StudentoReptile
06-14-12, 08:56 AM
A few weeks ago, a co-worker approached me telling me that a friend of theirs was looking to get rid of their pet iguana, and inquired if I personally was interested. I politely declined, but gave them my number and the contact information for our local reptile rescue group, which I’m associated with. As the days passed, I was informed that the individuals with the iguana were thinking about releasing it in the wild. At this point, I was more concerned with the situation, and made it clear to my co-worker to relay to them that I would go retrieve the iguana myself and make sure it got to the rescue center to prevent them from releasing it.
Well, ultimately that is what happened. One evening, I went out to go pick-up said lizard and whatever else came with it. I personally had no interest in owning another green iguana, but I certainly could not sit by knowing the possibility of someone releasing a non-native reptile into our native environment.
The situation was all too common. This guy had acquired an iguana for his 10-year-old son, thinking it would make a good pet. For anyone who has been in the reptile hobby long enough, and/or experienced with iguanas, you pretty much know the rest of the story. I am not sure how long they actually had the iguana, but it is presumably 2-3 years of age, and judging by its size, in the peak of “iguana puberty.” They essentially had on their hands a surly, moody iguana teenager who didn’t like to be handled, petted, and would resort to whipping her tail and biting, generally hating human contact. Obviously, the kid wanted nothing to do with his “pet” any more and understandably, the dad had no use for it either.
I have to give them points for the cage though (although really, it was acquired secondhand along with the iguana). Normally, in these cases, the iguana is crammed in a glass tank way too small for its long frame and even longer tail. However, at 4 ft tall x 36” long x 18” deep, this custom-built (and heavy!) enclosure featured wire mesh on all four sides, and a large front door with a lockable latch for easy access! Not bad for a 3-foot arboreal lizard, although they were using cedar shavings for bedding. However, there was no lighting or heating provided, and the lizard allegedly most of its time inside a dimly lit apartment. The real shame was that the owner had no idea he could have easily stuck rollers on the bottom of the cage and wheeled the whole thing outside during the warm months, allowing the lizard access to natural sunlight (something I had every intention of doing once the animal was under my care). When questioned, I determined that its current diet mostly consisted of plums and some other fruit.
Nevertheless, despite all the shortcomings in its previous husbandry, this female iguana looked fairly well. She has great coloration and does not seem to lack in energy at all! However, she doesn't seem to want to eat much. She is currently outside because A.) I figured having access to natural sunlight would be better for her (in contrast to being indoors with no lighting like with her previous owners), and B.) I really don't have much space to keep her inside anyway.
I've offered her collard greens, spring mix salad, squash & zucchini mix, strawberries, apples, and even a little moistened tortoise diet (figured it couldn't be too far off from iguana diet). Not a big fan of offering commercial food to iguanas but was willing to try something different.
She's still a little skinny and just doesn't seem interested in anything. Unfortunately, I work 8-5 every day so I don't see what she sees most of the day, so I wonder if maybe there's possibly something outside stressing her out (granted we have had some thunderstorms and rainy weather lately).
Any tips or advice from other iggy owners?
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b400/MDC_Leviathan/Misc%20Lizards/iguana1.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b400/MDC_Leviathan/Misc%20Lizards/iguanacage1.jpg
*NOTE: I have since replaced the cedar shavings with cypress mulch, and repaired some of the screen mesh. These photos were taken the evening I brought the iguana home.
Well, ultimately that is what happened. One evening, I went out to go pick-up said lizard and whatever else came with it. I personally had no interest in owning another green iguana, but I certainly could not sit by knowing the possibility of someone releasing a non-native reptile into our native environment.
The situation was all too common. This guy had acquired an iguana for his 10-year-old son, thinking it would make a good pet. For anyone who has been in the reptile hobby long enough, and/or experienced with iguanas, you pretty much know the rest of the story. I am not sure how long they actually had the iguana, but it is presumably 2-3 years of age, and judging by its size, in the peak of “iguana puberty.” They essentially had on their hands a surly, moody iguana teenager who didn’t like to be handled, petted, and would resort to whipping her tail and biting, generally hating human contact. Obviously, the kid wanted nothing to do with his “pet” any more and understandably, the dad had no use for it either.
I have to give them points for the cage though (although really, it was acquired secondhand along with the iguana). Normally, in these cases, the iguana is crammed in a glass tank way too small for its long frame and even longer tail. However, at 4 ft tall x 36” long x 18” deep, this custom-built (and heavy!) enclosure featured wire mesh on all four sides, and a large front door with a lockable latch for easy access! Not bad for a 3-foot arboreal lizard, although they were using cedar shavings for bedding. However, there was no lighting or heating provided, and the lizard allegedly most of its time inside a dimly lit apartment. The real shame was that the owner had no idea he could have easily stuck rollers on the bottom of the cage and wheeled the whole thing outside during the warm months, allowing the lizard access to natural sunlight (something I had every intention of doing once the animal was under my care). When questioned, I determined that its current diet mostly consisted of plums and some other fruit.
Nevertheless, despite all the shortcomings in its previous husbandry, this female iguana looked fairly well. She has great coloration and does not seem to lack in energy at all! However, she doesn't seem to want to eat much. She is currently outside because A.) I figured having access to natural sunlight would be better for her (in contrast to being indoors with no lighting like with her previous owners), and B.) I really don't have much space to keep her inside anyway.
I've offered her collard greens, spring mix salad, squash & zucchini mix, strawberries, apples, and even a little moistened tortoise diet (figured it couldn't be too far off from iguana diet). Not a big fan of offering commercial food to iguanas but was willing to try something different.
She's still a little skinny and just doesn't seem interested in anything. Unfortunately, I work 8-5 every day so I don't see what she sees most of the day, so I wonder if maybe there's possibly something outside stressing her out (granted we have had some thunderstorms and rainy weather lately).
Any tips or advice from other iggy owners?
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b400/MDC_Leviathan/Misc%20Lizards/iguana1.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b400/MDC_Leviathan/Misc%20Lizards/iguanacage1.jpg
*NOTE: I have since replaced the cedar shavings with cypress mulch, and repaired some of the screen mesh. These photos were taken the evening I brought the iguana home.