Black Throat monitor feeding

Can anyone give me a basic diet of these guys through their life? i.e. baby, juvie, sub-adult, adult. I pretty mush already know it but I just wanna get some other people's opinions. Also, If you have an adult, around how much do you spend per week/month to feed an adult? Any other info you can contribute will still be helpful i.e. caging ideas/ interior design, lights you may use, substrate you find good, etc. The more opinions the better. Thanks!

Originally Posted by Kyle1029

Can anyone give me a basic diet of these guys through their life? i.e. baby, juvie, sub-adult, adult. I pretty mush already know it but I just wanna get some other people's opinions. Also, If you have an adult, around how much do you spend per week/month to feed an adult? Any other info you can contribute will still be helpful i.e. caging ideas/ interior design, lights you may use, substrate you find good, etc. The more opinions the better. Thanks!

I have a subadult blackthroiat (about 2 1/2 feet snout to vent) and just for just the rat part of his diet, it is 10 small per week. Now add in turkey, eggs, roaches, etc and you would be at the $200 plus per month for one adult monitor.
Cages....BIG.....with a deep dirt substrate. I use dirt and cypress mulch mix. The cypress on top. Hot spot should be about 140 degrees. Large water bowl (think cat litter box for a juvie and a preformed plastic pond from Petland for an adult. Monitors mess up their water so be prepared to change the water everyday.
The cost to buy a monitor is nothing compared to the food and housing bill one of the larger species will cost you.

Honestly I'm about to take this thread down. I'd like to think I could give proper care for an animal like this but I know I can't and so I'll be going with something a little smaller that I KNOW I can care for. Thanks for the reply though. It haas further convinced me not the get a B/T lol

Please don't remove the thread as this information is very useful to others.

Cost in food for an adult Albig is a good $1200 plus dollars a year if not more. I fed my adults rats, bunny kits, chicks, crabs /shellfish, whole fishes. Yeah you may be able to save money by not buying some of those things but really they all cost the same amount if not within .50 of each other. So that's just the food bill. I've never kept just one large monitor so I cannot give an honest breakdown of electricity consumption and also it's going to vary by area etc. But you can bet that food bill is going to be pricey for anything reaching above 3 to 4 foot.

I would have to agree that regardless of how you feel about the content of you thread, information is always beneficial. We might not always have access to the best information, but the shared experience of all, even with wrong info (not referring to you, or anyone in particular), helps us to learn, from our and other peoples mistakes. It also allows us to explore other methods of keeping our herps happy and healthy.

I have always liked to experiment with different set-ups, foods and feeding regimens. Trial and error is by far the best method to learn. I feel that there is no one right way to keep an animal. Each animal should be viewed as a separate entity and treated as such. I’m not saying go crazy, use common sense. There will always be some basics “rules” and measures that need to be implemented. I know from experience keeping multiple of the same varanids that what works for one savannah does not for another, and so on. You have to find out by trial.

I will give some abbreviated version of how I keep mine, as well as the associated cost (which is lower than those stated above). I like to spend money once, and in the right way, so that maintenance costs are as low as possible. Mind you, I don’t cut corners- there are some things you just have to spend the money on!

But, before I do all that, I want to ask a question or make a suggestion. The members and readers here, represent a vast number of people with cumulative experience and knowledge that is invaluable! I have searched and looked for it, but don’t think there is one single place or source where we can find “definitive” care guides. Not just the standard care sheet, but a trouble shooting guide. Too often we see that keepers see “care sheets” as something for novices and beginners. The fact is that we are constantly learning more about what some call “commom” species. This information is crucial, and can help even the most practiced herper in times of need. My suggestion is that we pool our resources and start a care section in the classifieds, or post them as a separate discussion forums. Yeah, I know that some areas, like the iguana forum has one as a sticky, but wouldn’t it be nice if they were for multiple species. We all have different animals and experience. This section could be one where we discuss events relating to treatments, care, diet and setup, but in one amalgamated area, rather than having it all segmented. I have searched this forum, and have come up empty handed more than once, I have also been successful too. But we should consider making an effort to get this knowledge accessible. I see all the more that some people see this knowledge as “proprietary”. While credit needs to be given for hard work and discovery, is it not our responsibility to educate people (often buyers or first time owners) about these animals we all care for?

I am thinking that I might have to post this as a new thread. But for now, I’ll get back to it:

I have various monitor species- but here is my whitethroat/blackthroat and savannah setup and care guide (thought adapted more specifically in some cases, and not used for my water monitors).

