Monitor-HELP!!

[aoife]

Hi,
I currently have 1 adult Pygmy Mulga monitor and he is ALWAYS under his rock. He only comes out to eat and then he goes straight back in again. The rock used to be directly under the heat light and above the heat mat but earlier today i moved it to the cooler side of the tank.

Is there any reason why he would need to be under the rock 24/7?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[dragon lady]

im doing the ..ide like to know too.....bump!

[scorps]

he doesnt like you hahah lol nuh hes probably jsut scared

[JasonL]

Please post a pic of the tank and measure the temps if you want a correct answer. You should have a "stack" under the heat source as well as hides in the cool spot, a stack is a stack of tiles, seperated about 15 - 20mm apart (enough for a gillens to squeeze into), say about 6 - 8 tiles will do. Also heat will play a big part in the amount it eats, most people underheat monitors.

[dragon lady]

underheat....= heat mat under tile?.....thanks Jas

[llama]

Originally Posted by dragon lady

underheat....= heat mat under tile?.....thanks Jas

I think he means underheat, as in not enough heat.

[dragon lady]

"most people underheat monitors".....hmmm
it wouldnt be low heat....monitors need more heat

[dragon lady]

i see what you mean.....
JASONL.......HELP PLEASE!!!!!!...lol

[JasonL]

underheat, meaning having them at a lower heat than they need.

[dragon lady]

llama....you are brilliant

JasonL....ahh!... thought you ment..."most people underheat"...
like use heat under neath....! under a tile you use a heat mat!

gee wizz....long day eh!...lol...sorry guys!

[richardsc]

by underheat he doesnt mean heat pad under them,he means not keeping them hot enough,mate monitors love to hide,moving the hide spot to the cool end wont help as he will stay hidden down there ,i use a stack under the heat lamp,my stacks consist of plywood sheets spaced out one above the other with a piece of wood between each level,so it has gaps for the monitors to squeeze into,my lot get at least 3 levels,normally between 3 an 5 levels and the basking spot ontop of the stach reaches at least 70 degrees,yes 70 degrees celcius,its just a small area ontop of the stack that gets to that temp.they frequently bask there as well,the good thing with using stacks is they offer hide spots with varing temps,obviously getting cooler each level u go down from the top,i dont use under tank heat for my lot either,its not nessacary if u have the right heat available up the top,,i also keep them hot at night but that isnt nessacary,but its best to keep them warm at night with the use of red bulbs to mimick night time,years ago i just kept day lights on 24 /7 and that worked great as well,they still knew when to sleep ect,also with basking temps that high,only on the raised stack area if they get to hot they go lower in there stacks,hence why i dont use under tank heat,it gives them the bottom level as a cool retreat,i also have a temp gradient to the cool end of my cage which is the room temp,so really cold over winter as there in an uninsulated tin shed in melb, and up to 30 degrees in summer heatwaves,u have to think of what monitors do in the wild,they will stay in cover if they can,they can thermoregulate from there crevices/burrows and probably aquire a lot of there food in there as well,they love heat,and thrive on it

[dragon lady]

you offer great advice richardsc..... but dont reply to pm's sent!...lol

[Gecko_ProCs]

unless he just likes the rock
and now that its on the cool side he's wondering why it isnt hot anymore
so he sits there thinking "it'll be hot soon, it'll be hot soon and i can sit on my rock! "
haha i dunno its just a thought
i know one of my beardies loved the vine i had in the tank
they always had it in there and he was always on it, no matter where i moved it to he would just sit on it all day even in the cool end