Missing Toes on Ackies:

Why do so many of the adult ackies in the classifieds have missing front toes.
I was told that this means they are WC, and that the toes get broken off when they are tied together, as a means of restraint, at the point of capture. Is this true?

Missing toes can have a lot of reasons. One of the most common ways
monitors lose toes is due to insufficient humidity and/or poor sheds. If the shed on the toes doesn't come off, it can build up and cut off circulation, making the toe die and fall off. Also, if they climb on inappropriate wire lids/doors, they can hang a toe up and lose it. If they are housed with other monitors and don't get along, another lizard can bite a toe off either thinking it's a bug to eat or in aggression.

I'm unsure how you could tie a ackie's TOES together in capture... plus as a Australian monitor, they are not imported(as I understand the laws regarding Australian species export laws) same as bearded dragons. So the idea that they are all WC would be completely false.

Originally Posted by Wolfy-hound

Missing toes can have a lot of reasons. One of the most common ways
monitors lose toes is due to insufficient humidity and/or poor sheds. If the shed on the toes doesn't come off, it can build up and cut off circulation, making the toe die and fall off. Also, if they climb on inappropriate wire lids/doors, they can hang a toe up and lose it. If they are housed with other monitors and don't get along, another lizard can bite a toe off either thinking it's a bug to eat or in aggression.

I'm unsure how you could tie a ackie's TOES together in capture... plus as a Australian monitor, they are not imported(as I understand the laws regarding Australian species export laws) same as bearded dragons. So the idea that they are all WC would be completely false.

I totally agree. They sometimes also loose toe nails from digging. On a side note, both my female Yellow Ackies have all their toes and toe nails.

Hah! Yep, my big ones also have all their toes and NAILS. You can count how many furrows are in each set of scratches.. lol.