PDA

View Full Version : What to feed my new tegu



nathantheawesometegu
02-10-2013, 07:29 AM
I just got a new baby columbian tegu, his names cohen...about 1-2 days ago i feed him a fresh egg (from my chickens) with the shells, he seemed to love it! But he doesnt seem to want 2 eat any mealworms, and realy anything else....well i've only tried mealworms and eggs. But any suggestions on what to feed him to get him eating? And how often would i have 2 feed him? He's only about 3 to 5 months old! Also 1 other thing, is that he seems to have 1 watery eye....just 1 a little bit more watery than the other, anything i should be worried about there? Thanks!


-nathan

Sgun020
02-10-2013, 09:17 AM
hello

i think it's normal for tegus not to eat a lot when they just arrived at new place. i got my tegu when he was around 3 months, took him about a week to settle down. i fed him minced beef, beef liver, chicken hearts, minced turkey,pinky mice once to twice a week, dust calcium on meals without bones. since his prolapse,i include fruits and veges into his meals.

i'm not sure about raw egg,i don't think it's a good idea to give raw egg to tegu to minimise salmonella incident. i would either boil or do flash stir fried egg so it's still a bit gooey.

hope this helps.

as for the watery eye,it'd be helpful if you could post a picture.

Montegu
02-10-2013, 10:29 AM
tegus dont really get sominilla btw. theres lots of articles about that alone, but eggs should still be cooked because there is a chemical or something in a raw egg that is potentially harmful but the heat destroys it when cooked... my columbian is a lil picky too and so i take raw eggs and chicken or beef or worms and basically make an omelet with them and thats about the only way that he will go after it

Sgun020
02-10-2013, 02:00 PM
tegus dont really get sominilla btw. theres lots of articles about that alone, but eggs should still be cooked because there is a chemical or something in a raw egg that is potentially harmful but the heat destroys it when cooked... my columbian is a lil picky too and so i take raw eggs and chicken or beef or worms and basically make an omelet with them and thats about the only way that he will go after it

ah..i see..thanks for the info montegu.

laurarfl
02-10-2013, 04:29 PM
Avidin is an enzyme in the egg that people talk about. It isn't an issue unless you are feeding a diet high in eggs. Since avidin works against biotin, if you supplement with multivitamins, that part is covered. When you cook the egg, all sorts of other useful protein is denatured (destroyed) as well. So, it is a decision you have to make. As far as Salmonella is concerned, we have Salmonella bacteria living in our intestines all the time. It is when our body cannot contain an overgrowth of the Salmonella bacteria that we get sick.

You can try F/T rodents like mice fuzzies, ground turkey or lean beef, fish, organ meats, even fruits such as papaya, mago, banana, berries. The idea is to offer a variety of foods, keep with lean foods, and supplement any food without bones with calcium. Make sure the overasll temps are warm enough for a tropical lizard to encourage eating, and have a good UVB light. Colombians do relish eggs. Too many can make them refuse other foods. But dipping foods in raw egg can also be a good way to get them to try new things.

nathantheawesometegu
02-10-2013, 07:12 PM
Thanks, i'll try some of those soon, and with the eyes, if i post a picture you wont be able to tel because it's only wen he like blinks or when he closses his eye for a while and then when he opens his right eye, water comes out. Almost like a tear....

Montegu
02-10-2013, 09:24 PM
Thanks Laura i knew it was something like that. But its a columbian so it probably wont eat much fruit alone, you can blend it up though and sneak it into his food though.

kaylorin
02-12-2013, 03:10 AM
If you can get fertilized eggs, they do not have the avidin - thus the reason they can eat eggs in the wild with no problem. We have one grocery store here that is carrying fertilized eggs, but there are a lot of people that raise chickens, so I think I am going to get with them =)

laurarfl
02-12-2013, 01:04 PM
My Colombians love fruit and most of the time eat fruit before meat.

tesla.the.tegu
02-12-2013, 07:01 PM
you should also try lots of raw meat tegus mainly eat meat. try some ground turkey or chicken with some beef liver my Colombian loves it and ill even mix in that tropical fruit blend from the pet store. try papaya or mango.

Montegu
02-13-2013, 12:36 AM
Laura, ur columbian likes fruits? mine wont go near them lol

laurarfl
02-13-2013, 01:53 AM
Mine LOVES fruit!!!! But when they were younger they didn't eat as much.

Also, avidin is found in fertilized eggs as well. Avidin is used up by the developing embryo. So a freshly fertilized egg still has quite a bit, but an egg that is hatching soon will have less. In the wild animals eat a more varied diet,plus the avidin warnings are a bit overrated.

nathantheawesometegu
02-13-2013, 06:28 AM
you should also try lots of raw meat tegus mainly eat meat. try some ground turkey or chicken with some beef liver my Colombian loves it and ill even mix in that tropical fruit blend from the pet store. try papaya or mango.
Thanks alot my tegu finaly started eating and loves eggs, raw ground turkey, hard boiled eggs, egg shells, and i havnt tried fruit.....but i will soon!!!

laurarfl
02-13-2013, 01:57 PM
It seems that Colombians may have a tendency toward obesity in captivity. I don't have any studies that show that trend. I have heard a few owners come back with vet reports indicating a lot of fat around the organs. So the plant matter may help that a bit.