If you look at tegus’ native habitat, you’ll notice that they are evolved to thrive in a high humidity environment. To replicate this environment in your tegu’s enclosure, strive to hit 70-80% humidity.

You can hit these humidity levels with two tricks:

• Mix water into the substrate until it is uniformly moist (not muddy). Repeat weekly.
• Mist the enclosure daily. Use a 2 gallon pressure sprayer, or better yet, an automatic misting system. Short misting durations multiple times daily tends to be more effective than one long misting 1x/day.
• Provide a cool humid hide box lined with damp sphagnum moss. Humidity levels in this hide should stay between 90-100%, with the moss replaced regularly to prevent mold.

Keep track of your humidity levels with a digital hygrometer— ideally, two of them: one for the warm side (which will be drier), and one for the cool side (which will be wetter). I like the Zoo Med Digital Thermometer/Hygrometer because it also gives me ambient temperature readings for that area.

Although Argentine tegus generally do well enough with a large water bowl, Colombian tegus like to have the opportunity to soak. Use a large but shallow Rubbermaid tub, and keep the water clean at all times. Note that tegus often drag substrate into and even poo in their water, so be prepared to clean and replace the water daily. A Python siphon can make this process much easier, and if the water’s been contaminated with feces, make sure to wipe down the tub with F10SC or Rescue veterinary disinfectant before refilling.