Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have recently found myself interested in several cyclura. I know you all have your own preferences but in general which cyclura make the best captives (ie. temperment, thrive)? How are they compared to greens?
I personally have found myself "lusting" for lack of a better word over the rhinos but wanted to ask you current keepers before I run out and get one.

Oh I better tell you about me and my experience before I get a flaming response lol. I am 37 with over 24yrs experience with herps. In the past I have kept two gr. iggys, both from hatchlings, my male lived just under 19yrs and my female died at 11yrs during a surgery. I have also kept and bred several species of boid and currently keep a few gecko species and a 3yr old male v. albigularis. My albig is 5.5ft long and 20 pounds.

I know this is a cyclura board but here is a pic of my male albig. never mind the bald guy.

Man, that is a big-@$$ monitor!

If you look around, you'll find questions similar to yours.

Since you are accustomed to large monitors, a cyclura, no matter which one, should not be "too much to handle" for you.

I'll let the experts fill you in, but from what I remember, the blue cayman is calmer, tho I have seen very "dog-tame" cornutas as well.

-IJ

He is about 5-6 pounds heavier now lol. Yeah but he is a big wuss.

go with what you want, Satisfy the "lust'. There isn't that much difference in whats available. They all have different personalities. I think you would get equal points of view on which is better. the majority thinking on this forum is rhinos are better, imo. I have a rhio and a cayman and I like my Cayman better. Get what you like so you have the interest to put the proper time into it, and you dont wonder what if.
They are way cooler than greens. everything about them is bigger. personality, space needed, food eaten, heat needed, life span,,, its all bigger and better. clean up smells like roses compared to your monitor. just be patient with them.
lets us know what you get. good luck

Thanks for the advise. I will probably wait a few months longer at least, I never just jump into it. Personally I never look back and say what if and no matter what I get it will be well cared for. The real reason I am asking which is more shall we say calmer or more likley to be laid back is that way my wife is happy. I had to do the same thing with my monitor. I wanted a monitor, I prefered the niles but had to go with the black throat which is generally more laid back so she would be happy. So in the long run I will get a Cyclura but I will have to compromise and get the calmer if there is one.

LOL, once you have a Cyclura you will be hooked!! They are attractive, hardy, long-lived, and very intelligent. If raised with lots of attention they can become wonderful companion animals.

I will give you my opinion as a keeper of 3 different species. I have Rhinos, Cubans, and Cayman hybrids. I'm fairly new to Cyclura compared to some of the folks here. I've been keeping them for about 6 years now. I also keep Green Iguanas, Spinytail Iguanas, a few species of monitors, and a bunch of other stuff.

Rhinos will always be my all time favorite. I love their appearance and the demeanor and temperament of mine is outstanding. They are my most dependable, tolerant educational animals and will behave while on display for an entire 3 day weekend without a problem. My older Rhinos actually seem to enjoy human interaction at times...I can't say that about any of my other lizards.

Cubans would probably be my second choice. The adult female that I owned was a fabulous animal...very calm, easy going, quite tractible. My two younger ones have not had as much handling or attention as most of my other Cyclura but are turning into wonderful animals. They are beautiful lizards but don't have the majesty of a nice hybrid or the prehistoric quality of the Rhinos. I have seen some pretty impressive males, though.

My male hybrid is the most unpredictable and moody of all of my Cyclura. He's beautiful, but a brat!! He doesn't play well with other lizards (my Rhinos coexist nicely with the Green Iguanas and the other large lizards) and is not fond of humans that are strangers. I have to watch his body language closely and his personality can change from minute to minute. Even so, I can't imagine not having him here. My female was a love. The only time she ever acted any way other than sweet was when she was gravid and looking for a nesting spot.

One final observation: I received 2 young adult male Rhinos as rescues when the Long Island Reptile Museum was closed a year ago. I estimate these animals to be somewhere between 4 and 6 years old. They had not been handled much or given much of any kind of attention. When they arrived they were wild and very willing to bite. It was more than a little bit intimidating. After just 6 months of kindness, patience, good food and regular handling, they have become trusting animals that will gently take food from my fingers. Neither of them ever offer to bite anymore.

Ultimately the choice is yours. Talk to more owners, do some more research. Whatever the choice, I'm sure that you won't be disappointed. There is nothing quite like living with Cyclura.

hello,
i am definately not an expert with cyclura but i have had a yearling rhino iguana for about 2 weeks now. i have to say that he has tamed down rather nicely.
when i first got him he was pretty high strung and squirmy. when i would reach in his cage to change the water or feed him he would be all over the walls and pretty erratic. he even gave me a nip once.
the previous owner would 'grab' him from above to take him out of his enclosure.
i have been working with him everyday for the past two weeks... i am now able to pet him and take him out without any fuss at all. he also enjoys eating out of my hand and hanging out on my shoulder. all i did was pet him and lift him little by little each day to the point where i can lift him (not 'grab' from above) out of his cage and he literally jumps up on my shoulder and chills.
i am very please with the personality of my rhino. he's very inquisitive and aware of his surroundings.
good luck on your decision! i too was faced with the same decision a couple weeks ago.... keep us informed.
tristan

-----
Tristan
1.1 Blood Pythons (Rambo and Medussa)
1.2 Egyptian Uromastyx (Dog, Cleo, Slo Mo)
0.1 Suriname Red Tail Boas (Stoney)
1.0 Argentine Black and White Tegu (Roy)