Hi all, I thought I would start by saying hi to everyone and droppin some general info about my Uro... He is an estimated 3 year old Mali Uro which was raised with beardies that the pet store rescued he has some white "scarring" I am calling it around his mouth from being raised as a Beardie... He is about 13 inches long black with 2 brown stripes and VERY active. I have had a couple people look at him and they think he may be an Egyptian but not 100% sure. I have a 48x2x2 cage for him with a washed and sifted playsand substrate I bought at Home Depot (There is no silica). I havent brought him to my home yet he is at my brothers for the unnamed reptile is going to be a present for my 2 kids (I will be the tender of the animal not the kids). I have a few questions I am having problems researching... 1. Should I buy a Intellitemp or other brand heat mat for the cool side of the tank or none at all. 2. How deep should I fill the tank with sand since they like to burrow. 3. Should I buy one of the dual lights for heating and UV or each individual. 4. Should I have a dual substrate if so should I use the millet on the cold or warm side?
Hi, Welcome to the forum and the world of Uro's Ok to answer your questions. 1) You dont need a heatmat, uro's get all their heat from above. 2) I would say 2" to 3" maximum as they have fairly short legs and may have difficulty walking on anything deeper. 3) The MVB's (Mercury Vapour Bulb)(heat+UVB) are great do a good job BUT they cannot be controlled, so the position is very important, you must be able to raise or lower them to get correct temps. Individual lamps should be, UVB the tube type of at least 10% UV, Reptisun are good and the uro should be able to get within 6" to 8" of it. The heatlamp a spot probably around 100w or even higher if needed. 4) Dont bother with dual substrate, simply because the uro WILL dig and send it all over, will soon get mixed up and be harder to clean, so go with sand for all the tank. That's answered your questions but I will now go into more detail of what you are aiming for. Basking spot 120F to 130F Warm end 95 to 100F, ambient temp Cool end around 85F, ambient temp. Night temps no lower than 65, 70F is better, if your ambient room temps drops below 65 then an additional night heater may be required, usually a CHE (ceramic heat emitter) controlled by a rheostat (dimmer). You need several low hides, low enough for mali to feel his back on it them when stood up inside. They feel more secure when squeezed into tight spaces. If you use loose rocks like slate to make them, it's essential they sit on floor of tank so it cant dig under them and make them unstable with risk of collapse and injury. This is most important, measuring temperatures, you should use the digital thermometers with a probe or the infrared temperature guns. The dial and stick-on type are very unreliable and not very accurate and should be avoided. Food A staple diet of endives, escarole, dandelion leaves with greens like turnip, mustard, bok choi as addition items occassionaly, a pot of finch seed may be left in all the time and he will eat as required. There are many other things he can have but only random. No insects No water bowl, they get all their water from the veggies. If I have gone over a lot of stuff that you already know, please forgive me, but reminders are always good. Think I have covered the main things, if not I'm sure MimC will come along and add to it. Sorry it's a long post, hope this helps you. Here's a picture of my viv, mine is an egyptian uro so needs slightly different setup but it may help with ideas. Spike's viv. EDIT just re-read your post and see that it's for kids, please be aware uro's dont like being handled, they get stressed out, they are more "to be looked at" type of lizard. If it is handled then do it inside the tank, far safer. Another thing, as it's been housed with beardies, as soon as you can get a poo sample and have it tested at vets, mainly for parasites and any nasties.
I know that they arent to be handled much and all that... and have told that to my wife. The tank is going to be in our room and I will basically use the feeding and care taking like a training tool for them to progress to a future pet of thier own... We both agreed that a mostly hands off reptile that isnt agressive is better than a boring old fish that you toss you flakes in the water for and it dies 8 months later I have owned other lizards and snakes before so I am not a newbie to the detail of care a habitat takes, but I will gladly take any pointers anyone has to give. Soon I should have a camera so I can take picture of the setup and of soon to be named pet. I also am wondering does anyone if a hardware store, pet store, or somewhere online carries wood replacements for the plastic lid and glass casings I am not fond of plastic period. Also... I have read that Uro's shouldn't be fed crickets at all and if so only about 5 or 6 once a month or so if you add them in, the pet store is also trying to talk me in to buying Uromastyx dust which I have read many mixed reviews about and also they are saying he loves Iguana pellet food which I will not give it. One of the causes I think of his scarring around the mouth, I dont know if it really is scarring or an irritation of some sort that could be fixed with a diet adjustment.
