Hey Carol-Ann, welcome to the forums! Glad to have you here!
I let my girl free roam outside and in the house, but I return her to her enclosure when I get busy. One reason is because they tend to eat things they shouldn't, another reason is because they can wedge themselves in odd places when you aren't watching them. The main reason for returning her to the enclosure is so that she can bask, absorb the humidty, and sleep undisturbed. Here in S.E. Texas it is pretty hot outside and we run the central air-conditioning at around 70 degrees. It's just too cold and dry for a tegu to have continual free access in the house. So far my girl hasn't had any shedding problems whatsoever.
When she is free-roaming inside or out, I am constantly watching her making sure she doesn't get into any trouble. She has been know to attempt to eat dog poop, frog poop, cat poop and other unknown objects. So that's why I put her up when I can't give my full attention to her.
Everyone is different, and it's the same with their Tegu's. What works well for one may not work for others. I do know that these lizards are from warm, humid, tropical environments and for their optimal health we need to try to duplicate their natural habitat.
This is just my personal opinion. So I hope it's taken that way. I learned most of this from THIS site...
The most experienced breeder of B & W Arg. and Red Tegu's--Johnny LaRocca!
He learned from his friend and the most influential reptile breeder in America, Bert Langerwert. In Bert's newly published biography he has this to say about Johnny LaRocca....page 419 "Johnny LaRocca... the one breeder I worked most closely with studying tegus. His tegus are the best I have seen produced anywhere except on my farm".
Purchased my Awesome Tegu from teguterra.com
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