Any tips on sexing then housing caimans together???
 

Hey guys, my dwarf is now just a hair shy of a full 4 feet and if I remember correct is a little over 5 years old. I have an opportunity to get an about 2.5 foot male from a new friend of mine who just doesn't have the room anymore.

So first question... i need to sex mine. Its large enough and i plan to try the 'pinky probe' method sometime next week. Any tips on doing this the safest way and putting the least stress on him/her? I plan to tape the mouth and have an assistant hold the body secure, because he/she is a wild one lol.

Second, IF it turns out to be a female, i have an indoor pond of 160 gallons of water and an 8x6 area. This should be enough room for the two of them, correct? Also, is there any restrictions from putting the two of them together? Should they even be housed together or am i asking for trouble? I don't plan to breed them as of right now, but in a couple seasons when the male is more mature I'm sure i would love to give it a try. So as of right now I'm looking to just simply keep them together. What do ya'll think?

Any references to a good source for info on housing crocodilians (specifically dwarfs) together?

Thanks!

nothin?

Housing crocodilians together is risky, as they tend to be territorial. Crowding actually seems to reduce some of the aggressive responses, as they don't have the opportunity to claim space. Ultimately, it will depend on the attitudes of the individuals...don't assume that having a pair will mean you can house them together. It doesn't always work like that.

This is what I kinda had in the back of my head, that no matter what the sex is, mine is stil gonna want to rip it apart since it has had thst cage to itself for quite some time. I guess my only option is to see what happenes when I introduce them and go from there, that is if I have a female anyway. I will prob move mine into a tub for a day and let the other settle in, then rearrange some of the cage before adding hi/her back