Really considering!

[elliotulysses]

My girlfriend and I are considering getting a tegu. We plan on doing a melamine build for the enclosure.
We have reptile experience, though mostly snakes but we read a lot of care guides and watched videos.
Now I'm wanting feedback from owners. What are some good things about these animals? The bad? The unexpected?
I plan on getting the tegu after the build. It will live in its enclosure except when we take it out for socialization.
Advice and information is appreciated.

 

[elliotulysses]

Also how are they around cats?

 

[Jackie & Hellboy]

I would avoid the melamine I heard it falls apart like cardboard if you provide a humid enough environment for your tegu. I would not let them interact with cats or any other species that isn't a food source for them, your cat might kill it or your tegu might take bites and such out of your cat. The videos where tegus are sleeping with dogs or cats I believe are underheated and overweight tegus, not ideally healthy, if properly heated and provided for they will have an unhealthy interest in your cats or the other way around (it only takes a well placed bite on the back of the lizards head for your cat to sever the tegus spine, and that can happen in a split second)

 

[Jackie & Hellboy]

Better off using plywood (3/4" thickness with 2x4 frame to hold the weight of the large amount of soil that you should provide)

 

[elliotulysses]

Better off using plywood (3/4" thickness with 2x4 frame to hold the weight of the large amount of soil that you should provide)

Thanks for all the info! I saw plywood builds so I'll stick to that.
As for the cats I was more wondering if the cats would pester the tegu in the enclosure. But good information. Would it be best to lock them up if handling the tegu?

 

[Jackie & Hellboy]

Locking them up isn't probably required but extremely close watching of both cat and lizard during handling, and I'm not sure if they will mess with him in the cage or not

 

[elliotulysses]

Locking them up isn't probably required but extremely close watching of both cat and lizard during handling, and I'm not sure if they will mess with him in the cage or not

Probably depends on the cat eh?
That's what I saw suggested to me with people who own both. Careful supervision goes a long way.