Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok im working on building a a cage tht takes up half of an old bedroom in my basement so space is not a problem. should i get an IG or a waterdragon. this is my first lizard but iv owned lots and lots of rare fish inluding northern pikes muskies large mouth piranhas and oscars. i read about igs and WD about 3-4 hours a day so dieing isnt th big of a problem. but which do u think would be more fun and like to be held. im going to be homeschooled and am looking for a lizard to watch me do work and one tht i can just chill with. so basiccaly which do u guys like better.

If by Ig you mean iguana, then the answer is clear, a water dragon is your best bet. There are two main reasons why WD's are clearly better pets. One, iguana's are herbivores, while this may seem to be an advantage at first, its not. Herbivores like iguanas typically only digest 30% of what they eat that mean a lot of waste i.e. poop! And they need to be feed every day! WD's eat live food and digest around 80-90% of what they eat and can be fed weekly. The second reason is temperament. A male iguana has the largest testicles of any land animal in relation to his overall body size. This translates into aggression pure and simple, think, "Bull". The females are less aggressive, but unless you buy them as adults when they are easily distinguished, your chances are about 50/50. While WD's males are more territorial then the females they generally do not transfer this aggression to people.

I have both, 2 sub-adult WDs and a 3.5 foot male iguana. I have owned anoles, leos & WDs before I adopted my ig. I would advise to get get a water dragon, as they are more gentle & tame. Both lizards require a lot of room. The more attention you give either lizard, the better temperament he should have, although igs are very undpredictable & about 60% of them are aggressive, mainly b/c they are either mistreated, neglected or their owners can't or won't handle them. I lucked out & got an awesome iguana with a funny, great personality... he is newspaper trained & very social, has never whipped or bitten me or anyone except his previous owners who kept him in a 40 gallon tank in the far corner of their house & neglected him. Most owners are not this lucky, hence the fact that igs are often given up & have as many as 4-6 homes in their lives.
Anyway, water dragons are great as long as you take good care of them. Remember they are more succestible to disease/illness that a lot of lizards; my wild-caught girl went to the vet twice within the first 2 weeks I bought her!

Danielle

water dragons have a better tempermant that iguanas and don't get as big.. but as far as a wd being your first lizard... i don't know. water dragons are more likely to get sick and require a lot more care than other lizards...i have a bearded dragon a leopard gecko and a couple water dragons and the water dragons require a lot more of my time and energy than the others.. if your looking for a lizard whose is fairly easy to take care of and chill with (like you said in a previous post) i would suggest a bearded dragon.. they are easily handled and are a hardy starter lizard. they can grow to be as big as 2 feet in length and would need a 55 gallon tank or larger. i just think you should own an easier lizard first and work your way up to a water dragon but that is just my two cents... good luck on whatever you choose....

alissa

my parents will let me have 1 lizard no more. so i need a lizard il lbe happy with forever. i have plenty of time so time doesnt matter much

well, i own a water dragon and my roommate owns 4 igs...

i can definitely say from experience that water dragons are your best bet. water dragons are a lot more tame. 3 of the 4 igs that she has are mean. she treats them well and has been trying to tame them, it just aint happening (she bought special handling kevlar gloves... her largest one bit so hard through one glove, that injuries of the hand still resulted).

ig upkeep is definitely more of a hassle (water containers have to be changed several times a day). judging by food costs too, water dragons are cheaper to keep up with. b/c ig diets are entirely greens and fruits, the wide variety of greens and fruits have to be fresh and fed daily, sometimes more than once daily in order to keep them real healthy.

however, there is a slight bonus to the vegetarian diet, my roommate doesnt have to deal with crickets, mealworms & superworms. i know my expenditures on insects comes to much less than my roommates' on fruits and vegetables. but, i deal with noisy crickets, some escaped crickets and i have to feed the crickets & worms too (it is still cheaper than having igs though).

the initial investment in the right materials for your lizard's happiness should be your biggest concern. the initial costs will most likely be your biggest.

some tips that make having a water dragon a lot easier... buying a humidifier for human-use, running a tube into the dragon's cage, then putting it on automatic timer. also, buying a fluval water filter, for his water tub, helps keep the water cleaner longer.. altho, i still change it every other day. i also keep my lights for him on timer too. that's really helpful in the mornings.

well, good luck.