# So are Red Tegus really shy??



## d1333 (Dec 23, 2009)

I bought a Red Tegu ( as a stub tail ) a little over a month ago and i guess hes about 5-6 months old, and he just shed of his last bit of green  (cb - so either captive bred or born i dont really know), and within this month i have never actually tried to hold him or anything, just giving him food in his cage and letting him get used to his surroundings... but i noticed he is EXTREMELY skittish, just recently he stopping running away from basking when i enter my room ( the cage is in my room and im always in there and he usually watches me play videogames) but whenever i place my hand in the cage (like changing water, misting, or putting in food) he starts spazzing out and kinda dashes away even tho i am at least a few feet away from him.

I've been reading online and saw that a lot of people prefer to feed their tegus in a separate bin...he is pretty big, so today i tried to pick him up.... big mistake on my part.... now i dont reach from above or quick movements, i actually lay my hand on the dirt and tried to slide under him.. as i did that he tried to run so fast his fat tail slapped me and he looked like a blur to me.. so i tried again even slower and he ended up almost jumping out the cage and i got startled AND he ended up crapping on me...

So after the crap i gave up and yea... now my real question is Are these tegus really that shy? Should they be fed in seperate Container? and how should i approach this tegu with handling?

I will post pics of him and the cage tommorow, as he only comes out of his burrow for a few hours a day for food


----------



## Infidel_03 (Dec 23, 2009)

My Red was real shy too...Always ran or jumped out of my hands but shes really chill now. It really only took a month or two for her/him to settle down once I tried the "Taming The Beast" method of ignoring it. I would tegu proof a bed room and lock us both in and play COD or read, and eventually she realized I wasn't a threat. Nowadays I can take her out no problem, move any way I want without her running from me. You should definately feed her out of the cage so she doesn't get aggressive about her house. They can eat their substrate too and get plugged up. Just grab her, set her on your lap (it won't be there long)and play your game, sooner or later she'll come around. Good Luck


----------



## d1333 (Jan 27, 2010)

starting this back up again lol....

so one month later there has been little to no progress with this guy... everyday i set my hand in the cage for 20 minutes and i threw an old shirt in the cage but i still can't even touch him without him going wide-eyed and literally FLIPPING OUT... i dont approach from above and go VERY slowly if i can even get within a few inches.. but he is VERY scared, its been over two months since i got him, hes 5 months old, big and healthy stub tail is still growing back... but whats wrong?? is it because his tail is not regrown and he thinks im going to eat him??? any other methods i should try? and I can't hold him by the way let alone touch him... im kind of frustrated right now :bang 

my cage has front sliding doors so he shouldnt be scared of me being "above him" either...


----------



## Jefroka (Jan 27, 2010)

You need to take him out of the enclosure and feed him. You will need to be dilligent & disciplined. If you are afraid of getting bitten, wear gloves but the longer you wait to tame him the more stubborn he will become.

Make up your mind to just do it. Don't give up. It may take some time for him to settle down and not see you as a threat, but the more you handle him, the tamer he should become.

I came very close to purchasing this red male: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/4PjL3GJwEZvKPkfmXJnDxQ?authkey=Gv1sRgCLbAtM_PkITD8QE&feat=directlink" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/4P ... directlink</a><!-- m -->

He was somewhat cage aggressive (because he was fed in his enclosure) & I would have to manhandle him a little bit, but he would calm down after a bit.

I opted instead for a Chacoan hatchling from Bobby, but I'm sure that red would have made an excellent pet with a little work.

Good luck & please don't give up, work at it & you will be rewarded.


...Jefroka


----------



## d1333 (Jan 27, 2010)

oh ok thanks, so I should be handling him correct?

I was just unsure on if he would get worse or not with the handling, or just get used to it?

but i will try tommorow :-D , he is sleeping now


----------



## Jefroka (Jan 27, 2010)

d1333 said:


> oh ok thanks, so I should be handling him correct?
> 
> I was just unsure on if he would get worse or not with the handling, or just get used to it?
> 
> but i will try tommorow :-D , he is sleeping now



When you pick up your gu and move him to a seperate feeding enclosure and afterwards move him back into his home, you are handling him on two different occassions. Do this every day that's 14 times in a week. 

At some point he should get the message that you are not a threat.

For now, if I were you, I would work on simply taking him out to feed, perhaps some roaming in a closed room afterwards to get used to you, then placing him back in his home.

You don't want to force the issue any more than you need to.

In the room take a subtle approach. You want him to come to you. Play hard to get.


Hope this helps.


