Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey everyone

How do you guys like Cages by design? In their reptile cages almost all of them has igs in them. Also I have noticed that with large iggs they have this type of foreskin on their throat area, what is thay for?

Thanks so much,
Rob

>>Hey everyone
>>
>>How do you guys like Cages by design? In their reptile cages almost all of them has igs in them. Also I have noticed that with large iggs they have this type of foreskin on their throat area, what is thay for?
>>
>>Thanks so much,
>>Rob

No need for cages by design. I have cages by husband.

The foreskin that you are seeing is a Dewlap. All green iguanas have them. They are used to communicate as well as to increase their body mass for thermoregulation.

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Cindy
PHFaust

Email Cindy

Land of the Outcasts!

CagesByDesign make beautiful cages that are undersized and over-priced. The only truly properly sized iguana cage they have is the HUGE one at well over $2,000. But for less money, you can build a really nice one yourself, and still have money to spare.

However, they make excellent blue-prints for your own project.
The beauty about CagesByDesign is they come with EVERYTHING. The problem is the price. However, if you got the money, why not?

The MINIMUM space requirements for an iguana are 6 feet tall, 6 feet long, and 4 feet deep. However, these are the minimum. Which means your iguana is living in what equals a walk-in closet for you.

A more proper measurement is 8 feet tall, 10 feet long, and 5 deep. Calculate that an adult iguana is 4.5 to 6 feet in length (length varies by sex, captive care, diet, and health). Therefore, it needs plenty of room to go around, explore, etc. Reptiles do not sit still in the wild in a 6-foot cubic space. A 6-foot tall person does not live in a closet (unless you got issues). So for an animal this big and this long, a truly large enclosure is required, and NOT the minimum.

Next one has to consider various stimuli: climbing and other physical and visual accessories ti stimulate the animal behavior, and to prevent lethargy.

And like PHaust mentioned, the dewlap is used for communication and thermoregulation. Blood vessles in it cool off the blood flowing in and out of them. It is also used for territorial and mating displays. Males have large dewlaps and jowls.

-IJ

wow I had no idea iggs need that big of a cage.
thanks,
Rob

wow I had no idea iggs need that big of a cage.
thanks,
Rob
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Yep, they sure do! It ticks me off that many people recommend minimum caging requirements, without mentioning the true proportions needed for a happy healthy pet.

In all fairness tho, and to avoid scaring you, if your iguana does a lot of free-roaming in an assigned room, minimum caging is acceptable, since the cage becomes a mostly basking/feeding/sleeping area, and the room is left for frolicking and exploration.

There are smaller iguanas, such as some ctenosauras, that require less room.
One of the smallest, if not THE smallest of iguanas, the Desert Iguana, despite its size (14-16 inches total) requires a rather pretty vast enclosure for movement, being desert animals.

Water dragons are the "diet version" of iguanas: half the size, similar look and beauty. Great choice for people who want a beautiful lizard, but cannot offer the large space as for an iguana.

If you really want a Green Iguana, then make sure you can meet minimum enclosure measurements, and offer free-roaming once the animal has tamed down and grown accustomed to you, your presence, and your touch (and once the room has been iguana-proofed).

-IJ

I had water dragons before I got monitors and iguanas. They were very pretty and tame. Nothing beats a 4 foot iguana meeting you in the hall of your house, though. I am lucky that my iguana is ok with my dogs and cat. I have a great dane puppy that I have to keep an eye on when the iguana is roaming. It and the iguana were nose to nose today and licked tongs, my wife freaked, and I busted out laughing. Seeing things like that makes all the work worthwhile.

BTW, the enclosure is only 4 X 3.5 X 4. (I will eventually build it a bigger one for when I am gone from home) I never shut the door to the cage, though. The iguana is free to roam the room and house at its leisure. I put it in the bathtub every morning which is where it does its business. Most of the time it goes back to it's basking spot in the cage across the hall. Occasionally it will roam the house before heading back to its enclosure.

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Ed