Conditions of habitability for our iguanas

The iguanas are a few animals that tend to defend one when they feel irresolute. It is necessary to bear in mind that they are reptiles which natural ambience is the forest and his reactions they are provoked by his strong instinct of self-defense. When it is necessary to manipulate an iguana, it is necessary to bear in mind the advices that are quoted next.

When an animal of these characteristics is acquired, it is necessary to have thought in advance that it needs a wide place to live. This is like that because an adult iguana can go so far as to measure 1, 5 meters long. It is essential to equip this space with a series of completely necessary articles so that this so special pet enjoys the best conditions of life.

Conditions of habitability

The terrarium must have the following measurements: in case it is going to be occupied by a young iguana (those with less than 18 months), it will have to measure 80 cm. of length for 70 cm. of breadth for 100 cm. of high place. If it is an adult iguana the one that is going to inhabit, that is to say, the his one with more than three years, the cockpit will measure 3 m. of length for 1,5 m. of breadth for 2 m. of high place.

Also, he has to have a badge calefactory, a fluorescent issuing pipe of beams UVB, a receptacle for the meal and other for the water, being the last one the sufficiently big thing like to allow that the iguana should bathe in him. The fluorescent pipes serve so that the lizard synthesizes correctly the vitamin D3. Also it is good to place in the terrarium dry branches so that the iguana could climb for ellas.02.jpg

Temperature and moisture

With regard to the temperature of the hearth of this animal, throughout the day it will have to range between 28ºC and 32ºC and, during the night between 19ºC and 25ºC. To obtain these high temperatures in the winter epoch, numerous models of heating exist. It is advisable to avoid the use of the heat stones, since they can come to 40ºC, which will reverberate negatively in the health of the reptile. Before introducing of definitive form to the iguana in the terrarium, it is necessary to prove the heating team . This is due to the fact that electrical mistakes can develop. To extinguish and to light the heating use of a temporized can be done.

On the other hand, it must be placed in a place removed from the step and very illuminated. If the lighting of the sun is not the suitable one, it is necessary to resort to the artificial one. This is due to the fact that the iguana can think that one brings the winter over and to initiate his hibernation. The moisture has to be 60 % ó 70 %, which achieves easily pulverized water directly in the terrarium. Finally, to obtain correct ventilation, it is necessary to replace the top crystal with a mesh.

How to manipulate an iguana

It is possible to train to an iguana. Nevertheless, to it to be able to be dangerous, it is necessary to bear in mind a series of recommendations. For example, when beech that to rise to the animal, it is necessary to hold it for the abdomen and the paws. It is never necessary to support for the tail, since it has the aptitude to get rid of her. Although his tail would grow again (not so much like earlier), it might become infected.

It is not very common that an iguana tries to bite anybody: if it does it is because she feels threatened. In these cases it is advisable to put them a rag of black color on the head to calm them. The same happens with the scratches. His claws can be cut to prevent from taking place accidentally.

Normally, the iguanas usually not aggressive after a process of domestication. Nevertheless, in some special circumstances it is possible that they allow seeing his fury, especially the males. One of the methods to fight it is provide to him a doll of plastic during the epoch of zeal.

To treat the hostility

When it seems that remedy does not stay any more, one usually resorts to the castration, although it is not verified that this operation is effective at the time of limiting the aggressiveness. The best stage to carry out it is that of the ripeness of the animal. Sometimes, the scarcity of hormones fruit of the castration prevents the iguana from developing normally.

A way of correcting the bad genius of this reptile is not to treat him as a hostile way. Therefore, it is necessary to look at it straight ahead or to take it for the intestine so that it makes itself comfortable in the hand and the arm as if it was hanging of the branch of a tree. It is not necessary to take hold to the iguanas for the neck as the predators would do it. Also, these animals are provided with a species of ' third eye ' on the head that allows them to see the lads when they approach from above. If the proprietor of the iguana comes closer from above, it will turn into his enemy.

earn the trust of your iguana pet.

Iguanas are very different from dogs and cats, since they are reptiles and therefore they do not need from a contact with the person, as they are more independent animals in this sense. Nevertheless, every person who has an iguana as pet, want to touch it and that he/she have more confidence with his owner, although this is not simple and requires time and a huge amount of patience.

