Size of enclosure

[Der-Boa-Lieber]

I have heard many different ideas on how big an enclosure should be or ideal size for an adult. I have also heard many different opinions on the size of the enclosure in which it should or should not be for a young tegu.

I am building a 8'L x 3'D x 2'T cage for my Tegu which i will be getting as soon as i build it and get it water proofed. The question i have is this. If i were to get a young Tegu say the body length without the tail is 7'', would he/she be fine in the 8' enclosure.

I ask this becuase there has been so many different opinions on this from "no you should not becuase it can stress them out being is such a larg enclosure" to "it doesnt really matter because in the wild, they would be in a much larger inviroment" tp "you can but it would be harder to feed them".

Let me know your opinion on this matter. I would rather not have to put a Tegu in a glass tank untill it reaches a bigger siz becuase Tegus are very active on there little "sperts" and i have a feeling he/she would start rubbing his/her nose raw from the glass.

 

[dorton]

As long as it has plenty of hide opportunities I don't see how it would be a problem. Like you said in the wild, their enviroment would be much larger than 40gal.

 

[jose2187]

it depends on size of the animal growth rate eating habits and hibernation cycle . 6x3x2 i think is a good size for a tegu

 

[shiftylarry]

I don't think 6x3x2 is a good size for a tegu that gets over 4 ft.

The orginal poster's idea is better, but 2 ft isn't very tall. Add substrate, and you've got a tegu sandwiched between dirt and sealing. If I were keeping a tegu, I'd have about 2 ft, so it can burrow properly for hibernation.

 

[jose2187]

tegu's dont really climb, i don't use a deep substrate maybe 3 inches. they all have hides that are on top of the ground full of mulch and moss that they sleep in and alot of people don't have tegu's 4 ft long. bigger is always better but most indoor kept and raised tegu's will do fine in an enclosure that big.

if you took a tegu and watched it all day they bask most of the time when they get hot they go in the hide, back and forth same routine. they are pretty lazy animals, but they love attention

 

[shiftylarry]

I know they don't climb much, I was mostly referring to substrate. However, you never know what an animal will do until you give it the chance. Most Red tailed boa cages are pretty short, however my friend Ben Aller provides an 8 ft tall enclosure. That sucker goes all the way up and all the way down. I know, completely different animals, but I bet if you gave your tegus some thick, low lying logs and branches, it would make ample use of them. But my main point was about the substrate, because tegus do enjoy digging.

 

[jose2187]

I understan that, I value everyones opinion and I love the animals I raise, sounds like you love yours too. I am reffering mostly to my setup,and what works for me, hides that come out of the cage and sit on top of the ground, if I was gonna set up a cage with out a topside hide i would give them some deep substrate for digging and logs too. The reason I recomend top side hides is because they are easy to monitor for waste and humidity, and people have alot of problems with humidity so I recomend this system to help them out.

 

[Der-Boa-Lieber]

Thanks for the info guys. I like 8' x3'deep cages for the extra space and comfort sense i do not breed nor hibernate Tegus. Now when i had my 28 Boas i did not keep them all in nice roomy cages for comfort, i kept them in the least amount as possible to save room while also making sure they could stretch enough for good health and breeding.

So i really dont need enough substraight for the Tegu to hibernate in becuase he/she wont be although i put atleast 4-5'' of cypress mulch on the bottom which would leave enough room for him/her to travel around and of course throw the substrait around in the water dish like they seem to love doing.

 

[shiftylarry]

Not to get on your case, but 8'x3' is not "extra space and comfort" it is the bare bones minimum of what a responsible keeper should provide. Your boas are boas, a tegu is a tegu. Boas eat like once every two weeks and have much slower metabolisms. I don't see the comparison.