# Argentine Black & White Tegu



## SERRAPYGO

I've owned alot of monitor lizards in the past but I've always bypassed the Tegu, thinking they were inferior...or, a "poor man's monitor lizard". 
My friend just bought a Columbian Tegu (nasty as hell) for cheap at a PetWorld store and it got me interested in them. After some research on personality and care, I sought out an Argentine and I found one locally...and I paid for it big time! It was worth it. So far, this CB little guy is a little grumpy at times but never tries to bite (unlike my friend's Columbian). I've discovered he's happy as a clam unless you disturb him sleeping. This guy will be quite a commitment.


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## Mettle

Awesome! I love monitors but likely don't have the time/space for any right now. My friend just took in a tiny little sav as a rescue and offerred it to me if I wanted to take it on after he has rehabbed it a little, haha. (WILLPOWER!)

The same friend keeps a tegu or two. He's had them for a bit. I'm not sure which type(s) but I know his are nasty as well. They need some thick gloves for handling. But they're amazing animals.

I've seen some pics of the b&w tegus. They get quite large, don't they?


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> Awesome! I love monitors but likely don't have the time/space for any right now. My friend just took in a tiny little sav as a rescue and offerred it to me if I wanted to take it on after he has rehabbed it a little, haha. (WILLPOWER!)
> 
> The same friend keeps a tegu or two. He's had them for a bit. I'm not sure which type(s) but I know his are nasty as well. They need some thick gloves for handling. But they're amazing animals.
> 
> I've seen some pics of the b&w tegus. They get quite large, don't they?


I don't have the time or space either, but I guess I better make it because these guys grow fast! From what I've been reading, your friend's are probably Columbians. I wouldn't even want this creature if it was nasty. Take a finger off! I don't need that. LOL!

Large?...Oh yeah! What's been impressing me the most is the talk of their intelligence...for a herp. I've chatted personally with some owners and they brag about creepy intelligence of these guys.


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## Mettle

Creepy intelligence? How so?

I'm intrigued now.:nod:


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> Creepy intelligence? How so?
> 
> I'm intrigued now.:nod:


I don't know. It's what I've been told from experienced keepers and on various websites. I'm curious myself and I'll find out soon I guess. I do know the tongue is always flicking and the eyes are constantly moving checking everything out, but my former monitors did the same thing. If he balances my checkbook, I'll be impressed!


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## Mettle

Hm. That sounds pretty odd. Keep me posted, lol.


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## NegativeSpin

SERRAPYGO said:


> Creepy intelligence? How so?
> 
> I'm intrigued now.:nod:


I don't know. It's what I've been told from experienced keepers and on various websites. I'm curious myself and I'll find out soon I guess. I do know the tongue is always flicking and the eyes are constantly moving checking everything out, but my former monitors did the same thing. If he balances my checkbook, I'll be impressed!
[/quote]

He probably could....That's what I think about accountants.


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> Hm. That sounds pretty odd. Keep me posted, lol.


I sure will. I'm guessing this comes from overzealous Tegu keepers bragging about their pets. As far as I'm concerned, reptile intelligence is primitive and pure instinct. We'll see....


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## Mettle

Well, I believe it's crocodillians that have the capability of readily distinguishing various group members as particular individuals that they "know". I was talking to someone that works with caimens and she is readily accepted by those she works with because they literally "know her" versus others who come into the environment whom the animals are unfamiliar with. Mind you, she still practices caution as they may know her but that doesn't make her immune as a target. It just makes the animals a lot more comfortable...

...so maybe there is something to this tegu intelligence? Or, like you said, maybe it is just a bunch of over zealous owners anthropomorphisizing.


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## Bawb2u

I've had monitors and tegus and I don't think you're going to find that the tegu is any more "intelligent" than the monitor. Like you said previously, they are a more primitive intelligence as in learning where food come from and how to get out of their enclosure rather than doing card tricks or solving a Rubiks Cube.
One thing I have observed about tegus though, is that natural sunlight seems to bring out their aggression MUCH more than in monitors.


