Lost iguana

RandyRhoads · 05-29-11, 07:03 PM

Finally got into a new house and put together a sunning cage outside for him out of a chain link dog kennel. Against my better judgment I put him in without having put a lock on it yet. Came outside and the door was open and he's gone somewhere out in the countryside. Hope one of the annoying neighbor kids didn't come open it. Don't know if i'll have the pleasure of finishing it now. I was going to install misters around the top for humidity, a cheap plastic swimming pool and lots of trees and such. He was finally going to have a dream mansion with tons of space now he's gone

stephanbakir · 05-29-11, 07:08 PM

Sucks man, did you check the immediate area?
If i were you I'd toss up posters with your phone number, if people see some kid with a new identical pet they might just call you.

RandyRhoads · 05-29-11, 09:16 PM

Yeah I checked all around. I'm begining to think someone did this and took him. For the ammount of time he was out there I just don't see him getting far. Sucks because i'm in a rural area that's nothing but fields for miles and a few houses.

infernalis · 05-29-11, 10:12 PM

My condolences on the loss, not to sound cold.. just being real.

Get your enclosure finished up, get the lock, install a CCTV cam and then adopt an Iguana from your local shelter.

A properly sheltered web cam would work great, set up a video channel and you have an instant deterrent.. No one will even touch your stuff if they know you have a live internet feed running 24/7

Iguanas are the number 3 most abandoned animal in the pet trade. (Just behind cats and dogs...)

RandyRhoads · 05-30-11, 10:02 PM

Well found him in a tree today. He never wanders far, he's just really good at blending in. He's inside untill I get every square inch of his sunning cage perfected. As far as the cam Wayne it's a good idea and I already have a spare one i'm planning to set up, but it wouldn't stop these kids. A neighbor left a box of toys on his porch and they took it at night leaving a trail of them up to their house. They just don't care. Bad parents. I think a padlock and putting the fear of god into them if I find them near my place is the best option.

Would my mister plans be sufficient at providing the needed humidity for him or is it not the same?

infernalis · 05-30-11, 10:13 PM

Outside the misters are still at the mercy of your local humidity. If the air is dry, the mist will evaporate so quickly it will hardly matter.

Trust me on that one, I have sprayed 4500 gallons on my race track only to have dust flying again in 10 minutes.

as for the cam, I had a kid trespass and push my tractor over the bank into the creek. I pressed charges on the mother, try it it works.

Children's protective services were quite interested as to why a child that young was all the way out back of my property unsupervised.

RandyRhoads · 05-30-11, 10:28 PM

So even if he's right up on the mister it doesn't count for humidity and doesn't benefit him much?

I'll keep that in mind but they don't look like the type that would even care about the law, besides the possibility of them getting deported back to mehico, if you know what I mean.... alot of farmhands around that don't even speak english. Them being punished doesn't concern me as much as not getting my iguana back. But that shouldn't be a problem once the cage is done.

infernalis · 05-30-11, 11:28 PM

Oh dude.. they call iguanas "chickens of the trees" down there. Lucky you didn't find your iggy on a skewer smothered in sauce.

Don't get me wrong, the mister will make a difference, but outside in open air the effects will not be very long lasting unless you have a mist fog going on all the time.

RandyRhoads · 05-30-11, 11:37 PM

Thank god I didn't look over to see a 20 mexican strong BBQ of my iguana going on. I might have lost all control and dawned my suit of armor ("George") and sword. Ahhh good old George protecting my front door...

I'm a little worried now and hope someone with more knowledge can help me out. He was up in the tree eating leaves. The tree is english walnut grafted on a black walnut trunk. I'm reading black walnut has a toxin called juglone that is dangerous to plants, humans, and horses. He's not showing any bad signs. Anyone have advice? Just continue to watch for signs and take him to the vet if they appear?

stephanbakir · 05-30-11, 11:41 PM

Limited exposure isn't bad, I stain all of my traps with black walnut and I handle them regularly, its what allot of people use as stains. wash up and you should be fine (i use the same soap mechanics use to remove grease and oil)

infernalis · 05-31-11, 12:44 AM

Plants, humans and horses are not reptiles. Different physiologies.

Lankyrob · 05-31-11, 05:05 AM

Could you create a plastic "box" within his enclosure and put the mister in there? Then he would have a high humidity place and the excess would leak into the enclosure a little too even if it did then evaporate quickly?

RandyRhoads · 05-31-11, 09:06 AM

Good idea i'll eyeball it maybe I can line it with some sort of plastic.

mrherpdotca · 05-31-11, 10:36 AM

I have had cameras on my property for 6 years now. Caught some pretty wild stuff on them. They are not a deterrent if no one knows about them. Once I put up signs the kids stopped messing around here.

infernalis · 05-31-11, 11:42 AM

One or two of these out in the open will send the message....