Posted by iZ's mom on June 17, 2000 at 12:41:43:
In Reply to: Getting large iguana...need help, please! posted by Allison on June 17, 2000 at 12:04:08:
*whew* ... where to start??? ok ... sorry but i'm LOL at the description of a 3' ig being "large" ... that's what i thought too when i met iZ when he was 2.5' long ... iZ is now 5'+ ... ig's have the potential to be 5-6' long!
here's a couple good places to start reading about what an ig needs to be happy and healthy ... please do lots of reading and feel free to ask us questions you don't find the answers to in the sites below!
http://www.sonic.net/~melissk/ig_care.html
http://www.baskingspot.com/iguanas/
THROW THE HEAT ROCK OUT NOW!!!!! they are extremely dangerous and unreliable!!! if the ig has no other source of heat right now, get a human heating pad and set it on "Low" ... Heat Rocks are notorious for badly burning igs and should be outlawed as for as i'm concerned ...
there is a good chance that there is a Rescue group around you that could possibly take this ig in ... let the others here know where you're at + they can help with that ........
free roaming ... the problem with that is igs need to be *warm* ... they also tend to get into trouble + other things they shouldn't and so you can't go from the cage the poor guy's in directly to giving him run of the house ... very possible to set up a room that's 'ig-safe' tho ... at least to get the poor thing out of his cage ...
please think this thru carefully! this ig is going to need a qualified Herp Vet asap ... he needs to be checked and treated for parasites ... he needs a special diet and a special environment ... he is going to be HIGH-maintenance and expensive to properly care for ... he needs a much larger enclosure, one that he can climb in and be up high ... he needs to be in 80-85 degree temperature, he needs humidity ...
read the 2 sites, MK's is hyperlinked below and is very extensive in it's info on all aspects of ig-care ... Jen Swofford's is the other link (above) and her nutrition info is basically the same as MK's but maybe abit easier to follow ...
tread carefully! igs can be wonderful fantastic animals to share your life with, but this one is gonna need alot of time + patience to overcome his rough start in life! remember that igs are and always will be *Wild Animals*, they can learn to trust us and stuff like that, but *most* igs will never be as tame as a cat or dog ... they have a life expectancy of up to 20 yrs and this is a major commitment!
let us know how we can help! not trying to scare you away from helping this ig, just want you to realize what you're getting into ... the $$$ part of it can add up fast!
best wishes!
iZ + mom