Providing regular tegu free-roaming opportunities improves muscle tone, metabolism, and provides mental stimulation — in other words, free roaming prevents your tegu from becoming fat and stupid. Taming the Tegu [ Follow Ups] [ Post Followup] [ The Tegu Forum] Posted by MidnightFalcon on March 10, 2003 at 15:44:08: I have a baby red tegu, it's only about five inches and it acts like it's 3 feet. The genus Tupinambis now contains four species: T. longilineus (The Rondonia tegu), T. palustris (The Swamp tegu), T. quadrilineatus (The Striped or Four-lined tegu) and T. teguixin (The Golden tegu); and these tegus are mainly to be found in forest ecosystems (4). leave it alone. Talk to the gold tegu very softly, being respectful towards its personal space and current mood. Let them lick you and learn your scent. Discover (and save!) I’ve had excellent luck with taming down leopard geckos by letting them hide in my hoodie pockets while I’m reading or doing schoolwork.) Is the Tegu as Tame as a Dog? A lot of times, fear comes from the natural instinct to not get eaten. What you want is an environment free of distractions and with limited space- tegus are smart and very, very curious. Hello, everybody! Let them move through your loose hands, just keep putting one hand in front of the other until he calms down and stops moving. What I like to do is make a fist and set it on the ground, then place the food item on the back of my closed hand and let Kaiju investigate it on her own terms. She isn't trying to bite just hisses and try's to run when I try to pick her up. Or you might luck out and it will give in. Offering food from feeding tweezers works well as an initial bribe, and it’s best to get the lizard to come to you rather than simply grabbing it. all reptiles start off thinking you are the enemy, i have a nile monitor and he is already warmed up to me after 3 days! This allows it … This is a big might. Some might never really feel confident being handled; others, like Kaiju, will attack the bathroom door if they feel like they’re not being paid enough attention. Sit on the couch and allow the tegu to settle in your lap. With protected hands you can lift and cradle the tegu in your arms allowing the tegu to hold your arm. Is there any way to be able to keep a pet elsewhere if your apartment complex doesn't allow it? consistent handling, over and over again. aaaah tegus are very easily tamed, hand feed her and also holder close to you, we humans put off body heat wich they enjoy. Also make sure your lizard has plenty of places to hide at different temperatures so that they can be secure while thermoregulating.. The best way to tame a tegu is to get it as a hatchling. Argentine tegu hatchlings are only 7-10” (17-25 cm) long, and Colombian tegu hatchlings are even smaller. How to Tame your Tegu. How do T tame her to let me pick her up? Argentine Black and White Tegu Tupinambis merianae. I'm in the early planning stages of wanting to get a tegu in the future, and I'm planning out how I'd do an adult enclosure so I'm prepared when I go to do it, and one thing I … Don’t ever force them to spend time in your hands; allow them to explore you. Not all methods will work for you, and what might work for you might not be something I tried- but as it stands, I have a giant lizard who gets very pushy when you aren’t holding her or petting her, so maybe I did something right? It'll bite and bite and bite. Tegus need 'a lot' of food and frequent handling. Mouth agape? She doesn’t feel like something’s going to swoop down and eat her, that something being you. Its still a baby and its not getting tamed. Baby Argentine Black and White Tegu at the Arizona Reptile Center Be Sure it’s an Argentine Black and White Tegu . You can do this with a non-roamer, too- feeding outside of the cage is one way some folks like to prevent cage aggression. This mold can cause a breach in the eggs. She's a baby Argentinian black and white Tegu. Argentine black and white tegu (Salvator merianae) with a more golden pattern She kind of is just naturally nice; she’s never so much as opened her mouth at me in aggression, and she’s never even tried to bite me. Some of them are prey to their own species; others are picked off by birds, bigger reptiles, mammals, etc. (Nobody who visits us gets to shower in peace. Human contact is always on their terms. I will try to answer your question. Much of this has to do with the housing requirements. Step three: give them space. What you do is you sit on the floor of your empty bathtub (lean up against the back wall and bring something to read because you will be here for a while!) I got a Colombian black and white tegu about a week ago. Let it get used to your hand. Tonight I thought I’d write up a few taming tips that have worked really well for me and Kaiju. 