Iguana? Walking Around Loose

[Deleted]

(Yes, I spelled loose right. )

My neighbor got an interesting surprise today when he went out to find a 3' long iguana in his tree. We live in the desert, so not exactly their home habitat by a long shot.

Since we haven't seen any "lost iguana" signs, I assume someone let it go out here in the "freedom" like they do with the cats and dogs they no longer want....

My neighbors were going to kill it. So, it is now temporarily living in a smaller enclosure we built for it out of stuff we had laying around.

When today started, finding an iguana is about the most remote possibility I would have given.

[BeenThere...DoneThat...]

...hey, it was a Blue Moon last night...




eta ...or was that the night before? now I can't remember...

[Spellbound454]

Ew...I don't know why people have these animals if they are not going to look after them properly and an iguana takes a bit more expertise than your average hamster.

Now you are burdened with trying to find it a home.

[Jaguar]

Sept 2, 2012 2:08:02 GMT -5 Spellbound454 said:

Ew...I don't know why people have these animals if they are not going to look after them properly and an iguana takes a bit more expertise than your average hamster.

Now you are burdened with trying to find it a home.

So absolutely >> >> Good Luck.

[Opti]

GPG, I'm glad you found it and gave it a temporary home. It may have been let loose intentionally or it may have escaped. I did not put up loose water dragon signs the time mine escaped from its sunning enclosure.

However, with an iguana it is fairly likely someone got it as a cheap pet for their kid not realizing how different they are to care for when they are adults or close to. You might be able to find a local pet store or vet willing to sell or adopt it out. The good news is they are vegetarians so you probably already are buying food it eats. Thanks for taking care of it.

[Nazgul Girl]

I used to work with a woman who was married to a Methodist minister. He (they) loved animals and he had two iguanas loose in his study at their house. One would come and sleep on him. It was a rescue iguana. I found a very good link on feeding iguanas. It sounds as if they suffer from Vitamin D and calcium deficiencies, and need to drink a lot of water. You could probably feed this new guy out of your vegetable bin. Also, it sounds like they need to do their "jobs" fairly often (in water), and need a big watery tray to do them in. See below. If we lived in Arizona, I'd be glad to take him.

www.greenigsociety.org/feedingigs.htm

www.thefunplace.com/house/pets/iguana.html

[Deleted]

We have a local 'exotics' zoo... they started with rescue cats, but any more have a rather large variety of animals... so many are rescued from illegal pet situations where the owner thought, oh, wouldn't that be cool.. and only realized later that wild animals are not meant to be pets ... I don't know if they have any iguanas? Monkeys, birds, lots of cats, bears ... they also take wounded animals that would have a hard time surviving in the wild...

(They also take animals zoos want to get rid of... old animals, but also, I was sad to learn, some zoos will want 'baby cam' animals to bring in people and revenue, but then not want to have that many grown animals, so they get rid of them after they are a certain age... I know this place had 3 tigers come in a few years ago that were ex baby-cam tigers... )

[Deleted]

It appears that our iguana is a female. She is easily 3' or longer with tail. We put her into the bath yesterday and she goes from end to end in my soaking tub with her tail going up one end!

She was obviously either an escaped or dumped pet. Iguanas are from the islands, not the high desert, so someone probably got tired of her and let her go out here. Idiots... but that is another rant....

She is very tame and likes to be held and to walk around the house. The cats haven't figured out what she is, so have mostly peered into the box when they hear movement.

She is very, very thin and dry but seems otherwise healthy. I went and bought her some greens after reading about what they eat and made her some of the special iggy salad that is recommended online.

I am a total reptile person. I am the one shooing off the snakes on the road so they don't get run over. (Love those things - they eat the nasty/destructive rodents!) I've always wanted a snake or lizard.

We are thinking about building her a habitat in my office. Haven't decided for sure yet.

I was surprised to learn that they are smart and can be trained to only poop in water and that they only poop once a day, so once they poop you can have them out with you and not have to worry about it.

[Deleted]

Since it has a face only a mother could love... we were calling "him" Ichabod Crane, iggy for short. Since learning how to sex them, I told the kids we need to call her Iggisha.

The neighbors were calling her Steve. LOL

My office is a very large room and has not much more than my desk in it. I am thinking of getting some plywood and wire and making a large enclosure for her in here. It is also probably the warmest room in the house.

I already have the light fixtures and everything else we need, just need to figure out the UVB bulb issues. They like to sit in trees, so we can make some perches/climbing opportunities with the local wood or manzanita.

[BeenThere...DoneThat...]

...I vote for Iggisha...

[midjd]

Bless you for giving this iguana a good home! It breaks my heart to think of a poor creature being dumped to fend for itself 5,000 miles away from its natural habitat. What jerks her former owners were

[Nazgul Girl]

I love this story, Goldpanningirl. I just think that what you're doing is great, both for the iguana and for your kids. You're teaching them that mercy and compassion to the helpless and downtrodden is something that good people perform. Lucky Iggy, eh ? Maybe all of us could absorb that lesson.... I think that Iggalena might work, too.

[Opti]

Since I've learned through this board some people give their pets all three names may I suggest

Iguana B. Happy
pronounced as I guwanna be happy ;D


Since she's female you should have easier personality issues. When the males are in breeding heat they can be aggressive plus they also can get 5 feet long or so. Since she's female I think her max length should be around 4 feet. The one thing to watch for though in a female lizard is egg binding. Definitely feed her calcium rich food and buy vitamin supplements if you can afford to. Letting her hang out by windows will also help with Vitamin D and her bones.

