Young Tegu Housing

Hello all. I am new to the forum and I might be getting an Argentine Black and White Tegu in a couple of months. I have a question about housing. Is it possible to keep a young tegu in a 100 Gallon Reptarium that measures 48"Lx30"Dx17"H? Again, this enclosure will only be used for up to a year then it will be moved into a larger enclosure. Here's the enclosure I am talking about - Reptarium (100 Gallon) - Reptariums - Caging

Yes, I am aware that screen cages make it hard to the temps and humidity up but I've came up with a way to word around that.

Tegus that are born in the Northern Hemisphere are born around mid to late June... Then they are typically shipped out 3+ weeks later... At this point they are 9~12" and weigh no more than a couple of ounces...



They grow pretty quickly as hatchlings. Mind went from 10" to 16" in 4 months and quadrupled in weigfht...


I think your Tegu will be fine in a the 4' enclsoure you described provided you meet it's other needs (temp, humidity, UVB, etc) in that enclsoure...

If yours hibernates then it will be able to spend the winter in that enclosure...


But... the growth rate after that is tremendous and the 4' enclsoure will not be big enough beyond this point...

My Tegu put on an average of 1" per week (per week!) his second summer and at max growth rate put on 2" per week! Not to mention he tripled in weight over this summer...


No matter how much we read about how quickly they grow... we will always be amazed when we actually see it... and surprised at how quickly their needs increase...

Thank you . The adult enclosure will be much bigger. I just thought this enclosure would be better to use for the first 6 months to a year depending on whether or not it hibernates. Is it true that a tegu can actually damage the reptarium? I've heard they can but only once or twice.

I wasn't familiar with the Reptarium when I read your first post...

Yes, I think a Tegu will damage the screen...

When you first receive your hatchling, he won't be able to do much if any damage. But it won't take long at all for him to gain enough weight behind those sharp claws to start cutting the screen.

I kept my hatchling in a 4' x 2' x 2' wooden enclosure for the first 9 months of his life (he hibernated for 5 of those months). After that he graduated to the spoiled rotten life of an outdoor Tegu.

Do be prepared for an amazing growth rate, and have an enclosure big enough for him to grow into. Every single issue of "Tegu Aggression" I've ever seen has been from a Tegu kept in a small enclsoure.

If you look down 8 or 10 posts in this folder you'll find a thread I started showing off my Tegu. I'd be happy to share anything I've learned along the way raising him.

I think you will be ok for a while. My young Red sleeps for a day and is active for a couple of days and I suspect that he/she hasn't decided to bruminate or hibernate. MY guess is that it will bruminate and not go into full hibernation.

As far as growth, I have had my Tegu for 5 weeks and it has grown at least 5 inches in that time. Every day I can't believe my eyes as it is noticably bigger every day. A non herp wouldn't believe it if you told them but it is truely amazing.