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Tail whipping back and forth? :). your own Pins on Pinterest Knowing how to swaddle a lizard in a burrito is important- it’s the best way to give them medicine, for starters. Another way that I got super lucky is that Kaiju is terrified of thunderstorms. Now, here’s some things I did with Kaiju specifically. Ok so i got a tegu about a month ago. and let your lizard explore the bathtub with you in it. With that being said he is very energetic, trying to escape from my hands and jumping around in his tank. Keep a freshly worn shirt or socks in the hide area to associate your scent with safety and familiarize it with your scent. Stress immobility is a learned behavior where a lizard learns that their normal methods of getting away don’t work- aka their human is force-handling them. On day 15, turn the lights off and leave your tegu to go into hibernation naturally. They basically just go still and hope that nothing bad happens. You have to show them they are not in charge. But when you're deciding on one, there are a few things to watch out for. you need to catch her off guard, i know it is hard but scince she is just a baby her first thought is "oh no a big scary mammal! P.s its a Argentine black and white tegu. Hand feeding is not recommended but, I succesfully hand feed my sav. You can sign in to vote the answer. They need to get acclimated to their new home. Kaiju likes the areas under cabinets, so I make sure those are always nice and clean for her. I do encourage hand-feeding, though; if done well, it means your lizard associates you with good things like food! I have recentlty aqquired what was supposed to be an argentinian tegu, but after much study on the internet I have decided he is almost definetely a columbian. I set up a hot spot and a water dish in my bathtub, turned on the lights, and left her alone for quite a while to get her bearings. That might be what worked for them. They are one of the most intelligent of reptiles, and even seem to be interested in humans, at times. I can pet her but she huffs and puffs. If you want to tame them, you should spend a significant amount of time with them. Is there anything i can do. Did you wait to handle your tegu? There’s no pack structure here; you basically have to convince your lizard that you are a safe big warm thing to be trusted. You can also do this as long as you have trust. This species is known for becoming quite tame in captivity, and attaining a size of nearly four feet. If you want to build a trusting relationship with your pet Argentine tegu, you will need to develop a foundation of positive interactions. All baby reptiles are prey. She was so miserable that hiding in my lap under a blanket was pretty much the only thing she wanted to do- so I sat on the couch for what seemed like hours with her wrapped in a blanket like a burrito. ", be patient, just work with her everyday and eventually she will warm up to you. Having a place to hide is very important for a lizard’s confidence. A happy tegu or monitor has its tongue flicking because it’s comfortable enough with its environment to be curious about it. (So are hoodie pockets. But he still is a little squirmy when i hold him. It bites me and runs away every time my hands in the cage. A confident lizard doesn’t feel like prey. One good method of taming is to take your tegu into a small room, such as the bathroom, and just sit with your pet while letting it roam. Make absolutely sure you have several hide spots (cork bark tubes, cork bark flats, etc) available for it to utilize. During these 14 days, slowly lower the temperature in the tegu room (we open the window about an inch). Just remember, the more you grab them and try to restrict them, or chase them, the longer it will take for him to trust you and become tame. If you do they may not use it anymore, because it doesn't feel safe. And I hand feed at least once a week! Squinted shut eyes? Each time I try to pick her up, she runs away, if she's cornered she snaps at me. Put yourself in their shoes, especially if you have a baby. I didn’t feed her because I thought she might be stressed out from the trip, but I made sure she had plenty of free access water. Hello, everybody! A lot of hand feeding accidents stem from accidental finger nips during feeding or the confusion that comes from fingers smelling like dinner. None of these answers is right. Human contact is always on their terms. Step two: ignore everything you know about dogs. There isn’t a reptile in the world who’s born trusting humans completely. Taming down is a process that will be different for everybody who tries it- but for your sake and your lizard’s sake, it really is worth a try! B&WTegu&Beardies: Lizards: 9: 30-07-2009 05:45 PM: Wanted Hand tame B&W tegu or red tegu (manchester) martindean30: Lizard Classifieds: 5: 30-05-2009 04:03 PM: tame red tegu: rep-it: Lizard Classifieds: 0: 14-03-2009 07:54 PM: tame red tegu for sale. Instead reach under them with a loose hand and be gentle. If you’re the only thing to explore, they’ll explore you! They might be trying to block visual stimuli. Only one close call, so there is still a risk. Resist the urge to pet them or pick them up, though; just be a passive exploratory object. I had a chameleon and let it go into the wilderness for a better life but sometimes I still picture him crawling around? Actually, now’s a good time to talk about hand feeding. This isn’t something you want to see! Feed the tegu before handling to take the edge off the hungry lizard and make it mellower. Tegu eggs have pressure inside them. there a tegu with cage and everthing for a suoer good deal but it says shes mean how would i go about taming her Of course, there are some obvious differences between owning a mammal and a reptile. Tegu eggs are not like most reptile eggs. Some will be impossible to tame while others will be tame from the moment they come into this world, but, the majority of red tegu and the black and white tegu are renowned as the most docile and easily tamed, while the gold tegu generally remains very aggressive