tips on keeping mali's

[jvillereptile]

i'm planning on getting a mali uro and i was hoping i can get some tips from people who had success with them. every one i know who had them has had bad luck with them and i don't want to be one of them. thanks

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[ann0306]

I've had great luck with mine. What exactly are you wanting to know?

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[jvillereptile]

temp of cage, substrate in cage, handling and feeding. i want to get info from people with them because i can't find good care sheets on them

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[tmfleo1]

Well Uros are great I had a trio of Rainbow benti Uros several years ago and uro sat ( baby sat ) a friends Mali for awhile about 2 yrs while out of country .

http://www.anapsid.org/uromastyx.html heres a link to care sheet I'm also working one care sheet for them also .

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[wreckwriter]

I've had 3 malis and an Egyptian so far. The best care guide for uros is found here: http://www.deerfernfarms.com/Uromastyx_Care.htm

I strongly suggest joining the 2 yahoo groups which are devoted to uros BEFORE you get one. They're wonderful lizards but require a few specialized things most reptiles don't.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Uromastyxlist/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/urozone2/

Off the top of my head, very general, they require relatively high heat (100 with 120 basking spot), UVB lighting, low humidity (never more than 50%), primarily vegeterian diet. Substrate is the great debate, some like play sand, some like bird seed, some like shelf liner. Join the lists and read up

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[gromph_baenre]

Deerfernfarms is an excellent starting point for background information on uromastyx. From my own experience, there are a few key points to establish in your husbandry, that will ensure your headaches are minimal.
The bare minimum size of enclosure to start out with is a 36x18x18. The reason I feel that this is the bare minimum is because this size of enclosure aids in establishing a proper temperature gradient. Your uro should utilize the entire enclosure, not just the basking spot.
Purchase a temp gun and a digital thermometer. These two items are invaluable in establishing the temperature gradient within your enclosure. Don't be fooled into believing that that analog thermometer you purchased at Petsmart, and placed upon the basking spot is going to give an accurate reading. It won't. That's the whole purpose of the temp gun, as it provides a means to measure the surface temperature. A digital thermometer is utilized to measure the ambient air temperature within your enclosure. The basking spot in my enclosures measure between 125 to 132 degrees F. This is measured with the temp gun. The ambient air temperature on the hot side measures between 98 and 103 degrees, measured with the digital thermometer(with probe). The cool side measures between 80 and 85 degrees.
Halogen lights. For my basking bulb, I utilize 100 watt halogen flood bulbs housed in a dome housing with a ceramic socket. The reptile basking lights are all nicely packaged, but when one has to fork out 8 to 10 dollars a bulb, the cost effectiveness of getting two halogens for the same price becomes rather obvious. Plus, it is my experience, that the halogen last two to three times longer.
Chose your substrate. There is a ton of debates about what is the best substrate. This is just one subject you have to study and weigh the benefits vs possible detriments. Personally, I used washed playsand and have not had any problems. However, if the temperatures within the enclosure are not pristine, I can see where sand would be a problem.
There are a ton of other factors to successful uromastyx husbandry, including diet, light cycling, and of course wild caught versus captive bred. However, I would encourage you to setup your enclosure, get the temperatures correct and then look at purchasing your uromastyx. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure when it comes to successfully keeping these "sun worshippers".

[jvillereptile]

i decided that i'll wait to get my mali for a little while not because i don't want one but the snake i have been searching for just pop up on are wholesaler price list so for now i will have to wait till spring. but i still appreciate all the info i can get

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