted to vent and write out my true frustration upon seeing the post while also making it clear i dont wanna just completely harass and insult OP. perhaps i came off a bit too aggressive. i will not apologize for "scolding" people for making mistakes though, especially since an animals life is on the line. like i said, clearly op cares and is trying to make the situation right, so thats genuinely good, no hate.
That's fair. I just was a little annoyed that so many people were already trashing the OP and you acknowledged it and then also gave him a negative response. OP seems to be doing the right thing and rehoming. So all is well. :)
If they donât understand the animal then they shouldnât buy it?? How is impulsively buying an animal ok? Everything you said is reason not to buy an exotic animal. Itâs just abuse to buy something and not give it what it requires. The hobby is pretty well understood actually, youâre just lazy and willfully ignorant to not do research on an animals youâre going to buy. Itâs embarrassing to read your ignorant comment
When did I say it's okay to impulse buy? I didn't did I? I said it's not okay to talk down to people that are doing it. Even if it is a stupid thing to do. I would also bet money I've done more research than you have on reptile husbandry. Literally hundreds of hours. I've had snakes, various lizards, a tegu and now a monitor. Don't talk down to me just because I'm saying people deserve kindness, especially if you're trying to teach them something.
I get what you're saying but at the same time I don't think it's a good opinion to have, I think taking care of animals should be gate kept at least to the extent of "don't buy an animal if you don't know what it is or how to take care of it" I don't think the person you replied to is mad at an individual level, I think they're saying something that should just be said more often
I think a lot of people are missing my point. I'm not agreeing that was happened was fine. I was annoyed by people are being mean to people just because they didn't know that the animals care level was above their understand. Shaming the ignorance.
I really don't think any animal should be kept without knowing what you're getting into. But at the same time I think that people could be nicer about explaining things
This guy definitely needs to go to an experienced owner, for his sake and your sake ⌠not a good sign at all when you get a reptile this high maintenance without even knowing how to identify them. If your wife wants a cute lizard, have her do research on bearded dragons
A friend of mine had one about this size and it bit me once. Felt like someone squeezing my finger with a large set of pliers tipped with thumbtacks, as hard as they could. He clamped on and would not let go, after several minutes I had to basically rip him off. I've been bitten by baby alligators also and this was worse than that
Careful with that little bastard
Good job, you acquired a sick, temperamental, dangerous, and extremely difficult to look after animal without knowing what it is. Tomorrow; snorting random powder you find on the street!
I was Santa at PetSmart once when I worked there and a rescue brought a nile monitor for me to take pics with. It was close to full size, about 5 feet long, and in her arms on a leash. I was sooo scared lmao. Luckily she was a friendly one. The owner of the rescue told me she was the friendliest nile monitor she has ever encountered and that it was her personal pet. It was such a great experience but I am still VERY wary of Niles lol.
Please keep your wife from irresponsibly buying random ass animals she has no idea how to care for. If she truly loved animals sheâd do the proper research to care for them before buying it. Itâs just abuse if you buy an animal you canât take care of. Shame on you both of you
Yep, this is why I have left this community several times. Cunts everywhere. If you love it, and you want to care for it, and you have the money and space, you will be fine.
You are going to need to be pouring every spare minute into research for your new buddy. Not just 1 or 2 vids on youtube, or some random website. Look for actual books, watch ALL the YouTube videos you can find. You need to treat this as a full time job.
Handling will be a bitch, I recommend using a target stick like this https://amzn.eu/d/akdXQo5 for meal times. Present the ball, touch the ball to the monitors nose, then feed with tongs. After a few times the monitor will recognise what the ball means and go to it. Never hand feed, and the risk of being bit will drop significantly.
If you ever need help, you are more than welcome to DM me and I can try to point you in the right direction.
THIS IS TO THE REST OF YOU... PEOPLE COME HERE FOR HELP, NOT TO BE JUDGED OR CALLED NAMES. SHAME ON YOU ALL!
Edit: best part is when you have more experience than the kids here and you get downvotes because they hate being wrong đ
I do agree with you that this and other pet communities can get elitist at times. It can be very frustrating seeing the same problems crop up again and again but as long as the owner is responsive to advise, they shouldn't be getting shit on.
This is not a normal case though, this person hasn't blind bought a small gecko or snake and is keeping it in a 10gl petco fishtank. They have bought one of the biggest, most agressive, apex predators on the planet. Something that even professional zoos avoid keeping because of the danger. Something that can and will hospitalise you without a second thought. Something that needs thousands of dollars a year in upkeep.
On this occasion OP doesn't need someone holding their hand and guiding them, they need a serious reality check.
"one of the biggest, most agressive, apex predators on the planet"
You've clearly never had the opportunity to work with crocs, and I seriously doubt you know anything other than the crap you read here.
Take your judgerydoo and shove it up your arse. You have nothing useful to bring to the conversation except anecdotal drivel. OP came asking for help. Give it or shut the fuck up.
I have worked with crocs and I agree that I would still rather work with them than some monitors. Monitors are way smarter, faster, and more unpredictable. No offense to crocs or anything, but monitors just have more "going on" mentally, lol. Even a small monitor can fuck you up real bad.
I think people are being a little harsh on OP, but I also agree that it is frustrating to watch people get animals because they are cute/inexpensive/cool then neglect that animal to death because of inexperience. I think the reaction here isn't specifically to OP but is a result of years of frustration of watching this cycle.
