# How soon can you put a tegu in his large enclosure?



## DangerousDann (Sep 27, 2015)

I have a 4 and a half month old Chacoan White Head who is about 15inches long. He currently is in a 40gal critter tank, but before I got him, I constructed a 8'7"x4'x'4 enclosure, which is almost complete (just need to mount the lights tomorrow). He seems less happy with his tank, and it's harder to get him out due to the slide top. His large enclosure has a front open door that doubles as a ramp. How soon can I move him to the big enclosure? I'd like to move him tomorrow so he has more room, but don't want to stress him out. opinions?


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## Jacobhreptiles (Oct 2, 2015)

do it. a grow up cage isn't necessary and they love exploring and commanding a big space. just make sure you stay present or he will forget you exist but i found mine much happier in their "adult" cage as a young one


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## Walter1 (Oct 2, 2015)

Keep familiar objects and routine. Should be fine. A day or three of weird is to be expected. They do not initially like change. Hence, importance of familiar and routine. Good luck.


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## DangerousDann (Oct 2, 2015)

Ok, so I moved him on Wednesday, and I sat with him as he explored. He didn't have a hide box in his 40gal, but he had made a den under his water dish, so I moved the entire den into his new enclosure, he came out of hiding on Thursday night, but hasn't come out at all today, not even to eat, and he's not in his hide


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## Jacobhreptiles (Oct 2, 2015)

he is acclimating. be patient


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## DangerousDann (Oct 3, 2015)

Just freaking out cause it's been more than 24 hours since he's eaten and I want to make sure he's okay. How long should I give him before I need to worry?


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## Walter1 (Oct 3, 2015)

Don't worry at all. No healthy tegu will starve itself. He'll come around.


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## DangerousDann (Oct 5, 2015)

Dozer finally started coming out again


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## Walter1 (Oct 6, 2015)

Fantastic.


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## TehGoo (Oct 13, 2015)

Pretty sweet setup !


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## DangerousDann (Oct 13, 2015)

TehGoo said:


> Pretty sweet setup !


Thank you


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## TehGoo (Oct 13, 2015)

Guess we are going to have to give you an A+ on that enclosure Dann !


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## Walter1 (Oct 13, 2015)

Oh, yeah.


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## DangerousDann (Oct 13, 2015)

TehGoo said:


> Guess we are going to have to give you an A+ on that enclosure Dann !


Thank you. It was a fairly inexpensive build (not counting lighting). The actual structure took a few hours to build. Sanding and staining took a day. Waterproofing and interior painting took a day. All built before I ordered my tegu Dozer.




I've never built anything before, and this was my first attempt. The room he's in, I'm working on now so he has different spots he can use all day (when he gets older)


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## Justin (Oct 14, 2015)

After reading this thread I decided to remove the 2'x4' partition in my enclosure so far he seems to like it.


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## DangerousDann (Oct 14, 2015)

Justin said:


> After reading this thread I decided to remove the 2'x4' partition in my enclosure so far he seems to like it.


Looks good. I had 7" of substrate in it when I put Dozer in, and couldn't find him for 2 days, so less substrate seems like a good idea


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## DangerousDann (Oct 14, 2015)

I now have all of Dozers lights on timers, so his day lights come on before I get up. Hopefully this will get him up and moving sooner in the day


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## Justin (Oct 14, 2015)

[QUOTI ="DangerousDann, post: 153990, member: 7324"]I now have all of Dozers lights on timers, so his day lights come on before I get up. Hopefully this will get him up and moving sooner in the day[/QUOTE]
I saw that thread lol! Well I added a bag of organic top soil and he seems to be loving it and the room. I also expanded my Mistking system with a dual nozzle head. The substrate depth is about 2in for 3/4 of the enclosure and about 4 in in the remaining area.






Here he is taking a break from digging.


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## Walter1 (Oct 14, 2015)

Living up to his name.


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## DangerousDann (Oct 14, 2015)

Justin said:


> [QUOTI ="DangerousDann, post: 153990, member: 7324"]I now have all of Dozers lights on timers, so his day lights come on before I get up. Hopefully this will get him up and moving sooner in the day


I saw that thread lol! Well I added a bag of organic top soil and he seems to be loving it and the room. I also expanded my Mistking system with a dual nozzle head. The substrate depth is about 2in for 3/4 of the enclosure and about 4 in in the remaining area.






Here he is taking a break from digging.[/QUOTE]
Looks great! How tall is your enclosure? It looks pretty tall from the pics. I'm at 3' but I built it so I could add another 2' if needed. I have a Exo Terra Monsoon 400 (revised version) with 2 nozzles. I still need to add another UV light.


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## DangerousDann (Oct 14, 2015)




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## Justin (Oct 14, 2015)

My enclosure is 3' tall on the inside.


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## DangerousDann (Oct 14, 2015)

How is your heat/lighting setup? I'm still unsure about night time temps and what it's supposed to be


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## Justin (Oct 14, 2015)

I use a 100 watt uvb and a 36" flourecent. Because I keep the house at 78 i don't use any heating at night. I believe as long as it doesn't drop below 70 your fine.


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## DangerousDann (Oct 17, 2015)

Update: after putting Dozers lights on timers (Day 6am till 7pm and night 6:30pm till 6:30am), Dozer now comes out at 6pm and stays out past midnight. I was trying to get him up earlier so we could bond before work, since he was only up while I was gone. We have missed out on a lot of bonding time. Since I added the timers, he's still up when I get home, but I'm worried about him eating late and only basking under his 100watt night light. We have been able to spend time together since he's up so late. Am I worried for nothing?


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## Walter1 (Oct 18, 2015)

Dan- do you mean that Dozer is out in the dark?


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## DangerousDann (Oct 18, 2015)

Yes. When he was in his 40gal he would come out of his hide early in the day, now he doesn't come out of his hide till after 6pm, and I'm not home while he's out.


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## Justin (Oct 18, 2015)

I wouldn't use anything that emits light at night. If you need a night time heat source get a ceramic heat emitter.


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## Walter1 (Oct 18, 2015)

Yes. Night must be dark. No light. Tegus generally come out mid-morning for a while then a bit late in afternoon. On cool sunny days they're out longer during the days once. Night time is then dark for sleep, and your tegu will adjust.


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## DangerousDann (Oct 18, 2015)

Justin said:


> I wouldn't use anything that emits light at night. If you need a night time heat source get a ceramic heat emitter.


Thank you Justin and Walter, I unplugged his night time light. I had no idea it was messing with him so much. I live in Ohio and it's gotten below 40 at night, his room is now at 73 degrees and so is his enclosure. Hopefully this will make him happier. Thanks again. 

Dozer is my first Tegu, we have bearded dragons, which are all doing great, but I'm still learning with Dozer


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