I build my own cages, and my standard cage for the blackthroat is 4’x8’x4’. I use a soil (organic, no fertilizer and pesticide), mulch mix. Sometimes I will add hay to this for a burrowing medium on top. I have not had any issue regarding foreign body impaction, and will only use this substrate with larger monitors. I add to this some furniture and a large cement mixing tub as a water and soaking dish. A hide is critical, and I use either a large cut (plastic) flowerpot or half of a dog carrier (also plastic). I use a lot of plastics where I can since they clean and sterilize better. This I do with bleach.
For heat I use halogen bulbs for which I make covers out of hardware cloth. I do not use UVB as a norm, though some of my monitors have them. I have found that the addition of UVB lights has helped picky eaters in the past, and some of my monitors have become more active after the addition of the UVB lights. Others seem not to care. I have moved back and forth on this, and would say rather safe than sorry. The fact is that the UVB will NEVER hurt. Temperature ranges depend on species. I have all my cages in a reptile room, which I keep at 82˚F, so that is always my minimum temp. Ambient temp ranges from 90-95˚F in the cage with hot spots up to 130˚F. This is easier to achieve than you might think, as long as you cages are insulated enough.
I feel a “big” meal every 5-7days. This is almost always rodents. My largest guy eats 2 large or 3 medium rats at this point. During the week, two or three days apart and between these “big” feedings, I will give them a couple of hissing roaches or chicks, I also do some other tidbits like fish, liver and hearts (it all depends on where I’m shopping). For my smaller guys I just chop the chicks. Once a month I substitute the rodents with the San Diego Zoo (SDZ) monitor diet of lean turkey and bone meal. I supplement when I give the large meals, by using Osteo-form, and they get vitamins with the SDZ diet.

I get all my foods at cost, and my average weekly expense for a big monitor is $ 8.00/wk (I also breed my own roaches and rabbits, and this helps). So figure $32.00/month x 12 = $ 384.00/year. Not bad, I think.

I feed less frequently than most people, but I have older/adult animals. Younger animals, especially on an insect rich diet I feed daily. Some of my monitors will refuse food, after only two or three rodents, but eat better when fed sparingly but more regularly. For the most part, this formula has been working for me.

I would love any suggestion or ideas and love reading new and better ways to do things. And I hope that you do too.

Ok ill leave this thread up but yeah i think that would be and excellent idea to have kindof a care guide where people constantly can give updates on the care they find proper and neccessary. One question though, for caging for a black throat, wouldn't a 4'x8'x4' be too small for an adult? I really want one and can build that size cage but was scared he would feel too cramped even though i would more that likely let him have free roam when i got home. If that size cage would be acceptable with free roam then i would def. reconsider my decision to not get one. I really wanted a larger monitor that generally have a nice temperment. I was going to give that up because one of the only other monitors that are tame are the savs and i dont like them very much :/ so i was going to give uo handlability for excitement and was going to get and argus. So in your opinion, should i got with the b/t ?

It all comes down to compromise. Would I like to give my monitor more space? Absolutely, and maybe I will. But I remind myself that most people don’t, and I’d rather have one that might go to a home where he might find less. Not saying that’s a good case, that I’m “right”, or that another person may not take better care of their animals (at least with regard to space).

With my 4x8 setup, they have 32 sq feet. That’s not too bad. Also, in some of my cages I have placed “levels”, which are similar to those found in iguana cages. This is good for climbing, but they also provide extra floor space. Just make sure this does not cut out your lighting. Devoting an entire room to a BT would be great, but how many people would have one then? Yes, some die hard herpers obviously do, but as long as you keep them stimulated and healthy (by designing your cage well, and allowing for easy access and cleanup), they will suffer few if any negative side effects. I’m not sure if a study has been done with regards to monitors, but people have no problem with keeping snakes in Tupperware containers. I don’t recommend stuffing your savannah in the next decent looking Rubbermaid, but “reasonable” space seems a relative term.

So, compromise between what remains healthy for your monitor, and the space you have available. Just figure out the best way of maximizing the space you have. You could always go up, and give him a two story. Building supplies are relatively affordable, and I could build a 4x8x8 cage for the same price as a large vision cage. Just use sense, and think ahead to cleaning and maintenance- the easier the upkeep is, the more likely it is to not become a soul sucking and back breaking chore you dread.

That 2 story idea was exactly like what I had in mind. I figured if I can't build out, why not up? And the extra story would almost double the floor space. I would actually try to make the top level the "hot area" and the bottom area the "everything else area" (except for feeding which I coud do on both levels) that way it stimulates him to get that excersice to move place to place. It will also allow for more area in each zone. I'm starting to rethink getting one and I think you're right with the whole "how many people dedicate a whole room" theory and i agree with you 100% if there is a time when I can provide a bigger cage i will most definitly do that.