First of all we must approach him/her in a cautious way and every day try to come further. It is normal that at first our approach is pushed back, but little by little the iguana will see that danger is not present and will let us approach. This is a simple way of being able to gain us his/her confidence and to do that an iguana could have more contact with us, let us take her, caress and others. It is a goal that every proprietor of iguana wants to obtain, to be closer to his pet.

We must be very attentive to the reactions that our iguana has at the time of approaching to feed him/her or simply to see her more closely. The more time happen together with our iguana, earlier we will be able to have a major confidence, because he/she will become used to our presence, to which we feed him and others. Patience and great calmness are needed to obtain the confidence of an iguana.

How to tame your new iguana pet

What to do when you bring your iguana home from the pet shop (part 2)


Following on my previous post regarding taming your iguana pet; by this time you'll have discover that the reptiles are not as sociable as dogs, cats or the small rodents. They do not show any interest at all to interact with humans; of who in they are afraid generally speaking. Anyways, with patience and perseverance you can achieve that your iguana goes so far to enjoy your presence and that become happy to see you.

It is very important to make sure that the iguana enclosure has the necessary conditions of temperature, moisture and lighting so that your iguana develops with vitality. If some of these factors are not as debit, the most probable thing is that he/she becomes drowsy, loses the appetite and falls ill, which would make any advice useless on domestication. Study everything regarding feeding so that he/she does not lack at all and flood of health could grow.

Surely you'll have chosen a healthy iguana, with a healthy green color, well active, alert and with good appetite. He/she must show some reaction when you approach, as looking at you, getting up, exhibiting the leather crease under his gullet. A newly acquired iguana that does not answer by any means is sick, much stressed or depressed with complete certainty. It is very important that you take her to a veterinary in the first week, together with a sample of fecal matter. The parasites are very frequent and it is really simple to eliminate them.
Once your iguana is really healthy and his/here terrarium in conditions you can start being related to your iguana to try to create a tie of confidence between the two. The smaller, the better, since it will be the easier to handle.

In general the iguanas extend the crease under the chin when seen you; showing off an attitude of defense or of aggression. If they are angered they usually move their head in a swaying open the jaws and wave their tail.
If he/she only it extends the crease, then you can try to touch your iguana. It is better that you do not raise it at first, on the other hand, put your hand to his height inside the iguana enclosure in a remote corner and then bring it over in a horizontal movement. Meanwhile speak to him with calm and soft voice. If it leaves you, you can caress his head or also offer your iguana a tender sheet that he likes, like a dandelion. Never bring your hand over from above, this way they attack some predators and they are scared very much. Repeat this procedure for a few days or weeks, according to the reaction of your iguana. When he realizes that you do not try to hurt your iguana and it is already not scared, they can grab/raise him carefully. Then raise him a little time every day to domesticate him. It is important that you go calmly and firmly. If he manages to scare you with his demonstrations, he will learn rapidly what he must do to dissuade you and will do it every time with major intensity up to becoming aggressive.

An iguana of 12 inches cannot hurt you, so you must not be afraid. On the other hand, do not raise it if it fights too much; you'll stress him more and will need to press hard in order to support him, something he will not like at all. If he escapes from you, do not take it of the tail, since it might lose it. Try to raise him in a closed, sure ambient and without hidden places where then you could not extract it. This way if he remains free you will not have a problem in taking it again with gentleness.



It can take him long time to realize that your intentions are good and you will not hurt him:
You must have good patience and keep on trying every day. You will see that when you achieve it, it will be much easier to raise your iguana and to caress him to you. Always speak to him softly, do not shout. The iguanas can learn some words, like no or bad, especially if you say them in another tone of voice. Also they recognize our corporal language, so that you can do visual signs while you speak.

Learns to recognize his frame of mind:
The rapid movements of head, agitation of the tail and the open mouth are signs of discomfort and aggressiveness. Meanwhile your iguana is small these show off must not stop you if you have to raise him, but look after of his mouth. A small iguana will not be able to hurt you too much and he must get accustomed that you lift him. If it bites you, do not withdraw your finger of a pull because the teeth are very sharp and it can do to you a court. Better waiting for which him to opens the mouth to put your finger away. Then washes and disinfects it very well. An adult iguana, on the other hand, can hurt you; that's why it is so important that you domesticate yours from early. Think that there will be many occasions in which you will have to raise your iguana, to clean the cage, to give him medication, to take him to the veterinarian or to change the water. Also if he becomes docile you will be able to extract it to sunbathing or to walking along a garden or the room and this will turn out to be very gratifying to the iguana.