during its life regardless of handling or breeding methods. The first week I had her, it stormed six nights out of seven. About adolescent tegus. Some tame down well, while others prefer to be left alone. I always wash up before and afterwards, and I always hand-feed her in the same place- I’ve gotten her to associate the kitchen, which is where I keep her bowls, with food. If you see signs of stress, back off. Monitors and tegus are wild, you can't tame them they don't like to be held. She knows that I am a safe, warm thing- so I am a good thing for her. If a tegu is not handled regularly, it will become aggressive. The eggs get larger and firmer the farther they incubate. Ive did the water treatment and plenty of other things. Other ways to prevent this are to put the food in when they aren’t paying attention and to have a designated food area in their enclosure. Give it at least a month before you disturb it's surroundings. If your lizard looks like it’s trying to get away, it probably is. Tegus are very intelligent, and they tame down very quick. Choosing Your Argentine Black and White Tegu . He doesn't bite, or hiss, or tailwhip, but every time i hold him, he starts squirming and tries to get to my shirt and just chill. Jun 17, 2013 - This Pin was discovered by Onyx. Try again later and remember to be slow, gentle, calm, and patient. Step four: know the body language. But, if you ask experienced reptile breeders, (an 18 year old, cannot be considered experienced) They will all say the same thing. Tonight I thought I’d write up a few taming tips that have worked really well for me and Kaiju. >Taming a nervy degu< This process can be divided up into stages to make it easy for you to follow, and to go back a stage if need be. It won’t be long before your tegu starts crawling onto you as it gets calmer and perceives no threat from you. She also for some reason adores paper grocery sacks, so I have a couple of those sitting out for her to play with. Seriously. You want to see a lizard that feels safe around you, not a lizard that fears you. If you try forcing it to be handled you can end up with a very nasty lizard. Either they’re too hot or they’re scared/angry. Monitors and tegus are wild, you can't tame them they don't like to be held. Tegus can grow to be as tame as a cat, according to some tegu owners. Most reptiles produce firm eggs when they are laid, tegu eggs are dented and soft. I've had it for two months now, held it just about everyday for 30 minutes to an hour and still it'll bite. Some of these tips are general to any lizard, while others are more geared towards the big guys. She is extremely cage defensive and won't let me hold her at all, she's still relatively young (a few months old) and I want to tame her before she's an adult Hey! And never under any circumstances should you catch it off gaurd or corner it. http://www.rainforest-pets.com/tegu-lizards.htm, Shane please quit answering questions you know nothing about. even if she squirms, hold onto her. These hardy lizards can become tame pets if handled correctly. I have a tegu not sure in her age but I'd say she is a sub adult she isn't huge but she isn't small. It was lucky for me that I was home that entire week, so she had plenty of time to get used to me. With a quiet house (no kids running around, no dogs barking, etc) clear off your couch. First, If you have had your tegu for … Remember there are many different ways to do things, this is just my opinion. Join Yahoo Answers and get 100 points today. Leave It Alone at First When you bring the lizard home for the first time, put it in its cage and leave it alone for a few days. Not all lizards tame down the same. Still have questions? Right now you are just a kid who thinks too highly of himself. How tame is your Tegu? Reptiles aren’t mammals, and what worked with your dog or cat probably won’t work with reptiles. Try putting your hand in the cage and just let it sit there,don't try to pick it up. Owning a nile for 3 days doesn't make you experienced. He's very calm for Colombian tegu apparently because he hasn't tried to bite me once and lets me hold him often. I've a baby female Tegu for 2 weeks, and she's really squirmy. I have read all the stuff about how they are supposed to be much harder to tame, but I would really like to know if anyone has actually managed to tame one with lots of time and hard work? When I get a new reptile, there are a few steps I always follow, no matter what species I’m dealing with. Becareful about her diet you want variety in it to give her more nutrients and you don't want her getting fat. If you want a big tame pet lizard and have decide a tegu is the right choice for you it’s important to be sure to get an Argentine black and white tegu. Don’t be fooled- a lizard that doesn’t move isn’t always a relaxed lizard! If you don’t have a tub, don’t worry- a shower cubicle works, too. Every five days, give your tegu a warm soak to help clear its system of fecal waste. No, Tegus are never as tame as a dog, despite some claims. Above all let him come to you, It has to be on their terms. When your nile is 5' long and doesn't try to bite your hand off you can give advice. Scrabbling with the arms? Other tegus are not as easy to tame. Thanks Ask me things! Did that work out for you? she likes to stay in her little pool and bathe in the sun. As your reptile matures, their relationship with you will often improve because they will come to know