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## AKSkirmish

Nice addition Serra....


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## skarrow33

my tegu has learned how to climb plants, now i need to have the cage lid on at all times. it also knows when i take the lid off, and sees a brown bag it goes crazy cuz its feeding time, but if i take the lid off and just put my hand in, instead of the hand/bag she will walk towards me and just crawl up my arm.. like she knows when she is getting fed.

she will also roam around my apt. mine is around 28inches, and just sits on my bed all day will then climb down and walk around the floor, but will always end up back on my bed.

she has gotten out a few times, i have different cages at my house and apt. for her She got out at home one time, took about an hour to find her. next day she did it again, and she got out and just sat on the top of the cage. like she knew better than to run away again.... just my personal experience.

their really fun lizards esp. if you take care of them, and handle them









Argentines are the way to go, those Columbian are something else (in a bad way)

good luck with yours


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## blackmaskelong

Have I influenced many on here, hey good take they are very social and will become a great pet, surly will be easy to keep on his weight after he will eat veggies... lol


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> Well, I believe it's crocodillians that have the capability of readily distinguishing various group members as particular individuals that they "know". I was talking to someone that works with caimens and she is readily accepted by those she works with because they literally "know her" versus others who come into the environment whom the animals are unfamiliar with. Mind you, she still practices caution as they may know her but that doesn't make her immune as a target. It just makes the animals a lot more comfortable...
> 
> ...so maybe there is something to this tegu intelligence? Or, like you said, maybe it is just a bunch of over zealous owners anthropomorphisizing.


I'm not sure yet. My former monitors were Savannas and Nile's. The Savannas loved anyone who thought they were gonna feed them and the Nile's hated everybody. I guess the big question is, does a lizard who becomes conditioned and/or expects food anytime his owner...or anyone approaches the tank constitute intelligence? I think so...to a degree. Anoles I've kept as a kid never did. Agamids never did. Iguanas did and so did a few snakes I've kept. 
If one's gonna describe herp intelligence I'd definitely base it on a curve versus other reptiles. And over zealous owners...I found a you tube video that's kinda cute...I'll post it down below.

Incidentally... I'm thoroughly convinced my Dovii recognizes me and a few people that routinely come over (totally obnoxious!). When a stranger comes over (like the cable guy a couple weeks ago) he gets a little apprehensive. But, a story for another thread.

Thanks skarrow33,CH!


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## SERRAPYGO

Interesting how these Tegus bypass food for their owner. YouTube


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## SERRAPYGO

One more pic.


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## Mettle

That video is AMAZING. Haha. I love it!


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> That video is AMAZING. Haha. I love it!


It is cute. Damn!!...I said "cute" again.


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## skarrow33

my personal favorite


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## Mettle

wow. these b&w tegus are something else for sure!


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## SERRAPYGO

skarrow33 said:


> my personal favorite










That's great. My little creep already runs to the food bowl like he's been doing it all his life! LOL! I love it.


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## Mettle

If they didn't grow so damn fast I would be down with getting one I think.

Will they sit on your lap like a dog?:laugh:


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> If they didn't grow so damn fast I would be down with getting one I think.
> 
> Will they sit on your lap like a dog?:laugh:


Most assuredly!


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## skarrow33

i lay down on my bed and my lil 1 just sits on my chest. half the time she falls asleep


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## Mettle

Very cool.

Now I definitely want one.

And Serra, since you brought this one, you're in charge of buying me one and getting it to me in Canada. GET ON THAT!


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## dark FrOsT

nice looking tegu, looks nice and healthly.... i have been debating on getting one for a while now they are really awesome ...

mettle i have seen them pretty often at a few LPS


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## SERRAPYGO

skarrow33 said:


> i lay down on my bed and my lil 1 just sits on my chest. half the time she falls asleep


Yup, me too. This just happened tonight. Then, I gently moved the lil' sleepy diurnal buggar back to his tank...G' night!



> Very cool.
> 
> Now I definitely want one.
> 
> And Serra, since you brought this one, you're in charge of buying me one and getting it to me in Canada. GET ON THAT!