A very good trick for when you have your iguana in arms and it is not very cozy is to move towards the sides slowly, as if you were rocking a baby. This seems to relax them very much and your iguana will calm down. If you decide to release it in a room it tries not to chase him and catch him again. This would scare him and would be it a regression in the relationship. You can always resort to the healthy tidbits so that it comes to you or to reward him when it is not aggressive.

Taming an iguana takes time and patience. Think about at least 3 months up to achieving that he is not scared and that you could trust in him. You have to obtain, as minimum, be able to raise him whenever you want without any attacks. Every iguana has a different personality, so that you will learn to know yours in order to apply the most appropriate methods. With patience and little intelligence you can make your iguana an affectionate, reliable and happy animal that enjoys your company.

Iguana Pet Care: Claw Trimming

Taking care of your iguana fingernails

In addition to taking care of the feeding of our Iguana pet, supporting correctly the parameters of temperature and moisture, as well as the ratios of Calcium and Phosphorus they ingest; there are other small details that pass unnoticed often and that are also very important.
Iguanas that live in captivity are animals that barely move for the terrarium and spend hours and hours of stagnation and sunbathing without worries, which means that the animal does not wear his fingernails out as it would do in his natural habitat (being raised to the trees, scratching the soil, scratching the crusts, etc).
We must worry about cutting the iguana fingernails so that they do not become enormous and dangerous claws. It is not only for the well-being of our pet but for our own benefit since a few sharp fingernails are a weapon of very useful defense for the iguana and they can go very deep on the flesh as to make us very serious wounds.
To cut the fingernails it is necessary to try to do it on the dead part of the same fingernail. In this case it is simple since the difference of color between the part where it finishes the soft textile and the part to cut away is well-known. One notice that the whitest part is where it finishes the fingernail and where from we will have to cut a few millimeters further on. No matter how good you are at doing this, the time will come when you hit a bleeder - clipping the claw too short and cutting through the blood vessel which runs though the claw.

To cut the fingernails we can use common clippers or a small scissors. We advise you to use clippers since they are quite hard of breaking. By trimming your iguana claws you are achieving two things:

1. That the fingernails of your Iguana pet grow so rapidly, forming a knot between the soft part and the hard part of the same fingernail.
2. That, on handling our reptile, this one will not produce to us wounds with so much facility.

With the cut away fingernails our Iguana will feel more comfortable, will walk better without forcing so much the fingers and we will be contributing to his well-being.

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Guide for iguana pet care.

Iguana pets | are you taking good care of your iguana?

The iguana although it is not in route of extinction yet, is threatened, since the constant traffic of species; the majority of South America and Central America, made the world authorities to put in the close sight the entities do this type of commerce.
That's why there are laws in different constitutions and several international agreements as of CITES, that project a threat or the entry of the iguana, to species in route of extinction in 2012.

The maintenance of this types of animals adverse all kinds of care, which perform vital importance at the time of supporting this reptile. The first occupation that you must take when you have an Iguana pet consists of the enclosure where it will live, to take care of him, to support him and to feed him; this includes a completed commitment so the conditions are most adequate to your iguana pet needs.

So for the Iguana do not miss the natural environment in which it was living with that you will provide to him, the new habitat that we will give to him must seemed as much as possible to natural habitat in which the Iguana was living. This way we will grant him an agreeable existence where his development could not turn limited.

Maintenance

Basically; iguana pets only needs a space and a good temperature. The heat that is needed to provide him naturally or artificially has to be ranged between 68 and up to 87 F grades, simulating the temperatures of his native habitat.
The green iguana is almost in the whole Latin American region where there is tropical rain forest, from Center America up to the forests of the Brazil this species lives.

Another important thing at the time of supporting an Iguana is the space in which there must live; because the majority of people who possess an iguana pet think that a fishbowl of reasonable proportions is the most appropriate solution for the housing of this reptile.
But the iguana needs a much bigger space where at minimum, is possible to add, sufficient sand, there should be a shrub, water and also they need to receive the solar beams at least between 2 to three hours per day, which provides to them the ultraviolet light absorption which the iguana uses to implement the basic functions of his metabolism.
In absence of natural sun light, is recommended the use of fluorescent light or ultraviolet lamps.

