Tegu sleeping outside of the tank?

[Hibiki]

Hi guys, my b&w tegu is 6 months old now. I currently have a 4' by 2' with 4'' deep reptisoil as substrate and some live plants in it as a declaration. I have set up a misting system so that the humidity in the tank is always in the 60~80 range. He used to burrow and sleep in that tank every day. However, recently I bought a fluffy dog bed for him to play with and he really enjoyed hiding under it, to an extent that he would scratch the glasses for half an hour at night so that I can let him out and sleep under the dog bed. I personally would like to give him whatever he wants, but my major concern is that the humidity in the room could be as low as 35ish, which may not be good for his health.

What do you think? Does tegu know what's best and most comfortable for him? Or should I keep him inside the humid tank for the nights? I would love to let him have both the fluffiness and humidity, which will not be made possible until I move him to a larger enclosure in the future. Thanks for your help in advance.

 

[Debita]

Hmmmmmm...I think you'll get differing opinions here. Most seem to think that the humidity is extremely important. I think yours sounds a little low at 60%. I live in an arid location so I keep mine at 80%... I see most people claim 70-80 is the norm. I would have a hard time not letting him sleep where he wants, but don't you worry that he'll take off somewhere? From my experience, they will do themselves in by finding a cold dark place. Their energy drops, and they become slugs. Not sure why they don't seek out heat in those moments, but it seems like they can't or won't. In which case, now it's very unhealthy. That said, I've known of several people that thought their Tegu was gone/escaped, but they returned with the hope of food. Some have put out bask lights and food right where they escaped and that's worked too.

Anyway - if you're sure it's secure...I don't think it will hurt. Bump up the fish oil in the diet so he won't have a hard time shedding.

 

[Zyn]

If it sheds well then I wouldn’t worry about it every now and again maybe try a bigger hide his old one may now be to small for him to feel secure

 

[VersacesMama]

My girl spends her day in her enclosure w 70-80% humidity. When i get home from work we spend time together watching tv in bed. She eventually crawls under the throw blanket (and under the cat) and falls asleep. If i put her back into her enclosure i get attitude. I just let her sleep in the bed and move her in the morning. She seems totally fine with that arrangement.

 

[Member1421]

I don't personally use heat at night in the enclosure, so it seems like evening bedtime might be okay. The only thing that would worry me is a lack of humidity. My humidity gets higher at night, which I freaked out about in the beginning, but I came to realize that it is more likely in nature and especially since he sleeps in his hide anyway. 80-90% is the range at night with a fan that is on a timer to keep it from 100%. My guy is healthy as ever, so just monitor for that.