Okay..okay..







I'll get on it. I wish you were in the U.S., I could hook you up since there were 6 to choose from.

Thanks, DF
I'm really liking this little ripper more than I thought I would. So far, the level of intelligence or personability this guy is exhibiting is exceeding all the monitors I've had. And I really thought that would be a tough pair of shoes to fill.


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## Mettle

I'm not a fan of pet stores. Their prices versus care/quality of animal is hardly ever worth it.

I'll see what's at the Montreal expo.









And yeah, if I was in the USA I also wouldn't be paying so much for crested geckos, haha.


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## skarrow33

private breeder is the way to go with tegus. no other way


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> I'm not a fan of pet stores. Their prices versus care/quality of animal is hardly ever worth it.
> 
> I'll see what's at the Montreal expo.:nod:
> 
> And yeah, if I was in the USA I also wouldn't be paying so much for crested geckos, haha.


I agree. But this particular store is different. It's the Ferrari of pets shops around here and I know the owner personally. You pay more, but you get what you pay for. He (the owner) doesn't sacrifice his reputation to save a buck. The store is amazing!...like a small zoo. Tours are even given. It's not everyone that can afford the prices of this store's animals...and that's good!, because only the truly dedicated should own an animal. Plus, the employees are educated, or at least informed and knowledgeable, or they don't make the cut. 
My only rip on this store is that price of their supplies is high. But, all in all, I like that they don't make it easy for any uncaring schmuck to own a pet.


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## SERRAPYGO

skarrow33 said:


> private breeder is the way to go with tegus. no other way


Oh yeah! CB no doubt.


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## Mettle

There are some good pet stores out there. But they're generally the independents. I'm sure that's what you're referring to, Serra. In my area it's mostly Petsmarts.


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> There are some good pet stores out there. But they're generally the independents. I'm sure that's what you're referring to, Serra. In my area it's mostly Petsmarts.


Yeah, this one is independent (and far away). Petsmart has just recently invaded my area. I go there for food, but I don't have much choice...it's all there is in the area...or, PetWorld or Petco, all one and the same.


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## Mettle

We have a few independents in the city. A couple outright suck. Some are WAY out of the way for me. And there's a couple of those froo-froo hoity type places. (We actually get our dog food at one of those places since we need to feed them special stuff, but that's a different story.)

Petsmart pisses me off. LOL.


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> We have a few independents in the city. A couple outright suck. Some are WAY out of the way for me. And there's a couple of those froo-froo hoity type places. (We actually get our dog food at one of those places since we need to feed them special stuff, but that's a different story.)
> 
> Petsmart pisses me off. LOL.


I read ya. Petsmart, PetWorld and Petco all piss me off but they have us by the balls. They have driven out all my local independent favorites. It would be one thing if they offered food and supplies at a cheaper price, but they don't...it's higher. And, I have no choice but to buy it because my animals must eat. I surely can't buy superworms or crickets at Pick N' Save or Wal-Mart...with time, maybe Wal-Mart! LOL!


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## Mettle

I gave Petsmart money today.







Haha. That little gecko just had to come home with me! Oh well.

I might be giving them more too for a carpet chameleon. Stupid Petsmart.


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> I gave Petsmart money today.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Haha. That little gecko just had to come home with me! Oh well.
> 
> I might be giving them more too for a carpet chameleon. Stupid Petsmart.


Those bastards! Where do they get the audacity?


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## Mettle

I'm pretty sure I'm going to hold off on that carpet chameleon. Good ol' willpower.


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## SERRAPYGO

Mettle said:


> I'm pretty sure I'm going to hold off on that carpet chameleon. Good ol' willpower.:laugh:


I would too. They're alot of work. Another herp that I admire from a distance.


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## Mettle

I've always loved the look of chameleons. And it's what I first wanted instead of snakes to be honest. But once I did my research back when I realized it wasn't the right animal for me. After some careful thought, once again, I'm come to the same conclusion once more... Plus I like stuff that I can handle. Display animals are not really my thing. They get boring.


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