Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I need to clean the glass daily on my Rhino's enclosure and have seen him on occasion do a quick snort which must send a small amount of saliva or mucous. Little spots are on the glass from him shooting snot or whatever it is out when he rapidly exhales. Is this normal, a defense or stress response, or is there some sort of respiratory issue I should be concerned about? My temperatures are good. This picture is today and he seems very healthy so I have kind of ruled out respiratory problems.

its "snalt" thats what ig keepers call it. Your rhino gets rid of excess salt by blowing it out the nostrils. you sweat it out, they blow it out. Its normal and will always do it. the white spots on the glass is salt. Its common to see it dried on and around the nostrils too. nothing like getting hit in the face by an adult.

jf

Thats too funny! lol Hit in the face wouldn't be much fun. Mouth would be worse. No real warning I suppose. Im starting to feel like I didn't do my homework well enough and these questions are basic behavioral things. It was hard for me to find detailed info on keeping Cyclura and their characteristics and habits. Thanks for the info!

You're right -- it can be hard to find good cyclura info. On this one though, greens do it too so you can actually read more about it in any good book on greens. It's pretty interesting, I think. Kismet always leaves salt spots on my windows. And we've all been snalted in the face around my house....

I would imagine the salt keeps the bacteria down, but is the substance itself anything to be concerned with around young children if they ingested it?

Its not actually to keep bacteria down, but it is bcause hey cannot process a certain amount (little to none) of a form of Potassium which is thus excreted through the nose. Its for osmoregularity. ( I wrote a paper on the vomeral nasal organ in snakes and lizards my sophmore year and while doing research for that I came across a scientific aritcle on anoles and "snaltin"g.

What i find is cool with Cyculuras vs Iguana is that every time my C. cornuta wakes up, she sneezes, MUCH more than my I. iguana.(s) I'm thinking that maybe it is an adaptation to predators and fast digging, clear your sinuses and boost your energy? maybe a good project for my PhD dissertation lol

Your green iguana doesn't do it as much? Every time I bring out my green, he snalts once or twice in my face. [chuckle] lol

No question my greenies like to spray me, but I find that the C. cornuta is contantly sneezing more, and maybe that is because she is using her giant schnoze (lol) to push into me (and mess up all my pillows)

Lol... my C. Cornuta Walter is always shoving into me and various pillows with his nose, and it makes him sneeze too. Fortunately he runs out of snalt fairly quickly!

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Bri

I love that his name is Walter.

Hes a lanky thing! Need to make him rounder with some dry food

Thanks I like his name too=)That was a bad picture... the camera angle makes him look skinny. I think that picture was after he pooped like 5 times that day. I call him my little "bubble" because he's so round. And he loves his tortoise chow!

Here's a picture of him @ 8 months old that I took of him today as he peed on my hand. Little turd(lol)...

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Bri

Thats why I have wire cages.

Yes it's a constant battle at our house to keep our surfaces "snalt" free. We go through lots of windex and paper towels, and the room we keep our igs in is a little orchestra of sneezes. Whe can tell by the size of the sneeze which of our five iggies it came from. A spray to the face is all too common here! I do not know the effects a snalt shower may have on young child, but I would try to avoid putting said child in a situation where it could happen.
You should look on youtube and try to find a video of a group of marine iguanas hanging out by the shore. You'll see little mini snalt eruptions left and right. It's a pretty funny sight!
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Bri

I can only imagine what five can do when I see what my little guy does daily. lol
Thanks for the replies! I know to some that have had these great animals for many years my basic questions may seem unworthy of comment.

Your questions are not unworthy of comment. We all had to start wit little knowledge at the beginning and myself and others on this forum are happy to help. We are all still learning even after many years of experience- I've had iggies as pets for over 18 years and I still consider myself a novice. But I like to offer what I can to help others who care about and love their reptiles. Asking simple questions just shows that you as an owner really care about your iggies=)
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Bri

Thanks for saying that Bri, it is much appreciated as are all the informative comments. I have kept many reptiles over the last 30 years but this is my first Iguana. I was given my first large lizard (a black throated monitor)15 years ago by my Zoology professor at Arizona State. He was missing his front left foot but all things considered had a pretty good temperment. I added a couple other large lizards in the years following, a Savannah Monitor and Argentine Tegu. It may be too early to say but I feel I have found my new favorite in Cyclura.

Cyclura are the BEST!!! Maybe a little biased but hey I'm hooked. I've always thought monitors were very cool too, but not for handling. A tame Cyclura is like having a dinosaur buddy with a dog-like personality that will chill with you and loves to be pet(and won't eat your other pets or your neighbor's either). I also appreciate how the majority of their diet can be picked up at the local grocery store(and Mazuri chow comes in large bags- none of that 1-lb bag of iguana food for $15 crap anymore). I don't think you can beat that!

=)

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Bri

I painted my wall from a tasteful brown (see first pic) to snalt colored (see second pic). Brilliant!

I've had experience with many different Iguanids that do this and Cyclura do it more frequently and in greater quantity than any other type. I believe this is an adaptation because most Cyclura live near salt water and eat plants that have more potassium and minerals than other species so their need is greater. Even the Cyclura that live in the Artibinite live in many areas below sea level that have high concentrations of salt. This lateral nasal gland is an important osmoregulatory function necessary for the survival of the izard....
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Tom Crutchfield
www.tomcrutchfield.com

Righty-ho! thats what i was saying/noticing too in my previous post! Man, I cant wait to study these things in the wild

LMAO!! Mine does the same thing! Never quite knew what it was. This is good information...and frankly hilarious.