Do check out your local library or a pet store for books and information. I think there may be a guy called Henry Lizardlover or something like that who has written a pretty good book on iguanas. You can also buy harnesses to walk your iguana although if my bearded dragon is any indication getting on the harness won't be easy. I think its great you are taking her.

[Deleted]

I put her in the bathtub again this morning. She seemed to like the warm water and hung out there for a while. I read about how to clip their nails and so I decided to try my hand at that while she was relaxed and bathing. Worked out great! I cut all of them without her caring at all. She just laid there and looked like she was enjoying the spa.

When we brought her home she was a gray color and was looking really dry and hungry. She seems to be puffing up a bit and looks more green now. We let her roam around the house, following her around, and she climbs into a window and sits in the sun.

We have two dogs and three cats so this might be a problem. It says online that iggies and cats can get along but that they don't like birds and dogs. We will probably just keep the dogs outside while the iggy is out and let them in while she is back in her habitat. I think the cats will be okay as long as we don't leave them together unsupervised and let them get used to each other over time.

[Opti]

on putting her in the bath tub. Basic first aid and general health for lizards is keeping them well hydrated. Sounds like you and the lizard are adjusting to each other well. I've found color can also be a great indicator of health or stress. I never had an iguana although I did check out a couple of large sub-adults - 2 1/2 ft. long for the female and 3 ft. for the male. The female panicked and crawled to my shoulders and top of my head. Having a few small wounds in my scalp from her claws made me veto the then BF on the idea. I'm glad your experience seems to be going much better.

What kind of dogs do you have?

[Deleted]

Iggy seems fine as long as you carry her close to your body, like on your shoulder. She does not like the "free-fall" feeling if you pick her up away from your body. Similar to how a kitten requires you to hold it without clawing the crap out of your hand.

She doesn't seem interested in trying to bite or hit with her tail. She whacked it at the dog through the glass door, but then she walked off and ignored the dog. She hates going back in the box thing we have now, but she will just have to hang for a couple days while we build. Everything here is closed for the holiday.... small town and all....

I wasn't sure it was actually a green iguana yesterday because there was no green on it. Today it has some and it is a much healthier looking color.

I have a humidifier and heat lamp. I also have this waterfall thing you put on a desk that the cat can drink from. It was a gift long ago and has been lingering out in the shop. I think it will go well in her habitat. I think we are going to build a frame with 2x4s and either plywood or MDF, and build a large box with a door. We have plenty of trees around, so we will find a good couple of branches for her to climb on. I've been reading about how other people have built theirs, and have been trying to understand what I have to light and when. Right now we are not sure what to do at night because it says no lower than 80 degrees but to turn off the lights at night. I don't have a heater yet, so last night we blocked off half of the top of the large box so that it was darker and left the light on. She seemed happy and fine this morning, so I guess that is the plan until my heat source arrives from Amazon.

I need a light fixture for the UVB bulb and a heat source for at night, but other than that she really doesn't seem to need much other than a lot of fresh green stuff and a place to live. DS and I are both handy people, so we can easily build what we need with a bit of materials and effort.

[Opti]

GPG, I get what you mean about carrying her. My first few lizards liked a more open feeling when I carried them when they were young until I got a male water dragon who I didn't take out often because he needed to be carried very tightly in order to be happy. I have noticed the older mine got in general the more they like being carried close and yes shoulder perching or being high makes many lizards feel more secure.

My male water dragon was 27 inches from snout to tail tip and looked like an iguana to those who didn't know better. When happy and secure he had beautiful aquas and pinks around his throat. As you've probably noticed in your internet searches there are many types of iguanas. I'd love to see a picture of her if you can take one and post it.

I understand her being unhappy about the box but its temporary and I'm sure eventually she'll forget it. They all are different and definitely have personalities. My male bearded dragon is pretty old but I can tell the difference between when he looks at me because he expects me to feed him and when he expects I should get him down although unfortunately he is quite willing to just fall or dive off windowsills.

[Deleted]

I'll do some photos and post them in the next day or two.

DS brought me home a spray bottle today and she loves it when it "rains" in the box.

[weltschmerz]

Kudos to you for taking in this critter! I think she lucked out and found a really good mom.

[lurkyloo]

I vote for Iggishia of Walmart Congrats on the new family member; it sounds like you're really enjoying each other.

(Welcome back Mid!)

[Deleted]

Igraine, since she seems kind of Medieval.

[Deleted]

Oh yes, Igraine... that gets my vote... because, you know, we should definately get to name your pet....

[Deleted]

Sept 3, 2012 22:47:55 GMT -5 oped said:

Oh yes, Igraine... that gets my vote... because, you know, we should definately get to name your pet....

We are pretty uncreative when it comes to naming our pets. Typically my cats/dogs have come from the county kill shelter, and have kept whatever name they called them.

My DS's cat (the peeing offender that was tossed outside and disappeared...) was called Kitty. Clearly, we had named her.

Looks like Iggy's name is going to be Iggy.

The only issue with animal names is when you go to the vet and they want the name of your animal. I always feel like an idiot because mine are typically something uncreative.

[Opti]

No worries GPG. Although they never went to the vet, both my Toads had the creative name Toad. Besides Iggy gets your lastname if she goes to the vet anyway.