Lizard Advice

Ok, no pair then...
The Uromastyx Occelatus seem to look much more colourful, and by the descriptions on the site you posted up, seem to get smaller.
Have you got a burrow or hide/hole in your encloseure, and how'd you make it, and how big is it (if you have one..)?

Thanks, Mikey

Since my guy is so small I keep him on newspaper for now. If they ingest sand it can cause impaction so I have been told to wait awhile. Usually once they are about 6-7" you can put them on sand. I had a piece of PVC pipe in there for a burrow but he seemed absolutely terrified of it so I removed. Give me a few minutes and I will post pics of my current setup. As you will see he decided to rearrange his seed dish.

For his hides I used a piece of slate and a couple of flat peices of flagstone from the garden to make one hide. The others I bought from the pet shop. One is just an artificial rock with an opening and the other is a half log.

Here is a pic of his hide.

Then this is a picture of his entire cage. Sorry for the bad pictures, my camera doesn't do it justice. (or maybe my picutre taking ability isn't the best since my hubby thinks the camera is great)

Oh yeah, cool, i see how youve encorperated the roof of the hide as a basking spot, good idea...Is it just newspaper under there aswell, or some other substrate?

Thanks alot, Mikey

The bottom is entirely lined with newspaper, thats just a picture showing under his hide. I can't wait to be able to put sand in but I would rather be safe then sorry. He likes to drag his food around & I wouldn't want him accidentally eating sand. I've been considering building up half of his enclosure & then only having sand on half. THat way I can make sure his food stays sand free.

I love the slate piece, it retains heat well and makes a wonderful basking spot. Its 16 in X 16 in. I paid $2.50 for it. His basking spot gets up to about 128 degrees. Some like it hotter.

If you decide to put in sand make sure any type of decoration you put in rests on the bottom of the cage or they could dig under it and get hurt.

The Occelated and Ornate Uro's are beautiful. I couldn't find any when I was looking. I chose a Male Mali instead.

Ok cool, ill be ringing the shop today to see what their advice is, but i dont think that the occelated will get too big for a 4x2x2.
Do you use just a normal spotlight (on a dimmer) for the heat, or do you use a special reptile heat bulb? How far away from the slate is it?

Thanks for all the help kimbowee

Mikey

This is some of my friends Uros

Female


Male


this years babys

Absolutely beautiful Grahamsokel, I love their coloring. Tell your friend I'm jealous, I love the babies.

Mikey,

As always with any new pet I suggest alot of research first. The pet shop may tell you something different, doesn't mean they are always right. Since these guys aren't as common as beardies and iguanas I would try to get as much info as possible from current Uromastyx owners before the pet shop, try the web there are tons of care sheets and forums. Then make sure you have a vet in your area, even if you think you are getting a healthy specimen I would always reccomend a vet visit anyway and a fecal check to make sure there aren't any parasites.

The bulbs you are going to have to play with to make sure your temps are right. Thats why I suggested getting your cage setup before bringing the lizard home. You are going to want a cool side and hot side to your cage. The cool side should range from 80-85 degrees and the hot side should stay around 100 degrees air temp. You basking spot has to reach 125 degrees or more. Mine sits at around 132 degrees and he loves it. A breeder freind of mine has hers at around 138-140 degrees.

I started with the reptile bulbs for heat but wasn't getting the heat I needed so I switched to Halogen. For my main light on the hot side I use a 90W Par38 Halogen bulb that I picked up at the local hardware store for $4.00. It's in a clamp light with a ceramic socket also from the hardware store. Make sure if you are buying the clamp lights from the hardware sotre you get one with a ceramic or porcelain socket, plastic will melt. I am also still using the 60W reptile bulb on the warm side since I didn't want to waste it. It costs was around $9.00 for the bulb. You will also need a UV Bulb. I am currently using the ReptiSun 7.0. The UV can't sit on top of a screen or more than 12 inches away or it really is not effective. They also need to be changed about every 6 months. You can tell when the bulb starts to change from blueish to a more white light or graying at the ends. You are also going to need at least 2 digital thermometers, 1 for the hot side and one for the cool side. I would suggest trying to get one that also has a humidity gauge.
The initial cost is the most expensive part. After that its pretty much just veggies and replacement bulbs. Good luck!

Great, thanks alot
Lovely lizards your friend has graham Thanks for showing. Does he/she sell them?
Your right about advice from pet shops (had it before, had it again today...) when the guy said a 2 foot tank would be ok, so yeah...
The ones he has in stock are 10/11" and their adults, so it would be going straght into its final home..I was thinking 4 foot long, maybe 12 or 15" high (so that the UV is most effective) and then maybe 18 or 24" wide...What do you think? Know of anywhere that delivers them in the UK thats online, cos i think it would be too big for somewhere to have in stock in a shop...
I have lots of slate, so id build that up abit for a nice basking spot. Do you think i would need a vent in the tank, if it was wood?
Would haveing it in white (so its cheaper) be not too good, or would that be better, cos it'd be brighter?
Id also have a dimmer thermostat i reckon...And a 60w bulb for a basking spot, but what about at night, any additional heating?