Feeding

At the time of feeding to the iguana pets there is no fruit or vegetable that it should be restricted, since the green iguana is clearly an herbivorous animal. His feeding can be wide and changed from what it is possible to include all kinds of fruits and vegetables: lettuce, cabbage, carrot, cabbage, fruit-bearing flowers or pumpkin, also the fruits as: apple, grape, tomato, orange are an excellent complement to the diet of these animals.

Reproduction
The Iguanas in captivity do not reproduce with facility, although if you have a good space in which the female feels comfortable we can achieve captivity reproduction. The impediment basically is that the female iguana deposits his eggs, which can have a diameter of up to one inch; they do a hole in the ground of at least 8 inches deep for what a fishbowl or the place in which she lives at least has to fulfill this characteristic. Also as in their natural habitat, iguanas pair in summer the temperature it must rise at least up to 68 degrees. The period of incubation lasts around 100 days and the babies, on having been born, do not measure any more than a foot long.

Caring

The Iguanas are animals very resistant to the illnesses if you make a special effort in his habitat hygienic measurements. A good symptom of bad care taken in an iguana pet will always be an illness, since these reptiles rarely fall ill and, when they do, it is because inadequate conditions of maintenance.

The most common causes of illness in an iguana in captivity are because: absence in moisture, respiratory problems and skin illness; burns for the excess of exhibition to UVA light. Also a poor exposition to the sun light causes avitaminosis (lack of vitamins).
The breaks and possessiveness are between the most common issues for what it is advisable to make your iguana work out.

Iguana Pets: Minding the iguana enclosure

Iguana enclosure | Things to have in mind while designing the pet terrarium.

The green iguana is not an animal difficult to have in captivity as pet; but one disadvantage they have is the space that they need.

An adult iguana pet might live easily in a whole room, but we must control very well the ratio of moisture and the temperature, which is difficult and expensive to do for a whole room.

For it, the most advisable thing is to place it in a big iguana enclosure (terrarium) especially conceived for him.

Since your iguana pet is small, way you have some time to be planning his definitive cage. The most usual thing is a wooden iguana enclosure, with one or more of the sides filled with hen-house wire, or a synthetic transparent material that allow a good visibility. Also it is possible to use glass, which is easy to clean and remains nice, but it is weighed and fragile at the time of installing it.

The wire allows to escape the heat and if it is not tightened well it is possible to deform, but your iguana pet will love it because it offers them a good surface to climb and also it allows good ventilation on the iguana enclosure. You will have to choose the material most adapted according to the temperature of your house.

The terrariums most possess sliding doors or jambs on his previous face, which allows a slow and easy approach towards his reptile in order to not stress him out. Also they should possess low ventilation ahead and  behind, which it allows air to circulate.

• Size

Iguanas increases very rapidly their size, reaching in captivity the over 6 feet long, for what it is advisable that the terrarium is big from the beginning.

The minimal dimensions of this terrarium will be 10 by 4  by6 feet.

The rule of dump here is; the bigger, the better, period.

It is necessary to bear in mind that iguana pets need big vertical space because they spend most of the time climbed trunks or platforms. It is recommended to be as high as the length of the iguana (including the tail) or more, the length must be 1 ½ the body of the iguana and the breadth, than 2/3 of the length of the iguana. This type of cage can be located against the wall of a room and does not occupy so much floor space.

With these measurements the iguana has place like to walk, to turn round and to climb. Now it is necessary to give him a surface to climb. You can use thick sloping branches or ramps and some shelves in the end so that the iguana could rest there. Cover them with carpet of synthetic lawn so that it has where to stick with his fingernails, taking care that there do not stay free threads that could get entangled in the paws and hurt them. Another practical option and that remains nice is to wrap the branches or ramps with thick cords and them to adhere well so that they could not come undone and turn out to be dangerous. The iguanas usually spend most of the time climbed these high places, so it can be useful to locate there the heat source, but have the precaution of putting it out of his scope so that it could not burn himself.