Hi, You have obviously been a good boy and done your homework Crickets are NO, but you may feed a few worms, either butterworms and phoenix as a treat. Alot of debate here as to whether you should or not give them, personally I think it's OK. You can use tortoise pellets as these are much closer to a uro's needs than iguana pellets, simply crush them up sprinkle on the veg. Apart from the nutritional value, they act same as seeds, gives some "roughage" into their diet. I cant help with the lids as I live in the UK, here they are usually metal with sliding glass panels, you could make your own from wood, as you are not keen on plastic. I'm not sure about the mouth, it could be several things, is it wet or like muscus or dry. It may damage from a fight with beardies, an infection or simply bad diet. The only safe way is a visit to vet for a check up, I would do this anyway as it's been in contact with a different species. There is always a risk of cross infection when species are mixed, I'm not saying that this is the case, just possible. Also a fecal test should be done as routine to eliminate parasites etc. I know he will be well looked after in his new home, well done, I like your thinking with regards to the children.
For the UVB bar light should I get it the full size of the tank or or is smaller suffice? I have a 4 foot long tank
By the time you get the end fittings on a 4ft tube it may be difficult to fit it in, I would therefore suggest a 3ft, mounted centrally and low enough for it to get within 6 to 8" of it.
Sorry for the delay! Welcome to the forums The above info is excellent and it looks like most of your questions have been answered. I would just say - Uros are definately messy little beasts so i wouldnt waste time trying to do a split substrate - as they will quickly re-arrange it for you! The mouth issue sounds odd - if you could post pics of him that would be hugely helpful! P.S - you probably already know this - but if he does turn out to be an egyptian (again, a pic would be helpful) those guys get BIG so you may want to start thinking about plans for a larger cage :lol:
Ive got a 150w Zoo Med Ceramic Heat Emitter, and 1 ReptiSun 10.0 Compact Fluorescent UVB Bulb... The UVB Bulb is currently just about center of the tank with a little more exception given to the right side of the tank where the basking spot is which sits at a rising angle going up towards the emitter... closest spot to the emitter is 4 inches away. The only question I have is should I get a second UVB light for a 4 foot tank or is the 1 good? I will put a link up for those that may not know what light bulb I am speaking of http://www.petguys.com/-097612340100.html.
I think 4" from the CHE may be a little close, just check with your digital thermometer at that point. I would be more inclined to place ramp so it can get within 8" of the UVB. I have never used that compact type before so I really cant comment on it, I use tubes in all my vivariums. It's really a case of trial and error, as to whether you need another lamp, I would leave setup as it is then observe the uro's preferences then adjust if needed. I may be stating the obvious here, but make sure it cant get close enough to touch the CHE, the surface temps of a 150w will exceed 1000F, yes it's not a typing error, I have tested a 60w and those temps exceed 800F.
Is there a reason why you are using a CHE instead of a basking bulb? Unless there is a specific reason i would use a regular household light bulb - bright white light is extremely important for uros...using just the UVB tube and a ceramic heat emitter would not give enough light to keep the Uro happy and functioning normally. I agree with Bruno, 4 inches is probably too close - what are the temps reading at that spot?
Could I use a Bright White Compact Flourescent? I dont even own an old fashioned bulb anymore... Anything I have is LED, Flourescent, or too much wattage and requires its own ballast and air mover =P The reason Im not using a basking lamp is for the evening effect... I have the rheostat and the whole 9, So far the temps at night have been 72-74... basking spot I haven't been able to get a perfect reading I think it might be a smidge over 130, and the warm side temps have varied from 97-101 and cool side 85-88. I actually just finished rearranging his setup around so I lowered the basking spot another 2 and a half inches Ill measure temps tomorrow being as I am shutting off the enviroment for the night.
If you could a compact fluroescent right next to the CHE so you are getting light and heat in the basking spot ten that would probably work. i have several bulbs on my Uros tank....his mega-ray MVB bulb for heat/light in the basking spot, and then 2 other compact fluroescents to brighten the overall cage. It works very well. Play around with it and see what works for you...but you definately want heat and light in the basking spot
