Re: Sad iguana story

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Posted by Cowlady on March 17, 2000 at 21:47:58:

In Reply to: Sad iguana story posted by Penny on March 17, 2000 at 18:19:16:

: Hi Guys! It's been a while since I've posted, but I read just about every day to keep up. I teach 5th grade and take Lizzy to school every so often for the kids to enjoy. My kids love her and have learned that iguanas are great animals, but require a great deal of care. The 6th graders go to a new building where a 7th grade science teacher has an iguana in the classroom. The kids have told me that he doesn't care for it properly and that it looks sick. He doesn't listen to the kids when they tell him the ig need special light, specific kinds of food, calcium, etc. Today I had a chance to see this ig, and it made me sick to my stomach. He has it in a wire rabbit-looking hutch with an aquarium light stuck on top. The wooden bottom of the cage was filthy. The ig looks like he could die any minute. His toes are gnarled up. His color was awful. I couldn't tell if it's backbone was deformed or not because of the way it cramped in such a small space. When I talked to it, it just closed its eyes pitifully. The teacher never takes it out of the cage. The janitor feeds it left-overs from the salad bar at school: iceberg lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, tuna salad, canned fruit. There is no temperature or humidity control at all. Nobody sees to it over the weekends when the heaters/air cond. shut down. I don't know what he does with it over long breaks. He has had the iguana since 1997. It's about half the size of Lizzy who is 4 ft., 6-7 lbs. I'm guessing they are both about the same age. One of my former students, who loves Lizzy dearly, offered to take the ig and care for it properly, but the teacher declined. So he then started telling the teacher the things he was doing wrong, which made no difference at all! I makes me furious to know he has no feelings for the the poor thing, but doesn't bother to learn how to care of it! I think he is too proud?/intimidated?/embarrassed? to accept any help from me because he know Lizzy is beautiful, huge, and healthy. I don't know him well enough to tell him he's killing the iguana. I think I'll e-mail him Melissa Kaplin's site and this site. Maybe he'll take the hint. Please pray that he humbles himself enough to learn how to care for the ig.
: By the way, Lizzy is doing great. She is such a loving animal. She likes to sit on my shoulder while I'm on the computer. She rub her face against the side of my face and in my hair! She'll go from one shoulder to the other. We had some friends come down last weekend who had heard everything about her. They didn't believe a lizard could have a personality until they actually saw the way she acts. Impressed they were!
: Penny

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: : Hi Guys! It's been a while since I've posted, but I read just about every day to keep up. I teach 5th grade and take Lizzy to school every so often for the kids to enjoy. My kids love her and have learned that iguanas are great animals, but require a great deal of care. The 6th graders go to a new building where a 7th grade science teacher has an iguana in the classroom. The kids have told me that he doesn't care for it properly and that it looks sick. He doesn't listen to the kids when they tell him the ig need special light, specific kinds of food, calcium, etc. Today I had a chance to see this ig, and it made me sick to my stomach. He has it in a wire rabbit-looking hutch with an aquarium light stuck on top. The wooden bottom of the cage was filthy. The ig looks like he could die any minute. His toes are gnarled up. His color was awful. I couldn't tell if it's backbone was deformed or not because of the way it cramped in such a small space. When I talked to it, it just closed its eyes pitifully. The teacher never takes it out of the cage. The janitor feeds it left-overs from the salad bar at school: iceberg lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, tuna salad, canned fruit. There is no temperature or humidity control at all. Nobody sees to it over the weekends when the heaters/air cond. shut down. I don't know what he does with it over long breaks. He has had the iguana since 1997. It's about half the size of Lizzy who is 4 ft., 6-7 lbs. I'm guessing they are both about the same age. One of my former students, who loves Lizzy dearly, offered to take the ig and care for it properly, but the teacher declined. So he then started telling the teacher the things he was doing wrong, which made no difference at all! I makes me furious to know he has no feelings for the the poor thing, but doesn't bother to learn how to care of it! I think he is too proud?/intimidated?/embarrassed? to accept any help from me because he know Lizzy is beautiful, huge, and healthy. I don't know him well enough to tell him he's killing the iguana. I think I'll e-mail him Melissa Kaplin's site and this site. Maybe he'll take the hint. Please pray that he humbles himself enough to learn how to care for the ig. : : By the way, Lizzy is doing great. She is such a loving animal. She likes to sit on my shoulder while I'm on the computer. She rub her face against the side of my face and in my hair! She'll go from one shoulder to the other. We had some friends come down last weekend who had heard everything about her. They didn't believe a lizard could have a personality until they actually saw the way she acts. Impressed they were! : : Penny

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