Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi everyone. I've enjoyed reading your posts and seeing your pictures. I posted last month that I was trying to adopt my first Iguana. He was only 2 1/2 feet long, was several years old, and was living in a dog cage. Turned out someone else who knows the owner ended up adopting him. I wish him the best. You know the saying, when a door shuts a window opens? Well, I found another Iggy!!! I'm so excited. This one is a 5 year old male, approx 6 feet long, recently vet checked healthy. I am getting his current setup which I will try to add to. It is 6 feet long, 6 feet tall, 3 feet deep. Once I see it I'll see how I can work an addition onto it to make it bigger. I'm a bit nervous now that I've read some recent posts about people getting badly injured (stitches, scars, plastic surgery) by seemingly "tame" Iggys. They certainly deserve a lot of respect. I am told that this Iggy (his name is Bird) is friendly in general, but can be "moody". They are not currently handling him due to his size. I would like some suggestions on how I can make friends with Bird. (the name might have to change) Should I leave him in his enclosure for a while and just talk to him and feed him, or should I try to handle him right off the bat? Ohhh, his owner just called, I have to log off and call her. We are trying to set a date for him to come to his new home... Any "bonding" tips would be awesome! Thanks!!!
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Lyns Lair
Frogwatch USA
WNY Herpetological Society

0.1 Cat (Mia)
4.2 Ferrets (Wolf, Shadow, Verdell, Sullivan, Boo, Peach)
1.0 Carpet Python (Bear)
1.0 Malagasy Blonde Hognose Snake (Wilbur)
1.0 Yellow / Everglades Rat Snake (Pumpkin)
1.0 Russian Sand Boa (Fang)
0.1 Normal Corn Snake (Mysty)
0.0.2 Anery Corn Snakes (Suezo & Mocchi)
1.0 Banded Water Snake (Ripley)
0.1 Golden Greek Tortoise (Sunshine)
1.0 Whites Tree Frog (Trevor)
2.0 Solomon Island Eyelash Frogs (Chompy & Gimli)
1.0 AFT Gecko (Cocoa)
5.6 Leopard Geckos (Trouble, Scooter, Simba, Firenze, Teddy, Nala, Mystique, Freckles, Dotty, Zipper, Twister)

Sounds like you already know him: Friendly, but can be "moody." That describes most igs, with some more friendly and others (most?) more moody.

My advice to you is in three parts. One, read through this forum thoroughly. You'll learn a lot about what other ig owners are dealing with, and what advice the experienced (and inexperienced) owners have for the problems they face. Two, pick up one or more of the recommended books and check out the recommended websites. GreenIgSociety and IguanaDen are good sites, and Melissa Kaplan's "Iguanas for Dummies" always seems to get good reviews.

Third, I would recommend giving him plenty of hands-off time on his own after you get him settled into his new environment. You'll find from all of the above resources that iguanas need time to adjust to new surroundings or re-adjust to old ones. It may take days or months. Let him get used to his new enclosure, and to you going about your business. That way he'll come to recognize you as part of the picture - and of course, the part that provides the food!!

Always remember that an ig with a friendly nature is still a wild animal. Given the chance, he WILL bite the hand that feeds him (or the face, in my case; see my post below on "the wrath of grapes" ) . As for bonding with him, that will come later, if at all. Consult the references above on how best to "socialize" your ig (a term generally perferred over "taming" or "bonding" ) .
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MichaelB

The previous post is awesome. Many excellent points.
One point I would like to add to is giving the Iguana time to adjust. People are so eager for their new pet to be up running that they don't allow time to establish. I've seen my Iguana stop feeding fo 30 days after moving him to a new environment. These animals lack the sdjustments skills of say a dog or cat who would after a very short time begin feeding, exploring, and bonding. Iguanas are creatures of habit and in there captive environment become very routine, so you can only imagine the feelings they experience being moved from the world they exist in 24hrs a day.
The other point I would like to add to is "bonding or taming". I have always approached my relationship with herps using the following:
It is always on their terms that I interact with them. I don't force my herps to walk on leashes, go to parks, ride on my shoulder, if they happen to these things, great.
No matter what cute name you have for them or how long you been the care taker, these are wild animals that do wild things.
My final thought is that a herp that does not choose a response of fight or flight and simply tolerates me is the truly a great thing! Hope some of this helps.