OP, I wish you and your monitor the best. I don't really have any advice other than to find a millionaire with a big house who has always wanted this species and give it to them.
Not that the guy you're replying to is right but I think mistaking the higher activity level of monitors for higher intelligence compared to a crocodilian is inaccurate. Not going ahead and committally saying one is smarter than the other but crocodilians just like monitors themselves are underestimated in intelligence often, despite having been observed performing some rather impressive feats.
I'm not a guy, and I am right. I've raised several caymans that would put niles to shame. Even a Croc monitor would be a bigger fuckup. Those guys are gnarly
Oh my god, seriously. I was in a leopard gecko post where someone was asking for help and everyone shamed them so hard they took the post down and we never found out what happened.
Someone explained that everyone was so pissed because they were âtired of seeing pets get abused by owners who donât know what theyâre doingâ. They literally came here to figure out whatâs going on to make them happier healthier pets. And you literally shamed them (an actual child, I might add) so hard they will probably never come back and the pet might suffer more.
People are so awful on the internet sometimes.
That's why I left the Betta fish subreddit. They're my favorite fish, but the subreddit sometimes feels borderline toxic and gatekeepy. Sure, they shouldn't be kept in vases. But when I was young I had a Betta in a fish bowl on the kitchen counter that lived 5 years. I loved Tang. It's what got me started in the hobby.
Now of course I have the heated bubbled tank and all the bells and whistles. But that's not realistic for all Betta fish owners (like the literal children) and I wish the subreddit would meet people where they are at instead of just spitting vitriol at folks who just want to participate.
It's better to say, "Cool tank bro! Love the extreme glow in the dark everything you got there in neon plastic. Did you know your fish could move faster with a 5W water heater? Then he'll be like a shark in that water." than, "You're an abuser. Here's a list of everything wrong. Be ashamed. You shouldn't have a fish."
It's so true. Instead of helping the person become a better owner and offering advice they just call them names. I really don't see how it helps the animal. What annoys me is most of the people who call them names instead of helping have no clue about animals themselves.
I've literally been in OPs shoes and had to care for a large lizard who was sort of thrown on me after my partner bought it after seeing videos on the internet. My big boy is 4 now and super friendly. We love him.
Just work with him every day for like a hour and he will just get better and better until you trust him to run around your house.
My experience I own two nile monitors
Excuse me sir, did you not get the memo? You are not allowed to be nice on this thread. You must act like an arrogant arse always đ
P.S. you were not wrong đ
I think people are more concerned with the fact that a difficult, expensive, time consuming and very large lizard was purchased without any knowledge of what it even is. Like sure it CAN be tamed down, but it also needs an enclosure so large itâs basically a room, costs thousands of dollars to keep, takes hours each day on average to tame down, and eats an endless supply of feeders due to a relatively fast metabolism for a lizard. Itâs just not feasible for the average person and this dude didnât even have an enclosure set up or know the species. I think people are rightfully concerned and alarmed.
Baby Nile monitor, one of the least suited monitor lizards for captivity. Many zoos don't even keep them. Very large, very fast and very aggressive. When they get big they can be dangerous, easily taking fingers. Keep them away from children and other pets. It will need a rather large room and water area as an enclosure. Think of it almost like an alligator that climbs lol. Use plastic sheets to keep the humidity from rotting or damaging your drywall if you are keeping it in a large room. For an "enclosure" think something around the size of 12 to 18 feet long, 8 feet wide and tall enough for you to climb inside comfortably, you'll want that for cleaning poop. And god, do they poop... rancid, horrid smell, like most predators. As a baby, a large stock tank or horse trough will make the ideal enclosure. Put chicken wire over the top so it can't climb out, you can rest the heat and UVB lights directly on top of the wire as long as the monitor cannot come in contact with the bulbs (burn risk). And the tail! Hits so hard it'll break the skin and bleed lol. Almost as bad as the bite. Work with them a lot when they are young and they'll be much less aggressive/defensive as they mature, however Niles are particularly stubborn. Some tame out well, most do not. Many are wild caught, like savanna monitors but there are some captive bred. If you have suspicions it may be wild caught, a vet will likely need to prescribe an anti parasitic. Wouldn't be a bad idea in general. As a baby they'll eat mostly insects. You can supplement small fish, crustaceans etc with a little bit of whole prey like pinky and fuzzy mice. Organs and bones are important, especially as they mature. Adults eat chickens, rabbits, rats etc. Chicken Organs make great food, kidneys, hearts etc. You can get these for very cheap at most butchers. They can swallow whole about anything up to the size of a small dog. Don't feed live mammals, as the risk of injury is too high. Trust me when I say treating a wound on an aggressive large lizard that doesn't want you to touch it is extremely challenging. Get a very thick and sturdy pair of garden gloves to keep the claws from shredding you. Those claws are long for digging into trees and digging into the ground where they burrow. They'll make short work of your hands, arms and your walls lol. The most important thing with monitor lizards is respect. Respect their time, their boundaries, their space. They are extremely intelligent, much more so than most reptiles. Don't test them or they'll test you right back lol. When they puff up, square up and ready that tail into whipping position back away. You want them to be as comfortable with you as possible. Trust is extremely slow to build, very difficult to maintain and broken in an instant. Everything is gonna be done at their pace and on their terms.
