Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Well, this is my first Tegu.
Looks to be columbian, and has that attitude... but definitely not afraid of me, and can tolerate some handling/petting.
Have no clue to it's sex and age???
over 2 1/2 feet long with tail
It was found wandering the streets and luckily someone found him and gave him to the humane society.
Any info would be great!
Thanks,
Evan
idealreptiles.com

I have a Colombian Tegu and she's a lot of fun. While they will never be as tame as the Argentines, they can enjoy being out and about. We feed ours out of the cage (but never by hand), so she associates us with food and good things. We feed her gizzards, chicken, fish (all washed and raw meats), crickets, mealworms, and a mouse once a week. She gets an egg once a month with the shell crushed up. We also give her some fruits and veggies, but we mix it in with her meat because she won't eat it unless it smells like meat. We also sprinkle vitamins on her meat like we do any other captive reptile. She likes a huge water bowl to sit in, high humidity, mulch or shavings to dig around in, and a big hidey to sleep in.

When she wants out, she goes to one corner of her cage and jumps up to the screen. We open her lid and she climbs up our arm. We try not to "catch" her or she just gets angry. We acclimated her to us by leaving our clothing in her cage so she could have our scent around. It was really just myself and one daughter, so she seems to respond to us differently. My daughter is her primary caregiver, so she receives less tail lashing and huffing! We all get huffed at on a daily basis, but we know what her temperament is like and respect it. We don't touch her tail or back legs, we don't feed her by hand, and we know she likes to be petted softly by the side of the neck just behind the ear.

Ours is about 1 1/2 yrs old and is almost 2ft tip to tip. We know she is a female because of the size of her femoral pores. If you are familiar with these on bearded dragons, they are circular pores located near the vent that run crosswise along the rear legs. In the females they are almost not noticeable, but quite a bit larger in the males. I have not handled a male Columbian so I cannot make much of a comparison for you.

Enjoy your new pet!

Laura

and then a GREAT reply comes along.
I am used to the Ball python forum.

This one is three feet, and does NOT like to be picked up.. however, I can pet the top of the head and down the back, and she doesn't mind.
I believe it's a female, as I can't notice any pores... where on dragons (I used to breed them) they are obvious.
She's been a but lately.. I did put a shirt in the cage, and to thank me, she took her first crap on it.
lol
I too found the gizzards and chicken to be her favorite.. along with chicken liver (in small quantities) and mice (I have to start pre-killed and not in cage)
I have been wearing gloves, and petting her with a third glove... she bit it once, and held on for a while... EEEK!
So I am careful.
I am sure she will tame down, but as you said, I expect her to always have an attitude at times.
I would love to breed her, and hope she is a she!
Evan
idealreptiles.com