Tegu ?s

[black_sun]

　
Well I surely would not approach a Tegu in the wild and try to pet him

Why is it, I can see somewhere, some place, someone has probably tried walking up to a wild Tegu and tried to pet it. XD
　
　

As for space, a “Tegu Room” would be awesome. But I’m not feeling your idea as described above…
　
The first problem you will need to address is waste. My Tegu free roams a lot but before I let him wonder the house I have to “poop him”. If you did as you described he will foul the carpet quickly. If you use any form of outdoor carpeting or other floor covering the Tegu will try to (and will likely succeed) crawl under it.
　
Substrate is very important to a Tegu. My Tegu’s summer home is a 6’ x 12’ deck/balcony with linoleum covering the floor. He also has a 4’ x 2’ enclosure with the door open and this enclosure has 8” of substrate (cypress mulch) in it. He spends a lot of time in that enclosure buried in mulch. I also have a pile of 3~5 towels that he burrows under. So in my opinion, substrate is a must, but there are was to provide substrate to hide in without covering the entire floor with it.

Yea, it seemed good in theory since indoor/outdoor carpeting can be cleaned relatively easily. Relatively being a light word, but yea, I can see that quickly either becoming a mess or a giant Tegu blanket for a lizard crawling beneath it now that you mention it.

I was also pondering setting up some kind of enclosure in our garage... I figure the flooring there might be better... any waste, any substrate that may need to be removed, etc can be easily swept up, power-washed right out, etc. I used to build chicken coops when I was out in TX, I kind of have a similar idea in my head. Build out instead of up but keeping full swing door(s). Attaching it to concrete directly or building flooring in and making it mobile, I don't know about. ...it's either that or the future hubby is losing his wine room in the basement, lol. Because really, that room is ideal size to turn into an enclosure by itself, haha. Something, I'll figure out something in the months to come.
　
　

I’m really glad to see you are doing thorough research. A Tegu can be a disaster for someone who cannot provide it’s full needs… but can be a marvelous addition to a family if that family is truly prepared for the addition…

I really need to. A Tegu is going to be a huge leap from my current pets... it's clearly going to out class my Beardies, Cresties and Boa. But on the bright side, nothing I've been finding is really discouraging. It just seems like lots of fun projects: making enclosures, tegu proofing areas of the house, converting the dog run, etc. A lot of work, but fun work.

 

[black_sun]

Not to put off what nc_nutcase has said but tegus are not always going to be that sweet loving animal all the time. They do have their off days. I don't know if it applies to males but I know females will go throguh a moody phase where they don't really want to be bothered and it can range from just small motions to small lunges or even hissing. I know my tegu has done this and will sometimes get a little moody and I must simply let her be. It is usually something that passes though but I did handle her and do handle her since day one and she still went through this nearing the end of last year. I reall think the video below exemplifies this behavior well although it isn't usually that extreme.


[YT]08WKZQTUZ-g[/YT]

0_0;; ...well, everything is going to have an off day, I suppose. One of the breeders I was talking to recommended picking up welder's gloves or falconer's gloves for handling an animal that was displaying aggression. Clearly, that'll be a wise investment just in case of the off days.

 

[rrcoolj]

I honestly don't think you will have too much of a problem. just know that they are not dogs and can sometimes have off days. My tegu has NEVER lunged at me or tried to bite me intentionally. The most she does is just walk away when she doesn't want to be bothered. I don't want to turn you away from keeping them it's just something I would watch out for.

 

[black_sun]

Alrighty, I've been picking up magazine articles, books and chatting with a few breeders. From what I have posted below, am I on the right track (I also have this cross posted to a few other forums, so my apologies if you're reading doubles)?:

Feeding (hatchling to yearling):

Crickets w/vitamins
Ground Turkey
Beef Liver
Fresh Fish
Eggs (cooked/scrambled only)
Fruits (bananas, strawberries, grapes, melons, etc)
Pinky mice - I've seen this one recommended and listed in a lot of places but don't know anyone that actually feeds mice (at any stage/size/age) to their tegus. Is there a reason?

Suggested that fruits, vegetables and/or cod liver oil be mixed into the meats.


Feeding (Sub-Adult to Adult):

Same as above, but in increased sizes/amounts (i.e. moving from crickets to superworms to roaches // moving from pinky mice to fuzzy mice to small rats)



Housing:

When I get my tegu I will be housing it indoors, as the outdoor enclosure will not be suitable for it yet. I plan on using my 20-70gal tanks (upgrading as needed) as the original housing until the tegu is larger. In these enclosures I want to use a mixture of Cyprus Mulch and Eco-Earth as substrate, I'm not sure how deep to make it (I'm thinking a few inches at least, for digging and what not). As for actual set-up and decor, outside the necessary heating and lighting, that's still up in the air as to what I want to do with it.

But after I've had the tegu grow out a bit, I plan to move it to the outdoor enclosure. This is going to be within an existing dog run attached to the side of the house. Right now, I'm basically running through existing set-up plans, "catio" designs and outdoor coop designs. Roughly, I'm thinking about something that's going to be 6'x8', maybe something similar to the housing example on the Varnyard site.

Indoors during the late fall thru early spring, I'm still working on housing ideas. So that's it's own issue right now, oi.