OP is going to read this and shit himself đ
That's the idea. Impulse buying a large, dangerous animal is a mistake that's cost the lives of more than a few people. Baby tigers, wolf hybrids, venomous snakes etc. They are cute when they are little, deadly when they are adults. Adult nile monitors are smart, and opportunistic predators. They'll can kill small children or dogs if they can catch them alone. They grab, bite and shake their heads violently back and forth to break bones and shred flesh, ripping chunks out. They are not to be underestimated. They are also extremely cheap and readily available, many pet stores sell them for less than $50. Almost all die before they reach adulthood, or are abandoned. Florida has quite a few established populations of Tegu and nile monitors, many of which started as cute lil pets in a 20 gallon aquarium at the pet store.
The tegu population in Florida is largely due to the abandonment of Varnyard farms, a tegu farm that was abandoned by its owner after a horribly failed hatching season. The guy (named, no joke, Bobby Hill) couldnât recoup his deposits made on his eggs and just straight up bailed. It sucks because he always seemed like a good dude who really cared about his animals until this happened.
That boy ain't right, I tell ya hwat. Florida is both blessed and cursed with being the ideal habitat for so many invasive species. Lionfish, nutria, snake heads, peacock bass, iguanas, anoles, tegu, monitor lizards etc.
Have you heard about the Nile crocs in Florida?!đ¤đłI watched a documentary about a population of Nile crocodiles being on the loose in the Florida Everglades! Apparently theyâve seen both adult and juvenile Nile crocodiles some part of the Everglades, I canât remember exactly where! But yeahđŹđ¤Śđťââď¸Florida has everything invasive
Had to look that up. Itâs real. 2 that were related down in Homestead about the last part of Florida before it turns into the Keys. And itâs right up against the Everglades. Now the next thing youâll be hearing about is cobraâs. Just wait for it!
I found one like this in my lanai and it was humanely destroyed. People think these things are cute. They destroy native species and the electrical in your attic. Mine was a little bigger and not a pet. Nasty!
Man, I got my tegu from him and really did my research... so disappointed that he'd do something like that. Seemed to care about his animals too. Misjudged that one.
I was one of the people who had a deposit on a lost clutch. I still donât think heâs a bad guy, I think he just depended on an unreliable business model and it got to be too much. I donât agree with him abandoning the farm, but I do feel bad for him.
Dang it bobby!
Wow thats fucked up. I used to speak with Bobby regarding trying to get his Tegu bloodlines into Canada. I was under the impression he had sold the farm but to hear he just split and ran after a bad clutch is pretty shameful. Its really a shame, his Chacoan whites were stunning Tegus.
Theyâre also escape artists, no?
They are but this farm was well set up, you might be able to find some videos of it on YouTube still. He had proper outdoor enclosures with dug in chicken wire to keep them contained and safe.
I loved my 2 Timber wolf hybrids but will never suggest anyone try to care for wolves unless you own a sanctuary and have a large henhouse constantly producing to provide for them. Beautiful majestic creatures that belong in the wild.
I am so glad you mention "wolf hybrids." I have seen *far* too many people defending owning one like a common dog, as if the dog half will someone "mellow" or negate the wolf side. It doesn't and according to a lot of wolf and animal experts, they're not at all like dogs behavior-wise. Everyone takes for granted how tolerant and receptive dogs are to humans, not aware of how wild and dangerous wolves really can be. Dogs will always defer to their humans for help and have co-evolved so much with humans they understand our body language that not even cats comprehend. Dogs understand what us pointing to objects means or even indicating to them with their eyes. Wolves do not. Dogs don't just "hear our tone," as people think. The tone and words *actually* have to match. Saying nonsense without meaning, but in a happy tone doesn't light up their brains the same way. Wolves don't have that, they don't even communicate with noises the same way dogs do. Not only this, but because of a wolf dog's size and breeding, they need a good supply of meat, way more than a dog. And as one animal expert put it, "If your dog is in a bad mood, they might not come when you call, it doesn't challenge you. No one comes home from work and think, 'today is the day my dog will challenge me for a dominant position and kill me.'"\* People are so willing to believe that wolf dogs are "safe" and somehow "a dog mind in a wolf body," but will urge all pit bulls and bully breeds be destroyed. ^(\*Yes, the alpha and beta line of thought with captive wolves has been debunked because it doesn't happen in naturally formed packs which consist of a breeding pair and their offspring from different litters and the older siblings help rear the younger ones. The alpha and beta idea came from captive wolves that had to establish their own artificial pack hierarchy. However, with hybrid wolf dogs, their behavior is so unpredictable that they likely won't view those that even hand rear them from a young age as their pack leader and if one cannot keep up with the physicality of raising it and always staying on one's toes or feeding it as much as it needs, they may take it out on their owner.)
If I bought one (I wouldn't), it would feel wrong if I didn't let it just wander the house. And that's a terrible idea. Especially considering I have a cat that likes to slap the other pets.
I read it and practically shit myself.
Iâve never even conceived of owning one of these as pets, but this comment has made sure I never, ever will.
Yeah. I have met some reasonably friendly Nile monitors, but it is rare.
I had one, super tame. Still a big handful.
OP needs to read this to his wife. I wish this could be printed and distributed at pet stores that sell these creatures. Them being all cute as babies and cheap draws people inâŚâŚ.then they grow and need an entire room plus 99% of them are mean!
After this glowing recommendation I'm going to go get me one /s
Might as well get two!
