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div129

New Member
Messages
17
so ive had this tegu (about 2 feet) for almost a month now if im not wrong? hes doin great, grown a lot (even suprised the breeder). though as i know from the breeder, he is really active. im guessing its a stage like everyone says? hes smart in a way he tricks me a bit, he begs to be let out banging at the door, he even broke one of the locks he did it so relentlessly, he usually tries to dig out or bang at the enclosure door, after a while he goes back to bask and its just sort of a cycle. and whenever it is his time out, i pick him up, carry him in a tub to a tegu proofed room, then i pick him up again from the tub to let him out. he is usually really patient and cause me no trouble, unless he feels like throwing a fit. i will let him run through my hands and let him go when he calms down. he learned that if he tried to run out of my hands, he isnt going anywhere. now, he does a new thing where he acts all nice and walk up my hand to ask to be let out, when i pick him up from the tub he is chill. although, after hes on the ground he waits a second, then runs as far as he can from me. sometimes if i dont stand up he comes to walk by/on me, although when i stand up, he bolts again. will he chill out eventually? he knows im not a threat, though seems to hate me. this has only been going on for 9 days or so. should i just give him space by walking out of the room or just sit by him even though he hates when im around.
 

rantology

Active Member
Messages
263
My 7 month old has some odd/irrational flightly behavior too. I think it's just young tegus doing young tegu things. Especially the "banging to be let out" - I call it tegu zoomies though mine hasn't done it nearly as bad since I switched him to his adult enclosure. I think keep working with them, if you back off or give them too much space that will allow for regression on socialization. Try to make it as positive as you can but at the end of the day- they do just need the social exposure and to take the time to learn that you are not a threat to them. That only happens by consistent interaction! (and bribing with food)

Oh and 2 feet it may be puberty throwing additional complications into things too- but you should still keep trying to work with them regardless.
 

div129

New Member
Messages
17
My 7 month old has some odd/irrational flightly behavior too. I think it's just young tegus doing young tegu things. Especially the "banging to be let out" - I call it tegu zoomies though mine hasn't done it nearly as bad since I switched him to his adult enclosure. I think keep working with them, if you back off or give them too much space that will allow for regression on socialization. Try to make it as positive as you can but at the end of the day- they do just need the social exposure and to take the time to learn that you are not a threat to them. That only happens by consistent interaction! (and bribing with food)

Oh and 2 feet it may be puberty throwing additional complications into things too- but you should still keep trying to work with them regardless.
Hes a pain to work with right now, but i expected that from this age tegu i guess. people say that "your tegu might seem like they hate ur guts" but still makes me kinda sad that the second he sees me he goes crazy, to the point that he might sometimes accidently hurt himself. i hope he will grow out of this. anyone else went through the same thing?
 

Debita

Well-Known Member
1,000+ Post Club
Messages
1,218
Location
Prescott, AZ
Yessss! I just wrote this to another new member...so I'll pass it on to you. Main thing - don't panic, or think there's anything wrong. Some Tegus are much feistier than others. So here's what I went through:

I had a B/W Argentine that took about 10 months to tame. I got him at a year old, and he was determined to stay grumpy, suspicious of me, and def aggressive.
But one day he just gave it up. It was a decision on his part that I didn't see coming. I thought I was destined to deal with Satan's Spawn. There was no gradual anything. He really just didn't fight me one day, after 10 months of death rolls. Sooooo....I hung in there, hoping for the best....and now I have a best friend that trusts me to walk over top of him, pick him up anytime (even when having a grumpy shed), and basically inspect any part of his body that I need to - nails, etc....and wipe his mouth after meals. It's hilarious. He's a happy guy now, that came through his puberty by only giving me a few gray hairs, and a couple scars. I adore him, and his personality.

I took the advice of several members here, and stayed calm, walked away when I had to, and just kept coming back to show him that there is a routine here that he might eventually like. The hardest part is patience, and not knowing if his attitude will ever change. It will, but some Tegus take longer than others. Your reaction to only let him down when calm is smart. Just like a child, you don't reward bad behavior. And Rantology is right - always keep trying to work with them. Don't leave them be for very long - or you will prob be starting over.
 

