Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i rescued him from some people who didnt konw how to take care of him, his tail seems to be damaged im looking into fixing it,but i was woundering how to make him friendly?

Take it really SLOWLY and build his trust. Let him get used to you maintaining his enclosure for a few weeks. Then try touching him gently for about a week. Then attempt to pick him up.
I'm going through the same process you are. I can pick Sweetpea up now and hold her, but she struggles to get free if there's an unfamiliar noise or movement. Needless to say my hands are a little scratched up. I haven't attempted nail trimming yet, but that's next!
Good luck!
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Greenwicche
"Whatever you want to do, just do it. Don't worry about making a fool of yourself. Making a fool of yourself is absolutely essential." Gloria Steinem

Hi,

With time, patience and a consistent routine, you can build a trusting relationship with your iguana. We adopted a male iguana when he was 2 1/2 years old. He was so wild that you couldn't go near him without going crazy and he would not eat if you were in the same room as where his terrarium was. He would bite and tail-whip whenever you tried to get him (after having to chase him for about 5-10 minutes).

Today, he is 10 years old and will happily let you reach into his terrarium and let you stroke his dewlap, rub the top of his head and will gladly and very enthousiastically eat hand-fed treats. He still has a very flighty nature (for example, when people he doesn't know come to visit), but he nevertheless came a very long way.

So don't give up. If our male iguana -- Cujo -- can learn to trust people, any iguana can. LOL (by the way, he earned his name very honestly)

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Julie Williams
www.baskingwonders.com