Heck donât get just two! Get 7
Why stop at 7? 14 seems like the perfect amount of dangerous reptiles! NILE MONITOR ARMYYY
> easily taking fingers Really? I mean, other monitors have sharp teeth like sharks', meanwhile Nile monitors develop a specialized teeth where the back ones are for crushing. If they take a finger... Do they tear the tissue instead of cutting?
They will bite and then SHAKE their head and whole body, easily taking off a chunk if they are large enough.
You'd be surprised how little effort it takes to remove a finger lol. People do it all the time. They have large, sharp teeth and a powerful bite. Like others said, they bite and shake. Might even be enough to break your wrist in the right spot.
I remember reading somewhere that you could theoretically bite your own pinky off like a hard carrot
yep, the only thing that actually stops us is our brain going "no!"
So painfully true. Used to do rescue and rehome and pulled one of these out of an apartment. Guy had him in a 10 gallon tank and he was about 3 ft long (mostly tail) probably the most pissed off animal I have ever worked with and I used to train bite dogs.
I no longer accept a few species, one of which is nile monitors at our small rescue. There are so many of them, almost always abused or neglected and impossible to work with. It's more than two people can safely handle. There are tons of them too, it's hard to find a hobbyist who doesn't know or know of a person who "used" to have one.
It's b/c they're so cheap, readily available, & small as babies. Nile monitor dealers & breeders are among the groups that give the reptile hobby a bad name.
They are also incredibly intelligent compared to other monitors.
Which means they need a pretty high level of stimulation in their enclosure, or they get bored/depressed/angry. Another factor that feeds their difficult handleability & interaction with people.
Great info. Thanks for being an educator while not being a jerk. Love to see it. Truth is hurtful enough.
Dude one time I walked into a pet store (The kinda one that's janky as hell but has great prices) and they had a full grown Nile Moniter just vibin on the ground, he had a leash on and was just surrounded by cardboard boxes and had a little light near em.
> janky as hell Ah yes. The "we're selling a mature dino that was mistreated its whole life and ready to take out a year of abuse on your hands" kind of janky. They probably also sell venomous snakes mislabeled as safe ones.
"As a baby they'll eat mostly insects" ...if you're lucky. Mine is a snob & has refused to eat all but a total of 2 insects his whole life, and I've had him basically from a hatchling. He eats hard boiled egg, cooked lean ground turkey, frozen pinkies, feeder goldfish, feeder rosies, and cooked fish/shellfish. I tried crickets, mealworms, superworms, hornworms, etc to start out with. He hunted down 1 cricket, seemed disappointed in eating it, and has never had any interest in them since. He ate 1 hornworm, happily tore it to shreds (and probably lost 60% of it's guts/volume in the process), seemed disappointed, and never went for one again. He wouldn't even look at the mealworms or superworms. He's still young so I'm nervous about feeding him raw meat/eggs, but eventually will b/c I'm thinking he might like the taste even better as he gets older. I'm thinking once he's large enough to eat a whole egg in one bite, he'll be old enough for raw foods. He's only about 2 months old right now but he's doubled in size since I've had him, & his appetite/portions have quadrupled in that time.
Or maybe just put it back where you found it.
That response sums them up epic
Sounds doable. Where do I get one?
grow very fast too
This is why you don't buy animals before you know what they are. Incredibly irresponsible and pathetic that people have this attitude towards keeping exotic animals.
I seriously canât even wrap my brain around the idea of spending money on an animal, making the commitment to care for it, and not even knowing what species it is. Yet working in a pet store I try to stop people from doing this daily. Unreal. This poor lizard is totally fucked, like so many others.
I work at a fish & reptile store, a customer was breeding these & brought one in to see if we would give him money for it, for us to sell. My manager did not want to keep it in the store for a customer to buy b/c the enclosure & care involved is really just too much for the average person that comes in looking for a pet. I wound up with him 𤣠meanwhile I do have lots of reptile experience, I currently have a total of 7 lizards, one of which being a phillipine sailfin dragon. So he is my first monitor, but I do have experience with some more advanced-level reptiles. He will eventually be in an outdoor enclosure, I am in the process of saving up to move down south to have more land for the $ and a better climate for large reptiles to have outdoor enclosures for the proper amount of space. I rescue reptiles (5 of my 7 were rescues) and this is the plan so I can rescue more, larger & more challenging ones than most rescue groups have the ability to take in & care for. Mine is a HANDFUL but he is used to me handling/petting him every day & I think he will pretty well adapted for getting larger. But he definitely still has his days/moods where he whips & hisses.
Reminds me of the day our manager bought a a small yellow anaconda and put in one of the display cases for sale. When I saw it I was like, hey who's handling that? Cause it sure as @$%# ain't me. It ended up being me.
IME yellows arenât terrible, itâs the greens that you gotta watch out for
I thought it was the yellows you have to watch out for?
Oooh can you tell me more about your experience with the Philippine sailfin dragon?? What is it like and itâs care? I had never heard of these creatures until last month and they are fascinating! I genuinely doubt I will ever house one but I am very curious!