Walter1

Moderator
Staff member
1,000+ Post Club
5 Year Member
Messages
4,384
Debita's got solid experience with this. Routine is important. Some take longer than others, and some are more affectionate than others. I lost Snowflake who thought she was a dog. Oscar's a curious cat with no apparant affection. I don't care because I accept him.
 

div129

New Member
Messages
17
Yessss! I just wrote this to another new member...so I'll pass it on to you. Main thing - don't panic, or think there's anything wrong. Some Tegus are much feistier than others. So here's what I went through:

I had a B/W Argentine that took about 10 months to tame. I got him at a year old, and he was determined to stay grumpy, suspicious of me, and def aggressive.
But one day he just gave it up. It was a decision on his part that I didn't see coming. I thought I was destined to deal with Satan's Spawn. There was no gradual anything. He really just didn't fight me one day, after 10 months of death rolls. Sooooo....I hung in there, hoping for the best....and now I have a best friend that trusts me to walk over top of him, pick him up anytime (even when having a grumpy shed), and basically inspect any part of his body that I need to - nails, etc....and wipe his mouth after meals. It's hilarious. He's a happy guy now, that came through his puberty by only giving me a few gray hairs, and a couple scars. I adore him, and his personality.

I took the advice of several members here, and stayed calm, walked away when I had to, and just kept coming back to show him that there is a routine here that he might eventually like. The hardest part is patience, and not knowing if his attitude will ever change. It will, but some Tegus take longer than others. Your reaction to only let him down when calm is smart. Just like a child, you don't reward bad behavior. And Rantology is right - always keep trying to work with them. Don't leave them be for very long - or you will prob be starting over.
Debita's got solid experience with this. Routine is important. Some take longer than others, and some are more affectionate than others. I lost Snowflake who thought she was a dog. Oscar's a curious cat with no apparant affection. I don't care because I accept him.
Sorry havent really been on here for a while, im in the process of building and planning his adult enclosure. Hopefully he will love it, this ones in my room so he will be forced to see me the second i wake up hahaha. Really takes up a lot of room, worth it though so i can spend more time with him. He has a thing where i can be all lovey dovey goes to you climbs up on you. Few mins later he runs like theres to tomorrow. Oh well, no way of telling what he will grow up into just gotta be patient i guess.... thanks for replying, worried new tegu parent here :)
 
Last edited:
Messages
88
Location
Las Vegas
so ive had this tegu (about 2 feet) for almost a month now if im not wrong? hes doin great, grown a lot (even suprised the breeder). though as i know from the breeder, he is really active. im guessing its a stage like everyone says? hes smart in a way he tricks me a bit, he begs to be let out banging at the door, he even broke one of the locks he did it so relentlessly, he usually tries to dig out or bang at the enclosure door, after a while he goes back to bask and its just sort of a cycle. and whenever it is his time out, i pick him up, carry him in a tub to a tegu proofed room, then i pick him up again from the tub to let him out. he is usually really patient and cause me no trouble, unless he feels like throwing a fit. i will let him run through my hands and let him go when he calms down. he learned that if he tried to run out of my hands, he isnt going anywhere. now, he does a new thing where he acts all nice and walk up my hand to ask to be let out, when i pick him up from the tub he is chill. although, after hes on the ground he waits a second, then runs as far as he can from me. sometimes if i dont stand up he comes to walk by/on me, although when i stand up, he bolts again. will he chill out eventually? he knows im not a threat, though seems to hate me. this has only been going on for 9 days or so. should i just give him space by walking out of the room or just sit by him even though he hates when im around.
Give him some space. Because it's Be close but start to ignore him. Eventually he will adjusting and gravitate to you.
Eventually he will learn that you are his world! Read on this site people offer up a ton of good information I started here myself.
 

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