Reptile & Amphibian Forums

red argentine tegu...how do i sex it??????all its doing is sleeping....its 2 yrs old...40inches long...not eating..very tempermental,,,someone please help me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As far as sexing, find a vet that specializes in reptiles, Males probe Deep, Females shallow is all I have to say there. Sleeping all the time CAN be normal, but there are other factors that can CAUSE over-sleeping in Tegus. Check your heat, the cage temperature should be 80-90 degrees, and the basking area up to 100-120 degrees. Theres also diet, your Tegu should be getting fruit, calcium dusted crickets, and mice (Judge what size of mouse to feed your Tegu by the size of its head), heres a page with a list of fruit you can feed to your Tegu, and what not to feed your Tegu:
http://www.dovesoft.net/~tegu/food.asp

I recommend fruit high in Vitamin C, like Kiwi, which is readily available. Shedding can even cause lazyness, make sure your Tegu has no extra shed still stuck to it, check the tail, toes and eyelids for extra shed. Your most likely cause to all the sleeping is the temperature.

Temperment is probably the hardest to deal with, if your Tegu is aggressive to the point it will snap at your hand, you will have to give it more time, just sit infront of the cage for a few minutes everyday so it can see you can get used to your presence. On another note, when you try picking up your tegu, slip one hand under its chest, and your other hand supporting its tail and hips, do not wrap your hands around it, most animals in general don't like to be grabbed. Back on aggressivness, try to pet your Tegu, if it doesn't move away, hiss, or bite, try picking it up the way I explained.

Hope this helps.