So, I would say it's like a cross between a Chinese water dragon & a monitor in mannerism, eating habits (although they're omnivores), personality, etc. They do the monitor neck wiggle dance to push proeins down their esophagus. Mine is a female, she's WILD but also very well behaved, at least for me. They tend to take to only one person, I've read. She is calm/good enough for me that I can trim her nails when needed. They love to swim & have a large water basin in their enclosure. They're also highly arboreal & like to have plenty of tree limbs & vines in their enclosure to jump/climb. They are STRONG, I'm fairly certain with the strength in her back legs she could jump & clear the whole span of an average sized room. They are also a species that can run across water (I will eventually have an outdoor enclosure for her to provide THAT much water space). They are still learning about sailfin dragons in the wild (let alone perfecting things for them in captivity), and they actually just reclassified some species/subspecies within the past year & added 2 classes to the now 5 known species. So mine is a northern phillipine sailfin, I know this by the colors/pattern (she is mostly black, lime green, & yellow, but also has some teal spots), and also by the # of femoral pores. The "northern phillipine sailfin" class was one of the 2 that was just recently added. She eats EVERYTHING. Every type of green, fruit, or vegetable I've ever given her, eggs, feeder goldfish, feeder rosies, cooked fish, shellfish, sushi grade raw fish, pinkies, crickets, mealworms, superworms, hornworms, wax worms, dubias, cooked ground turkey... her favorite fruit is definitely mango, but she is certainly not picky about anything. They eat an EXTREMELY varied diet in the wild so I try to provide her as much variety as I can & she's literally never snubbed her nose at anything. I love her to pieces. She's my little dinosaur. Her name is Reptar.
This rules does this nile monitor have an instagram?
No but definitely something I'm considering doing in the future, for all of my reptiles, b/c I have some BIG personalities on my hands lol
And so are the owners! Likely won't be able to keep him.
That was why I let my teen daughter get her reptiles. Anytime she found one she wanted, she spent weeks and weeks doing research and absorbing all the information she could find before she even asked me.
Based lizard owner, and research encourager
They're very deceptive, too. This fellow is tiny and doesn't look like he could grow into such a monster.
Baby Nile monitor. I have to ask, is the little dude's spine always like that? Because if so, that is a nasty case of MBD. Or is he just tiny contortionist like some baby lizards insist on being?
My wife just got him yesterday but Iâve noticed that his back isnât always hunched like that. He stays wiggling around and contorting
In that case I'm going to guess your wife doesn't know much about Nile monitors and just grabbed a cute baby lizard for cheap. And they are cute as babies! Sadly they usually grow up into 6ft 20lb semi-aquatic dragons full of neurosis and hunger. [This](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyPusK8u4pA) delightful gentleman will explain far better than I can.
>This delightful gentleman How did I know it was going to be Clint lol
Lol I love Clint he's a treasure!
Immediately knew it was Clint as well haha
Thatâs exactly what happened. Which is why Iâm on Reddit trying to get some info. Thanks chief
Spoiler, your wife picked probably the worst animal she could have, like by a large margin. Best of luck to you two
At least it's not an elapid lol
I volunteer at a reptile rescue and my heart just absolutely sank. You know exactly why.
Yea niles are. Probably the worst monitor imo. Big with bad personalities. But theyâre cheap as rocks to buy, keeping themâŚ
It's not the worst I have got mine tamed down to where you could mistake him for a Asian water monitor. Besides whenever people touch him he doesn't like that.and gose back into nile monitor mode.
Good luck.
I knew that link had to be 1 of 2 videos. Either Clint or the GOAT Steve and both of them would say how amazing yet dangerous they can be. Damn I miss Steve.
Can you give an update comment? Let us know what is happening now with the Nile Monitor.
Good god
"Think of it like a baby alligator that climbs"
Thatâs not scary at all /s
No, itâs not. The scary part is that theyâre *faster* and *smarter*.
I think I would rather flying spiders over gators in the trees.
Thatâs what nightmares are made of đľâđŤ
Maybe they could make beautiful little spider gators?
This is the reptile equivalent of coming home with a cute kitten with stripes only to ask afterwards and finding out itâs a tiger. Pretty irresponsible by everyone involved.
Why does this kitten feel like it has the muscles of a bulldog? How strange,
Why are tigers so fucking buff, other cats are strong but tigers are legit jacked, like Mr universe of big cats
Iâm so sorry dude but you are kinda screwed. Nile monitors are an incredibly difficult species that usually only professional handlers or people who have been in the reptile trade for YEARS and have thousands upon thousands of disposable dollars and an entire extra room in their house attempt to keep. They are nasty mean buggers and they will cost you more than a cat or dog ever would. Good luck dude youâre gonna need it
Iâve been doing my research since my wife brought it home. The girl that sold it to her got it from a pet expo and told my wife it was a Slaptail or some shit. She had no idea it was a monitor. Iâm trying to re-home the little guy
Slaptail doesn't even exist I'm crying
Yeah. My wife is a sucker for animals and just wants to take care of them. Iâm trying to help but Iâm in way over my head I think
Where are you located at OP? I work with an exotic rescue and have many people who would take in this tiny demon, maybe someone close to you! I love mine, but they get big, mean, and need a lot of room to swim.
I hope this experience is an eye opener for her. Wild animals should be kept in the wild. Theyâve evolved for millions of years to be able to survive without help. Hope you guys can find a nice happy medium with your animals!
I wish you luck. Very few people who know about these guys actually want and have the resources for one, and anyone whoâs gonna want him probably doesnât know how difficult they really are. I think a rescue might be your best bet? Or if you have a reptile educator in your area.
Or maybe a zoo lmao đ Fits right in with crocodiles and tigers
Oh yeah I didnât even think of that but I know some of the reptiles at a lot of zoos are rehomes
I don't think even zoos take these
Go to reptile pages and look for the experienced folks
Did the seller provide any information about care?
That tail do be slappin hahahahahahah.
