I have kept iguanas with salvators 18 months now. I have yet to have a serious problem with that arrangement. There are three iguanas in the room, and there were two breeding salvators in that room until April. Currently, 3 iguanas and a female salvator. For the most part the iguanas remain up on their shelves basking or doing whatever, and the salvator(s) remain on the ground (or under their hides) or lower basking spots. The male salvator (5 foot, but now deceased) would occasionally climb up to the iguanas shelves and bask with them. He did this when the female salvator became aggressive toward the male salvator. Even when gravid and ready to lay, she did not become aggressive toward the iguanas, although she made very determined efforts to kill the male salvator.
Now, there have been a few mild incidents. Occasionally an iguana will leap from a shelf and land near the female salvator. She will occasionally (twice that I have witnessed) bite their foot when they land. She lets go right away and I have not seen broken skin or any sign of injury on the iguanas. The iguanas will stand still until she lets go (it is a matter of a few seconds). Chubbs (iguana) will posture and Mushu (female salvator) just stares at him. Eventually Chubbs just walks away with no sense of urgency. Petrie (iguana) stood still and walked away as soon as she let go. Mushu seems to respond to them only when they come out of nowhere. If the iguanas walk by her, she usually ignores them. Sometimes she will track them, and they will slow down or even freeze for a moment before resuming their journey. Occasionally, the iguanas will bask with Mushu, but not very often. The iguanas prefer the high basking spots.
To my knowledge, Labyrinth (male salvator) never attacked an iguana. I am very confident he never did because if he had, I most likely would have had a dead iguana.
I think the key to making this arrangement work was to provide for each animal. The iguanas have shelves with basking sites. Labyrinth could get to them, but rarely chose to do so. Mushu does not climb.
I cannot tell you what goes on in their heads, but I know Mushu has been extremely hungry before but she has never killed (or made an attempt on) one of the iguanas. Neither did Labyrinth, even when very hungry. I am not suggesting that they would never kill an iguana if it was life or death, but it has not happened even on long absences of food for the salvators. I also know that Mushu was openly aggressive toward Labyrinth and would attack him relentlessly, but ignore an iguana sitting right next to her even the day before she would drop her eggs. So she was selective with her target.
I was extremely nervous about housing iguanas with salvators. It has worked out well for these particular animals, and I would consider it again in the future. Another key, though, is to monitor the situation and have a backup!!! If there had been a problem (that was not fatal), I had the enclosures ready to separate the iguanas back out immediately. You have to tailor the mixing to your animals. If they do not get along, do not force it.
Interestingly, Mushu taste tested greens the first few times I fed the iguanas but did not eat them. The iguanas will occasionally take a rat, chew it up, and spit it out. Chubbs seems to be the iguana that still does this, whereas Petrie did it once or twice and quit. Mr. Green Jeans (third iguana) has never attempted to eat a rat to my knowledge and has never been bitten by a salvator to my knowledge.
This is Labyrinth on one of his rare baskings on a shelf with an iguana (Chubbs). They had been sitting peacefully until I showed up. Both of those animals dislike (hate) me.
Salvators
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^x^ Bloodbat ^x^
Monitors, monitors everywhere
and all the food they ate.
Monitors, monitors everywhere,
their parents loved to mate.