Thank you for your wonderful replies. I have no problem at all giving him settling in time. Weeks or months, whatever he needs. His owner said that every time they built him a new cage (he's on his 3rd enclosure in 4 years) that he went into a 2 week depression and just layed around and wouldn't eat. That's being in the same house with the same people. Here he will be in his familiar enclosure with all his own things and favorite foods, but whole new place and people. I think it will be way harder on him. I'm already so stressed out for him anticipating how upset he is going to be. His current owner and her husband and daughter are all coming with him to see his new home. We are aiming for this Sunday. I'm in NY and they are in PA. They sent me a framed picture of him which is sitting here by my computer. My scanner isn't working or I'd scan it. She also send a closeup picure via email but it's in some funky word file. I can see it, he's a very handsome boy, but I can't upload it onto a site to post it. If any of you know how to convert files to JPEGs I'd happily email you the picture!
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Lyns Lair
Frogwatch USA
WNY Herpetological Society

0.1 Cat (Mia)
4.2 Ferrets (Wolf, Shadow, Verdell, Sullivan, Boo, Peach)
1.0 Carpet Python (Bear)
1.0 Malagasy Blonde Hognose Snake (Wilbur)
1.0 Yellow / Everglades Rat Snake (Pumpkin)
1.0 Russian Sand Boa (Fang)
0.1 Normal Corn Snake (Mysty)
0.0.2 Anery Corn Snakes (Suezo & Mocchi)
1.0 Banded Water Snake (Ripley)
0.1 Golden Greek Tortoise (Sunshine)
1.0 Whites Tree Frog (Trevor)
2.0 Solomon Island Eyelash Frogs (Chompy & Gimli)
1.0 AFT Gecko (Cocoa)
5.6 Leopard Geckos (Trouble, Scooter, Simba, Firenze, Teddy, Nala, Mystique, Freckles, Dotty, Zipper, Twister)

lyn,email me the pics at tharbepirates@hotmail.com
i can PSP them into JPEGs for you
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Sarah
IgWhippedInFlorida
groups.yahoo.com/group/IgWhippedInFlorida/

I emailed it to you, thanks! I hope you can convert it, or at least can download it so you can see him! I'll be posting lots of pics this weekend when he gets here. I feel so bad for his family, they love him so much and are going to miss him, and I'm sure he'll miss them too. They just feel bad that he's stuck in his enclosure 24/7 right now because they are not comfortable handling him since he grew big. I've gotten very good at reading animals in general and reptiles in particular, so am hoping I'll be successful in making friends with him so he can get out of the enclosure and get some fresh air and excercize. No, I won't just set him down outside of course. I have a large screened in porch that he can make use of once I'm comfortable picking him up and carrying him around. He can at least get some fresh air and sunshine then w/out being in any danger of getting hurt or getting loose. I'll make him some special shelves to sit on, or get some of those cat things like someone did on their porch that I saw pictures of. Hope the email comes though! Thanks for your help!
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Lyns Lair
Frogwatch USA
WNY Herpetological Society

0.1 Cat (Mia)
4.2 Ferrets (Wolf, Shadow, Verdell, Sullivan, Boo, Peach)
1.0 Carpet Python (Bear)
1.0 Malagasy Blonde Hognose Snake (Wilbur)
1.0 Yellow / Everglades Rat Snake (Pumpkin)
1.0 Russian Sand Boa (Fang)
0.1 Normal Corn Snake (Mysty)
0.0.2 Anery Corn Snakes (Suezo & Mocchi)
1.0 Banded Water Snake (Ripley)
0.1 Golden Greek Tortoise (Sunshine)
1.0 Whites Tree Frog (Trevor)
2.0 Solomon Island Eyelash Frogs (Chompy & Gimli)
1.0 AFT Gecko (Cocoa)
5.6 Leopard Geckos (Trouble, Scooter, Simba, Firenze, Teddy, Nala, Mystique, Freckles, Dotty, Zipper, Twister)

np
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Sarah
IgWhippedInFlorida
groups.yahoo.com/group/IgWhippedInFlorida/

Be careful that he won't be able to push the screen out or rip it and then escape. Congrats on your new friend. Can't wait to see pictures.
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The addiction can be dangerous

Thanks for trying Sarah, one of my friends was able to fix it up. Here is "Bird". It is a photo of a photo actually, that's why there is a glare on it. She's keeping the original photo but hopefully making me a copy. She said that is fruit juice from his dinner on his face. Can you wash an Iggy's face with a wash cloth, or mist them? She said he is a messy eater. I think he's very handsome, juice and all! He looks so incredibly intelligent. Like he's plotting something, doesn't he? Looks like he has a lot of personality. I look forward to getting to know him.

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Lyns Lair
Frogwatch USA
WNY Herpetological Society

0.1 Cat (Mia)
4.2 Ferrets (Wolf, Shadow, Verdell, Sullivan, Boo, Peach)
1.0 Carpet Python (Bear)
1.0 Malagasy Blonde Hognose Snake (Wilbur)
1.0 Yellow / Everglades Rat Snake (Pumpkin)
1.0 Russian Sand Boa (Fang)
0.1 Normal Corn Snake (Mysty)
0.0.2 Anery Corn Snakes (Suezo & Mocchi)
1.0 Banded Water Snake (Ripley)
0.1 Golden Greek Tortoise (Sunshine)
1.0 Whites Tree Frog (Trevor)
2.0 Solomon Island Eyelash Frogs (Chompy & Gimli)
1.0 AFT Gecko (Cocoa)
5.6 Leopard Geckos (Trouble, Scooter, Simba, Firenze, Teddy, Nala, Mystique, Freckles, Dotty, Zipper, Twister)