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Since I have owned quite a few I thought I would share what I know and have learned from keeping these GREAT lizards.
There a few diffferent kinds of Tegu's.
The argentine Tegu's
-Red Tegu
-Blue Tegu
-B&W Tegu
-and people say there is a yellow tegu but I think it is just a columbian B&W with a more yellowish color.
The argentine B&W grows to be the largest, getting up to 4 and a half feet in total length. And getting up to 15 pounds.
The Red wich is the second biggest can reach lenghts of 4 feet. Same with the blue tegu. The Columbian Tegu's which are very different from argentine Tegu's are smaller in overall size, and have been known to be more aggresive. While argentine tegu's can and do hibernate if there temps drop, Columbians will not.
FOOD-
Argentine Tegu's eat a large variety of foods-
Many kinds of fruits-
Banana
Mellon
Strawberries
Peaches
Pears
ect.
Insects-
Superworms
Mealworms
Crickets
Roaches
Ect.
FUZZY"S-
Pinki mice and rats, and as they grow larger they can eat full grown mice.
Columbian Tegu's are strictly meat eaters, no fruits there.
HEATING-
A basking temp of 95 and a background temp in the mid 80's is perfect for both species of Tegu(argentine and columbian)
LIGHTING-
Full spectrum UV lighting is a must for healthy Tegu's. Also a calcium supplement must be added to there food.
CAGING-
A 40 gallon breeder cage is ok for a babie Tegu, but it will soon outgrow it. A good size cage for a tegu is 6' length, by 2' depth, by 2' high. The bigger the better.
AGE-
Tegu's have been known to live up to 14 years, but most reach the age of 10. They are very hardy lizards, and can put up with alot of punishment.
Care-
Make sure there temps are right and they are eating a good diet, mixture of fruits and meat. I dont suggest feeding them raw food such as raw eggs and meat. Even though in the wild there food isn't cooked, I think it is just better to be on the safer side. Make sure they have a damp hideout so they can shed properly. They need a large water bowl for soaking and drinking, but clean it out regualry cause they often defacate in it.
I don't think I left out anything...
Ohh for a new Tegu owner, buy a Argentine B&W, they are the eaiest to tame, and I think are the most attractive. And I forgot to mention, there are to kinds of argentine B&W's. The true morph and the chocaon morph(think thats how you spell it) The true morph has more black while the Chocoan(also called the white head) has more white in its body and has an all white head.
Tegu's are great lizards, once you buy one you will want another, trust me. So I hope this helped out at least someone, I know this is a boa site, but there is no Tegu site so I did my best.
The only place I trust in buying argentine B&W tegu's is...
And a good place to buy all species is www.BlueTegu.com
Hope this helped
Any questions let me know.
There a few diffferent kinds of Tegu's.
The argentine Tegu's
-Red Tegu
-Blue Tegu
-B&W Tegu
-and people say there is a yellow tegu but I think it is just a columbian B&W with a more yellowish color.
The argentine B&W grows to be the largest, getting up to 4 and a half feet in total length. And getting up to 15 pounds.
The Red wich is the second biggest can reach lenghts of 4 feet. Same with the blue tegu. The Columbian Tegu's which are very different from argentine Tegu's are smaller in overall size, and have been known to be more aggresive. While argentine tegu's can and do hibernate if there temps drop, Columbians will not.
FOOD-
Argentine Tegu's eat a large variety of foods-
Many kinds of fruits-
Banana
Mellon
Strawberries
Peaches
Pears
ect.
Insects-
Superworms
Mealworms
Crickets
Roaches
Ect.
FUZZY"S-
Pinki mice and rats, and as they grow larger they can eat full grown mice.
Columbian Tegu's are strictly meat eaters, no fruits there.
HEATING-
A basking temp of 95 and a background temp in the mid 80's is perfect for both species of Tegu(argentine and columbian)
LIGHTING-
Full spectrum UV lighting is a must for healthy Tegu's. Also a calcium supplement must be added to there food.
CAGING-
A 40 gallon breeder cage is ok for a babie Tegu, but it will soon outgrow it. A good size cage for a tegu is 6' length, by 2' depth, by 2' high. The bigger the better.
AGE-
Tegu's have been known to live up to 14 years, but most reach the age of 10. They are very hardy lizards, and can put up with alot of punishment.
Care-
Make sure there temps are right and they are eating a good diet, mixture of fruits and meat. I dont suggest feeding them raw food such as raw eggs and meat. Even though in the wild there food isn't cooked, I think it is just better to be on the safer side. Make sure they have a damp hideout so they can shed properly. They need a large water bowl for soaking and drinking, but clean it out regualry cause they often defacate in it.
I don't think I left out anything...
Ohh for a new Tegu owner, buy a Argentine B&W, they are the eaiest to tame, and I think are the most attractive. And I forgot to mention, there are to kinds of argentine B&W's. The true morph and the chocaon morph(think thats how you spell it) The true morph has more black while the Chocoan(also called the white head) has more white in its body and has an all white head.
Tegu's are great lizards, once you buy one you will want another, trust me. So I hope this helped out at least someone, I know this is a boa site, but there is no Tegu site so I did my best.
The only place I trust in buying argentine B&W tegu's is...
And a good place to buy all species is www.BlueTegu.com
Hope this helped
Any questions let me know.
and there is a Gold tegu, we took one in many yrs ago befour the B&W was popular, this tegu got loose from the owner and got outside and was hit by a car, sad to say there wasnt much we could do way back then, they are still around but not popular as they do have a attitude, bad temper, they are not like the B&W or other color that is out there today.. But still excellent post!
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