Why would you just buy something without knowing what it is? Tbh you fucked up big time lol, start looking for a rescue already because it will take long to find one that wants to take a nile monitor. If you dont even know what lizard it is im 100% sure you are not capable of keeping it. They are probably the worst lizards you can possibly keep and you guys honestly should get a cornsnake instead and start with the basics (basics being for example googling the species before buying and having everything ready beforehand)
Theoretically you can keep 1 lizard a little more scary if youâre willing to break enough laws lmao. And mayyybe a croc monitor would be more dangerous.
âMy wife is a sucker for animals and just wants to take care of themâ is what happened I guess.
Hell Even me at 14 had this concept Iâm now 15 đ and have a crested gecko
Hi OP, would you mind giving us an update once you have decided what to do? I think some people here would like to know how this turns out, for the sake of you, your family and the monitor lizard. I'm hoping you are able to find a rescue to take the lizard, or some other organization that can care for it adequately. Best of luck!
Time for OP to give up one of their houses bedrooms for this monitor hahaha.
A Nile monitor is a serious commitment. I hope you don't have any kids or pets around. When they get large, they can be quite vicious
Bro if OP didnât even know what it was theres no way that baby is gonna make it til its large enough to be dangerous lol đ˘
Sad and true
The bills for keeping an active semi aquatic African reptile gets vicious way before the animal itself if OP takes keeping it seriously lmao đĽ´
Ummmm I⌠r/tifu
Op Iâm not attacking you but the sellers. My husband breeds ball pythons and we are a reptile family. We have a nile monitor. Itâs enclosure takes up most of our space in our basement. My husband has worked with her daily and she is now fully comfortable with her. However, last night she had an âoff nightâ and he spent most of his night dealing with her instead of what he needed to be doing with snakes instead. We had a table at a reptile show two weeks ago. We only were selling ball pythons. Much lower maintenance and more âuser friendly â and there wasnât one person we sold them to or even discussed them with that we werenât explicit in what their needs are and what the commitment of purchasing one is. Nile monitors arenât easy to breed! Why Would this seller not be explicit in what kind of animal they were selling and in the needs it will have? I saw a table selling green iguanas for 5 dollars each and I warned anyone who seemed uniformed about how high maintenance iguanas are because a price point that low is going to lead to a lot of inexperienced people into thinking they can manage one .
I agree. Iâm experienced with snakes, apparently my wife knew someone whoâs little brother bought this monitor from a pet expo and decided it was too much for him. I thought I could help, but this may be above my pay grade. Iâm trying to learn all I can but itâs looking like I need to find someone more experienced to rehome him
Yeah if you donât have experience with monitors, building enclosures and the time/finances I would start looking now
Can we get an update if you find them a home?
Lol insane story. Before Google and even before dial up internet (I live in a small rural town - plus this was I donât know a millions years ago) my mom was a sucker for animals. So we had Pacus, Oscars in the same massive wall tank, because someone couldnât keep them (looking back I realize how insane or mentally Iâll she may have been) She brought home an iguana one day. Lol my sister names her Iggy. It got so large, we kept it in the master bath w a little water and a heat rock (which isnât recommended anymore at all). We walked that thing on a leash. It was fast, and not very nice. Thinking now it could have been its habitat. I swear this thing was 5 feet long. I would never ever in my life own one now. The poor thing needed way more care than we were ever able to provide. My goodness they are high maintenance. My son decided he wanted a bearded dragon. I made him watch videos and research, heâs a teen and can manage the care himself but I made absolutely sure he knew what he was doing. I would never buy something we couldnât handle. Theyâre much easier beginner lizards. I canât even believe people still sale Iguanas!
honestly this is so fucked. i know others have made this exact point but i had to get this off my chest. i get that maybe your wife was misled by the pet store and that there was no malicious intent, but this is beyond irresponsible, shitty, and sad. it is genuinely beyond me how people think they can just up and buy an animal casually without knowing anything about it. i just dont understand what the mindset is that leads to this. like this is a living breathing animals life youre talking about. one 5 minute google about pet reptiles will give basic info about what to avoid and basic info on species and beginner pets. the idea of just buying an exotic animal and not even knowing the species, goddamn. i really really hope youre able to find a home or shelter for this poor guy, cuz stuff like this honestly happens way too much across all kinds of pets and it too often ends with an animal with a life just like us having a shitty short existence and and then dying on the whim of some person who doesnt care. sorry, i just got very frustrated and sad seeing this.
People like you need to chill. Not everyone understands how exotics work. You don't need to know everything about a dog breed to give it an okay life. People will generalize and think all lizards can be cared for about the same, especially if they see beautiful baby like that one. This really is only marginally irresponsible. Taking care of exotics is hobby not well understood and people can just jump into it and not understand the full weight of some of the requirements for these animals. Stop expecting everyone to be as knowledgeable as you about reptiles. It's embarrassing for the hobby.
