interested in buying a tegu.....

guylo88 · Member Joined: May 11, 2008 Posts: 12

hello i joined this forum before i even buy a tegu because i wanted to learn about the animal before i bought one. I find them very interesting however i am conflicted between tegus and ackie monitors. booth seem like good animals, but a tegu seems better suited for temperates climates, like the ones in the U.S. so if anyone can give me any advice about tegus and purchasing them that would be great. I also like their reputation for being intelligent and bonding with their owners. i watched a video on youtube that linked to this site where a guy had a bunch a tegus, and he couldnt get them off him. thats the kinda lizard i want. one that cant get enough of me!! I came across a dealer at a farm swap meet who had a buch of baby black and white tegus, and red tegus. Should i avoid these dealers? whats the best way to buy tegu? Those tegus seemed pretty healthy and active, altho they had a light, unlike the nile monitor babies he had on the table. also the price was $35 each, is that a sign of the quality and investment into the tegus? ive seen tegus at higher prices, are tegus imported from south america, like monitors? any help would be good thanks. want to make a wise and informed purchase. also my preference for a tegu would probably be the argentine b&w I like them the best from what i have seen so far. really excited about these guys they seem like great lizards!!

bubbasherps · Respected Member Joined: Dec 16, 2005 Posts: 476

welcome the guy in the video is rick the owner of this forum great video do tegus need human attention

rick also is a tegu breeder argentine B&W and blue tegus he gets them very social and tame

Link to his site
http://www.siscoreptiles.com/
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TEGUS TEGUS AND MORE TEGUS

angelrose · Posted: Mon May 12, 2008 10:30 pm Post subject:

Hi guylo88 and Welcome. I hope you enjoy the link.
_________________
0.1.0 B/W Colombian tegu
1.1.0 Gold Colombian tegus
1.1.0 B/W Argentine tegus
1.0.0 Savy monitor
1.0.0 Brazillian Rainbow boa
1.1.0 Ball pythons
1.0.0 Burmese python

txrepgirl · Posted: Mon May 12, 2008 10:35 pm Post subject:

Hi guylo88.Welcome to the Tegu forum family.It is nice to see that you are doing your research before you buy a Tegu.I wish more people would do that.They are GREAT animals just be careful what you wish for

.I wanted to have a very tame Tegu,too,that wants to be handled.Now I have two and they can't get enough of my attention.You do have to have a lot of time to tame them.If you get one I recommend getting a hatchling.They are a lot easier to tame.I also recommend getting one from a breeder ( like Rick, he is the admin from this forum ).At least that way you know where your Tegu came from and you will know the Birthday.They do need a very big enclosure when they are not even a year old.They grow very fast.If you take your time to tame them they can get so attached to you that you even can take naps with them.I'm not kidding I do it with both of mine

.If you want to you can click on the gallery button at the end of my post and see some pictures of them.I'll be posting new ones soon.Here are some infos that you might want to check out.Hope it helps.Let us know if you want to know any thing else.First I'll give you Ricks info so you can get in touch with him to see if he has any hatchlings or if he knows a nother breeder that does.

http://thetegu.com/contact-admin.html

http://lllreptile.com/info/library/animal-care-sheets/lizards-and-monitors/-/argentine-black-and-white-tegu/

http://www.cityreptiles.com/web_pages/care_sheets/lizard_care_sheets/tegu_care_sheet.htm

guylo88 · Member Joined: May 11, 2008 Posts: 12

hey everyone thankyou for your responses. I guess now all i gotta do now is get a tegu. then more questions will come. whats a good starting substrate for a baby tegu. i was just gonna got to the petsore and by cedar chips before i get him. is repti carpet good? altho i think thats a bad idea cuz then they cant burrow. guess i gotta get the wood chips then. I have a 30 gallon tank that i used with my collareds lizards ( boy ran away

) . she is now in a 40 gallon so i have a spare tank to temp. keep him in that. what should i buy before i get a tegu?

angelrose · Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 6:08 pm Post subject:

hi guylo88, no cedar chips. a 30 gallon tank is too small (they grow very fast). and if it has a screen top it will be difficult to hold humidity.

substrate
use cypress mulch or eucalyptus bark (to help aid in holding the humidity) and you want to make it deep enough to cover their whole body. they do like to dig and burrow.