•  Substrate

It is convenient to avoid any substrate that is loose, as sawdust, sand or gravel, since the iguana can be consumed and to cause intestinal obstructions. You can use any type of paper role without ink; this one is not very attractive, but it is replaced easily when dirty and is cheap. Also, you could used synthetic carpet, which remains nicer. A way of keeping it clean is to cover the surface with squares of carpet, this way when one gets dirty, you withdraw it and change it into other while you disinfect the one that you removed. You can use lye (to dilute a part for every water ten) having the precaution of clarifying it very well then. If the cage of your iguana is very big you can use chips of wood (not neither pine nor cedar, since they can be poisonous) on the soil. As the iguanas spend almost all the time in height they will only go down to defecate on short periods. In their wild habitat, the iguanas live on the sand without problems, but in captivity they tend to consume the material of the substratum because they are bored and locked up. Independently of the substratum that you choose, it is very important that you keep it clean and dry. The animals that live in a dirty ambiance have many more chances that any small skin wound becomes infected and to develop painful abscesses or blister disease.

The terrarium must have solid branches, a lamp UV, a lamp that it warms and a lamp at night to prevent the temperature from going down too much in the night. Do not place a stone that it warms in the terrarium because the iguana will be in the danger of remaining the whole day climbing where the heat won't reach him and it may provoke serious burns.

Finally you need also a pair of receptacles for his meal and the water. They must be resistant and heavy so that the iguana could not overturn them when it is they who are raised. The water bowl serves so that the iguana drinks as freshens up and also, it's a help on supporting the high moisture of the enclosure. The iguanas usually take a bath and then defecate in the same water. Cleans the receptacle whenever he does it. Do not forget to provide to the terrarium of thermometers to control the temperature and a gauges for the moisture.

Iguana Pet: How to keep them happy and healthy

Tips keep them happy and healthy and beautiful.

Suddenly the green iguana (iguana iguana) has been a peculiar pet. These times the iguana is been imported to the United States in a proportion close to ¾ of million animals per year; and to the rest of the world on more than  half of the number.
Most of the imports are young iguanas breed and grown on ranch across Central and South America.

This flow of iguana pets has caused a drop on the prices in reference to previews years and the price tag seen commonly on the USA goes as low as 10 bucks on pet stores.

Of the lcose to a million of iguanas registered their introduction to the United States;many of them won't get old enough to celebrate their birthday.

The fact is that many (if not all) of the dead iguana pets could be related to improper care.

Common illness of iguanas:
Most of the pathologies found on iguana pets, that should be diagnosed and treated by veterinarians, are   as well related to improper care of the animal.

Color changes:

A healthy iguana is green; specially when young.  Brownish and black colors can be consequence of improper environment temperature, over-exposure of UV rays and sometimes food poisoning. When some color changes are present, it is important to monitor this condition and adjust the temperature, UV exposure to the proper levels.

A young iguana pet with color variations trending yellow-brownish does not promise any good.

Diarrhea:

Sometimes, food rich in veggies and fruit, specially on the summer can cause diarrhea (frequent elimination of soft or liquid feces with a very intense odor). If this is the only symptom with no abnormal grow of abdomen or breathing problems, generally the problem go away by providing some lactic ferments (yogurt) and some dry food.

Wounds and abscesses:

Small tumors on extremities, snout, eyelids and the zone around the timpani membrane (ear) should not be careless. They are very common in the newly imported young iguanas still not accustomed to the captivity and to the manipulation on the part of the human being, often and without the necessary refuges.


The wounds can be observed also in adult iguanas of the same sex that they coexist in an iguana enclosure, although it is quite wide. In case of the males, they are a consequence of territorial distributions; in the females, it is observed during zeal.
Also, any type of cutaneous injury has not to of being careless to prevent from being able to become infected or evolve towards widespread forms: dermatitis bacterial, mycotic or septicemia.

Finger and tail injuries:

The injuries in the fingers are quite common and they can be provoked by the presence in the iguana tank of inadequate objects and of cables or ropes in which there can remain trapped the long fingers of the green iguana.
Also an irregular change of the skin forms  “rings“ of old skin that the blood glasses can compress placed below and to go this way to the necrosis (cellular death). To prepare this problem it is necessary to control attentively the change of our iguana and to make them take baths with and chamomile.

