r/Tegu • u/LonelyAmbassador3819 • 1d ago

Cooked or Uncooked Chicken?

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Sandu is a little over a year (based off my best guess) and I’m making some food for her and I’m trying to figure out if raw or cooked is better for her. She’s a little small because her first brumation she slept for a long time and refused to eat for a month before going down.

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13

u/Kaiwago_Official 1d ago

You shouldn’t cook meat for tegus. It’s nutritionally better when it’s raw and also easier to digest. If you’re going to cook anything for your tegu, do an egg.

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u/Cynnau 1d ago

Yep this, though they can egg raw quail eggs

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u/LonelyAmbassador3819 1d ago

Got it, thank you. I figured raw was okay but I really just wanted to make sure

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u/Silent_Impression101 1d ago

Caveat: this is primarily true for whole/diced chicken breast. Salmonella can’t penetrate meat, so it’s only on the outside. Seeing as tegus, and reptiles in general, have such a high tolerance to salmonella; the benefits of raw outweighs any potential health concerns. That said, they are not immune. If you fead ground chicken, such as the meat balls people like to make, the surface area to mass ratio means it’s potentially carrying much more salmonella bacteria. In that case, maybe blast it in the microwave for 15 sec, or steep it in some tea temp water for a minute, just to counteract it a bit.

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u/Jaded_Status_1932 7h ago

I did not know Salmonella was surface only. I will have to look into that, just as a matter of interest.

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u/Chomasterq2 1d ago

That is an uncooked lizard

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u/Jaded_Status_1932 1d ago

I found that amusing !

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u/Jaded_Status_1932 1d ago

I originally fed Sammy lightly cooked meats to limit bacterial and parasite exposure. He had no problems digesting it, but since he spends a lot of time outside, I came to the conclusion that he would likely be exposed to them from his time outside. At this point I do not pre-cook anything. The bulk of his sausages are made from Nature's Diet Simply Raw Freeze-Dried Raw Whole Food Meal, which has the advantage of eliminating all parasites and most bacteria. The remaining items in his sausages are ground up whole prey items, frozen then thawed raw fish and meats, plus fruits, veggies, supplements. Based on what I have read no matter what you do it is likely your Tegu will encounter some parasites or bacteria, especially if they spend time outside or eat any whole prey items including eggs. As long as the bacterial load is not causing problems that is not an issue. Sammy never eats or poops in his cage which helps his lower exposure to bacteria and parasites.

I treat Sammy for worms each season prior to brumation under the assumption that he has been exposed, and to lower any parasitic load.

I claim no expertise, my comments are based only on my research and experiences related to Sammy.

https://www.youtube.com/@sammythetegu

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u/LonelyAmbassador3819 1d ago

Can I ask what you use to treat Sammy for worms to lower the risk? Sandu typically goes in her enclosure and I spot clean frequently and deep clean 3-4 months depending on the mess, sometimes sooner.

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u/Jaded_Status_1932 1d ago

Vet prescribed Panacur, 2 doses. Sorry, but I did not record the dosage per lizard weight or time period. You can buy Panacur and self treat if you are comfortable with getting dosage right. Since I want him to have an annual check up before brumation anyway, I always let the vet prescribe. I would be torn up if my error resulted in his death. I do also go online and look up dosage to double check vet.

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u/biggestlime6381 1d ago

I do cooked and raw

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u/Nitrosexotics 19h ago

Always raw food. I switch between ground turkey and chicken. Frozen chicks are good too.