Willie1reptiles and Snksarch

The Source for Reptile Enthusiasts

Novice: First time reptile keepers. You are new to the hobby, and will need an animal that can tolerate some mistakes temporarily.

Intermediate: Minimum 1-2 years experience. You know how to read your animal’s behaviour and can correct problems quickly, based on your observations. You are beginning to understand reptile physiology, and can start to anticipate problems before they occur. You have a good understanding of lighting, temps, diet, substrates, and supplementation.

Expert: You can anticipate your animals needs before problems start. Any wild caught animal that hasn’t been acclimated will fit into this category. You can either perform basic medical procedures, such as injections, dressings, and tube feedings, or you can afford a vet who can do this for you. You can tell the health of the animal at a glance, and can differentiate small differences in behaviour.

 

UVB: Ultra Violet B wavelengths. These are only provided by bulbs which specify output in this wavelength. You can use MVB (Mercury Vapour Bulb) or fluorescent sources. Full spectrum bulbs are not the same. You need a reptile specific bulb, or have a UVB meter to be sure the output is in the safe and effective range for the animal.

 

Small: Less than 36”x18”.

Moderate: 36”x24”x24” - 60”x36”x36”

Large: 60”x36”x36” or larger.

Arboreal: Provide a lot of climbing spaces, as the animals live in trees usually. Your cage can have more height than width.

Terrestrial: Provide a lot of floor space, as the animal lives on the ground. Climbing and hiding areas are still important.

 

Terms commonly used with reptiles

Cage Size:

Lighting:

Experience:

WC= Wild caught animals. These typically require veterinary assistance to survive. 90% of WC or  FH animals will die in the first year.

FH= Farm Hatched. This is the practice of only collecting the gravid females from a wild population, and housing them until the eggs are laid, usually in natural conditions, rather than incubated artificially. The females are discarded, and most die. This is NOT a ranch style breeding operation in the country of origin.

CB= Captive Born, OR Captive Bred. Captive Born really equals FH. Captive Bred is sometimes listed as CBB to differentiate. CB is used by dishonest dealers to misrepresent their animals. Savannah Monitors are a prime example of this. If your Sav in Canada didn’t come from Ravi at The Monitor Spot, it isn’t CBB.

CBB= Captive Born and Bred. These animals are usually well documented, and unless the dealer can list the breeder, it is unlikely the animal is CBB. All Australian animals must be CBB as there is no legal way to export animals from Australia. You will pay more, but the experience is much more rewarding, and the animals temperament seems to be much better, possibly due to the initial imprinting of human presence from day one. These animals are also less likely to experience the stress of frequent injections, force feedings, and veterinary exams. One trip to the vet will usually negate the price difference between a WC, or FH animal, compared to a CBB. 90% of CBB animals will survive the first year. The 10% is either keeper error, or a congenital defect. I have a 100% guarantee against congenital defects. I will replace the animal free of charge, but shipping is to be paid by the keeper.

 

WC, FH, CB, CBB:

Most of the calls I get on the animals is usually resolved by checking the temps properly (after making sure they have had a period to get settled into their new home.) There are three things to take into consideration with most reptiles, and four with monitors. The Basking Temp is the surface temperature of the basking area. It may be a rock or branch, or piece of plywood. The Ambient Warm Side Temperature is the air temp of the side of the cage with the basking area. The Ambient Cool Temperature is the air temp of the cool side of the cage. For monitors, the Substrate Temperature is important for nesting or burrowing. It is important to give your animals choices to find the areas they need to regulate their metabolism properly. Forget what you read in the care sheets, and watch your animals behaviour. Adjust the temps accordingly. Use the care sheets as a starting point, and adjust from there. If the animal spends all of its time basking, either the basking spot is too cold, or the ambient temps are too cold. If the animal prefers the cool end of the enclosure, and rarely goes to the other side, it is an indication that the temps are too high on the basking end. A well set up cage will see short periods of basking, followed by thermoregulation behaviour over the rest of the cage. A poorly feeding, lethargic animal is often too cold. This will open you up to possible metabolic problems, impactions, digestive problems, and a variety of infections based on a suppressed immune system. Even Calcium absorption, separate to UVB and supplementation is linked to proper temperatures. An overheated animal will usually end up with brain damage or death. If the animal is gaping on the cool end, it is too hot. Remove it from the cage immediately, and adjust your temps before returning it.

A useful hint is to set up the hot and cool ends properly, then place the basking spot at the correct height to give you the proper basking temp. Approximately 1” is 5-10 degrees of temp variation, depending on a # of factors.

Temperatures: