What's it like to have a tegu as a pet?

[KIN_Dante]

Hello guys,

I'm hoping to be a tegu owner in the future. I've been reading a lot of care sheets, articles, and forum posts, but knowing the facts mean little if you don't know what it's like to own a tegu. So I wanted to hear your personal feelings towards tegu pet ownership. What's it like? What are pros/cons? What does he/she mean to you? If you had to give up your tegu, what was the reason? Things like that. I think the biggest hurdle for me is the long term hibernation. How do you guys handle months of absence? Replies will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Logie_Bear]

Welcome to the forum.

I often feel that my tegu is most akin to a cat. Some of them are very affectionate, some are standoffish, and some of them only want to be around you when THEY feel like it. I prepared for about 11 months before ever getting my girl and I remember my greatest fear going into owning a tegu was that I wouldn't be able to tame her and I'd have a 4ft aggressive lizard on my hands. Fortunately this fear was lost within days of finally having her. She tamed down with no issues whatsoever! I cannot recommend enough that you go thru a reputable breeder and spend that little bit of extra money for a tegu you know has been raised well. I was a little put off by the hibernation as well, and my gals first winter felt like it was going to last forever! I was pretty ok with it until about month 6. Lol! But I have a whole crew of reptiles that don't hibernate so I wasn't totally pet-less. So my solution is buy more reptiles! (jk... kinda... but not totally )