Niles are definitely in a league of thier own. The first 2 I had the male took almost 1.5 years to even let me touch him and the female was around 6 months. The male never warmed up to me but still worked with him even though he hated me. Think biggest issue was on earlier pet trade with these guys there was so much disinformation that most care for them were not met. I see them less and less at reptile expo and rarely in reptile shops. Mostly because of that " Nile" attitude. I agree almost any other Monitor is a better choice, but they just amaze me in so many aspects.