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Thread: Hello Every :)

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Philadelphia Pa
    Posts
    28

    Default Hello Every :)

    Hello

    My name is mike and I am a new red tegu owner!
    I was hoping for some help with my new baby Zeppelin :p

    I have him for about a week now and was reading posts on the net about babies not eating and was hoping to get some tips on what I can do to help him eat more. I have cut down on handling my little guy and had to eventually just let him eat alone in his cage which im not too fond of. I guess what im trying to get at here is, when should I take him out and let him start eating in his feeding bin?

    I did notice he did eat a bit of ground turkey the other day in the cage for the first time so I am making progress with him. Is there anything that your tegus like to eat more as babies tho? I tried boiled eggs/ground turkey/crickets with vitamin suppliements but he will not eat out of cage :sad:

    I have a ton of lighting too I need to setup but I was informed the fixture I am using can only use a max 60 watt light and i have a mercury vapor bulb i would eventually like to use that is 100w. but right now i am using a 50w uva bulb for day/50w red night for night with a florescent light fixture for uvb on the way in the mail right now.

    His humidity levels are good but I was wondering if repti fogger would be a good buy too..

    lol sorry for all the questions.. id very much appreciate any feedback! Thanks all Glad to be aboard !!! Will post pics soon!!

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2006
    Location
    Las Vegas, NV
    Posts
    746

    Default

    Congratulations on the new Gu, welcome to the site and thanks for coming. It takes time for them to settle in and during that time it may be easier and less stressful to feed inside the cage. Just make sure you use a bowl or plate for the food, cover as much of the substrate around it and supervise the feeding. So that you can clean up any wayward pieces before they're forgotten and left behind to possibly be eating later along with substrate.

    Take this time to read up and do some research we have a lot of need to know info in the Helpful Information section. If there's anything you don't understand feel free to ask.
    0.1.0 BP (Spiral) aka Rita Wayward
    2.1. Dogs (White Boys "Powder", Paw Paws "Achilles" & Panini)

    " 14 July 2010,..Always Remembered"

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Central FL
    Posts
    4,349

    Default

    Well, everyone does it a bit different, but I would say go ahead and start getting him out and feed him inside the feeding bin. Make sure it is not see through and has a lid so he feels secure. If that absolutely doesn't work, you can feed in the cage like Bubblz suggested (or feed in the cage from the get go).

    I fed mine ground turkey, scrambled eggs, worms, crickets, and pinky mice. I put calcium on any food without bones.

    I would skip the red night light. I've read that they are harmful to the eyes and they don't need the extra heat. If the room temp drops that much at night and the tegu isn't hibernating, I would use a CHE instead. Night heat, especially CHE will dry out the enclosure, so keep an eye on humidity. I've never used the Repti-fogger.

    Welcome to the forum by the way!
    Laura R (FL)
    1.0.0 Colombian Tegu
    1.4.0 Argentine B&W Tegu
    1.2.0 Red Tegu
    1.2.0 B/WxRed Tegu
    1.0.0 Green Ameiva (yet another teiid)
    7 other lizards
    1 little gator
    3 FL box turtle
    1 Sulcata tortoise
    16 snakes
    5 fuzzy pets
    4 little frogs
    a bunch of creepy bugs
    and a partridge in a pear tree

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Philadelphia Pa
    Posts
    28

    Default

    thanks for all your help! i put crickets in the cage the other day and no longer see them so he either ate them or they escaped.. lol I also just got the repti fogger which works amazing I read that humidity should be 70-80% is that correct ? I believe he is hibernating, he rarely ever comes out.. i just want to start holding him so bad... but patience i must have. :|

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Philadelphia Pa
    Posts
    28

    Default

    so i was able to get him to eat, it wasnt easy.. but he seems to like when i feed him with tongs in my hand while being held in a glove.. lol dont know why but he just decided to eat today.. but god i am happy! after the first bite he started to look for the food. I wonder what the breeder previously fed him? do breeders tend to feed them liquid food? cause at one point (and i know its not good) raw egg was the only thing he knew how to eat (or slurp) and i didnt want to keep feeding him it due to salmonella.

    either way stay classy San Diego !