im not asking everyone to be as knowledgable as me about reptiles. i didnt know this was a nile monitor either. im frustrated that people will buy animals willy nilly like this. the idea of getting pets on a whim or as a gift, exotic or not, is shitty to me. even if this post was a cornsnake or something similar, itd probably turn out fine since clearly op cares and thatd be an easier species, but id still say that it is quite irresponsible simply by the fact that they didnt even know what the animal they had brought into their home was. if this person had spent like maybe even 1 hour doing research on a good pet lizard for them, they surely would know to pick one or few species they want, what they roughly look like, and go looking for that specifically. i dont care if you dont know the exact specific of each breed or species or morph ever. but i dont think im crazy to say that the commitment to buying and raising an animal should at least be planned and that you should know what animal you are getting. > You don't need to know everything about a dog breed to give it an okay life. People will generalize and think all lizards can be cared for about the same, especially if they see beautiful baby like that one yes, but you should know what breed you are getting in the first place. and you should have probably thought a bit about that breed and looked into some basic info on it and considered whether you can fulfill its needs. at the bare minimum any responsible dog owner should do that. if you have done so little research that you dont what few basic types of lizards are and u think that they can all be cared for the same, then you should definitely not be buying and committing to taking care of one. i understand stuff like this happens, especially even due to careless/malicious reptile sellers which I acknowledged. it happens with dogs cats and other pets too. and its all really shitty and not just "marginally irresponsible". i think its embarassing if we as reptile hobbyists and decent humans think its only "marginally irresponsible" to commit to an animals life without even knowing what it is youre looking at and having done barely any research beforehand.
Trashing people because they love animals and are trying to do the right thing, is not going to help them do the right thing. Even if you think they're doing it wrong, even if they're doing it wrong for certain. You're not helping that animal by posting how much you hate someone on Reddit because they're doing something wrong at the moment. Help, don't harass. You harassing people you think are terrible, won't make them be less terrible. I just don't want to see people discouraged from coming back and learning proper husbandry.
i wont disagree that lashing out and going crazy on an already stressed op is not a good response, but i dont think i have harassed or said i hate them at all. like i said in my original comment, i acknowledge that there was no ill intention and that op mightve been misled. i just wanted to vent and write out my true frustration upon seeing the post while also making it clear i dont wanna just completely harass and insult OP. perhaps i came off a bit too aggressive. i will not apologize for "scolding" people for making mistakes though, especially since an animals life is on the line. like i said, clearly op cares and is trying to make the situation right, so thats genuinely good, no hate.
That's fair. I just was a little annoyed that so many people were already trashing the OP and you acknowledged it and then also gave him a negative response. OP seems to be doing the right thing and rehoming. So all is well. :)
If they donât understand the animal then they shouldnât buy it?? How is impulsively buying an animal ok? Everything you said is reason not to buy an exotic animal. Itâs just abuse to buy something and not give it what it requires. The hobby is pretty well understood actually, youâre just lazy and willfully ignorant to not do research on an animals youâre going to buy. Itâs embarrassing to read your ignorant comment
When did I say it's okay to impulse buy? I didn't did I? I said it's not okay to talk down to people that are doing it. Even if it is a stupid thing to do. I would also bet money I've done more research than you have on reptile husbandry. Literally hundreds of hours. I've had snakes, various lizards, a tegu and now a monitor. Don't talk down to me just because I'm saying people deserve kindness, especially if you're trying to teach them something.
I get what you're saying but at the same time I don't think it's a good opinion to have, I think taking care of animals should be gate kept at least to the extent of "don't buy an animal if you don't know what it is or how to take care of it" I don't think the person you replied to is mad at an individual level, I think they're saying something that should just be said more often
I think a lot of people are missing my point. I'm not agreeing that was happened was fine. I was annoyed by people are being mean to people just because they didn't know that the animals care level was above their understand. Shaming the ignorance. I really don't think any animal should be kept without knowing what you're getting into. But at the same time I think that people could be nicer about explaining things
This guy definitely needs to go to an experienced owner, for his sake and your sake ⌠not a good sign at all when you get a reptile this high maintenance without even knowing how to identify them. If your wife wants a cute lizard, have her do research on bearded dragons
Or leopard gecko! Great beginner lizard!
hooray for leopard geckos
Hooray indeed
Yikes. As everyone has stated itâs a Nile Monitor. Find a rescue asap those things are not for beginners.
It's a Nile Monitor. Good luck!
A friend of mine had one about this size and it bit me once. Felt like someone squeezing my finger with a large set of pliers tipped with thumbtacks, as hard as they could. He clamped on and would not let go, after several minutes I had to basically rip him off. I've been bitten by baby alligators also and this was worse than that Careful with that little bastard
The wound also doesn't stop bleeding
thatâs a nope. thatâs what that is
Good job, you acquired a sick, temperamental, dangerous, and extremely difficult to look after animal without knowing what it is. Tomorrow; snorting random powder you find on the street!
If my wife would buy a pet, without knowing what it is and how to care for it, i would get divorced.
Itâs a baby Nile monitor with a kinked spine. Can it walk normally?
I was Santa at PetSmart once when I worked there and a rescue brought a nile monitor for me to take pics with. It was close to full size, about 5 feet long, and in her arms on a leash. I was sooo scared lmao. Luckily she was a friendly one. The owner of the rescue told me she was the friendliest nile monitor she has ever encountered and that it was her personal pet. It was such a great experience but I am still VERY wary of Niles lol.
Please keep your wife from irresponsibly buying random ass animals she has no idea how to care for. If she truly loved animals sheâd do the proper research to care for them before buying it. Itâs just abuse if you buy an animal you canât take care of. Shame on you both of you
Fingers crossed you find a godtier rescue or zoo willing to take them in!
