My new Ridge Tails

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mightymike

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Hey guys

Just got back from the Melb reptile expo with my new little ridge tail monitors,\ hatchies who i bought from Mike Alexander

Quick question, im doing research.... are Ridge Tail Monitors, Goannas and ACKIES all the same animal???? i have no idea where the word ackie came from

haha

my babys are 2 months old and cute as anything

ill be feeding them on crickets only for now...

how important is it to make a stack for them??? do i HAVE to?? or is it just BEST to??

ill put up some better pics when i get some good ones

Mike
 

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ackie comes from there scientific name,achanthurus or how ever u spell it mate,yes there monitors,id recomend using a stack or something similar for them,they live in rock fissures and feel alot more comfy when something similar is provided,when i hatch my ridgeys,well gillens ect to,i use piles of sheets of bark whilst they are small,then make plywood stacks when there bigger,gives them options which is what u want,on top of the stacks is up to 75 degrees,and cooler each level u go down,so they can choose what temp they like,whilst still feeling secure,good luck with them,great little monitors
 
Varanus acanthurus acanthurus..... richardsc is spot on,he has helped me allot with my reptile partners problems & now with my little one
slate heats up very well...it helps when trying to increase the heat as it gets hotter than most surfaces
 
beautiful animals... you obviously had a good time at the expo.... im so jealous :p
 
I mised the Melb Expo. but are keen on getting an Ackie or Tristis. Can any one help??:D
 
ummm the enclosure specs i aint too sure of.... my guess is 3 or 4 foot by about 1 or 2 foot.....

they get to around 60cm long from what i hear.... i would like to know how quick they grow..

i got them for $300 for the pair
 
from what i hear 4 foot is fine for an adult pair. And yes, about 60cm they will get to.
 
Mike - Good to see you are asking the right sort of questions - in future, many of these questions would have been best asked prior to purchase...

Firstly (as already stated) 'Ackie' is a truncation of their scientific name Varanus Acanthurus - and for reference anything starting with 'Varanus' is a Monitor lizard, in Australia - Goanna...

They will grow VERY quickly provided they have sufficient heat and food - at that age they will comfortably bask at surface temperatures of 75*c, and I certainly wouldn't give them less than about 65*c. Please be aware that that is SURFACE temperature only and as such you will need to buy an infrared thermometer to measure that heat...

Provided you keep them warm enough, they will eat...ALOT...I generally start smaller monitors on crickets only because I dont have to pick out the smaller Woodies, getting them onto Woodies is a good idea though as a large adult Woodie is a bigger meal than a large cricket and as such require less bugs...

Enclosure size, well I wouldn't keep any adult Ackie in less than 4x2x2. My adult pair are in a 5x2x2 and this seems to work well, if I had the space they would have a larger enclosure...

I definately recommend a stack, it is the simplest way to provide a hot surface with variation in temperature throughout the enclosure - you can place the top of the stack close to a smallish globe and still get a hot spot without overheating the enclosure...

You will love Ackies, they are fantastic animals...
 
Ackies are a great begginers monitor/goanna and they fill out wonderfully! small robust critters full of character :p they are great to watch eat also, swallowing prey similar to a snake :D they are generally very gregarious and very easy to care for! I seen those li'l ackies yesterday...their so darn cute! im after a sand goanna i saw there :p can't wait to see more pics mike, i'm sure you'll love your li'l ones!
 
Mike - Good to see you are asking the right sort of questions - in future, many of these questions would have been best asked prior to purchase...

Firstly (as already stated) 'Ackie' is a truncation of their scientific name Varanus Acanthurus - and for reference anything starting with 'Varanus' is a Monitor lizard, in Australia - Goanna...

They will grow VERY quickly provided they have sufficient heat and food - at that age they will comfortably bask at surface temperatures of 75*c, and I certainly wouldn't give them less than about 65*c. Please be aware that that is SURFACE temperature only and as such you will need to buy an infrared thermometer to measure that heat...