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Central FL
    Posts
    4,349

    Default

    Yes, 70-80% humidity is good. I think a lot of breeders feed ground turkey, but that's just a guess. Egg is a perpetual favorite among tegus be it raw, scrambled, boiled, etc. Some can get rather picky and refuse to eat anything else. I think that happens more with Colombians though. Glad to hear he's eating. I would go ahead and keep handling him.
    Laura R (FL)
    1.0.0 Colombian Tegu
    1.4.0 Argentine B&W Tegu
    1.2.0 Red Tegu
    1.2.0 B/WxRed Tegu
    1.0.0 Green Ameiva (yet another teiid)
    7 other lizards
    1 little gator
    3 FL box turtle
    1 Sulcata tortoise
    16 snakes
    5 fuzzy pets
    4 little frogs
    a bunch of creepy bugs
    and a partridge in a pear tree

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Pennsylvania
    Posts
    3,310

    Cool

    Welcome Mike ...
    1.0.0 Argentine Tegu
    0.1. Colombian Tegus
    1.0.0 Genetic Stripe Reticulated Python
    1.0.0 Albino/Lav Reticulated Python
    1.0.0 Normal Dwarf Reticulated Python
    0.1.0 Dwarf Platinum Reticulated Python
    0.1.0 Dwarf Tiger Reticulated Python
    0.1.0 Normal Burmese Python

  8. #8

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by mlewis412 View Post
    Hello

    My name is mike and I am a new red tegu owner!
    I was hoping for some help with my new baby Zeppelin :p

    I have him for about a week now and was reading posts on the net about babies not eating and was hoping to get some tips on what I can do to help him eat more. I have cut down on handling my little guy and had to eventually just let him eat alone in his cage which im not too fond of. I guess what im trying to get at here is, when should I take him out and let him start eating in his feeding bin?

    I did notice he did eat a bit of ground turkey the other day in the cage for the first time so I am making progress with him. Is there anything that your tegus like to eat more as babies tho? I tried boiled eggs/ground turkey/crickets with vitamin suppliements but he will not eat out of cage :sad:

    I have a ton of lighting too I need to setup but I was informed the fixture I am using can only use a max 60 watt light and i have a mercury vapor bulb i would eventually like to use that is 100w. but right now i am using a 50w uva bulb for day/50w red night for night with a florescent light fixture for uvb on the way in the mail right now.

    His humidity levels are good but I was wondering if repti fogger would be a good buy too..

    lol sorry for all the questions.. id very much appreciate any feedback! Thanks all Glad to be aboard !!! Will post pics soon!!
    Hi,

    Nice to meet you. I am also new here. My name is Elizabeth!
    E

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    San Antonio,TX
    Posts
    9,505

    Default

    Hi Mike. Welcome to our Tegu forum family and congrats on your new Tegu. I'm glad to hear that he started to eat. I would take out the red lighting, too. Since Tegus bask alot I recommend getting a lighting that is all in one ( heat, UVA/UVB, like the one in the link below ). Some wait to handle their Tegus for a while and some hold them right away. We have five Tegus ( since they were hatchlings ) and I held them all from day one. Three of them went into hibernation not to long after we got them ( for 6 to 7 months ). They tame down fast if you put the time and patience into it. My shirt trick helped me alot to tame them down. Tegus feel save when they can hibe. So when I put them in between my shirts they feel save, warm and get to smell the body and gets used to that person faster. If you want to feed him in the bin I would step away a bit so he can't see you. Once he calmed down he will eat if he is hungry enough. Please keep us posted.

    Care sheet from one of the breeders ( he used to breed them and he is the founder of this forum. Rick Sisco ).

    http://www.thetegu.com/showthread.ph...Tegu-Caresheet

    My shirt trick:

    http://www.youtube.com/user/txrepgir...34/XVyU44yDH4E
    Rich is not how much you have, or where you are going, or what you are.Rich is who you have beside you.

    Our videos :

    http://www.youtube.com/user/txrepgirl

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    San Antonio,TX
    Posts
    9,505

    Default

    Hi Elizabeth. Welcome to our Tegu forum family . Do you have a Tegu, too ?
    Rich is not how much you have, or where you are going, or what you are.Rich is who you have beside you.

    Our videos :

    http://www.youtube.com/user/txrepgirl

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