feeding my ...

[BrandonDibble97487]

sorry for the of topic question but i thought this would be my best bet for a good awnser. i just got a savannah monitor today i know that i can feed him mice/rats, thawed chicken and ground beef but can i feed him pretty much any meat? like sausage lol or pork, steak strips, hot dogs but not all the time ofcourse just as a treat like once a week or something? i know most reps like a variety like all my beardies thanks, Brandon

 

[NegativeCreep]

There is an 'Other Reptiles' forum.. but...
We don't feed Esham any 'other' meats. I have heard of feeding high protein dog foods and cooked lean turkey in a pinch. We feed exclusively mice and eggs. You have to find the right amount, though. As a baby, you should feed him crickets until he will no longer take them. They need the exercise, as they get fat, lazy and out of shape easily. Feed him as many crickets as he wants two or three times a day and give him a pinky every couple of days. As he gets older, feed him larger (appropriately sized) mice two or three times a week (tops!) slowing down as they get older. The amount you feed him should be directly based upon how much activity he gets. The biggest reason that Savannah's die early is due to obesity.

If you are going to feed him 'human' meats, stay away from sausages and seasoned meats. Avoid high fat meats like ham and fatty beef. Avoid ground beef. Hot dogs are probably not a good idea, either. If you want to feed him a treat, give him a boiled egg (with the yolks removed to reduce fats). Savannah's are not picky eaters like beardies. In fact, they have hardly anything in common with beardies! Good luck! Give your new buddy lots of attention.

 

[BrandonDibble97487]

k thank you and one other question i had is should i bath him like i do my beardies? every other day?

 

[NegativeCreep]

We don't bathe Esham as often as Blaze because he has a BIG water dish in his viv. They need dishes big enough for them to get into. They will often sit in their water on their own and the usually poop in it. It needs to be changed daily, no exceptions, because of this. It actually makes life easier!
We do bathe him more often when he is going through a shed. His latest sheds seem to last forever....

 

[BrandonDibble97487]

thats good, he seams WAY more into scouting the place out and trying to escape more than my beardies ever have lol and he sure does have some sharp claws i just know im gonna get bit to lol im just waiting to see what he is made of lol. i got hi, a 100w basking bulb and a reptisun 10.0 same setup my beardies got just a little warmer basking spot. is there anything else is shpud know. he is about 15-20 inches long and is in a 6foot by 3 foot enclosure thats also 3 foot tall.

 

[NegativeCreep]

Yeah, he will spend most of his day hiding under something, digging or pacing back and forth trying to escape. They have nothing better to do but escape, so you should be sure you have the most 'escape proof' viv that you can provide. They are escape artists.

We have never been bit, but my SO did get a tiny nip once. We feed with tongs to be safe; otherwise he has never actually tried to bite. He hisses a lot and runs, but never bites us.

It's always under debate, but Savannah's don't need UVB exposure like beardies. You may as well save your reptisun for them. Just keep it hot. We have Esham in a 4x2x2 (75 gallon breeder) tank with a big basking light and a 150W (I believe) CHE that stays on all the time. They like to dig and burrow, so a good substrate they can dig in is good. We have used a lot of different things (pellets, plain old dirt, etc.) and we like the coco substrate the best, and it seems, so does he.

The enclosure you have is fine for now, but you will eventually need something bigger. My rule of thumb is the width of the tank should be a minimum length of the lizard's length. So a 4x2x2 would be suitable for a 2' lizard. An 8x4x2-4' enclosure would be ideal for him as an adult. Beware that they can grow up to 5 feet.. We need to upgrade Esham's enclosure soon. We are working on it, though!

viewtopic.php?f=19&t=95301
BTW, I posted a photo thread of Esham earlier, if you want to take a look.

 

[BrandonDibble97487]

yea, your guy looks good, i looked at your thread. ill get ya some pics of champ tomarrow but he is almost like a red/grey tint. its really cool looking and its almost like a "rust" color and he had BRIGHT yellow stripes that run down the sides of his ribs. its wierd, i havent seen a savannah that has such destinct colors as much as his. they are just normaly grey with white dots and he only has a few white dots but there hard to see