Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Can anyone give me a rule-of-thumb for the size a hide should be?

I don't have a rule of thumb but do have a suggestion for you. I use a Rubbermaid sweater box and fill it 3/4 of the way with substrate mulch. My guy likes it snug, I think he feels more secure. He digs out what he does not want and then has a nice little burrow to hang out in. Use a old soldering iron or something to cut a good Tegu sized hole in the side that way the edges are not sharp. My experiences with most reptiles is they like it a little snug and without eccessive open space. Just a suggestion that works for me. I am sure others will have many great suggestions and ideas for you.
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Peace!
KofSeattle
Reptile-Like
Here lizard lizard.........

np

Thanks for your suggestion KofSeattle! I'll keep that one in mind. May even have one around the house, if I look hard enough.

I use shallow Rubbermaid hide boxes so I can cover it with dirt to block out the light. I fill it most of the way full and let them do the work of rearranging it. When I open it up they've made a tunnel that's curved so it blocks out the light that ends up in a chamber where they sleep. As they grew up the chamber size expanded to accommodate them. The rule of thumb I used is when the chamber size got too big for them to make the tunnel curved they end up having to plug the entrance hole every night to block out the light. That's when I upgraded the hide box to a bigger one so they don't have to plug the entrance. Right now with 2 adults a Rubbermaid hide box of about 3 1/2 feet by 2 feet (about 5" tall) is big enough.

Mucho thanks for the input Rollin. Sounds like a great idea! Seems bout as close as they can get to their natural tunnels without having a yard to keep them in. Does Rubbermaid actually make hide boxes, or did you rig one up?

I'm willing to bet he rigged them up.

I've found that rubbermaids are awesome for lizards and snakes. I took the smallest one I could find for my 15 inch Tegu (I'd say the rubbermaid was 18 - 20 inches by 10)

I cut it in half and used the bottom of the rubbermaid as a water dish large enough for soaking. And I used the top (The lid half) as the hide. That way, if I want to look inside, I just lift the lid.

(That's the theory, anyways. I covered it in dirt so I'll probably never get to look.)