# Rosemary extract bad for tegus?



## Stormi (Jan 20, 2016)

Hello, I was about to buy a roll of ground turkey for my tegu and noticed it said it had some rosemary extract in it. Is it harmful to them? Or is it ok because it's a natural herb?
Thanks!


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## MutantKreeper (Jan 20, 2016)

I would be safe and avoid it


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## Jrock23 (Jan 21, 2016)

A lot of websites is outdated, but ground turkey isn't good for tegus.. They are more of fruit eaters, but if you looking to mix it up a bit. I highly recommend getting beef heart and beef liver... NO GROUND TURKEY!


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## Walter1 (Jan 21, 2016)

Wait a minute. Organ meat is healthy but in moderation as it is not a complete meal. Also, remember that liver is a toxic waste dump for the animal. So, be careful of the source. 

Nothing wrong in some ground turkey. Best staple is whole prey/mice, especially as they are growing, followed by more fruits as they are adults. Always provide calcium dusting of food.


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## Stormi (Jan 21, 2016)

Lol idk what your feeding your tegu but they don't NEED fruit, they NEED meat. Almost all tegu owners feed their tegu ground turkey, for some it's a staple diet. I feed my tegu turkey about 3-4 times a week and organ meats or rodent the rest of the week. I don't really offer fruit that much either.


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## Walter1 (Jan 21, 2016)

Stormy- do you mean me? Mine are adults. They get perhaps 10% fruit, which they like. Otherwise, meat, including good quality wet dog food.


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## Stormi (Jan 21, 2016)

No I was talking room Jrock23. Nothings wrong with a little fruit but he was saying to feed mostly fruit with meat in between lol


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## Jrock23 (Jan 21, 2016)

Whats wrong with feeding fruit lol... I do a schedule of superworms , meat, fruit, and beef and crayfish and snails.. lol
But i don't do ground turkey


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## Jrock23 (Jan 21, 2016)

My gold love grapes lol


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## Stormi (Jan 21, 2016)

Nothings wrong with a little fruit but it shouldn't be more than maybe 10-20% of their diet haha


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## Walter1 (Jan 21, 2016)

Jrock- I'd like to know more about the ecology of goldens. My experience is with argies, which will eat anything, favoring animal protein. Definitely needing it as primary during their rapid growth phase.


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## Jrock23 (Jan 21, 2016)

I guess I was misunderstood, lol.. I wasn't saying only feed fruit. But i do put calcium on crickets, dubia roaches and on worms like silk, max, or mealworms... However i have a young gold.. So I try to provide a mixture of everything.. Beef heart is a good source of meat for them. I don't feed canned food to my monitors or tegu... Canned food as well as dog food contains tripolyphophate


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## Jrock23 (Jan 21, 2016)

I do maybe 15% of fruit feeding


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## Walter1 (Jan 21, 2016)

No sweat. 

As you work with this species, add as you can sources from wild populations. Will be very helpful for all.


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## Jrock23 (Jan 21, 2016)

Thanks, I will do I'm always willing to help with knowledge, I just hope people have an open mind.. I'm always up for ideas or talking about anything... I also love taking in extra knowledge... We are all here to help each other thru experience and knowledge..


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## Roadkill (Jan 22, 2016)

"Nothings wrong with a little fruit but it shouldn't be more than maybe 10-20% of their diet haha"
Not sure where you're getting your information from, but I say that studies of the gut contents of tegus in the wild greatly disagree with your claim. In _Salvator _spp., most analyses show about around a fairly consistent 50% of the diet being plant matter, mostly fruit. In _Tupinambis_ spp., while not many have been thoroughly investigated, those that have tend to be in the 10-20% range of the diet being vegetative matter. Now, I'll be the first to say these studies are not conclusive, they don't necessarily state what a hobbyist SHOULD be trying to achieve, as it is my personal view that a large reason why there is so much vegetation in their natural diets is that this is what is readily available (ie. it's there, it's easier to eat than trying to hunt down prey). However, I'll also point out that there is NO concrete data whatsoever that points out they shouldn't get X amount. None at all.


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