The same causes above said can provoke injuries in the tail. In addition to the already described prevention, it will be necessary to manipulate to the iguana supporting the tail for the base and without never taking him for the most external zones.

Metabolic Bone disease:

The precocious signs of this illness, which is very frequent in the young iguanas and in those who have overcome in little the year of life, are the following ones:
- increase of volume of the thighs and the previous paws, sometimes caused by the presence of spontaneous breaks of the humerus or femur, which can give the impression of which the animal has put on weight;
- distension of part or the totality of the jaw;
- distortion of one o more fingers;
scarce growth.

The iguana will show problems of movement that can come up to the palsy, muscular quakes or make difficult in the capture and masticating of the food.
This illness owes itself to food errors. It means that the iguana owner has given food that were not containing in the just proportion the calcium and the phosphorus that the animal needs. Also it is possible that the iguana has not received a sufficient irradiation of natural UVB (baths of the sun) and artificial. For this motive the most advisable thing is to use in the terrarium neon pipes that also emit UVB up to 5 %.

Respiratory Illnesses:

They take place often in iguanas imported (especially at the coldest stations) and lodged in terrarium badly drafty and super populated. The symptoms are:

- increase of the respiratory frequency and gap of the mouth;
- exit of bubbles and viscous material for the nostrils;
- sneezes (they must not make a mistake with the normal expulsion of sales);
- absence in appetite;
- change of color of the livery (that goes on from green to brown yellowish).

If it is necessary, the veterinarian will prescribe antibiotics and aerosols, and it will be necessary to give a lot of attention to the climatic conditions in the terrarium.


Cutaneous Parasites:

In the skin (loin, gap of the sewer, armpits) of the newly imported iguanas it is frequent to see red or blackish points that move rapidly: it is a question of mites, which often gather together under the scales of the iguana and raise them.
In the nature, the red mites (hirstiella trombidiformis) are typical of the green American iguana, whereas the dark mites (ophionnyssus natricis) infect normally to the snakes; nevertheless, in the places of the importers, who often lodge to numerous animals in limited spaces, the mites move and it stop even on animals that normally they do not attack.
It is necessary to fall to the animals after making them go out of the terrarium (without leaving that cool down too much). Next, it will be necessary to apply well the mite killer inside the terrarium. It is convenient to hope that the liquid should have dried off completely before placing the iguana in his house.
In spite of everything, it is necessary to bear in mind that many liquid products used for the parasites of dogs and cats are POISONOUS for the reptiles.

How to tame your iguana pet

Taming your iguana pet. What to do when you bring your iguana home from the pet shop.


So you could not help it and ended buying a young iguana pet. 

KUDOS

Now, keep on reading because what I have to say will help you.

Update: There is a part 2 on taming your iguana pet

When younglings, Iguana pets are revels, hence they seem to be always lashing with their tail whip and willing to byte you.

In every case, you should not fear their teeth since they are not as hard and dangerous as they seem and usually open their jaws when you pull back. You must grab your iguana pet until they get used to be handled by you; first taking them out of their terrarium, grabbing them firmly with one hand while you gently caress their head, back and whole body.

Later on, couple of minutes after you took it out of the terrarium, he will start to close his eyes slowly… then open your hand while keep on going with the caress.

Surely, when you want to grab him back, he will jump attempting to evade yourself. It is very important that you show up who`s the boss. Go, pick him up.

Another good exercise is to grab him to put on his leash… you know, one of those that are available at pet stores and are designed for lizards. I´ve seen some iguanas with dog collars… which do the trick too, but may induce the crest to grow sideways.

Anyway, once the leash is on, it is a good practice to place them on a spot where they can feel some heat and see people walking around. (preferably not much people as it is stressing for the animal.)

The whole idea is that your iguana pet should get use to been submissive to yourself and get use to be around people… After all, no matter how cool they are; iguanas in their wild habitat live very far away of humans.

When I was in college, I used to put mine in a small cage on the couch while watching TV.  Your iguana must learn that human are not dangerous. As any other animal who is trying to learn a new trick, this takes time; so patience…

After a while (maybe 4 to 5 weeks) your iguana will be able to stay around yourself with no leash, maybe under a heat light. You`ll notice that he is not stressed anymore while you are hanging around each other and he is not trying to escape at sight… He is minding his own business as well as you are; but if you notice, he is cool with you on the same room, thing that wasn´t 4 or 5 weeks a go when you just got him out the pet store.

