outdoor enclosure tips please

[lmef16]

i live in central florida and i plan on building stitch(b&w arg tegu) an outdoor enclosure. she is just over a year old. Im thinking something around 8x8 or maybe bigger. so here are a few questions of the top of my head and if you have any sugestions or insite that would be greatly appreciated. it will be aa all year round enclosure i hope.

how tall should the walls be?

what materials should i use for the walls?

how deep should i make it before stitch hits bottom when digging?

what to use for the bottom under the substrate?

should the hide be under or above ground?

how deep to put the hide?

best substrate? or just use dirt

will she be more subseptible to sickness outside, mites, tick, ect?

what to do to prevent sickness and bugs?...... regular treatment of the enclosure of some sort?

i WOULD LOVE TO SEE SOME PICS ALSO. THANK YOU.

 

[Curtis T]

do a search Bobby posted photos and everything

 

[carcharios]

I have my tegus in a dog kennel that it is 8 x 5 x 6. I purchased plastic netting that I used for the top to keep birds out and the lizards in and I also put this same green plastic netting on the ground to keep them from digging out. They have a hide but it does not go under ground because that would entail cutting the netting and then they could escape.

Bugs and parasites have not been an issue. I do get yellow jackets in their cage but they don't seem to bother the lizards. I don't hose out their cage because the rainwater naturally cleans it. I use dirt and grass cutting from my lawn as a substrate and they love the grass. When I first put it in, my female tegu started playing in it and pushing it around the cage. It was their favorite toy so to speak.

I'll snap some photos later of their enclosure if I get a few minutes and post them for you.

 

[lmef16]

thank you for the info. were do you live? is it where you can keep them outside year round? I can wait to see some pics.

 

[JohnMatthew]

1) Your best bet would be to have it fully enclosed. I used chicken wire to enclose the top area. Hardware cloth will last longer and is stronger though. I'm already seeing some rust on my chicken wire after 2 years and will need to be replaced soon. It's mainly there as a deterrent to keep birds and other animals.

2) I used 8ft pieces of 5/4 for my sides, 4 high.

3) The depth is really up to you. If given a good hide your tegu probably won't do much digging. 8-12 inches is probably plenty for an adult.

4) Under the bottom you definitely want something stronger than chicken wire to prevent escape. Heavy gauge hardware cloth is best.

5) Since you're in Florida and get lots of rain, above ground is probably safer. We tend to have flooding/water issues on the underground hides. Mine was underground but on the next enclosure I build It's definitely going to be above ground. The easiest way is to build your hide at ground level and then pile some substrate on top of it(make sure it's sturdy!).

6) Dirt is a good substrate. I like to add cypress too. I think I used 1 bag of cypress per 2 bags of top soil.

7) I never had any issues with sickness/bugs outside.. they're pretty sturdy animals and aren't bothered by much.

8) Ants would occasionally show up in a trail to leftover food but if you're prompt in cleaning they will soon move out. The ants don't seem to bother the tegu at all but I wouldn't want them to move in entirely.

I'll add a couple pictures of my enclosure to show you what I did and maybe give you a few ideas. Good luck.

 

[lmef16]

that looks great. I will post pics when im done. I would like to see more if anybody else has some ics and info. thank you

 

[lmef16]

i know there are more pics and addvice out there.

 

[carcharios]

I will try to get some pics posted tomorrow.