Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i have a fairly young red arg. tegu my first one and i was wondering if they dont eat too much because mine is eating very sparingly i put 4 crickets in and he will only eat 2 he wont take but one bite of the dog food and kiwi isntmuch better, does anybody have any answers to this?? i dont know maybe im over reacting seeing how all my other lizards are very aggresive when they eat.

thanks, ben

Hello I am new with the Tegus also I have a blue and a b&w my blue will eat anything and everything she see's the b&w however is a little newer to the family and he will only eat every other day and he will not touch crickets. I feed crickets ground turky, and also poached egg. I usually mix my diced fruit in with the ground meat so they will eat it. I do not know how long you have had it at the house but maybe it is a little stressed from the move to a new home. give him a few days to adjust and as long as he eats something and is using the bathroom fine I would not worry too bad too soon. hope this helps, There are many others on this site that have so much more knowledge than I so maybe they will tell you something different. Good luck

Beau

Ah man it seems like a lot of people are having a hard time with their tegus appetite lately : (. He should be every bit as hungry as your other lizards. First thing check your temps with a digital thermometer probe. Make it 120 under the basking spot and 80 on the other end, make sure it doesn't dip below 75 at all. He'll take a few days to adjust if you just got him. Other then that he might be thinking of hibernating.

Mine is picky but will eat everyday. Yours sounds picky also - just try all kinds of different fruits and definitely pinky mice and maybe lean ground turkey. The items you mentioned are what my arg. red doesn't like. He won't eat kiwis or crickets - I think maybe the crickets are too fast for him. Mine eats oranges, bananas, mangos, and LOVES pinky mice. I would stay away from the dog food and offer as a snack - it can be fatty. I wouldn't worry too much unless he doesn't like the items I mentioned either.
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-reptilian9

Also new to Tegus, however my Red is currently 17" long and eats on average 20 crickets in one sitting! He ate 2 fuzzy mice yesterday without even chewing! He eats like this EVERY DAY! However, each reptile is different. I would definitely check his temps though and make sure he is warm enough. That would definitely make him not feel like eating. I would say that if it keeps up and he starts looking thin or lethargic you should take him to the vet.

Good luck and keep us posted!!
Donna