[casperbunny]

hi
my son has a boss monitor who is very nervous and scared
any time he goes neer him he backs away into his hide and if he picks him up he whips and sprays and tries to bite,
not sure how old he is but he definetly don't like humans.
if any one has any ideas on how to calm him down he would be very gratefull
thankyou

 

[Nibbler]

you could try putting something that smells like you guys like a shirt into his tank that way he can get use to your smell just a thought as iv done this in the past with bearded dragons, iv never had a monitor thou

 

[casperbunny]

thank you for the reply will try that willing to try anything

 

[Ravnos]

Bosc's monitor, since it was first described by zoologist Louis Bosc, more typically called a savannah monitor in the US... anyway, patience and persistence. Same with working with any of the larger lizards. The more time you spend around him, the more he'll get used to you being there. Eventually you can work up to just touching him. Then slowly work up to picking him up. Don't expect fast results. It can take weeks, or even months... but if you just recently got him, he may need a couple of weeks just to chill out. Changing environments can be very stressful.

In the meantime, I would invest in a nice set of welding gloves. Something that protects up the forearm a bit. You should be able to find them at any hardware store, or even order them off Amazon. I have found them to be invaluable when handling monitor lizards of all shapes, sizes, and temperaments. Even ones that aren't actively fighting you can still easily scratch you when you pick them up, and those scratches can very easily get infected. Better to be protected.

 

[casperbunny]

thank you for you'r help
he has had him for about 2 months now he was rescued from a not so nice home so we did expect a few problems we have watched him on a camera when not in the room and he struts around quite happely and eats fine but hides as soon as anyone goes into the room
he will keep trying to get him used to someone being there
thank you for you'r advice

 

[Toirtis]

What Ravnos said x 2, but bear in mind also that you may never tame your son's monitor....it all depends on how 'feral' it is, and how long it has been that way, your persistence and devotion to the task, and the individual lizard itself.

 

[casperbunny]

hi
we think he's proberly about a year old but might be younger
but do know the place he came from wasn't very good and that was already his 2nd home
but we will persist with him and do the best we can to make him comfortable and happy
thanks for reply