Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hi there, i've just got a golden tegu, it's about 36 inch long 4 pounds, and it's just as nasty. the old owner said he is captive born and is around 3 years of age, is that normal for a 3 years old tegu to be 36 inch and 4pounds? he has awful attidue, love to bite, and tail whip every time i pick him up it poop on me and claw the skin off of me and bite me and tail whip me in the face, i've never seen such monster, is it possible to tame the monster down or will it be like that for life? will it continue to grow or that's the lenght he's staying at? i let him roam my 4x4x6 closet, i have 8 inches of bedding i use mud, dirt and the stuff they sale at the pet shop, he has heat, should i install som uv light bulb for it or just leave it like that, it feed 2-3 mice every other day, and have monitor can food ever other day to. thanx.

a friend of mine has a golden tegu (about 36 inches if not bigger) and its mean as hell. when he first got it he took the lid off and it jump right towards his face, lucky he pushed it away with his hand before it bit his nose off! they might be able to be tamed (might), but i doubt it (he'll probably be like that for the rest of his life). what id do is take a rat and every time he opens his mouth drop that sucker in there and he should stop leaving his mouth open. just try holding him for as long as you can everyday and see how he comes around. good luck, justin

You'll prolly never get him dog tame but you could at least get him to tolerate you. I tamed one just like yours. I could never really trust him (I always kept my hands away from his face) but holding him and cleaning out his cage wasnt a problem. I wrestled him into the tub everyday and worked with him for about 15-20 mins a day. Over time it got to where I could touch him, then he'd let me hold him up in the water. and so on. I did this same thing with my nile and it worked for him to. Also the guy I got him from fed him live food. I always noticed a difference in his attitude when he was killing what he ate and when he wasnt so I stopped and he seemed to mellow out a bit.

gl

Golden tegus are also know as colombian tegus. Honestly, if you have the patience and you can just take it a day at a time, then I would say it's doable. I own a colombian tegu who started off this way. Granted, he was about two months old when I got him, but now he is "dog tame." You honestly have to be willing to accept really small behavioral changes over an extended period of time. Baby steps is the key phrase. But I think that if you are truly willing to put the time and effort and consistency (that's another really key element), then I think it's possible to tame the tegu. But you need to be really consistent. And I mean like taking him every day, no matter what, for about an hour a day. You'll definitely see results if you stick to a schedule.

Lindsay