These reptiles are extremely advanced and are not like snakes at all.

It's best to refer to them as savannah monitors.

Whatever you read regarding feeding this monitor vegetation is entirely incorrect as they are carnivores. You must have read a poorly informed article.

Svannah monitors are very active monitors and require enclosure around twice their length and these monitors. Can get to 5ft. Svannah monitors can be very aggressive and are very capable to inflict serious injuries as they are very strong and powerful monitors especially their Jaws and tails.

It's important to understand that monitors are very intelligent and it's an animal that demands respect and interaction daily.

Feeding wise, again it's a carnivore. These monitors need a diet of insects and when they get large enough small vertebrates.
Locust, morio worms, crickets and roaches are very good especially to start them off with. Important to dust the insects with calcium powder to ensure strong bone growth.

Habitat wise also they require some moisture and a large bathing bowl is welcome.
Additionally they will like large amounts of deep substrate they can burrow in. (dirt/top soil, sand and coconut fibre combination is very effective ) and a rock like cave or something similar to hide under. A broken plant pot is also quite effective until the lizard gets larger. A large basking spot with multiple overhead spot lamps to heat the monitors entire body.

These monitors aren't a beginner friendly species. I can recommend many other reptiles that are better suited such as an ackie monitor as they are more handleable.


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Hi, I agree with much of what you say, but they are not "aggressive" as such, like most animals if they feel threatened they react defensively, neither are they capable of inflicting truly "serious" injuries, although they do indeed have strong jaws. The largest males may reach 120cm or so, the suggestion they get to 150cm is likely to be an exaggeration (I know it`s something you`ve read/heard about elsewhere, not your own suggestion).

 

Hi, the caresheet link doesn`t work for me, can you try again?

 

https://www.reptileforums.co.uk/forums/lizard-care-sheets/6970-bosc-monitor-care-sheet.html

 

Hear is a well behaved sav
https://youtu.be/4zqj4h8kx2M

Hear is a pic of young levoy.

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Hear is a well behaved sav
https://youtu.be/4zqj4h8kx2M

Hear is a pic of young levoy.
image

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The person in the video does talk a lot of sense but there are also some poor suggestions, I`ll mention a couple because it`s important to have reliable info; there should NEVER be a need to trim a monitor`s claws unless they are genuinely overgrown which is quite rare, and if the "furniture" in the enclosure is suitable their claws should remain in decent condition (relatively long and sharp). There is no need to have "several feet" of substrate although it is very important to have a reasonable depth of between approx. 15 to 20 inches or so, especially if the monitor is female that requires nesting options (both sexes are burrowers, though).

 

Here is a reliable caresheet for varanus exanthematicus, any further questions feel free to ask!
http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/forums/lizards/841282-boscs-savannah-monitor-care-sheet.html

 

What are you making your enclosure from.
We have a fiberglass bottom as the humidity would soon degrade the usual enclosure favourites.
With the corona virus we only have two local shops for the insects suppliers.
So we are looking to get a home supply of Mario worms and dubia roaches.

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