Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My iguana is right around 8 months old currently and he is still the size as when I bought him. He has a retisun UVB 5.0 bulb, plus a zoomed basking bulb. His diet consists of many many different things. This week he happens to have included in every meal escarole, mustard greens, collard greens, turnip greens, and some squash. He aslo gets things like acorn squash, butternut squash, endive, cilantro- every now and then.., and some fruits. He is handeled for about 2 hours a day. He gets about 12 hours of UVB a day if not more. He has a night bulb too for night time. he gets a bath once a day at least.. Sometimes two baths a day.. I supplement his food a few times a week with calcium powder... I was wondering what I am doing wrong. His first 3 months of his life he was fed lettuce and nothing else.. he has a regular bulb.. like a house bulb.. no UVB.. no baths. and his lights were usually left on all day and all night. no calcium supplements either. Well, my iggy has shed a few times already but he actually doesnt appear to be growing. Do you think he has stunted growth or something?? advice needed. sorry soooo long.

nicole and iggy

This may sound kinda dumb, but when I first got my ig, he didn't really seem to be growing to me. I started measuring him weekly, and writing it down in a book. I also did "handprints" once a month in play-doh and let it dry. It's pretty neat to compare the littlest hands to his hands now. BIG difference. Shedding also doesn't really mean growth. My iguana sheds about twice a month, but he's long since stopped growing. The first year of their life, they don't really grow a tremendous amount, so I really wouldn't worry about it. It's when your ig becomes like say 1 1/2 years old and is still the same size is when you have to worry.
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~*Chibi*~
Sir Iggy ( 1.0.0 El Salvador Blue Iguana), Ryo-ohki, Orion, Bud, & Finnegan (3.1.0 crazy kitties), Rosebud (0.1.0 cockerspaniel), and Kayko (0.0.1 leopard gecko)

I tend to agree. With all of the attention you give your ig daily, you may not notice the growth visually. It is also important to take into consideration weight. If your ig isn't much longer, but has put on weight, then that is a good sign. If he/she was malnourished when you got it, it might need to "bulk up" and get healthy before it begins to grow more quickly. Taking photos every now and then might help you to see the growth more easily too when you compare one from 2 months ago to today.

yeah, i agree, you and chibi reallly helped me out! thanks. you gave me some great ideas. im going to start measuring him weekly. and weighting him on a little scale.. maybe.. and definatly taking some more pictures to compar. i do think he was malnurished when I got him.. he was the greenest though. and most .. like.. alert?? VERY VERY HYPER! my goodness!! the most hyper of them all. lol. i figured the most green and hyper one would be the healthiest. i think my plan worked out!!!

nicole once again thanks spiny rhiny and chibicricket!

awwwe thats so cute! lil handprints.. how adorable.. sorry lol i can just picture that! do you still have the handprints?? i should measure weekly not monthly then.. i see. thanks a lot! i appreciate it!

nicole

Yea, I kept them all in his little baby book.... It's a little embarrasing now that I'm 25, but I was 10 when I got him. And 10 yr olds have a LOT of time on their hands. He went almost EVERYWHERE with me! I had a paper route one summer, and I used to carry him in my paper bag with me. He's way too big to be moving around so much now, but he's still my baby. While I don't recommend young children getting iguanas, I think the fact that he was almost always with me when he was young has a lot to do with his tameness. He wasn't just a pet to me though, he was my friend, and he's always been treated like such.
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~*Chibi*~
Sir Iggy ( 1.0.0 El Salvador Blue Iguana), Ryo-ohki, Orion, Bud, & Finnegan (3.1.0 crazy kitties), Rosebud (0.1.0 cockerspaniel), and Kayko (0.0.1 leopard gecko)