Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi

My name is Flavia and I have 13 lizards, among them one tegus, only one, which i bought last year.

As im Brazilian and BW Tegus are from Brazil too they are very easy to find in the wild.But i bought mine from a licensed pet shop.

Well, although i have had my tegus for only one year now he is by far the tamest of my lizards. He is the only one who struggles to come closer to me.My other lizards only accept to be handled but prefer to be left alone in their cages.

For instance, when im reading in my bed at night, my tegus ( his name is Crock) tries hard to climb my bed sides to be able to join me in my bed or in the sofa.When he finally climbs the bed he wants to see what im doing, whether im reading a book or playing computer games at my laptop.Then he takes a nap on my stomach and i can hear him snoring.Just like a dog or a cat!

Well, talking about tegus food, i used to have a hard time choosing him food he likes.Then i decided to try cat food and he ADORED it! I m buying him Whiskas, the soft pellet and he is eating as an ogre!

Is cat food bad to tegus? The brand i buy is cooked in steam so not so much fat inside.

Thanks Flavia

Crock´s photo.

Dog and cat food was made for dogs and cats. Lazy keepers feed their animals that crap. It was not designed for reptiles. Tegus do great on fruits/veggies and whole rodents (mice and rats). You can even feed them insects!
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John Light

I have fed cat food to my Colombian tegu before in a pinch, but I wouldn't recommend it as part of a staple diet.

The cat food I used was made by a company called Blue Buffalo. I chose them because they use whole foods and include foods high in antioxidants. The ingredient list includes a meat, cranberries, sweet potatoes, blueberries, etc. There are very few additives as the food was originally designed for pets with cancer or to prevent cancer. It's about $1.10 for a little can and I'm not sure about the availability in Brazil.

The problem with other cat foods (and dog foods) like Whiskas, Friskies, and other grocery store type brands is that they use by-products, have fillers such as rice/wheat/corn, use a lot of chemical additives, and cat foods are usually high in phosphorous.

Flavia-
This website will tell you everything you need to know--great information, great people. Cat/dog food is NOT good for your tegu.

www.tegutalk.com

Flavia,
I live in Uruguay, we also have large populations of T. merianae.
I keep and breed them, and I dont think giving them pet food from time to time is bad.
When you look at how they live both in the wild and in suburban areas, they are feeding on ANYTHING they find.
And they FLOURISH!!!

These lizards are adapted to being flexible in their diet.
My friend, the late Bert Langerwerf, gave them even human food like cakes.

As a matter of fact, my mother in law told me about picknicking and a tegu stealing the food! Tht is not unusual in the least.

I dont know about Brasil, but since they are considered chicken coop raiders in Uruguay and are killed to protect egg production, some keepers feed them just eggs, and then you get huge fat and unhealthy lizards

If the species itself is flexible, why shouldnt we, too?

David

I must say i do not agree that cat and dog food is bad for your tegu. Our Tegus Feed on Blue Buffalo Wilderness blend dog food. BUT you have to use it in moderation, such as a treat or once in a blue moon small meal. most dog/cat food has fillers so using a high grade low fat no fillers dog food would be a good treat for your tegu. ALSO: try this if its readily available, roll up a ball of ground turkey and put some fruit in the middle. hide in smelling distance from your tegu and they will search for it. its a fun activity and it keeps your tegu thinking so he doesnt get lazy and stays the fun loving interactive tegu you love. just remember to be moderate with your dog food.

also if it available (sorry im not familiar with brazils market contents) *Sandiego zoo ground turkey recipe:
Ground turkey, bone meal, and ground centrum vitamins.*

have a great day
Nick
Reaper Reptiles
served raw