MI Press: Wayward iguana back in cage in Flushing

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Posted by Desiree on August 23, 2001 at 10:46:13:

Leapin' lizard: Wayward iguana back in cage in Flushing

Wednesday, August 22, 2001

Leapin' lizard: Wayward iguana back in cage By Elizabeth Shaw
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

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Flushing - Forget about fuzzy videotapes of wildcats prowling the banks of the Flint River.

Flushing's latest creature feature was a 3-foot lizard out on a limb in Judy Perez's back yard.

Rescuers managed to bring the reptile safely down to the ground Tuesday morning, but only after the hapless iguana spent several cold, rainy days in a tree.

"Luckily he just sat there and let me get him. He just hit me a couple times with his tail," said John Barlow of JB Tree Service in Flushing, who used the bucket lift on his truck to reach the lizard's perch 40 feet up.

"Cats are much worse. They get nervous and climb way out to get away from you. I've been ripped and clawed and tore up plenty of times. This was easy."

Three-year-old Iggy normally resides in Perez's Westwood Heights sixth-grade science classroom. Perez had him home for a visit last week when he escaped from a cat harness in the yard.

"He was having a ball the first half hour or so, walking around and sunning himself. Then he just slipped out of the (harness) and was gone,"

Perez said. "Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Looking back on it now, it was a silly thing to do."

Perez lost sight of him until Friday, when a neighbor with binoculars spotted him 40 feet up a maple tree in the back yard.

"That poor little lizard was just sitting there way out on a little teeny tree limb," she said. "I put some water and all his favorite things to eat out on the ground for him but he didn't come down."

He usually eats once a week, she said, and prefers a diet of fruit, romaine lettuce and other greens.

"The cats were keeping an eye on him. The squirrel that lives in the tree is really unhappy about having his home invaded. He's been running up and down chattering at him quite a bit."

Barlow volunteered to bring him down free of charge, but Perez decided to hire him to trim a few dead branches at the same time.

Perez was a little worried how the neighbors might react to having an iguana on the loose, but everyone tried to help Iggy, she said.

"When he's scared he's like a cat. He'll hiss and flap his tail. He also puffs up the (skin) under his throat so he looks bigger. He looks like Godzilla and can be very intimidating," she said. "But everyone's been kind of having fun with this. We had maybe 10 neighbors with binoculars trying to spot him."

With his summer adventure behind him, Iggy is on his way back to his classroom home, Perez said. She also plans to take a few tree limbs in for him to climb.

"He'll probably be thrilled to be back in his nice warm cage. But he's kind of like a teenager who's tasted his freedom. Now that he's enjoyed the great outdoors, we'll probably have to take him out for walks every day to keep him happy," she said, laughing.

Elizabeth Shaw covers Flushing, Swartz Creek and western Genesee County. She can be reached at (810) 766-6311 or eshaw@flintjournal.com

Wayward iguana back in cage in Flushing

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Only eats once a week!! no wonder it ran away!!~ n/p Tif 08/23/01 (0)

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: Leapin' lizard: Wayward iguana back in cage in Flushing : Wednesday, August 22, 2001 : : Leapin' lizard: Wayward iguana back in cage By Elizabeth Shaw : JOURNAL STAFF WRITER : : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : Flushing - Forget about fuzzy videotapes of wildcats prowling the banks of the Flint River. : Flushing's latest creature feature was a 3-foot lizard out on a limb in Judy Perez's back yard. : Rescuers managed to bring the reptile safely down to the ground Tuesday morning, but only after the hapless iguana spent several cold, rainy days in a tree. : "Luckily he just sat there and let me get him. He just hit me a couple times with his tail," said John Barlow of JB Tree Service in Flushing, who used the bucket lift on his truck to reach the lizard's perch 40 feet up. : "Cats are much worse. They get nervous and climb way out to get away from you. I've been ripped and clawed and tore up plenty of times. This was easy." : Three-year-old Iggy normally resides in Perez's Westwood Heights sixth-grade science classroom. Perez had him home for a visit last week when he escaped from a cat harness in the yard. : "He was having a ball the first half hour or so, walking around and sunning himself. Then he just slipped out of the (harness) and was gone," : Perez said. "Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Looking back on it now, it was a silly thing to do." : Perez lost sight of him until Friday, when a neighbor with binoculars spotted him 40 feet up a maple tree in the back yard. : "That poor little lizard was just sitting there way out on a little teeny tree limb," she said. "I put some water and all his favorite things to eat out on the ground for him but he didn't come down." : He usually eats once a week, she said, and prefers a diet of fruit, romaine lettuce and other greens. : "The cats were keeping an eye on him. The squirrel that lives in the tree is really unhappy about having his home invaded. He's been running up and down chattering at him quite a bit." : Barlow volunteered to bring him down free of charge, but Perez decided to hire him to trim a few dead branches at the same time. : Perez was a little worried how the neighbors might react to having an iguana on the loose, but everyone tried to help Iggy, she said. : "When he's scared he's like a cat. He'll hiss and flap his tail. He also puffs up the (skin) under his throat so he looks bigger. He looks like Godzilla and can be very intimidating," she said. "But everyone's been kind of having fun with this. We had maybe 10 neighbors with binoculars trying to spot him." : With his summer adventure behind him, Iggy is on his way back to his classroom home, Perez said. She also plans to take a few tree limbs in for him to climb. : "He'll probably be thrilled to be back in his nice warm cage. But he's kind of like a teenager who's tasted his freedom. Now that he's enjoyed the great outdoors, we'll probably have to take him out for walks every day to keep him happy," she said, laughing. : Elizabeth Shaw covers Flushing, Swartz Creek and western Genesee County. She can be reached at (810) 766-6311 or eshaw@flintjournal.com

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