Yes, tegus can safely consume cucumber, although these should not be fed regurarly.
This is because cucumbers are around 96% water with a little fiber, so they are not the most highly nutritious food out there for your lizard, but they are perfectly safe to eat.
Still, there are a lot of better options out there for your tegu and it is important to offer a varied diet that includes different types of fruits and vegetables as well as meat.
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If you are choosing to feed your tegu cucumber, do so sporadically and make sure to pick organic cucumbers that are free from pesticides and do not have a lot of seeds in them (if they do, remove the seeds before serving).
You do not need to peel cucumbers, but you may want to cut them into small pieces to riduce the risk of choking.
Feeding Cucumbers to Tegus
Here are the steps on how to feed cucumbers to your tegu safely and effectively:
- Wash the cucumber thoroughly. This will remove any dirt or pesticides that may be present on the surface. Rinse the cucumber under cold water for at least 30 seconds, and scrub it with a vegetable brush if necessary.
- Cut the cucumber into small pieces. This will make it easier for your tegu to eat and reduce the risk of choking. The size of the pieces should not exceed the width of your tegu’s head.
- Avoid seasoning the cucumber. Tegus do not need seasonings like salt, pepper, or garlic powder, as these can potentially upset their stomach and lead to digestive issues.
- Offer cucumbers as an occasional treat. Cucumbers are not highly nutritious and should not constitute the primary part of your tegu’s diet. A healthy tegu diet should encompass a variety of insects, vegetables, and fruits.
- Do not offer pickles to your tegu. Pickles are high in sodium, which can be detrimental to tegus. Sodium can lead to dehydration and other health problems in these reptiles.
Better Alternatives
Tegus should be fed a variety of vegetables to ensure they get access to all the nutrients, vitamins and minerals they need.
If you are trying to get your tegu to eat more fruits and veggies, consider Zilla’s Reptile Munchies vegetable mix with added calcium.
Zilla Omnivore Mix – Insects, Fruits and Veggies + Calcium | Zilla Vegetable and Fruits Mix | Zilla Vegetable Mix + Calcium |
TEGU QUICK LINKS
PetsWithScales.com is an informational website about big lizard pet care. We collect and provide information from different sources across the web on how to keep and care for reptiles as pets. The species we mainly deal with are tegus, monitor lizards, skinks and geckos. Our aim is to provide high quality information to help pet owners make better, more informed decisions about their animal’s diets, health and life.
PetsWithScales.com is an informational website about big lizard pet care. We collect and provide information from different sources across the web on how to keep and care for reptiles as pets. The species we mainly deal with are tegus, monitor lizards, skinks and geckos. Our aim is to provide high quality information to help pet owners make better, more informed decisions about their animal’s diets, health and life.