Whit these “exercises” no more than one hour daily, maybe in a year or a year and a half the iguana will become 100% your pet and will want to jump over you every single time.

B e aware that reptile, like iguanas, are not famous for having a good memory. This is the main reason why taming the lizard takes a while longer than… let´s say, a puppy.

Iguana pets

Things to consider when deciding to get your iguana pets

Most of the time, whoever decide to buy iguana pets (or various other exotic pets for that matter) rush into the decision without carefully examining the reality of owning such a pet.

It is not surprising that people trend to buy iguanas without knowing...

These animals are over breed on the USA and over caught in their natural habitat; making them inexpensive and plentiful at pets stores and reptile swaps.

The price tag range on a juvenile iguana pet is anywhere from $25 to as little as $10 bucks. At first. They seem cheap, easy to own and for all intent purposes, a really cool pet.

Guess what:

It is true that iguana pets are amazing and great companions; that they are affectionate even if some people think they are not... (if they weren't cool I haven't own one); but lets face it'; most people don't even bother to do a little research on knowing how much care this animals needs.

If you are thinking into buying an iguana, keep on reading as I'll be giving you some reasons to consult with your pillow before running to the pet store.

Iguanas are tropical lizards.

The natural environment of an iguana is the tropical wild jungle. If you are not aware of the concept; jungle is not forest; jungle is what a forest use to be several thousand years a go.

It is the most dense, less impenetrable regions of tropical rainforest. In comparison, a jungle extend 20% or so of the extension of an actual forest; where the trees are young... and there are lianas and herbaceous plants instead of... trees.

Anyways, iguanas live naturally in tropical jungle; with means they need certain amount of humidity and heat; besides, iguanas are lizard by definition; which happens to be reptiles. Reptiles need exposure to direct sunlight in order to control their body temperature.

This only means that you need to buy some lights. UVB and UVA lights to be precise; which are bulbs that emulate the UV rays from the sun. These bulbs need to be on from 12 to 14 hours a day to simulate the typical day cycle of an iguana on their natural habitat.

Besides the UVA-B light fixture; you'll need to install a heat bulb in order to keep the temperature. This is to create a hot spot basically; where your iguana will warm up until reaching the adequate body heat to process it's food.

On their natural habitats, iguanas climb up the trees for sunlight exposure... when they are “charged” with enough sun heat, they keep minding their business. Sometimes they lay off a stone for sun exposure too... Again, reptiles do not control their body head by internal process as mammals does (we are mammals; so we don't understand that).

These UVA and UVB may get expensive; depending of the size of the cage and such... plus the 12+ hours of electricity consumption these babies will add to your electricity bill.

About the Cage:

Cage itself is a recurring expense. Iguanas trend to grow up fast... which means you'll be required to upgrade the cage size. How much space on your room are you willing to give away for your mini dinosaur?

A full grown male iguana can reach as large as 6 feet long from tail tip to head... By the time you've been upgrading to  a cage big enough for this size of iguana pet... you may have spend over 500 bucks already.

Iguanas require attention

While they may seem happy while sitting on their  tree branch under their UV light... iguanas are social animals. In fact, in their natural habitat, these animals have a very complex social behavior where a fixed structure is in place.

Big alpha males are usually on the toppy tip of the trees while the rest of the gang hang around lower, just to mention something.

Iguanas enjoy conquer new territories and can get bored if housed in a cage; specially if it is too small for their size. It is usual to see a bored iguana to bob its head at you (a dominance signal) as you walk by his cage.

Non socialized iguanas can be dangerous.

It is important that you take your time to give affection to your iguana pet. By spending time with your iguana, your pet will get to know you and enjoy going jogging with you on the park while been laying on your shoulder (with a leash of course... you know, just in case)

But if your iguana is not tamed or well socialized it may/will attack you and other humans around. They have very big and sharp claws that give them the necessary grip to climb trees; and these things can be dangerous if not trimmed on a regular basis; besides , a full grown iguana bite can put you on an emergency room and give you a nasty scare.

The tail whip is the usual move of an iguana; and they can leave a nasty welt.