NURSING A TEGU BACK TO HEALTH - NEED HELP/ADVICE

[reptastic]

You don't have to cook them as long as eggs are not being used as a stable. Like Bobby said and im a big beliver in this is variety is key. A tegu will eat raw eggs in the wild why doesn't it muck them up, becuase they then go off and eat a mouse, bird, fruit of some kind or fish or hell scavange a carcuss. The problem with captivity is people start to creat these "perfect" and "conviant" foods for tegus ie the ground turkey and cod liver oil meal. If you read under those directions it says to offer a varied diet and this is just one thing to help with that.

What i'm saying is raw eggs every now and then are not bad, eggs should be a treat not a main stable of the diet.

Sorry if this sounds like a rant, but it seems to be a growing problem that people are not offering a good balanced and mixed diet anymore. I admit its a step up from the dog and cat food phase, but it still can cause problems.

For those serving eggs at every meal, try switching to one a week or using quail eggs (smaller and less egg whites) the calcium is the shell is less than that of bone found in a small mouse and most tegus don't eat it. Alot of them just get use to the hi protine and hi colestrol diet and will become picky eaters.
Just my two cents.

i 100% agree, i have always gave my tegu a huge variety of meats and rodents as well as eggs. but eggs make up the smallest portion of their diet and is only given 2 maybe 3x a month! im a firm believer in having a varied diet is the key to having a healthy tegu, this way they are getting various nutrients from different foods!

 

[dadasgirl]

This info is great - I cant thank you guys enough - the herp vet Rx of calciquid is starting get on my little guys nerves. Its sweetened but we have to use a pet syringe to administer his dosage by mouth and he's starting to associate us with the unpleasantess of getting medicine - not exactly the relationship I want to build.

My intention has always been to vary the diet - he has been superpicky- like I said - he didnt like the beef - but I know he needs it. And on occasion we would forego feeding for a day or two just so he would be hungry enough to eat something other than eggs & turkey & fruit. He has shown favoritism to horm worms & I'll be getting some pinkies ASAP.

 

[chelvis]

I would avoid pinkie, like people have said they are just fat. Fuzzies or larger if possible. What size is your tegu agian.

 

[carcharios]

Any thoughts on chicken livers? My wife just picked up some for my Gu's. I was initially looking for gizards and hearts but I can't seem to find them anymore. Even walmart, which had tons on the shelf just a few weeks ago, is out.

 

[chelvis]

sure liver won't hurt them.

 

[carcharios]

Well, the liver didn't last long. They snuffed it out immediately. Even Diego came out of hiding to wolf some down.