Advice?

[blueh]

Hello,
I'm looking at getting a tegu in the coming months. I've read just about every curette there is and have owned several reptiles (Uromastyx, Chinese Water Dragons and Ball Pythons to name a few) in the past and still have a lot of them however I have always wanted a tegu and now that I have the room and money to get one, I'm looking for advice? Not like what their basking temperature should be or anything like that, but small quirks that you've noticed or things that I should be prepared when getting a tegu?

I'm looking at getting a Black and White Tegu or a Blue Tegu since I heard those are the best temperament wise. There seems to be a lot of Gold Tegus for sale as well, but I've heard those are pretty aggressive? Thoughts?

Their cage is either going to be a 7 1/2-8 by 3 x 3 or a 8 x 4 x 4 depending on what supplies I can get. Does this sound okay? Is cypress mulch okay for a bedding? Anything else I should know? What kind of things should I put in there? Anything that you're tegu seems to enjoy in their cage?

Sorry if this is asked a lot, I just want to be as prepared as possible before I get one of these guys.

 

[Jessicak]

Firstly, my tegu LOVES his basking rocks. Favorite part of his cage. And my little guy is a stinker. Be prepared, your gu might not eat for a while after you get him. It's getting cooler and their appetite decreases. My little guy didn't eat for nearly a month after I got him. But overall friendly and easy to socialize. My gu never really had any problems with being skittish, though he does still huff a little when disturbed. They're good at finding a warm place to fall asleep in when you get them out to handle. Good Luck with your Gu!

 

[Zack Wilke]

Just know that some tegus can have an attitude. Mine is very skittish, and requires constant attention to try and gain his trust. Patience is keen with these lizards. Don't get discouraged if it doesn't want to be held by you; it'll come around. Cypress mulch is fine to use for tegus.

 

[Jomatty]

Cypress mulch works well but the very best I've found is just dirt dug up from the yard. You can mix in about 25% play sand. The most important thing about your substrate is that it holds humidity. Cypress does that well. Dirt will also hold a burrow though, which they seem to like.