 | mobile - desktop |
|
| mobile - desktop |
|
 |
 Contact Sales! |
News & Events:
|
Posted by iZ's mom on September 04, 2000 at 01:54:44:
In Reply to: Are they really good pets? posted by Lindsay on September 03, 2000 at 23:22:59:
if you're looking for a *pet*, an ig may not be for you ...
they don't automatically "get tame" the way dogs do, they're *not* gonna automatically love you + may seem to quite actively *dis*like you til they get over their fear ... this can take weeks ... or months! they are quite unlike any furry little animal you may have had experience with ...
a well-cared for ig can (+ should) live up to 20 yrs ... i'm a nut for my animals anyway, but i can't quite put an ig in the "pet" catagory ... more in the "animal you share your life with" catagory! they have their own personalities and work to train *you*, not to do what *you* want! (*grin*)
they have very particular housing/enclosure needs which can get expensive for a fulll-grown 5-6' ig ... and they *all* should get that big!
medical/vet care is something to consider *before* you bring an ig home ... it is not easy to find a qualified ig-vet and many who claim to be one, fall way short of even being semi-competent ... a 2 hour one-way ride to get to the vet's isn't uncommon ... igs, like other animals should have at least a yearly checkup that includes bloodwork and fecal exams ... and then there's *always* the chance that you're gonna have an unplanned for emergency situation ... that's true with *any* animal but with igs, it's even worse cuz a good vet is so hard to find ...
*some* igs do get 'mean' or maybe a better word would be overly aggressive ... they are the exception, *not* the rule tho ... a well-cared for, well-loved ig will generally grow up and interact just fine with it's humon ... except maybe during mating season when they can get a *major* case of PMS, but that's fairly short-lived ... usually ...
is it worth it??? *grin* ... it depends ... you're gonna end up feeling more like the parent of a small child than the owner of an animal ... (in fact, i think i worried *less* when i was a new mom of a son than i have since iZ came into my life ... ) ... so maybe the question is ~ are you ready to *be* a parent????
is it worth it??? let's see ... iZ has been with me almost 4 yrs, has caused me coutless sleepless nites, cost me probably $2000 in vet bills and trying to get him happily housed ... (he has his own room now and yes, that's 2 thousand not hundred) ... iZ got very sick last year and almost died ... he had emergency surgery ... i missed a week of work so i could stay home + take care of him (don't tell my boss!) ... i have spent hundreds of hours reading, researching, e-mailing, etc about how to care for him ... from basic diet and what his room needs to how to care for an ig with severely damaged kidneys ... i have been tail-whipped, clawed to pieces, bitten ...
is it worth it??? well, his newest trick this week was to poop on my pillow cuz i ticked him off ... hmmmmmm ... if anyone is in charge of this household, it's *iZ*! there is no going away for the wkend, in fact, being an hour late with supper is strictly forbidden too!
the thing is ... i fell totally, hopelessly in love with him the second i met him! and that is the part that's pretty much impossible to explain ... it's been described as 'mystical' and i think that's about the best word to describe the bond that can form between iguana and human ... maybe it's a kind of insanity? i don't know ... no one makes me feel as special as iZ does ... darn near anyone can get a furry animal to like them, but to get a cold-blooded reptile to like you ... love you??? yeah, it's worth every second of worry + anguish, every cent, to be loved by a dragon!
Bon. (who wonders if the intense heat has maybe affected her after all ....)
