More important credentials

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Posted by Jamie/JBug on September 17, 2000 at 15:48:19:

In Reply to: I looooves iguanas, please read. posted by Mike on September 17, 2000 at 14:22:32:

Rather than credentials as to what you've "kept" before, I believe you need to ask yourself some more important questions, first. Here they are, in no particular order:

1. Are you loving? (Iguanas need love, just like a dog or a cat would. They are not creatures happy to be stuck in a cage, fed, cleaned and ignored. They need contact, interaction, and yeah, love.)

2. Are you patient? (The average iguana can take a VERY long time to tame, and the iguana will need consistant guidance and interaction to become tame.)

3. Are you committed? (An iguana in ideal circumstances can live to be 20 + years old! Are you ready to see that committment all the way through until the end, or would you prefer to think that you can sell or adopt out the iguana with no negative consequences? It's not true; I have personally seen broken hearted iguanas.)

4. Are you stable? (Are you going to take off constantly, leaving the ig to fend for him/herself? Are you a traveling sort? Will you be moving a lot? Iguanas should have as stable and consistant of a life as possible.)

5. Are you financially secure? (Raising a healthy iguana costs a lot of money! Fresh food every few days, a HUMONGOUS cage, or an entire room is needed for an adult ig, a 20 gal tank will never, ever suffice. Vet trips: iguanas need to see the vet regularly. Are you prepared for that expense? Are you prepared for emergencies? Are you prepared to drive a distance to find a suitable herp vet?)

6. Are you willing to work to find good, correct information, and to continue learning? (Learning how to care for igs properly is a job that is never done. Information is always changing. There is a lot of research that *must* be done before you even bring home an iguana! Are you willing to wade through many good websites and read a few books, or will you be content with what the pet store tells you? Will you take the first site you find as the be all, end all of iguana care? Or you will continue to research and learn?)

7. Do you have time for your iguana? (Not just time to feed it, clean it and give it water. Do you have time to talk to your iguana, pet your iguana, play with him/her? They need it! They can't be stuck in a cage and ignored!)

8. Are you empathetic? (Will you do your best to put yourself in your iguanas shoes? Can you comprehend that an iguana is trying hard to be a part of *your* world, despite the massive differences? If your iguana is grouchy about something, can you put yourself in his/her place and try to understand what the problem is?)

9. Are you consistant? (Iguanas need routines, stablilty, regular feedings, regular potty times, regular play times, etc. Do you have the sort of lifestyle in which you can do that? Are you even willing to?

If you can answer yes to all of these questions honestly, then, perhaps, you have the "credentials" to be owned by an iguana.

Best,
Jamie/JBug

Green Iguana Society

Follow Ups:

Couldn't agree more... Dishy 09/18/00 (0)
That was excellent! (more) LilMe 09/17/00 (3)
- Aww, shucks *blush* (more) Jamie/JBug 09/17/00 (2)
  - Definitely!! :) (more) LilMe 09/17/00 (1)
    - i agree with tracie, go jamie go! glad i found myself saying.... sue3 09/17/00 (0)

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: Rather than credentials as to what you've "kept" before, I believe you need to ask yourself some more important questions, first. Here they are, in no particular order: : 1. Are you loving? (Iguanas need love, just like a dog or a cat would. They are not creatures happy to be stuck in a cage, fed, cleaned and ignored. They need contact, interaction, and yeah, love.) : 2. Are you patient? (The average iguana can take a VERY long time to tame, and the iguana will need consistant guidance and interaction to become tame.) : 3. Are you committed? (An iguana in ideal circumstances can live to be 20 + years old! Are you ready to see that committment all the way through until the end, or would you prefer to think that you can sell or adopt out the iguana with no negative consequences? It's not true; I have personally seen broken hearted iguanas.) : 4. Are you stable? (Are you going to take off constantly, leaving the ig to fend for him/herself? Are you a traveling sort? Will you be moving a lot? Iguanas should have as stable and consistant of a life as possible.) : 5. Are you financially secure? (Raising a healthy iguana costs a lot of money! Fresh food every few days, a HUMONGOUS cage, or an entire room is needed for an adult ig, a 20 gal tank will never, ever suffice. Vet trips: iguanas need to see the vet regularly. Are you prepared for that expense? Are you prepared for emergencies? Are you prepared to drive a distance to find a suitable herp vet?) : 6. Are you willing to work to find good, correct information, and to continue learning? (Learning how to care for igs properly is a job that is never done. Information is always changing. There is a lot of research that *must* be done before you even bring home an iguana! Are you willing to wade through many good websites and read a few books, or will you be content with what the pet store tells you? Will you take the first site you find as the be all, end all of iguana care? Or you will continue to research and learn?) : 7. Do you have time for your iguana? (Not just time to feed it, clean it and give it water. Do you have time to talk to your iguana, pet your iguana, play with him/her? They need it! They can't be stuck in a cage and ignored!) : 8. Are you empathetic? (Will you do your best to put yourself in your iguanas shoes? Can you comprehend that an iguana is trying hard to be a part of *your* world, despite the massive differences? If your iguana is grouchy about something, can you put yourself in his/her place and try to understand what the problem is?) : 9. Are you consistant? (Iguanas need routines, stablilty, regular feedings, regular potty times, regular play times, etc. Do you have the sort of lifestyle in which you can do that? Are you even willing to? : If you can answer yes to all of these questions honestly, then, perhaps, you have the "credentials" to be owned by an iguana. : Best, : Jamie/JBug

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