Who’s Hiding in the Bathroom?
I ran the Charm City Reptile and Amphibian Rescue for 14 years (no longer in operation). Here is a story about a Nile monitor.
When I ran the rescue, I often didn’t have enough room for all of the animals in the house. In those cases, I had something I called overflow areas. Part of my office and some places in the dining room were used when I was in a pinch. Of course, there are always stray cages, aquariums, stands, lights, heat mats, etc. available. They are tucked away in just about every nook and cranny in the house.
On this day, I had a wire dog cage set up in my office. It was a bit larger than the size of a ferret cage. I believe they are usually 4′ x 3′ x 2′. The wire on this dog cage was much thicker and the bars were further apart. I had the cage all shored up by using cable ties. Cable ties are a fantastic way to secure a wobbly metal cage and make it feel much more sturdy. Since they are cheap, it is easy to cut them off when it’s time put the cage away. The next time, I can use another set. Those cages are handy because they fold up fairly flat and don’t take a lot of space when not in use.
A large Nile monitor was living in the cage at the time. I put the cage in the den. My cousin Gail came over and we went to the state fair, which is held at the same place where the reptile show used to be. Gail tolerates the reptiles, but is not a huge fan. She doesn’t know how to deal with them and doesn’t really want to know. That’s fine. To each his own.
After enjoying ourselves at the fair, we came back to my house. We walked into the den. Gail said, “Look what the dog did to the blinds.”
A chill ran down my spine. I looked at the blinds. “The dog didn’t do that. The Nile monitor must be loose!”
And with that, Gail dashed into the powder room and slammed the door shut. Hoping the monitor wasn’t hiding behind the toilet, I looked around.
“I’ll be in here until you find him!” she shouted.
He wasn’t behind the couch where the blinds had been broken. I did a quick 360 of the room. Nothing seemed out of place other than the blinds. A four-foot lizard generally leaves a path of destruction. I put the dog outside. He seemed fine. I guessed the monitor didn’t mess with him at all. My dog probably slept upstairs and missed all of the fun. He would have run from the lizard anyway.
Back to my scan of the room… Since nothing was out of place, I started looking behind things. After the couch, I checked the chair. And there he was, squished up against the corner of the room. His now dusty head, with eyes glaring at me, turned in my direction.
“Gimme a break,” I said as I scooped him up, wiped off the dust and stuck him back in the now-useless cage. Monitor lizards are a lot smarter than people give them credit. They are problem solvers. If he got out of that cage once, he’d do it again and a lot faster. I found a sturdier cage for him.
Gail reluctantly decided to emerge from the bathroom. We had a good laugh. It was especially funny watching how fast she could get in the bathroom and slam the door!
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Read more by Holli Friedland.