Thanks alot, Mikey

Yes she does sometimes sell the babys but 3 of these 4 where reserved as soon as they hatched and she is keeping one of them.

Oh right fair doos...
Do you think that a 48x24x17h would be sufficeient? Cos i can get that for £100, plus delivery ontop of that.
Do you think a 60w spot light attached to a dimmer stat would be ok for heat, and then a 8.0 UV tube? Think id need a mat for night?

Thanks alot, Mikey

How cool does your home get during the evening? Anything above 65 degrees is fine for a night drop. If its gets below that you may want an additional heat source for the evenings. During the summer my tank only gets to about 72 degrees at night but in the winter 66-67 degrees night time temps.

I just went and checked my UV bulb its a reptisun 10.0 but 8.0 should be fine if within 12 inches. As far as lighting my 60 watt reptile bulb doesn't put out nearly enough heat to get the temps up to where they need to be. Not to mention they are expensive. These lizards like it super hot, the hotter the better for them. They truley are heat lovers and without enough heat they won't be nearly as active. If you go to your local hardware store try Halogen Flood bulbs. They produce a lot of heat & I have used them with my reptiles for years. Try either a 75 watt or 90 watt. I prefer the flood instead of the spot bulbs because the heat is more spread out and I personally think it helps maintain better heat averages. The sopt bulb gets one spot really hot but the surrounding area stays cooler. I was re-reading my previous post. I said the 60 watt was on my warm side when it should have read cool side.

The 90 watt Halogen bulb on the hot side maintains an ambient air temp of 98-100 degrees with a basking area of about 132 degrees. The 60 watt reptile bulb keeps the cool side at about 81 dergees. The UV light puts out minimal heat, I only notice about a 1/2 of a degree drop if its not on.

ON cage length and width are the most important. These guys love to run and roam but aren't always the best climbers. If you could get 48L X 24W X 17H that should be fine. As for the cage what do you mean by white wood? Melamine? Just make sure its Formaldehide (sp?) free. If you are going to completely enclose it then yes you need a vent or two for fresh air. Some shops will special order for you and then you can pick it up there. I know alot of store don't usually stock larger tanks becuase of their size but they will usually special order from their supplier if you pay up front. I'm from the US so I am not sure of any one who would deliver.

Also, if you are planning on getting from a pet shop make sure that they are Captive bred. If they are selling adults who are wild caught they aren't going to like captivity. Some have a really hard time adjusting, won't eat, very skittish, hide a lot, not to mention you never know what parasites they are carrying.

How did the ones in the shop look? Did they look nice and fat? How long have they had them? Did you see any stools in the cage, if so were they firm? You don't want it if you can see the spine jutting out or if the underside of the tail is sunken in. Their tail should be nice and fat also. Check noses also. A white salty nose is ok. If its bubbly, wet or has mucous it means its sick. Also make sure you check for any wounds & really check the tail as they can get fungal infections.

Sorry for the long posts.

I havent seen em, the shops about 1hr away...
Its says their CB on the advert on pets classifeids, but shops will say anything for money...
I may try and get one which i defineately know is CB, but im not really sure where to look, has anyone got any ideas?
I can get the 10.0 light, its not a problem, and im gonna have a reflector for it too, so the light will be more effective.
I have a feeling that the night temps may be under 65 at times, so i think id need some other heat too...Can you reccomend one?
Also, what do you generally feed yours?

Thanks alot, Mikey

Try finding a breeder in your area by doing a google search, also are there any upcoming reptile shows? If you can get the shop to tell you the breeders name you can always run a search online.

For night heat I have heard that the infared lights don't put out very much heat but I have never used one. Exo Terra sells a ceramic bulb which will give you the heat without the light. Again, I haven't used one as I don't have troubles with night temps but these I have heard they work wonders. Here is a wonderful site on UV bulbs http/www.uvguide.co.uk/

As for food I like to give a pretty varied diet. For main dishes every day I feed a mixture of Bok Choy, Curly Endives, Escarole, dandelion greens and flowers in the summer. There is always a bowl of finch seed & ground-up bean soup mix for protein. Then I also give a little snack every day too. I try for edible flowers such as Hibiscus, rose petals, orchids & dandelions, all pesticide free of course. I try to give a different choice a couple of times a week of carrot, peas, seedless grapes, mango, or squash. Stay away from lettuces that have a lot of water content such as iceberg, there isn't much nutritional value.