Cage recommendations

[BIgjimmy]

Does anyone have a place where they purchased a cage for their Tegu? I can build one, but really don't want to to be honest. If I can find one for sale that meets needs, I would like to go that route. Any recommendations would be appreciated.

 

[rantology]

There's a few options out there, I'll list some of the places I know sell tegu-grade enclosures:

Animal Plastics Cages and Racks

Reptile cages, Reptile Rack systems, Reptile Incubators, Reptile Show Displays and much more

apcages.com

Kages | #1 American Made Custom Reptile Enclosures | FREE SHIPPING

The highest quality American made PVC reptile enclosures. Order your American Made custom PVC reptile habitat today! FREE SHIPPING! The best Bearded Dragon, Ball Python, Blue Tongue Skink and reptile enclosure.

reptilekages.com

Custom Reptile Enclosures and Cages

Our custom reptile enclosures and cages can now be made to order. Manufactured in our own facilities from our super thick, USA made aluminum tubing and high quality, safe PVC panels, our Essential Series enclosures can be custom made in different size and color combinations as well.

customreptilehabitats.com

https://lifetimehabitats.com/

APC is likely the best value but has lead times of 6+ months

 

[Lady2Lucky]

Yeah, we explored all of the options Rantology already linked. We ended up going with Kages. They were some of the most expensive, but we liked that plastic would mean that it would be easily cleanable. We also considered some of the cabinet options. There are lots of custom cabinet and even custom RTA cabinets appropriate for modification to Tegus. Island cabinets are nice and deep usually and plenty tall. You can put locks on the doors easily enough, and many places will even let you choose glass doors. But...you still have wood. Even if you cover it and seal it, if your high humidity leaks, it will rot. I figured I've spent enough time replacing rotton wood on remodel bathrooms for a lifetime. I don't want to do it for my buddy's cage.

Cabinets are: much cheaper, more easily modifiable, and prettier in your home.
Reptile cages are: Usually plastic, not degradable, hard to modify, relatively ugly.

 

[rantology]

Don't feel too bad... I originally turned my nose up at the price of Kages and even APC seemed really pricey.... but I ended up putting so many bells an whistles on my custom build they ended up costing similar anyway lol. You won't regret Kages, those PVC enclosures are absolutely perfect for tegus

 

[Lady2Lucky]

Yep, I don't have regrets. Just thoughts. I'm a big fan of low maintenance and plastic is really that. I'm already spending way to much money decorating the interior...hahaha!

 

[Espg714]

Kages looks great. Pricey though.

 

[Lady2Lucky]

You can also buy the material and make your own. To give Kages credit, the material is expensive. You can purchase here: https://www.onlinemetals.com/en/buy/plastic/0-5-hdpe-plate-seafoam-marine-board/pid/21742
They sell it as seafoam marine board. It's an extruded, air filled HDPE.
Kages does not heat seal the edges, they just cut and drill holes for screws. It works somewhat like wood, but you have to be rather careful not to strip the plastic when fastening, as it is weaker than wood. OnlineMetals will also sell you the clear plastic sheet to make doors. I was lazy enough not to do this for my Tegu's cage, but I have used it for other custom projects. Pretty decent.

 

[Espg714]

You can also buy the material and make your own. To give Kages credit, the material is expensive. You can purchase here: https://www.onlinemetals.com/en/buy/plastic/0-5-hdpe-plate-seafoam-marine-board/pid/21742
They sell it as seafoam marine board. It's an extruded, air filled HDPE.
Kages does not heat seal the edges, they just cut and drill holes for screws. It works somewhat like wood, but you have to be rather careful not to strip the plastic when fastening, as it is weaker than wood. OnlineMetals will also sell you the clear plastic sheet to make doors. I was lazy enough not to do this for my Tegu's cage, but I have used it for other custom projects. Pretty decent.

Man that stuff is pricey. If I build im just going to go with wood or melamine. Think it would be more cost effective

 

[Lady2Lucky]

Both wood and melamine are destroyed by water. Tegus need a high humidity environment, so while the plastic is expensive, it is also not going to rot. If you use wood, make sure you seal it very thoroughly. It's definitely cheaper.

 

[LizardStudent]

Man that stuff is pricey. If I build im just going to go with wood or melamine. Think it would be more cost effective

Agree with LadyLuck on this one. While some people use wood or melamine as a cheaper option, most of them end up coating the pieces with several layers of a water proofing solution such as epoxy or even various forms of concrete, which ends up also being pricey. Also many times this method only lasts for several years before a leak or rot inevitably occurs, and then you have to deconstruct and try again. Kages and options like that are indeed expensive, but the tradeoff is that they save keepers the headache down the road that usually comes with cheaper options

One cheaper options that a lot of keepers seem to like is using a modified grow tent as a tegu enclosure. There are several great threads on builds like these on this site that you could check out if you wanna go that route

 

[Member1421]

Sometimes it's easier to pay more over a long period of time than a larger amount up front, which generally means less long term. Way of the world sometimes.