# building my new argentine tegu the best tegu cage ever



## reptile guy101 (Aug 13, 2012)

ok i have a argentine tegu male or female so anyways i want to build an awesome enclosure can i put a pond in there and put fishes and turtles would them eat them and also do they also like to swim ohhh and climb?


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## kellen.watkins (Aug 14, 2012)

Swim is a maybe some do, climb they will a little but will stop with age most of the time. Also be careful with a pond more than likely your tegu will fill it with dirt tear down your decorations. Same with plants real and fake lol your tegu will wind up decorating it the way he/she wants too lol


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## larissalurid (Aug 14, 2012)

yea they tear apart set ups lol. i wouldnt put fish in the pond, they will just die and don't keep turtles with the tegu. also i wouldn't feed gold fish to tegus (because they will try to eat them if you put them in there and they arent a healthy thing for them to eat)


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## jwyo (Aug 14, 2012)

I think fish would be fine to feed as long as they were quarantined and "cleansed" of parasites, etc.


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## larissalurid (Aug 14, 2012)

jwyo said:


> I think fish would be fine to feed as long as they were quarantined and "cleansed" of parasites, etc.



Well as you said they can have parasites, but they also usually are full of different chemicals. Goldfish are also high in Vit A, Vit E, and thiaminase which can lead to a vit B deficiency. The feeding of goldfish to pet reptiles is generally discouraged. :/ I wouldn't do it really, it'd just be for the humans entertainment to watch, not the healthiest option for the reptile for a variety of reasons.

EDIT:If you want to feed fish get some fresh fillets or tilapia, shrimp or something.

The top healthiest fish are: wild alaskan salmon, farmed rainbow trout, pacific halibut, farmed catfish, farmed tilapia, yellowfin tuna, farmed salmon, mahi mahi, swordfish, grouper, atlantic cod. (taken from tegu food list)


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## Dirtydmc (Aug 14, 2012)

dexter Poops in the water every day. Would eat everything in it. And he decorates his own house. He moves the fake plants around so he can hide behind them when he is baking. Good luck! Oh, he also fills his water with substrate.


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## apocalypse910 (Aug 14, 2012)

jwyo said:


> I think fish would be fine to feed as long as they were quarantined and "cleansed" of parasites, etc.



I believe goldfish do contain a decent amount of thiaminase - so even if they are clean I'd assume that they should only be fed in moderation.


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## jwyo (Aug 14, 2012)

Yeah they do, but no one said gold fish! Also most farm raised fish of most species have a questionable nutritional breakdown, due to feeding practices. many are fed waste and by products from other animals. I believe that simply feeding your tegu a fillet of a fish is not the answer. Whole prey items. Many species of fish can be fed whole and are a great supplement to your tegus diet.


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## Toby_H (Aug 15, 2012)

I would discourage anyone from making a "pond" in their indoor enclosure, though a large water dish is essential...

Many Tegus, mine included, often poop in their water. Being able to easily remove, clean replace the water dish is important. Even the highest quality filtration will not stand up to the bio-load a Tegu can put into it's water. 

As for including fish/turtles in the Tegu's enclosure, your Tegu will rearrange anything you put together. In doing so it will completely disrupt the other animals environment, thus leaving it in substandard conditions. Many of us want multi-species enclosures, but they are an extremely difficult balance to achieve.


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## Dirtydmc (Aug 15, 2012)

My tokays won't eat the anoles. They live together. I didn't know anoles lived so long.


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