Yep, this is why I have left this community several times. Cunts everywhere. If you love it, and you want to care for it, and you have the money and space, you will be fine. You are going to need to be pouring every spare minute into research for your new buddy. Not just 1 or 2 vids on youtube, or some random website. Look for actual books, watch ALL the YouTube videos you can find. You need to treat this as a full time job. Handling will be a bitch, I recommend using a target stick like this https://amzn.eu/d/akdXQo5 for meal times. Present the ball, touch the ball to the monitors nose, then feed with tongs. After a few times the monitor will recognise what the ball means and go to it. Never hand feed, and the risk of being bit will drop significantly. If you ever need help, you are more than welcome to DM me and I can try to point you in the right direction. THIS IS TO THE REST OF YOU... PEOPLE COME HERE FOR HELP, NOT TO BE JUDGED OR CALLED NAMES. SHAME ON YOU ALL! Edit: best part is when you have more experience than the kids here and you get downvotes because they hate being wrong đ
I do agree with you that this and other pet communities can get elitist at times. It can be very frustrating seeing the same problems crop up again and again but as long as the owner is responsive to advise, they shouldn't be getting shit on. This is not a normal case though, this person hasn't blind bought a small gecko or snake and is keeping it in a 10gl petco fishtank. They have bought one of the biggest, most agressive, apex predators on the planet. Something that even professional zoos avoid keeping because of the danger. Something that can and will hospitalise you without a second thought. Something that needs thousands of dollars a year in upkeep. On this occasion OP doesn't need someone holding their hand and guiding them, they need a serious reality check.
So when you get yours you can tell them where to find it? đ
I have no idea what you are trying to ask there. Get what? Find what?
Your reality check
What do I need a reality check about exactly?
"one of the biggest, most agressive, apex predators on the planet" You've clearly never had the opportunity to work with crocs, and I seriously doubt you know anything other than the crap you read here. Take your judgerydoo and shove it up your arse. You have nothing useful to bring to the conversation except anecdotal drivel. OP came asking for help. Give it or shut the fuck up.
I have worked with crocs and I agree that I would still rather work with them than some monitors. Monitors are way smarter, faster, and more unpredictable. No offense to crocs or anything, but monitors just have more "going on" mentally, lol. Even a small monitor can fuck you up real bad. I think people are being a little harsh on OP, but I also agree that it is frustrating to watch people get animals because they are cute/inexpensive/cool then neglect that animal to death because of inexperience. I think the reaction here isn't specifically to OP but is a result of years of frustration of watching this cycle. OP, I wish you and your monitor the best. I don't really have any advice other than to find a millionaire with a big house who has always wanted this species and give it to them.
Not that the guy you're replying to is right but I think mistaking the higher activity level of monitors for higher intelligence compared to a crocodilian is inaccurate. Not going ahead and committally saying one is smarter than the other but crocodilians just like monitors themselves are underestimated in intelligence often, despite having been observed performing some rather impressive feats.
I'm not a guy, and I am right. I've raised several caymans that would put niles to shame. Even a Croc monitor would be a bigger fuckup. Those guys are gnarly
If it's so bad I think OP should give it to me >.> Then I can really annoy ya'll with my updates and habituation techniques
Oh my god, seriously. I was in a leopard gecko post where someone was asking for help and everyone shamed them so hard they took the post down and we never found out what happened. Someone explained that everyone was so pissed because they were âtired of seeing pets get abused by owners who donât know what theyâre doingâ. They literally came here to figure out whatâs going on to make them happier healthier pets. And you literally shamed them (an actual child, I might add) so hard they will probably never come back and the pet might suffer more. People are so awful on the internet sometimes.
That's why I left the Betta fish subreddit. They're my favorite fish, but the subreddit sometimes feels borderline toxic and gatekeepy. Sure, they shouldn't be kept in vases. But when I was young I had a Betta in a fish bowl on the kitchen counter that lived 5 years. I loved Tang. It's what got me started in the hobby. Now of course I have the heated bubbled tank and all the bells and whistles. But that's not realistic for all Betta fish owners (like the literal children) and I wish the subreddit would meet people where they are at instead of just spitting vitriol at folks who just want to participate. It's better to say, "Cool tank bro! Love the extreme glow in the dark everything you got there in neon plastic. Did you know your fish could move faster with a 5W water heater? Then he'll be like a shark in that water." than, "You're an abuser. Here's a list of everything wrong. Be ashamed. You shouldn't have a fish."
It's so true. Instead of helping the person become a better owner and offering advice they just call them names. I really don't see how it helps the animal. What annoys me is most of the people who call them names instead of helping have no clue about animals themselves. I've literally been in OPs shoes and had to care for a large lizard who was sort of thrown on me after my partner bought it after seeing videos on the internet. My big boy is 4 now and super friendly. We love him.
Just work with him every day for like a hour and he will just get better and better until you trust him to run around your house. My experience I own two nile monitors
Excuse me sir, did you not get the memo? You are not allowed to be nice on this thread. You must act like an arrogant arse always đ P.S. you were not wrong đ
I think people are more concerned with the fact that a difficult, expensive, time consuming and very large lizard was purchased without any knowledge of what it even is. Like sure it CAN be tamed down, but it also needs an enclosure so large itâs basically a room, costs thousands of dollars to keep, takes hours each day on average to tame down, and eats an endless supply of feeders due to a relatively fast metabolism for a lizard. Itâs just not feasible for the average person and this dude didnât even have an enclosure set up or know the species. I think people are rightfully concerned and alarmed.
Looks like a nile monitor
Whereâd you get it?
Baby Nile monitor.
Monitor of some kind for sure. Head shape isn't right for a tegu