The breeder I want to buy from won't have any tegus available until late June or early July, so I'm contemplating on putting a deposit down. I plan on getting the outdoor enclosure started in April (though, as I look at the lovely 4" of random snow outdoors, I may wait a tad longer) and having it finished by early June at the latest. I don't plan on using it until the following year though, so most of my issue will be whether I can get the indoor adult enclosure set-up. If I don't have any feasible ideas or set-ups in the works by mid-May, I'm not going to get the tegu until the following year. No big deal, I figure it's just more preparation time.

So, does everything seem like I'm proceeding on the right track? Am I overlooking anything important?

Oh, I went to my friend's store the other day... he has his tegu in an enclosure with a ton of climbing limbs and ledges. And it climbs EVERYWHERE! Everything I've been reading says they're mostly terrestrial, but his female spends more time up in the limbs than on the ground or in her burrow. Should I be building up in my enclosures as well?

 

[Toby_H]

Feeding:

It sounds like you are reading reliable sources...

There are two main "cons" to feeding mice/rats. First is fat content. They are slightly higher than many other food sources, but not horribly high. I feel this detail about mice/rats is commonly exagerated. Second is fur. My Adult Tegu can easily eat 12 adult mice a day, every day (if I offered him such). That much fur would likely cause impaction pretty quick. But eating a mouse or even a few mice (for larger Tegus) isn't a problem at all.

Personally, I feed quite a bit of mice. But I found a source of hairless frozen mice.


Housing:

The outdoor enclosure sounds awesome...

I've heard it's best to use solid walled enclosures. If the Tegu can see through a fence he will want to go to the other side. Solid walled enclosures prevent him from seeing 'the other side' so the curiosity is kept in check.

That said, my Tegu spends days out on the deck/balcony. He can see thorugh the rails and doesn't try to escape at all. Although the 15' drop may be what's discouraging him.....

My hatchling went straight into a 4' x 2' enclosure and did great. I see no reason to keep one in anything smaller. it would outgrow a 20 gal in about 20 minutes... I think the constant moving into new homes would be rough on him.

They simply explode in growth their second summer (9~15 months old). So at the begining of that summer it will be too small for the outdoor enclsoure, but over the course of that summer it will grow into the outdoor enclosure.

I have an 8' x 3' indoor winter enclosure and honestly I feel it's too small. It's not small enough to stress him out and result in aggression. Yet it isn't nearly big enough to allow him to explore the way he wants to. When free roaming he really makes use of a large area.

Having raised mine for a couple years... I think 6' x 10' would be the ideal size for a single Adult Tegu. I don't expect many of us to actually provide that large of a space but I do think it's fair to acknowledge what "ideal" is. Utilizing full or even part time outdoor enclosures is a great way to supplement. Free Roaming helps, but I do not think we should use and undersized enclosure and rely on free roaming to compensate. It's too easy for life to get busy and interfere with such plans....

 

[Toby_H]

But again... it looks to me like you are very well onthe right track with the informaiton and game plan you have in place......

 

[black_sun]

Alright, so I think I'll just set up the largest tank and skip the other upgrades.

Thanks for the bit about the fur, I hadn't read that anywhere. Though, most people had either written or advised using small amounts only once every week or so. They just didn't say why.

So, it's back to working on the indoor enclosure. Oh, and it should be noted, I've been "playing" with a few tegus at a variety of the local reptile and animals shops around my house... with the exception of the one gentleman who runs a wildlife facility, everyone has spent a great deal of time trying to convince me that my 70gal is a suitable permanent home. There was a gooooooorgeous red tegu who's permanent home meant his tail had to curl back up around him at all times. I wanted to bring him home so badly, he looked incredibly happy when I asked them to take him out so I could see him. Kinda had the "**** yea, I'm out" look as he started walking around. But yea, they all have been looking at me like I'm crazy when I've asked if they had any suggestions for indoor enclosures (size, materials, etc).

I found this: http://www.reptileenclosure.org/bearded-dragons/indoor-tegu-enclosure-walkthrough/comment-page-1/ - I kind of like this idea. Maybe I'll do something similar for the indoor enclosure.

 

[A. gigas]

before I let him wonder the house I have to “poop him”. If you did as you described he will foul the carpet quickly.

Just checking, this would be done by placing him in warm water?

Not to put off what nc_nutcase has said but tegus are not always going to be that sweet loving animal all the time. They do have their off days. I don't know if it applies to males but I know females will go throguh a moody phase where they don't really want to be bothered and it can range from just small motions to small lunges or even hissing. I know my tegu has done this and will sometimes get a little moody and I must simply let her be. It is usually something that passes though but I did handle her and do handle her since day one and she still went through this nearing the end of last year. I reall think the video below exemplifies this behavior well although it isn't usually that extreme.


[YT]08WKZQTUZ-g[/YT]

I guess it's just that time of the month.

 

[Toby_H]

before I let him wonder the house I have to “poop him”. If you did as you described he will foul the carpet quickly.

Just checking, this would be done by placing him in warm water?

yes...

 

[A. gigas]

yes...

Thought so, was checking if there was some other method.. I saw someone "poop" their 16 foot burm which had eaten a fair sized pig using this method......