Provided you keep them warm enough, they will eat...ALOT...I generally start smaller monitors on crickets only because I dont have to pick out the smaller Woodies, getting them onto Woodies is a good idea though as a large adult Woodie is a bigger meal than a large cricket and as such require less bugs...

Enclosure size, well I wouldn't keep any adult Ackie in less than 4x2x2. My adult pair are in a 5x2x2 and this seems to work well, if I had the space they would have a larger enclosure...

I definately recommend a stack, it is the simplest way to provide a hot surface with variation in temperature throughout the enclosure - you can place the top of the stack close to a smallish globe and still get a hot spot without overheating the enclosure...

You will love Ackies, they are fantastic animals...

Hey mate, alot ofthere questions were asked at time of purchase, only problem was that it was very busy at the expo and the bloke i was asking who ibought it off wasnt really giving me much attention, didnt have care sheets or anything, so i got some info out of him tomake sure i could at least have a decent set up, then i thought i would ask my trustworthy friends on APS because i havent had a question that hasnt got agood answer yet


Thanks guys!!!
 
here are some more pics of the little guys and my set up at the moment

ive put 3 large rocks of different shapes under the heat light, im guessing that will do as a kind of stack for now, they are already loving squashing themselves in all the different gaps!
 

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Hey mate, alot ofthere questions were asked at time of purchase, only problem was that it was very busy at the expo and the bloke i was asking who ibought it off wasnt really giving me much attention, didnt have care sheets or anything, so i got some info out of him tomake sure i could at least have a decent set up, then i thought i would ask my trustworthy friends on APS because i havent had a question that hasnt got agood answer yet


Thanks guys!!!

Mike - Please don't think I was having a major go at you or anything, I wasn't...as my first line reads, it is definately great to see that you are asking all the right questions. Regardless though, the ideal situation is that you have your enclosure up and running as required and your questions answered prior to any animals being purchased...for example, what if the response to your question about their size was three metres...? ;)

Anyway, your enclosure looks reasonably good...

Be cautious of using loose rocks for your stack, it won't be long before your Ackies can quite easily shift those stones enough to force a collapse...I have an Ackie just under two weeks old that can make a slate tile shake when he is wrestling his crickets! :D

Why the red light? This may be a point of debate, I'm not sure. I don't provide overnight heat for any of my small monitors - they get a white light during the day and nothing overnight. I find a white/clear light provides a better representation of sunlight and also gives me a better view of my animals...they are also MUCH cheaper as you can purchase standard lights from Bunnings or Woolies...
 
hey, i reallly want an ackie, can someone plz PM me, with the captive husbandry requirements, thnks guys!
 
Mike - Please don't think I was having a major go at you or anything, I wasn't...as my first line reads, it is definately great to see that you are asking all the right questions. Regardless though, the ideal situation is that you have your enclosure up and running as required and your questions answered prior to any animals being purchased...for example, what if the response to your question about their size was three metres...? ;)

Anyway, your enclosure looks reasonably good...

Be cautious of using loose rocks for your stack, it won't be long before your Ackies can quite easily shift those stones enough to force a collapse...I have an Ackie just under two weeks old that can make a slate tile shake when he is wrestling his crickets! :D

Why the red light? This may be a point of debate, I'm not sure. I don't provide overnight heat for any of my small monitors - they get a white light during the day and nothing overnight. I find a white/clear light provides a better representation of sunlight and also gives me a better view of my animals...they are also MUCH cheaper as you can purchase standard lights from Bunnings or Woolies...

Point taken

Umm the red light is theyre during the day basking light, its a proper heat light, the rocks are pretty stable at the moment for theyre weight, i try to make sure theyre leaning on the floor of the tank to be stable

at the moment i give em a small over night heat mat...but they seem happy
 
looks good mike, if i were you i would make a stack out of ply. those rocks are an accident waiting to happen and
ply stacks dont crush lizards.
also ditch the heat mat, all it will do is dry out the sand causeing shed problems around the toes.
if you leave them alone they will be fine.
 
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