i am not an expert in the iguana feild and i dont belive that anyone is. so i sat down and i typed out this little care sheet to try and help out iguanaboy and anyone else on this forum who is looking into getting an iguana.
If you have nothing good to say to this kid than stay out of this thread please i am trying to help him and i dont need it filled up with all the "I told you so Stuff". we have all had enough of that. if you have any questions tho i will be glad to answer them to the best of my ability. you can email me zombie2979@aol.com talk to me online at Zombie2979 or just start a new post and i will help as best as i can.
i have said it once and i will say it again you need to set iguanas up correctly for them to thrive. This IS NOT cheap!! just because the lizard is cheap does not mean that caring for them is cheap. that is one thing that you need to realize this now!!! please do not go out and buy an iguana and then two weeks later go drop it off and say that you cant care for it. and make sure you do your research about them BEFORE you buy it.
CAGING
1) getting each iguana in there own enclosure. i dont care how good you say they are getting along. one is in your words "doing great" and the other one is doing bad. that should tell you right there that one is doing bad. he has no body wieght at all. you by the base of the tail and the limbs. haveing a fat body could be many things one being parasites. which your probably have. they also need very large enclosures that cost a decent amount of money to make. also just because other people have two iguanas in the same cage and they get along does not mean that yours will. they aparently are not getting along. if one is doing that bad. If you cant get a whole new cage at least try and find a way to divide the cage ASAP so you can get some weight on the other igg
DIET
2)get them on the right diet. NO more Lettuce. it is not good for them. use your calcium everyday. you told me last night that you used it once a week. feed them dark leafy greens(collards,danilion, some kale,escarole,endive,mustard) go to the store and pick that stuff up. you can also use some vegetables(carrots,pease,green bean,squash,bell pepers) you can also use some fruit(grapes,mango,some banana,peaches,nectarines,berries,melons,citrus fruits, can be used in moderation..these are mostly used as treats.
LIGHTING/HEATING
3)get the right lighting get ones like the repti sun 5.0 or iguana light. you need these for your iguana to thrive. if you dont have these your iguanas WILL BOTH get MBD. and MBD means vet and vet means expensive bills. you also need heat lights Ceramic heat emiters work great. they produce no light so they can be kept on 24 hrs a day. do not use thosse red and blue lights for at night all they do is stress out the iguana even more than they are. also as stated before expect your electric bill to UP. yours temps should be around 90-100 for a basking spot and around 80-85 on the cool side. with out this thermal gradient your iguana cant thermoregulate and if they cant thermoregulate than they can digest there foos right and it WILL rot in the stomach.
HUMIDITY/SOAKING
4) give your iguanas soaks every day or at least every other day. this will keep them hydrated and will also entertain them(my iguanas love bath time
). not all iguanas will drink for a bowl of standing water(my older one will the younger will not). you also need to keep the humidity up in the cage. around 50-80% is ideal. with out the proper humidity your iguana will not be able to shed right and WILL become dehydrated which can lead to loss of apetite and after that death of your poor green friend.
Also your iguanas may grow and not like you. be prepared to get cuts scrapes and possible welts from your iguana. i consider the tail more dangerous than the mouth. i am lucky and my big male is like a big puppy dog because he has been around people his whole life.
Now you really have to start to listen. if you dont like someone on here dont listen to them. but i am getting sick of typing the same thing over and over again to help you and then you just ignore me and say that they are getting along fine. THEY ARE NOT!!
So do yourself a favor and START listening to us
Mike D
(i do not mean for any of this to be taken in a bad way)
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1.0.0 adopted iguana
0.0.1 rescued petco iguana
1.0.0 water dragon
0.0.1 mali uromastyx
0.1.0 painted turtle
0.0.1 common snapping turtle
then the ussual
2 dogs
6 cats
misc fish
hermit crabs
rat
misc. fish
ITS NOT ABOUT YOU DIEING FOR YOUR COUNTRY, ITS ABOUT MAKING YOUR ENEMY DIE FOR HIS.
