TEGUS ARE NOT FOR YOU! 5 Reasons NOT To Get A Tegu

Who Should NOT Get A Tegu! If you fall within one of these categories, I recommend not getting a Tegu and looking for a different reptile that fits your lifestyle/criteria!

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I started getting into the reptile hobby in February of 2018. My first reptile was my Bearded Dragon - Maxine Pegasus (creator of duel monsters btw). Since then, I have added five Yellow Ackie Monitors (Asus, Dell, LG, and two unnamed babies), a Chacoan Black and White Tegu (Frappuccino), a Crested Gecko (Destin), and a Russian Tortoise (Tortellini). I also have a dog named Thrall (yes, from World of Warcraft) who is a Dachshund/Chihuahua mix - aka a Chiweenie.

My goal with this channel is to share my knowledge, experience and journey with other reptile/animal enthusiasts and become a better caretaker because of it. Hopefully I can learn a lot from the community through these videos.

"Always be open to new idea's, no matter your expertise, nor the expertise of the individual expressing the new idea."

#reptile #tegu #care #pet #lizard #tegulizard #petreptile #argentine #exotic #animal #largereptile #professorherp

[IrieRogue]

Space is an absolute necessary for tegus. If you don't have spare room to the tune of a walk-on closet, I wouldn't suggest it. That being said, the relationship I have with my tegu is perhaps the most amazing and fulfilling thus far in my life. He is my universe.

[Madchris]

Tegus are amazing. That being said I'm not financially able to, or have the space to properly care for one

[brettperry]

When it comes to #3, I get what you're saying, and agree that it's not the best choice for a first pet reptile. But in telling people to get something other than the pet they actually want, don't you worry that you're essentially telling them to get a throwaway animal that they're not gonna be happy with?

I worked at a pet store for awhile, years ago, and nearly every time I witnessed or took part in that conversation with a customer, you could see the disappointment on their faces as they were checking out to take home an animal they really didn't want.
And ever since I've often wondered what became of those reptiles.

With a lot of this logic most people shouldn't get a dog either. It's super standard stuff in terms of getting any animal - always makes me mad that a lot of people don't research properly beforehand

[seanfoltz]

I don't know as in a way, other reptiles actually set you up with bad habits for owning a tegu.
For instance, I own Chinese water dragons and the wife has bearded dragons and ball pythons so we were used to handling them in a manner one should not handle a tegu, plus, our one beardy is a "kisser" in that she'll always lick you when you pick her up so offering her a finger to get a kiss was a habit that isn't advisable with tegu.
Feeding response is another issue - both sets of dragons will calmly and safely accept food from my hand and are fairly casual about seeing a food dish being placed into their homes while tegu are the exact opposite.
Both dragons are also content to stay in their homes and while my male water dragon was VERY hyper and would run around during social time, he's since mellowed and will happily chill on your lap like the beardies.
Rex on the other hand - he loves to explore and will only chill on one's lap for ten minutes or so before he feels the need to go on a walk about.
Finally, both dragons are used to a consistent and simple diet while I can sometimes spend more time putting together Rex's lunch than my own. A friend was in our fridge and seeing the quail eggs, asked what special meal the wife was making, only to give us an odd look when I informed him they were Rex's food.
So all said, while experience keeping other reptiles can help, it can also create bad habits for dealing with tegus since they're more like scaly dogs then lizards and many of the things you'll do with a dragon or something else are not things to do with something as large, muscular and sharp claw/toothed as a tegu.
That said, I still love Rex, even if he was bad and I came home to find him sitting on the back of the couch...again.

[Zebra-Finch]

Just as long as you have lots of free time, enough space and do research on their health then it is ok for you to have a tegu

[robertconant]

After years of reptile keeping I just got a CB baby red Tegu. I train dogs for a living and will be doing a massive amount of training with my Red tegu.

[nataliesreptiles]

#3 definitely needed to be said. I saw baby tegus for sale at PetCo last year. Was tempted. But my living situation is definitely not one for a tegu right now.
But it did have me thinking... what if the PetCo employees sell the baby tegus the way a lot of big box stores sell most of their more advanced lizards to the average "Joe-Schmoe" who decides it looks cool and buys a baby tegu and a 40 gal exo-terra and calls it good? 😳 Bad news bears all around.

[RebNaviaux]

Tegus are absolutely fantastic pets and I love mine to death, but they are a handful. You will be devoting an hour or more each day for 15+ years to their care. They are a big commitment, but the bond you build with them is so rewarding and special.

[nomangreybeard]

These points kind of go for all lizards. Be honest with yourself before adopting any reptile.

[SirenSeraphim]

Professor, I just stumbled upon you and I absolutely adore you and your beautiful ACCURATE information. I really appreciate you very much. ❤

[GlitteryBugs]

Love this video and how you highlighted just how much work these animals are!

[rickcroney]

Great video of things you need to know and consider before getting a tegu. Do your research!!! Then enjoy 😉

[leogeck]

A jeweled lacerta is a great lizard to start with, as it is also relative intelligent and gets quite size-able, without taking off your whole hand if it bites, lol

[Sataroniii]

Ik this is a late response but I recommend a grow tent for those who don't want to spend 2k on a cage for a tegu, the grow tent only cots 200-300 bucks. Definently saved me and it's a nice 8x4x6 cage.

[oun]

Thank you for this video. I’m researching Tegus and this really help me get a good idea of things to consider.

[NearFuture]

Had my tegu for a year nowww. I love my little guy, not only do you need to know about their diet, husbandry ect. You also need to know about their skin, bathroom habits, vitimin intake ect. This is so you know your tegu is in good health, as there isn't much exotic vets that are that knowledgeable on tegus. If you do find a good one, keep that one they're rare! I fortunately have a great vet! Still, it's good to know about their health and such so you can notice it quickly and ask online for adivce or more preferibly ask / go to your exotic vet. :)

[random_guy]

More people seriously need to watch you, you are awesome man, you remind me of a Canadian with the same hairstyle.

[corinnegeorge]

As unpopular as this is going to be, I don’t believe that it’s responsible for people who do not own their home to keep an adult tegu. The possibility of being displaced from your rental home in todays world is too high to also be responsible for a 20lb lizard. In a world where a common dog weighing 40lbs, or a common cat weighing 5lbs can get you evicted. You’d be shocked to find out that many landlords will do the same for your lizard.

[SirenSeraphim]

When SHOULD you be concerned about long brummation cycles? There's mixed information, and as someone who's worked with them for years I would love your advice.