Lizards/Monitors?

[shnimpon]

basically in 1 week im buying my first reptile,

i currently have a fully set up 3Ft tank to house it in with bulbs thermo and everything need be.

the question im asking is wat qould be the best lizard/monitor i should get.

i am not sure if there is any monitor small enuf to house alone in a 3 ft???? any help...

and out of the lizards im summing up between a

MILITARY DRAGON
(Ctenophorus isolepis)

Central Netted Dragon
(Ctenophorus nuchalis)

Central Bearded Dragon
~Red Phase~
(Pogona vitticeps)

Shingleback
(Tiliqua rugosa)

the things i want to no are... housing? cost? when available? handle well? are good kept alone?


please all the info u can giv would be gladly appreciated as my mind must be made by next week haha

 

[wood_nymph]

i faced the same problem, too many choices i;m going with a bearded dragon, but most of the ones i've found are in VIC though so depends if you want to go through the paper work of import

 

[Aslan]

Monitors...

Ackies, Gilleni, Storrs are all small and relatively easy to acquire - there are some even smaller species such as Brevicauda etc as well but the price jumps considerably after that...

They could all be house in a 3ft as individuals...

Here is a pic of my Ackie, still young (about 6mths) and happily in a 3x2x2....not his most appealing photo but the others need resizing - on a positive though you can see his great colours...

 

[jordo]

They can all be kept alone.
Monitors - can be fairly pricey and aren't always the best to handle.
Military Dragon - quite pricey, not very common in captivity, no-no for handling, and need mainly insects for food.
The last three are good options. Shinglebacks and beardies are probably cheaper and handle better and beardies are usually available all year round.

 

[shnimpon]

k summing up between an Ackie, Central Netted, Beardie and shingleback...

wats average cost on each and when shuld thy be available?

 

[jordo]

Ackies can go from $120-$300ea
Netteds $80-$200ea
Beardies $20-$200ea (maybe more for a nice red phase)
Shinglebacks $50-$150ea
This is very general and depends on a few factors like age, location of seller, colours, availability (ie worth less in breeding season when no-one wants them) etc.

 

[Vincey]

I know nothing on Lizards.
But Military Dragons look damn fine

 

[richardsc]

for a first lizard id go with a stumpy or bearded,both great to handle and easily kept,id leave the others till u had more experience,monitors arent really a holding type animal,costly to but and bottomless pits eating wise when kept correctly,meaning lots of heat ect ect,smaller dragons the same ,more of a watch them than hold them type animal,also lots of insects to feed them both,stumpies can be fed on anything from fruit and veg,dog food snails ect,easy to feed,and beardeds eat lots of veg to but also insects as well,but can do fine with a larger veg diet compared to the small dragons and monitors,what ever u do,do your home work first and b sure u have the cage and set up prepared before u get your new lizard,all r great to keep by the way,but for pet quality,and ease of keeping,id go stumpy first,dont rule out bluetongues either,then bearded dragons second

 

[hornet]

millitary dragons aint that expensive, i think they go for $200-$300, i'll hopefully be getting some next season

 

[Snakeaddict]

get some Beardies there easy to care for and you can buy them in pet shops

 

[hornet]

so is everthing on the list lol

 

[frankc]

I guess on how much interaction you want.I have beardies and they are an interesting lizard,I have had blueys and so on and though I enjoy them they are different to keep and watch/interact with.Beardies WILL eat alot of crixs/woodies so be prepared(of course they eat veges and stuff also)Love to do big poos,sometimes on the paper and sometimes in their food bowls.hehe so cute.Some people bath them to get them to poo in their,easy to keep the enclosure clean that way,I found blueys and so on easier for food(Just IMO).Beardies can eat alot of woodies in one feed so I recommend breeding your own to save money.Just do your homework on them and think what you are looking for in a lizard,some geckos are pretty cool too.Good luck and whatever you choose I am sure you will enjoy and want to expand your collection.Oh yeah,you can usually pick up a beardie for $50 -70,shinglebacks $50 -150.Of course this can change depending on age and so on of animal.Happy hunting....

 

[salebrosus]

I reckon a great first lizard to get is an Ackie!. Fabulous tempraments, good feeders etc, nothing to technical about them at all. They're also reasonably priced.

Simone.

 

[Zanejb]

you know what as much as beardies and shinglebacks are great first pets i find them very boring and alot of people have them! i dont own either of the 2, but i reckon the gillens monitor are great, there not good for handling much but they are tameable so dont let anyone tell you they arent. i got mine for $170 and i still have her. a 3' tank is plenty of room. The netted dragons are great also im after apair of Western netted dragons as they arent as common as the centrals. a ackie is good but there becoming the same as the beardies, nearly everyone has one! as far as a military dragon, if you like them then get one lol i think there pritty cool. i like smaller reptiles rather than larger ones anyway.

 

[Lozza]

ackies are very good to watch -never boring, such little characters. My dad let me put their enclosure downstairs in the pool room cause he likes watching them lol ( although got to clean them often otherwise they can smell)

 

[shnimpon]

kk narrowed my decision to...

beardie, shingleback, central netted or ackie...

im looking to spend $120 MAX on a lizard atm so would it be possibgle to purchase any of them for that price?

and lastly which is the easiest to look after and be handled? i work a fair bit so i dnt want something that needs VERY frequent cleaning, so somehtin that dont do gigantic ****s every 2 secs would be good, but at the same time id like to be able to handle it and interact wit it.

how big do ackies grow anywayz?

 

[cobb]

why not a blue tongue?
you can get them for $30.. and easy to care for...and good to handle
cheers,
jacob

 

[shnimpon]

i found bluetounges have a kinda boring personality... always just laying round... and they tend to stink even in a freshly cleaned tank

 

[jordo]

I personally think an adult ackies enclosure should be no smaller than a 4ft because they're very active, smart and inquisitive animals. I think the best options for you are beardies or shinglebacks (which will smell no more or less than blueys).

 

[shnimpon]

how big do ackies get? and how fast do they grow?