Pics of my monster

[chams1]

I know I have posted before about Anubis, my Argus monitor. Here are just some more pics I took of him the other day when he was being cute (well, as cute as he can be, I guess ) He has grown even more since the last time I posted a picture and yes, he is my little monster - who has nearly outgrown his enclosure at almost 4 feet.... (And for those of you who are wondering, yes, those claws are very dangerous and can slice you to bits if you are not wearing your gloves. I have pictorial evidence and scars to prove it!)

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[AJA]

Wow Very impressive. I can see why people like to get them and then get rid of them. You know, you could take him to shows and put a little sign around his neck saying " shoplifters will be eaten"

 

[Cainschams]

He looks awesome!!!! Out of all these cool monitor species my roomie had to rescue a Savannah. Hands down one of the nastiest and ugliest reptiles I have seen. No love for anything but heat, water, food and PEACE!

 

[draetish]

Holy *"#* Batman, that is crazy. What does it eat, small animals or children? LOL. How big will it get?

 

[prettykttkat]

He is absolutely adorable! I've always liked their faces as a monitor. Instead of being wide and short like a sav it's long and pointed. Very cute! If I had room for big monitors I would get one!

 

[luevelvet]

Julie,

That is a fine Argus monitor you have there! What size enclosure are you keeping him in?

Luis

 

[PardalisGirl]

Great name for your monster

I'm impressed Julie. Really impressed. I had one of those years ago. They require a lot of careful handling. Mine was fairly tame but would unintentionally get my fingers (inside gloves) when I was putting the food bowl in the enclosure. Just the force of the bite through the glove would often leave a bruise. If it got grumpy he would whip his tail which is also pretty powerful. Have you ever put yours in a bathtub for a swim? Great name for an Argus

 

[ijmccollum]

Simply stunning. A MONSTER -- albeit grand -- indeed.

 

[samthecham]

Wow, he is amazing! I wish I had one. My house is way too small for one though.

 

[jessica]

WOW!!! Your going to have to build an extra wing on your house just to house him lol

He is really cool!

 

[jannb]

Wow Julie! What a cool looking reptile.....even if he is a monster. He looks like he needs his own room.

 

[chams1]

Thanks for the compliments everyone!

To answer a few of your questions:
I have had this "little" guy since he was 6 weeks old and he is now 1.5 years. Got him from a breeder in Florida who has a breeding facility in Indonesia and that's where Anubis was born. Argus monitors can get about 5 feet for males and about 3.5-4 feet for females at full growth, and it can take up to 3 years to reach full length. Breeding maturity isn't reached until min. 2-2.5 years. (I know a guy in Wisconsin who breeds them and was thinking of breeding mine with one of his when the time comes...)

Argus monitors are very good eaters and they generally say that this species can and will eat you out of house and home. They eat frozen/thawed mice, raw ground poultry, eggs and fish (to name a few). They have a high metabolism because they are so "busy" and not sedentary like a Savannah so they generally don't get fat and are pure muscle. They are known as the only species of monitor that uses its tail as a third leg called "tripodding" and they do this so they can stand on their hind legs to see over the brush, see a long ways, or just as a threat display. They are very quick and powerful and will use their tail to whip you and man, does it smart!

They are a burrowing species and, thus, it is better to have plenty of dirt/soil in their enclosure (hence why he looks dirty in the pics). If you want a good laugh, all you have to do is watch an Argus for a few minutes. They are always doing something funny because they are very inquisitive and "busy".

Catherine, I have never been bitten (thankfully), but he often huffs at me (they will fill their throat with air and huff very loudly which is just a threat display) even though he knows what I'm doing. And yes, I do give him baths in the bathtub often because he has more than outgrown his water tub.

The enclosure he is in now was custom-built just for him last April by one of the guys at Magnaforce Industries and I am working with him now on building me a new one (he as offered to take back this one for some credit towards the new one). The current one is 6.5 feet tall, 4 feet wide and 2.5 feet deep. It is made out of wood with a canopy hiding the lighting and a small cubby with doors on the bottom to hold/hide stuff. It was made to hold about 2 feet of soil under the door opening so it didn't all come out and there are 2 plexi doors that open. (I've attached a crappy picture of the enclosure.) They are climbers and because they are busy, I am always changing around his "furniture" so that he can explore something new.

As big of a reptile as he is, they are very rewarding and he is fun to have around.

For a better visual on the species, go to YouTube and look under "argus monitor". There are a bunch of really good videos by a guy in California who has a breeding pair - his YouTube name is "shayaj". We were going to try and tear up a corner of our back yard and build an outdoor enclosure like this guy's but I was gone virtually every weekend last summer so we ran out of time.

Thanks for enjoying the Anubis pics - he's my little moster.

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[Wilczusia]

It is soooo coool I have never seen one

 

[HecticZ]

Wow!

He looks awesome.