New tegu owner!

[MakeyourIPATH]

Hey everybody, I'm guessing were all here because we love our reptiles! I've had experience with other reptiles, but never a tegu. So I need some feedback. I have done my research on tegus, but we all need help once in a while. So I'm uploading a pic of his enclosure to get an idea on how to make my tegu more at home.

 

[Josh]

Hello and welcome to the forum! That's one cute tegu!
You're going to be needing an upgrade pretty soon because tegus grow FAST - so be prepared for that! you may want to add an element that he can bask on. Stones or slate tiles tend to hold heat better. How is your tegu behaving thus far? Eating healthily?

 

[Sway]

Do you keep a lid on the enclosure? I had to keep my girl in a aquarium for a couple of weeks just until I re-designed her new 8x4x2 enclosure. Even though I kept a lid on the aquarium she still escaped daily. I had to put tape on all 4 corners plus keep bricks on the corners.

 

[MakeyourIPATH]

Hello and welcome to the forum! That's one cute tegu!
You're going to be needing an upgrade pretty soon because tegus grow FAST - so be prepared for that! you may want to add an element that he can bask on. Stones or slate tiles tend to hold heat better. How is your tegu behaving thus far? Eating healthily?

Thanks for welcoming my tegu and myself. Alright, well for the basking spot I found myself a crystal rock, I'll up load a pic to see if it's right for basking. As far as his behavior, he's a little skittish, takes time to get him to calm down but when he does, he's really accepting. Food wise I've only feed him hard boiled eggs and gizzards, I also tried to feed him crickets in a separate tank, left him in their for about 30mins didn't eat a single one. Which is odd, because as soon as I laid the food bowl in there he ate his eggs. As for the enclosure, I'm going to start working on a custom one starting next pay check.

 

[MakeyourIPATH]

Do you keep a lid on the enclosure? I had to keep my girl in a aquarium for a couple of weeks just until I re-designed her new 8x4x2 enclosure. Even though I kept a lid on the aquarium she still escaped daily. I had to put tape on all 4 corners plus keep bricks on the corners.

No, I'm not keeping a lid on his enclosure, having a real hard time finding a fit for the 40gallon tank. Well I've had him for about 5 days now, and not once has he tried to escape.
By the way, I would really like to see the 8x4x2 habitat you designed. To get some ideas.

 

[Sway]

Have you tried offering him ground turkey or beef liver?

 

[Sway]

Here are some pictures of my girl Jasper

 

[Joba]

@Sway, that last picture is awesome.

 

[Sway]

Thanks @Joba

 

[MakeyourIPATH]

Do you keep a lid on the enclosure? I had to keep my girl in a aquarium for a couple of weeks just until I re-designed her new 8x4x2 enclosure. Even though I kept a lid on the aquarium she still escaped daily. I had to put tape on all 4 corners plus keep bricks on the corners.

Nice you've given me some great ideas! You have one beautiful looking tegu there. Well I haven't been feeding my tegu anything else besides gizzards and bolied eggs so far, been to busy trying to get everything right, by that I mean temp wise. This is an update on his enclosure. Also you can see I took your advice a put a lid on his habitat.

 

[Sway]

Nice... Sometimes it can be difficult to keep the humidity up inside of an aquarium. It helps to cover the lid with a towel after spraying it down. Just a thought.