...Jefroka


----------



## mis jaksin (Jan 28, 2010)

I got my first gu when he was 3 months old, and he was very skittish. I have an enclosure with sliding doors too, and every time I'd reach for him he would run and hide. One day, I figured I'd be slow and let him get used to my hand in his enclosure... he walked over to my hand and bit my finger! He wasn't very big yet, so I just slowly pulled my hand away, trying not to startle him more. After that, I was pretty frustrated but I still didn't want to feed him in his enclosure.. so, I got some gloves, and with my boyfriends help, we barricaded off half his enclosure so he couldn't run away to his hide, and we caught him. I held him firm but gently until he calmed down, then slowly set him down in a bin where his food was waiting for him. When he was done eating, I again caught him and held him until he stopped squirming, and slowly set him down in his enclosure. This had to be done the first few weeks until he got used to us enough to where he would just walk onto our hand. He was still unsure of us, so I'd sit in the bathtub (without water) and have him climb around in the tub with me for about an hour each day... then did the same thing with sitting on the bathroom floor... 

I've had him for 4 months now and he is awesome! Every day I open his enclosure.. he takes his time to walk out... I pick him up and take him into the bathroom. Then as I get a bath ready for him, he'll climb up my legs and sit on my lap and wait for me to put him in the tub. He doesn't go potty in his enclosure (picky little gu), so the tub is where he usually does his business. After the tub, I dry him off, open the door and he explores our apartment while I get his food ready. He has a basking area set up in our living room that he likes. While he's exploring, I set his food down on the tray next to his enclosure (which is in our living room). He moseys over to eat, then basks for a bit, and eventually climbs up his steps back into his enclosure. 

Sooo, be patient, it's very frustrating the first month I'd say. But keep at it, and before you know it, your gu will be your lil buddy. The gloves helped me a lot cuz I would leave one in the enclosure where he would bask so he could smell it and get used to it...then eventually he would lay on it while he basked...

Good luck! I hope me rambling bout my experience helps you!


----------



## d1333 (Jan 28, 2010)

mis jaksin said:


> I got my first gu when he was 3 months old, and he was very skittish. I have an enclosure with sliding doors too, and every time I'd reach for him he would run and hide. One day, I figured I'd be slow and let him get used to my hand in his enclosure... he walked over to my hand and bit my finger! He wasn't very big yet, so I just slowly pulled my hand away, trying not to startle him more. After that, I was pretty frustrated but I still didn't want to feed him in his enclosure.. so, I got some gloves, and with my boyfriends help, we barricaded off half his enclosure so he couldn't run away to his hide, and we caught him. I held him firm but gently until he calmed down, then slowly set him down in a bin where his food was waiting for him. When he was done eating, I again caught him and held him until he stopped squirming, and slowly set him down in his enclosure. This had to be done the first few weeks until he got used to us enough to where he would just walk onto our hand. He was still unsure of us, so I'd sit in the bathtub (without water) and have him climb around in the tub with me for about an hour each day... then did the same thing with sitting on the bathroom floor...
> 
> I've had him for 4 months now and he is awesome! Every day I open his enclosure.. he takes his time to walk out... I pick him up and take him into the bathroom. Then as I get a bath ready for him, he'll climb up my legs and sit on my lap and wait for me to put him in the tub. He doesn't go potty in his enclosure (picky little gu), so the tub is where he usually does his business. After the tub, I dry him off, open the door and he explores our apartment while I get his food ready. He has a basking area set up in our living room that he likes. While he's exploring, I set his food down on the tray next to his enclosure (which is in our living room). He moseys over to eat, then basks for a bit, and eventually climbs up his steps back into his enclosure.
> 
> ...



thats good!
yea i tried to hold him today, and i had to do what you did becuase he kept running!! lol, i have some pretty nice scratches all over my wrist but he kindof calmed down for a sec, then started to attempt to run again.

thanks for the advice though! i couldnt find anyone else in this situation so i thought i was just :rant !!

i will give him time and patience though


----------



## mis jaksin (Jan 29, 2010)

just be sure that if he's squirming, you don't set him down till after he calms down... otherwise he'll think that he can get free when he acts crazy like that. 

good luck! i'm sure he'll calm down with time


----------



## d1333 (Jan 29, 2010)

ok thanks for the help, yea i held him today and he took a nice piss on me lol....

heres some pics of the monster






almost two feet long


----------



## mis jaksin (Jan 31, 2010)

aww, his colors are really nice. he's giving you the stink eye in that second pic! lol!


----------

