Reptile & Amphibian Forums

my room is being painted tomorrow at the last minute and i need to know if my tegu would be ok in here with the windows and door fully open because moving his tank to another room would be very difficult.

if there is proper ventilation would he be alright for the day? or should i move him? i know i'm probably better off moving him but again it's VERY hard. so i'd like to get advice on this. thanks.

If he's full grown I would pick up a dog crate (or borrow one from a friend) and move him to a different room for a day. That way you dont have to move his whole cage, and while the dog crate isn't good for long term use, it will make fine temp houseing. Also if he's just a weeeeee little one you can put him in a big 55 gallon tote for the day.
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Tegan

I would strongly recomend you move him if not the whole tank to another room and still ventilate the room being painted well. Paint fumes are strong and linger a while as house paint while dry to the touch does not fully cure for about three to four days if nto longer depending on how thick it was applied. (My wife was a pro painter when we met) It would be better for your tegu. Also once the paint is dry and you put him back I would still vent the room with cracked windows for a few days after the paining just to make sure the fumes are gone.
Like the other post said there are tons of things you could use to put him in short term. If he is full grown or of decent size you could also just let him roam in your room or close him in the bathroom. When we painted I put my three in my bedroom and closed the closet (too many hiding spots) and just let them have the run of the place. I was surprised it only took me thirty minutes to find them all when we were done. They were about 2 1/2 feet at that point. good luck to you.
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Beau W.

"There are no athiests in foxholes. It is not an argument against athiesm but rather one against foxholes." James Morrow

Only 30 minutes? I recently let my tegu (over 3 feet) roam my BOQ and decided to let him out for the night, there were no hiding spots available really and as big as he is, I figured everything would be ok. I set up the night heat lamp on my dresser along with some newspaper and his water bowl figuring he'd spend the night there, but of course he wanted to roam the room so I figured ok.. fell asleep and woke up the next day and he was nowhere in site. Looked under the dresser, behind the small refrigrator, under the bed, in my dvds box, not much else in the BOQ, frustrated I left for work, came home, looked a little more, nothing, then headed back to my parents house and came back the next day (I also setup the day heat lamps - UVA/UVB to replace the night light, hoping he'd come out to bask) and spent about 45 minutes tearing my BOQ apart, laundry, anything I could see. Finally I thought to look at my bed mattress and did the typical "pat search" (I'm used to this with inmates) and felt something bulky in there. Turning the mattress over, sure enough there was a hole in it and when I looked inside I saw my tegu in there. I had to cut open the mattress even more (ruining it) just to get him out.
After that, the only time he comes out now is when I'm with him, and when I'm not, back to the cage.

Back to the question at hand though, I agree with the suggestions offered, you could even just spend the day with him (if you're not the one painting) take him to a free room, the bathroom (as suggested) would be a great spot. He can't really hide anywhere in there and he'll have plenty of room to explore. You could fill up the tub with warm water and have him soak for a half hour or so as well. I soak with my tegu several times per week and he stays in (falling asleep most of the time) until I come to get him.

I guess I should have let you know that I have had that same experience before with my guys. Tore the house apart looking for them. two days went by and I was starting to really get worried. Finally my wife asked me to move some of my military gear out of the room for easier searching. Well low and behold there they were all wrapped up at the very bottom of my sleeping bag. They were happy as could be. I have since figured out where they like to hide. Each one of mine has thier favorite spots they will go to. That is why it only took me 30 min to find them when I let them loose in the room. You will figure yours out too it just takes a little time. Good luck and do not let thier size fool you they can fit in some very small spaces.
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Beau W.

"There are no athiests in foxholes. It is not an argument against athiesm but rather one against foxholes." James Morrow

I put him in the tub for the day. I gae hime some towels and instead of putting water in the tub I gave him a big pan of water to lie in. I had to go to work so my parents helped out by giving him fresh warm water every once and a while so he was fine. He was quite happy to get back under his lights. Thank you all for the advice!