So yesterday I went to the daytona expo it was amazing , I went to get my tegu a four hour drive but it was well worth it , I got my little buddy a beautiful red argentine tegu . I have him in a 36" , 18 " , 18" . Is that tank to big for him he's about two weeks old ? And also what's the eat foods to offer them at this age ? And I have cypress mulch but is their any kind of cypress mulch I shouldn't use ? Thanks me and my tegu will appreciate the help !
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Got my 1st tegu today ! I got some questions
- Thread starter Jflorez28
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The cage size should be fine for him. I would try offering crickets, roaches, ground turkey, pinky mice, (or larger mice/rats cut up while frozen), chicken gizzards/hearts, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries. Dusting everything with calcium w/o D3.
Tikikitty95
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Who from? I think there were like 4 different red vendors. I was amazed at how many tegus they have
Thanks I'll try some turkey today with some fresh fruit , but does it have to be organic ?
And what sucks is I forgot to take down the name of the vendor but I'll be posting pictures up , in my eyes he was the best looking one , no dry skin and he has beautiful red on him
And what sucks is I forgot to take down the name of the vendor but I'll be posting pictures up , in my eyes he was the best looking one , no dry skin and he has beautiful red on him
tora
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It doesn't *have* to be, but if it's not then make sure you scrub whatever it is you're feeding clean. I just worry about the pesticides, so I use organic.
Thanks a lot I went and got organic today and he ate ! Thanks alot and one more question I read it's not good to feed inside the cage because he could confuse your hand with food , but I also read its not good to bother them for the first couple of days . Should I feed him inside the tank just till he gets use to his new home ? Thanks for all the help this is my 1st tegu I just want to make sure I'm doing it right
tora
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If he's okay with being picked up then go ahead and do so, if not then just put something under his bowl so he doesn't accidentally ingest mulch.
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There are different opinions on feeding technique, and this is mine. As long as temps and humidity are right feeding in the cage is fine. This will help in digestion and prevent impaction in case some substrate is ingested. As long as opening the cage to feed isn't the only time you interact with him. If you only go in the cage to feed he could end up associating you with food since that is the only time he sees you.
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I never did the shirt thing but others have and seem to have success with it.
Tikikitty95
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Cool. I'm heading back from the show now. Apparently one of the vendors had some for about $100 at the end of the show. Everyone wanted to ditch stuff so they were marking things way down
Oh...and as for your cypress mulch question...just make sure it doesn't say cypress mulch "blend" as that usually has other woods like pine and who knows what else. Also make sure it isn't dyed; a few brands are. If it looks unnaturally uniformly brick red, I'd surely avoid it. Strangely enough, a cheap brand I have used specifically says no dye, 100% cypress, and "organic" - which I think is funny because no one really farms extremely slow growing wetland trees for mulch, so I would expect that no fertilizers or imsecticides were used in production (but "organic" is a pretty nebulous term anyway.)
If you're concerned about bugs, spread the mulch on a tarp and let it sit in direct sun for several hours....just remember to moisten it after to help provide and retain humidity.
Hope this helps!
If you're concerned about bugs, spread the mulch on a tarp and let it sit in direct sun for several hours....just remember to moisten it after to help provide and retain humidity.
Hope this helps!
Thanks so much I have him on cypress blend I'm deff taking him out of that asap , can you recommend any cypress that I can find at home depot or lowes
One thing the bag I'm using says organic is their anyway I can send you a picture of the bag and you tell me if I need to change it ?
One thing the bag I'm using says organic is their anyway I can send you a picture of the bag and you tell me if I need to change it ?
Well, it isn't like the cypress blend is likely to be immediately harmful, just definitely not optimal. It MAY contain cedar or other aromatics which would be bad news, but most likely it just contains some pine, which would be bad but a bit less so, if that makes sense. You'll just need to check the bags at Lowes or a garden store and look for something all cypress. Florida Gold Grade A cypress mulch is one brand that isn't a blend and claims "organic"...but the bag is a little confusing because at the bottom it lists the company name and advertises all their other products, which includes pine nuggets, grade A bark, lumber, etc. so a quick read might make you think it's a blend. You just have to read the bags carefully. But yes, I'd get him out of the blend substrate ASAP, though don't panic, it isn't like you've put him in battery acid for a soak.
Douchebagjeff said:
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Congrats on being a tegu owner! One thing commonly overlooked for people new to tegus is the importance of proper lighting, these lizards grow so incredibly fast that metabolic bone disease can set in at an alarming rate! You'll want to look into getting some good UVB outputting tubelights like reptisun 10.0 and/or a mercury vapor bulb such as megaray. There are other good brands of course but I thought I'd throw a couple out there as a starting point. Best of luck and enjoy your new GU!
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You can ask around but I think most will agree than 5.0 on its own just isn't enough. If you get a MVB too though you should be fine. Looking forward to seeing some pictures of your little one, everybody loves baby pics! 
got10
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I just picked up Malocolm ,my tenth tegu as a rescue . It is a red male. I will post pics of him soon .He is joining the colony of 6 black whites 1 blue and 2 reds . His addition to the group makes ten. Tegus are like tattoos . Its hard to stop at just one.
