im a new tegu keeper and just a 3 month old argentine black and white called Gus and would like to move it on from just crickets and locusts and just fed it some raw turkey breast steak dusted with calcium he seemed to like it coz he ate about 5 -6 but size chunks but I want to know if it’s ok for him to actually eat that and some suggestions of other things to feed my 3 month old Argentine black and white
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Can a baby tegu eat raw turkey breast steak?
- Thread starter Dean
- Start date
Yes, you can. Primary food should be whole prey.
AlphaAlpha
Well-Known Member
https://www.tegutalk.com/threads/tegu-food-list.6446/ .......... just make sure its all cut down to the relevant size
Should it always been primarily while food or is their an age where i can move it on to more raw meats and seafood and other bits and for the minute how often should I feed raw meats and fish ?
If I were to try feed my baby egg can I cut the hair boiled egg down or do I have to wait till it’s older to feed it egg
AlphaAlpha
Well-Known Member
Feed raw meats, organs, fish, eggs and whole prey as often as you like and start as early as your gu will start to eat it, just make sure you cut it up into pieces that s/he can handle....... NO wider than the jaw.
Make sure you offer different each day though for variety.
Make sure you offer different each day though for variety.
Debita
Well-Known Member
My 3 month old liked small salmon chunks (she's 5-6 months now) and took to pinkies right away. Walter1's advice about prey is important since that's a natural for them, Alpha's advice about variety and size is right on. Also I like Alpha's advice about making sure some food is soaked in water so you know they're getting some.
They have a hard time resisting a raw egg - I don't know why we'd cook it for them, but I could be wrong. Definitely not going to be cooked in their natural environment. Both of my Tegus love ground turkey rolled into balls - I don't think there would be anything wrong with turkey steak, unless it's not small enough for them to swallow.
(Neither of mine like insects, except the baby likes worms)
They have a hard time resisting a raw egg - I don't know why we'd cook it for them, but I could be wrong. Definitely not going to be cooked in their natural environment. Both of my Tegus love ground turkey rolled into balls - I don't think there would be anything wrong with turkey steak, unless it's not small enough for them to swallow.
(Neither of mine like insects, except the baby likes worms)
My tegu drinks from its water dish for 20 second at a time so do I still need to soak the food how do I give it eggs because it’s not big enough to swallow an egg right now it’s only probably about a 1 -1.5 ft at the minute
Debita
Well-Known Member
I put a raw egg in a shallow dish, and they lap it up like a dog. No shells. I got the baby I have right now at about that size, and she took to the egg right away. Chunk size for any solid raw meat would be about half inch cubes for now. They can eat pinkies at this age, and they're about .5x1".
If I were to feed boiled egg would I just take shell off and cut into size ? And thank you for the help little Gus will be eating like a king
Debita
Well-Known Member
Welllllll.... I don't do hard boiled egg - I only do the raw egg. Feels like too much trouble to me. We have enough we already do!
I do see other people doing it though. I'm just not sure why.
AlphaAlpha
Well-Known Member
People boil chicken eggs because the WHITE holds something in it that is supposed to be harmful to your gu... but boiling them releases the enzyme to make them safer....I don't really know.
Debita
Well-Known Member
Yeah - I've heard that too, but the raw egg is one of the major issues Florida has with them. ( They love stealing the aligator eggs) Walter1 told me about this, so I've stopped doing it so much. I wish I could find a source for quail or some other wild bird egg. I still think it's a great enticement to a brand new Tegu, or one that's not eating much. Thanks Alpha
Mamasaurus
Member
They would have to live off eggs for that enzyme to cause an issue. It's called avidin and it can cause shedding issues. Offering a raw egg with a varied diet will be fine. If you are still concerned you can use raw quail eggs and avoid the enzyme all together. Toothless was a rescue being fed raw meats, fruits, and veggies. Many opt for this diet but it is extremely calcium deficient and requires a lot of dusting. Don't use beef though it's hard on their liver. Chicken, turkey, and venison is ok. I save myself stress and cut down on impaction risk by using reptilinks. They are ground up whole prey, fruit, and veggies (he wont eat greens when offered) so I can trick him into it. The variety is amazing with their blend it has rabbit, quail, chicken, frog, and guinea fowl, you can add quail eggs, and they also offer iguana. Cutting one end releases the scent and he tears them up. He also likes hornworms, roaches, and superworms. Mango, papaya, kiwi, cantaloupe, honeydew, shrimp (crayfish are hard to get by me), scallops, freshwater fish (lower mercury), eggs, can o' snails, earthworms (from a feeder dealer), turkey gizzards, etc. You can google tegu foods as well and there's a list on here somewhere. Avoid fruits and veggies high in oxalates. As stated by friends above make sure his food is small enough and varied and at his age I would offer it daily then every other day. Good luck!
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Tiamat
Member
Yes. Just an fyi... mine loves eggs but wont eat the yolks. I don't know if that's common or no.
James Smith
Active Member
Feed him/her quail eggs. They considerably smaller and better for them.
Tiamat
Member
Where do you get quail eggs? Do you serve them raw or hard boil them?
James Smith
Active Member
Serve them raw and if your Tegu is big enough, whole. You can buy them online if you search for it. I was amazed when I searched on Facebook market place and found a Quail egg farmer to buy from.
IMHO...there is no need to hard/soft boil eggs ! Tegu's have evolved over millennia to eat/digest the natural foods found in their wild habitat...that does NOT include boiled eggs. Where would they encounter such ? Jezebel, my 3ft long, female B/W Argentine Tegu, LOVES her raw eggs. Sometimes I whip in some small chunks of various food items...but, mostly, I give her the egg whole...she has no problem breaking and eating them ! The shells are good sources of calcium...in the wild and captivity. In S. America, ALL Tegus are chicken coop raiders...a pest to farmers. Bird/reptile eggs are a natural part of their diet. I do agree that wild bird eggs are a great addition to chicken eggs...and I only feed Jezebel free range organic eggs...the same kind I eat !
Yes, but longterm diet of domestic chicken eggs is harmul.IMHO...there is no need to hard/soft boil eggs ! Tegu's have evolved over millennia to eat/digest the natural foods found in their wild habitat...that does NOT include boiled eggs. Where would they encounter such ? Jezebel, my 3ft long, female B/W Argentine Tegu, LOVES her raw eggs. Sometimes I whip in some small chunks of various food items...but, mostly, I give her the egg whole...she has no problem breaking and eating them ! The shells are good sources of calcium...in the wild and captivity. In S. America, ALL Tegus are chicken coop raiders...a pest to farmers. Bird/reptile eggs are a natural part of their diet. I do agree that wild bird eggs are a great addition to chicken eggs...and I only feed Jezebel free range organic eggs...the same kind I eat !