bulbs
UVA, UVB (important), infrared red or ceramic heat bulbs. I use the EXO TERRA Solar Glo Sun Simulating Lamp with optimal levels of UVB, UVA, visual light and heat in one bulb, self-ballasted mercury vapour bulb and the ceramic heat at night.

hide box
tegus spend much of their lives inside of their burrow and rely on it to be humid (good shedding). make sure their is substrate in the hide box that will hold moisture. you can use clay bases to large flower pots, concrete blocks just arrange them to make a burrow. make sure it is stable. or even a large cat litter box and put something on top so it doesn't move or won't fall on the tegu.

here is a big grocery list of what they can eat. you can mix it up and / or alternate (of course go by the size of the tegu i.e. a hatchling ...crickets, worms, pinkie mice)

http://www.tegu.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1353

I hope this helps you with getting started. if you have any doubts or questions ...just ask

_________________
0.1.0 B/W Colombian tegu
1.1.0 Gold Colombian tegus
1.1.0 B/W Argentine tegus
1.0.0 Savy monitor
1.0.0 Brazillian Rainbow boa
1.1.0 Ball pythons
1.0.0 Burmese python

guylo88 · Member Joined: May 11, 2008 Posts: 12

ok... well i dont have anything else to keep one in so it will be temperary obviously. younger the better... but thank you anyways. and i didnt mean cedar chips i just meant the stuff they sell at the pet stores... unless the pet store sell cedar chips? that horrible. I hate that pet sotres do that. they push a substrate that is bad for a reptile. When i first got my collared they pushed the calci-sand but quickily i learned that this stuff is bad for the reptiles but they still stock it regularly. really weird. i hope they dont sell cedar chips. thanks. whats agood size tank before i have to start customizing? how do you do a customized tank. what size. what materials. how big. hwo do you keep the humidity? i was thinking cork but uo for suggestions?

angelrose · Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 10:40 pm Post subject:

I found this in the housing section. it's an excellent tutorial. (but of course prices have gone up).

http://thetegu.com/post3023.html
_________________
0.1.0 B/W Colombian tegu
1.1.0 Gold Colombian tegus
1.1.0 B/W Argentine tegus
1.0.0 Savy monitor
1.0.0 Brazillian Rainbow boa
1.1.0 Ball pythons
1.0.0 Burmese python

guylo88 · Member Joined: May 11, 2008 Posts: 12

uhh url is bad!! its not taking me anywhere

angelrose · Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 10:47 pm Post subject:

my mistake, here you go

http://thetegu.com/postt3023.html
_________________
0.1.0 B/W Colombian tegu
1.1.0 Gold Colombian tegus
1.1.0 B/W Argentine tegus
1.0.0 Savy monitor
1.0.0 Brazillian Rainbow boa
1.1.0 Ball pythons
1.0.0 Burmese python

angelrose · Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 10:57 pm Post subject:

if your getting a hatchling and you said you have a 30 gallon take a look at this post.

http://thetegu.com/postt4648.html
_________________
0.1.0 B/W Colombian tegu
1.1.0 Gold Colombian tegus
1.1.0 B/W Argentine tegus
1.0.0 Savy monitor
1.0.0 Brazillian Rainbow boa
1.1.0 Ball pythons
1.0.0 Burmese python

guylo88 · Member Joined: May 11, 2008 Posts: 12

very good!! i guess thats my set up... for now!! i bet i need to make a permanent enclosure for one as soon as i get it because as you said they grow fast!! thanks for your help!! i really thank you for being so helpful you're actually going out of your way to help me!! thanks alot!!

angelrose · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 8:44 am Post subject:

your so very welcome. anytime. it's all about the tegu

_________________
0.1.0 B/W Colombian tegu
1.1.0 Gold Colombian tegus
1.1.0 B/W Argentine tegus
1.0.0 Savy monitor
1.0.0 Brazillian Rainbow boa
1.1.0 Ball pythons
1.0.0 Burmese python

txrepgirl · Posted: Wed May 14, 2008 9:52 am Post subject:

Good job angelrose ( Maria )

.I'm just worried with the rocks being stacked up like that in the small enclosure.Since they grow so fast I would be worried that he would be able to push the rocks and get hurt.I have seen mine do that with his water bowl.But at least with that the water will spill and the bowl isn't so heavy on him.

guylo88 · Member Joined: May 11, 2008 Posts: 12

wouldnt one of those rediculously expensive wooden huts be better for a hide because they hold moisture better?I guess the 20 dollars is worth it.