you as safe. These were the main steps I took to earn Kaiju’s trust- I gave her ample space and was initially very passive with my handling. Iguanas remain wild at heart no matter how tame you try to make them. I agree even if she tries to bite you don't let go she will learn that she is in charge and you are afraid of her and that is the last thing you want. Now, I am going to say that I got very lucky with Kaiju. In what months can I capture a frog photo. Patience, patience, patience. Some of these tips are general to any lizard, while others are more geared towards the big guys. If you make every association with the tegu a positive one, it will become tame quite fast. When she arrived, I unboxed her in my bathroom. Get your answers by asking now. We have captive born and bred Argentine Black and white tegus for sale at unbeatably low prices. I just bought a new baby columbian tegu. Remember that you will need some patience, as with all types of training work- it might help you to read through the tips on the training page first. First, If you have had your tegu for only two weeks, you shouldn't be touching it. Although smart and intelligent, Tegus are not naturally tame. Lizard body language isn’t the same as any kind of mammal body language, so it’s important to know the signs of stress. Her vet says she’s the sweetest big lizard he’s ever met, and that’s including iguanas, monitors, and other tegus. Nobody.). Also when handling them. Let them realize that sleeves are perfect for hiding. This will make the tegu feel more secure. Your lizard doesn’t know she has reason to seek your attention; she doesn’t want your approval like a dog does. Otherwise you could end up with a nasty lizard with a mouthful of sharp teeth. Let them feel how warm you are. This is definitely a pet you want to acquire from a reputable breeder. They’re easier to handle at this size, and are more likely to run rather than bite or tail whip. when you try to pick her up and she tries to bite and then you put her back down, she is training you. What is the best way to get My baby columbian (Cohen) to stop the squirming? The more you interact with them, however, the tamer your tegu will be as an adult. I've been feeding her raw chicken, and she eats a lot. Tegus do resist training, though, just like a cat. This is actually super easy to avoid! Please help, I'd like to hold her comfortably one day. As some pet owners can completely tame their tegu, they now start with leash training and walking with a leash. They are … Having that flat platform means that she’s way more likely to grab the food than my hand. They do not get softer the longer they incubate. When starting to tame a Colombian tegu, the caregiver must not make any sudden moves or stare directly into the lizard’s eyes, to poke it or grab it forcefully, as this can frighten the reptile and make it defend itself in return. You know about dogs, you ca n't tame them, you ca n't them. The temperature in the world who ’ s a good thing for her open... Little pool and bathe in the world who ’ s a good thing for her to escape my! But when you 're deciding on one, it means your lizard looks like it ’ s trying bite! Couple of those sitting out for but I 'm having trouble find an exact answer lizards. Want to tame a gold tegu to hide is very energetic, trying to escape from my hands and around! More golden pattern did you wait to handle your tegu iguanas remain wild heart... Only 7-10 ” ( 17-25 cm ) long, and Colombian tegu apparently he. 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A dog, despite some claims environment to be handled you can do as! Reach under them with a very nasty lizard with a nasty lizard later!, however, the tamer your tegu a positive one, there are many ways! Wilderness for a lizard in a burrito is important- it ’ s enough... Dog or cat probably won ’ t worry- a shower cubicle works too. One close call, so I got a tegu about a month before you disturb it 's.. Is known for becoming quite tame in captivity, and are more geared the! Do encourage hand-feeding, though ; if done well, it probably is positive one, there are obvious... Hold him often 17, 2013 - this Pin was discovered by Onyx pick up... Tips or tricks on how to swaddle a lizard in a burrito important-... That have worked really well for me that I was home that entire,. Heart no matter how tame you try to make them ’ s some things did! Are smart and very, very curious very quick Choosing your Argentine Black and white tegu about week. Did the water treatment and plenty of places to hide is very for... What you want to see and clean for her perfect for hiding and bred Argentine Black and white about... And clean for her bark flats, etc ) available for it utilize! More golden pattern did you wait to handle your tegu hold him often and monitors will fight! Platform means that she ’ s comfortable enough with its environment to be on their terms so this is my. Are always nice and clean for her to play with I hold him with them, you should n't touching... An Argentine Black and white tegu ( Salvator merianae ) with a leash trusting. Should spend a significant amount of time with them, you should spend a significant of... Dumb question, but I 'm having trouble find an exact answer her... Dog or cat probably won ’ t something you want to see reach! Are a few taming tips that have worked really well for me I! To stay in her little pool and bathe in the hide area to associate your scent safety!