I opened my bedroom door, and...

[kim86]

...found Leo booking it across the carpet and going underneath my bed. He managed to open the top sliding screen (I guess he learned from when I'd open it), climb out and jump down a 5ft drop to my carpet. What da eff! He's around 2ft long with tail - do tegus generally grow out of the "I'm gonna break out!" phase? I gotta get me a lock. I've had to tape the top on there for now though... hopefully it holds! haha. So weird seeing this big reptile run across your floor

 

[Murkve]

Haha! I wouldn't bet on them growing out of it. They just get bigger and stronger. Be thankful that your door was closed.

 

[james.w]

You never answered what size enclosure he was being kept in.

 

[jumper123]

Hahaha! I had a two foot tegu remove a printer and cinder block From the top Of her age to Crawl out and drop 4ft to the ground.. Generally they do not grow out of it you just get better at keeping them In..

 

[kim86]

You never answered what size enclosure he was being kept in.

It's about 5ft L x 3 H x 3 W. I will be upgrading to a Vision cage next month.

 

[chelvis]

Mine still brakes out after six years of owning him. He has now figured out the vision cage slider doors as well. He will acutlly lift the bottom of the glass and lift it off the runners, lol. I just put the baby gate up to the reptile room to keep him in one room. He is fine to free roam if he wants.

 

[kim86]

Mine still brakes out after six years of owning him. He has now figured out the vision cage slider doors as well. He will acutlly lift the bottom of the glass and lift it off the runners, lol. I just put the baby gate up to the reptile room to keep him in one room. He is fine to free roam if he wants.

Hahaha oh my gosh! Why do they gotta be so smart?

 

[james.w]

I ask about the enclosure size because of the nose rub. Since you have him in a large enough enclosure, he should heal up fine. What size vision are you putting him in?

 

[Bubblz Calhoun]

Ditto Chelvis, both Dino and Natsuki learned how to open the vision cage with out the lock on. I watched and it pretty much consisted of them going to the side they know opens or that you use the most. They start scratching at the glass, probably to test if and see if it's loose or moves. With the lock on it doesn't move much if at all and they usually stop at this point. Then settle for flipping the enclosure if I don't or didn't let them out. If it moves then they switch to sliding their hand down the glass more so than scratching. Trying to get their fingers or nails in between the glass and the opening. Once they get a grip they pull it open just enough to get their nose in then push it with their nose or head the rest of the way until they can fit through.

They can figure it out on their own but sometimes they put things together just by watching you.

Even Mila figured out how to get out of her Exo Terra terrarium with the little front locks they have on them. Some time earlier this year my sister would call or text because Mila kept getting out when I wasn't home. So she was making a racket one day and my sister came out to watch her. She told me she had to stand off to the side where she couldn't be seen or else Mila wouldn't do anything but lay there and watch her. When she was out of site Mila would climb onto her hide or the tree I had in there and jump into the doors until they popped open.

It took me some time to figure it out even with the lock why were the doors popping open now and not before. When I checked the latch it was stiff but the frame was a little loose. I just figured it had been damaged from her pretty much cannon balling herself into it the doors. There's a little hole at the bottom on both doors so I just added another lock, problem solved and didn't think much of it.

Come to find out much later that there was substrate stuck in the socket of the latch lock which is why it was stiff. I vacuum the vents regularly to clear out the eco earth but never thought about the lock until recently. So I did that and everything works like it use to now but I still keep the extra lock on just in case.

 

[kim86]

That's so crazy! And kind of cute, but mostly crazy

I just epoxy glued a locking system on both sides of my screen lid and have padlocks on them, hopefully that keeps him in! haha

 

[laurarfl]

And once they find a way out, they will always go back to that same place.

 

[ilovelizards]

Mine still brakes out after six years of owning him. He has now figured out the vision cage slider doors as well. He will acutlly lift the bottom of the glass and lift it off the runners, lol. I just put the baby gate up to the reptile room to keep him in one room. He is fine to free roam if he wants.

Unless you did something to the baby gate he will clime over it super easy.I had that Idea once and not long after I put it up looked over from the kitchen to find my 3/4 feet tegu perched on top of the gate then slide down and walk off into my house like it was nothing.Now I keep the door cloused unless he is sleeping.

 

[Quartzyellowjacket]

I've never had Baragon escape (Yet) I keep his cage secured with rubber bands and I've seen him clawing at the plastic panels when my cats by the cage, Some of the few times he comes out is when my cat is by his cage.