New Tegu, mysterious history

[Tofu]

Hello all,

So I am new to tegus but have done some research on them in earlier months. I just got a red tegu yesterday at the Reptile Expo in NH. I am currently residing in New Hampshire. I bought "her" from Cold-Blooded Reptiles who is a specialist shop located in MA. They told me she was about 1.5 almost 2 years old but she seems small for that age? She is just over 2 feet in length it seems and I have posted pictures up of her in comparison to a sheet of computer paper and dollar bill (sorry for the bad quality of the pictures). Another guy at the expo says he breeds reds and that judging by her size and by him feeling her parts and finding nothing obvious he says that she cannot be older than 6-8 months and that she might not be old or big enough to tell the sex. Any thoughts? I have also posted a picture of her cloacal region if that helps any at all.

She also seems to sleep, A LOT. I worry that she might be going into hibernation because she doesn't seem to be eating enough. I tried to feed her three times today, offering her ground turkey and boiled eggs and strawberries each time but she would eat probably take about 4 bites and then fall asleep in between bites (she only ate twice out of the three times I fed her). Her temps are at 95F on the hot side and about 75-80 on the cool.

I also was worried that she might be too skinny. I have attached a picture showing her hip bones and they seem to be protruding a bit and her skin seems saggy (when i pinch it it goes back so I do not think she is dehydrated). Is this something to be worried about?

Thank you for time and help!
Tricia and Tofu

 

[jondancer]

Hard to tell the sex from those pics, it's easier to feel. Definitely small for its age.

 

[james.w]

She is very small if supposedly 1.5-2 years old. My guess is she is an import so they don't know how old she is. Get the basking spot up to 105-110 and keep the humidity upwards of 75-80% . What are you using for UVB. I wouldn't worry about her eating just yet. Make sure she is hydrated and let her get acclimated.

 

[Rhetoric]

It is hard to give you a gender. Generally tegus will start to show spurs (if male) around 18-24 inches. You need to increase the temperatures, basking temp should be 105-110. It really helps if you tilt a log/branch/whatever so the tegu can decide where it should be. She may be sleeping more because the basking temp is low. What is your set up like? Are you able to post pictures? It really is hard to say how old a tegu is based on size alone.

I received 2 tegus (I think) 2 years ago that were extremely small for their age. I was told they were almost 2 years old but they could have easily passed for a juvie. One of them only had one obvious spur but the other side had not fully developed quite yet. He also had numerous missing toes. I made sure their basking temps were proper and that the humidity was up. One of the best things you can add to a tegus diet (IMO) is a multivitamin. I used it ~5 times a week for a few weeks, which could have been more than needed, but I swear it really helped them out. Make sure you're offering your tegu food every day if it stays up. Make sure you're offering a proper/complete diet. If you are having issues with getting your tegu to eat you could try braining a pinkie/hopper.
Here are a couple pictures of the two that I had, the pictures were taking about 2 months apart.

 

[Tofu]

The story with her/him is that the previous owner bought her/him from Cold-Blooded and ended up giving her back due to not having enough time for her. Maybe that will help clear things up a bit? I was thinking that they just didn't take care for her right and so she is small, or maybe she is just young.. I am using ReptiGlo 10.0, the 26w bulb. Rhetorix, when you say spurs, you mean the ones males get? I do not know if females get spurs..?

 

[Rhetoric]

[attachment=6295]Yes, only the males will get spurs. They feel like little BB's. I've circled where they would be on a male tegu.

Is the bulb sitting on top of the enclosures lid? If so, is the lid mesh or screen? I'm not 100% sure about this one but I have read that screen/mesh lids can filter out up to 40% of the UVB rays. The tube style UVB bulbs are a lot better than the coil bulbs. Coil bulbs can cause health problems. I use a MVB for my lizards and theyve been excellent. I think some members have measured outputs of various bulbs but I don't remember the results.

 

[k1ngph1l]

The story with her/him is that the previous owner bought her/him from Cold-Blooded and ended up giving her back due to not having enough time for her. Maybe that will help clear things up a bit? I was thinking that they just didn't take care for her right and so she is small, or maybe she is just young.. I am using ReptiGlo 10.0, the 26w bulb. Rhetorix, when you say spurs, you mean the ones males get? I do not know if females get spurs..?

First step is to get rid of that uvb coil and replace it with a mvb.

 

[Tofu]

MVB stands for mercury vapor bulb right? If so, what is a good brand to buy? Also, why are coil bulbs bad? The lamp is clamped onto the side, not filtered through a mesh screen. What sized wattage would be appropriate for a 55 gallon tank? The lamp will be about 20-22 inches from the tegu. The hot side is at 95F with an UTH set on high under the basking light. The big dog dish takes up a lot of space so I put i on the cool side of the tank.

I will be building her a larger enclosure in the near future once I get some funds saved up though, I know the 55 gal isn't ideal but it is the best I've got as of now.

What multivitamin do you use?

Also, the spurs, do I have to push down hard to feel them or will they be just under the skin?

Thank you for all of your help!

 

[james.w]

The 55 gallon is already way too small. How are you measuring the temps, and what are you using for a basking light? Is there no lid on the aquarium? If not get ready to start looking for your tegu after she escapes. Don't worry about multi vitamins, feed whole prey (rats, chicks, mice) and fruits and veggies dusted with calcium. Roaches are also a good food source, dusted with calcium as well.

 

[Roadkill]

The tube style UVB bulbs are a lot better than the coil bulbs. Coil bulbs can cause health problem.

So can tubes, and if the one theory is correct, so can MVBs. It isn't an issue with it being a coil bulb, it's an issue with the materials used to manufacture the bulbs, and coils seem to have gotten most of the questionable supplies. If your animal hasn't developed eye problems by now, it isn't going to and your coil bulb is ok to use.

As for the issue of size and age, anyone telling you that a tegu of X age should be N size clearly hasn't got much experience with tegus. In nearly every clutch, you will run into a few individuals that grow very rapidly, and a few individuals that grow very slowly. This does not mean there is anything wrong with them. An average growth rate is just that, an average growth rate. It doesn't mean that is the rate of healthy growth, or that that is the goal you should be shooting for. Did you grow up thinking the shortest kid and tallest kid in class were ill and their parents weren't feeding them properly? Condition of the skin, quality of the digits and nails, the tail, etc., these will give you a better idea of the health of your tegu and whether you should be concerned about the size/age. Judging from what can be seen in your photos, your tegu appears to be in decent health. Tegus should NOT be big and round, that is obese.

The sex of a tegu can be discerned the day it hatches if one knows what to look for. While it is true that the males will develop bumps to either side of the cloaca with age, the scales of those bumps are different between males and females and you can see that difference in very young tegus.

 

[Tofu]

She seems to be more active today, moving around a lot more and even going on top of her hide!

Roadkill what are some signs that skin conditions are bad or nails, etc?