Got the okay for a tegu!

[Donnie25]

My girlfriend finally caved in to the idea of us adding a tegu to our home. So I'm not really even sure where to start. Can someone link me a good care guide? I plan to get a black and white, but don't worry it won't be until I'm completely ready. I own 2 cats and 3 panther chameleons ATM. I have orange head, dubia, and halloween hisser roach colonies. Plus tons of hornworms, silks, butters, etc. I read that tegus will eat more insects when they're younger, but I also understand they need a wide variety as I would expect from an omnivore. I have a few questions just to start out...

1)I have a room for all of my chameleons and there is a large space that is open where I would like to keep a tegu. Don't get me wrong here, but do I need an 8x4, I've seen people say 6x3 is fine? I have no problem either way, more space would be nice if I can go a little less than 8x4, but I'd never sacrifice the animal's well being.

2)I want to quarantine the tegu for a month at least and make sure I get fecals done with my chams beforehand, Since it is warm out, I was considering the garage possibly? I'd assume I would start with a young one so could he/she be kept in a smaller cage to start out? Any suggestions you guys could give me?

3)should I consider a male or female? how do they differ in temperament/care? I know most chameleon females have a little more special needs and most newbies go with males.

4) for the large, forever home, are there any guides on building one? Any tips on materials? I feel like an opening on the side and top would be most useful? I plan to have a bioactive substrate too, so I'd need something that won't decay over time.

5) regarding my cats, I obviously won't let them play together, but I'm sure I'll have the tegu out and about, what is the chance of an incident? Do any of you have cats and tegus that learn to deal with each other under supervision or should they be strictly separated at all times?

6) lastly, my concern with the gf... I understand the need for whole prey and variety, but can you get around feeding mice, rats, rabbits, and other small mammals? I think that's the one thing that would freak her out... I'm sure I can sneak something in here and there that she doesn't see, I'm just not sure how a weekly order of dead, cute animals will go over with her.

I have a ton of research to do on these guys, those were just my main questions for starting out. Any links, extra information, or whatever would be greatly appreciated! I have wanted a tegu since I was a kid, so I'm pretty excited about this.

 

[Walter1]

Hi Donnie- Congrats on the OK.

no. 1. Bigger the better.

no. 3. Males nearly always bigger than females. Generally with well-developed jowls. Everything else is similar.

no. 6, hare-today provides ground whole animals that won't look like the animal.

 

[Donnie25]

Great thank you! Hare-today looks perfect. Anyone else able to chime in? I figure the most difficult part will be building the cage?

 

[Mombo]

I would build the enclosure before getting started. It big and needs to be planned out and its easy to put off if you have something else that "works". You dont want to be building it while being rushed because he is growing so quickly etc.

Mine went from a baby last november to now over 3ft long and getting thick. They grow and grow and grow. I made a thread or 2 last year during my build if you need some directions. There are a lot of different ways to make a sufficient enclosure so you can go many directions.

Oh and yes 8x4. My enclosure is 8x4x3tall and with how my little guy digs around all day and moves stuff I think its still not big enough.

He has recently started moving all the dirt to one side now. So his mound on the cool side is massive haha. The dirt on that side almost pours out my door. He is a scamp.

I always throw my cats in a room and close the door when my tegu is out. although they are lazy and nice and I doubt they would do anything. They def are aware and curious about him as they watch him from afar when his cage is closed. Cats are just so quick and could injure them so easily if you have your eye off of them for a second. Maybe even vice versa. Def dont want one of my cats arms busted which a tegu bite im sure would do.

 

[Trede]

I can chime in on food stuffs. I am a fan of Reptilinks, since my gu is kind of suspicious of fruits and veggies.

FWIW, my cat and tegu get along very well, but I still keep an eye on them when they're in the same area. YMMV.

 

[dpjm]

Oh and yes 8x4. My enclosure is 8x4x3tall and with how my little guy digs around all day and moves stuff I think its still not big enough.

Yes, this is what I keep saying. I don't know where the 8x4 standard came from but it seems like everyone on this site is saying that 8x4 is a great size. I would not put a tegu in something that size and feel good about it. 6x3 is definitely too small, make it as big as you can.

 

[Walter1]

Yes, this is what I keep saying. I don't know where the 8x4 standard came from but it seems like everyone on this site is saying that 8x4 is a great size. I would not put a tegu in something that size and feel good about it. 6x3 is definitely too small, make it as big as you can.

I advocate it only as minimum. I do not suggest that that is spacious enough. Certainly suboptimal for a tegu that is display only. If 8X4', hopefully, the tegu is out alot.