HELP! run-away iguana returns after 2 months!!

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Iguana Forum ]

Posted by Zilla on October 21, 2001 at 21:23:05:

first of all, i'm taking him to the vet tomorrow but until then i'm hoping i might get some advice.

about 2 months ago i had my green iguana out for his daily sunbath (in my hands... this was temporary while i waited for my UV light to come in the mail). well, he caught me off gaurd with a quick burst of strength and speed and ran away. :*( after a chase he ran up a huge tree and was never seen again. i live in virginia and it had just started to get colder outside... and it's been getting quite chilly out lately, especially at night. i figured the poor guy wouldn't survive.

WELL... he did. i got a call today saying that he was found sitting on a rock in the exact same area we were in when he ran away (my old front yard). my ex roomate, who found him, pet his head and picked him up with no trouble because the iguana was so weak (he was very fiesty because he hadn't been tamed yet). i immediately went to pick up the iguana. my first impression was that he looked amazingly well. still bright green (only the top of his head was a tad bit darker than before) and didn't look like he lost much weight. i picked him up and his movement was very slow, his body was cold to the touch. i kept him in my hand to slowly warm up his body temperature and brought him home. an hour later his body temp seemed much better and he seemed a lot more alert, but i noticed he wasn't moving his rear legs. i set up his old tank (i never thought he would come home) and set him in there to let the heat lamps bring him back to proper warmth, but he still doesn't move his rear legs. he just crawls around with his front legs and rear legs dragging. :******( this is heartbreaking to see. he still moves his tail around without any trouble and he doesn't seem to be in any pain. what could be wrong with him?!?!?!?

as far as feeding goes, i sprayed him down good with water and gave him a bit of the recommended lowfat "active culture" yogurt. i then gave him some alfalfa pellet/water slop which he ate with enthusiasm but he didn't eat much. :\ i've got the iguana salad ready to begin feeding in the morning.

hopefully the vet will know what's wrong and what to do about it.... i hope it's nothing TOO serious but it seems pretty bad if he can't move his back legs. :( any suggestions??

Follow Ups:

Re: HELP! run-away iguana returns after 2 months!! xta 10/21/01 (0)
PS. Zilla 10/21/01 (5)
- Re: PS. nanci 10/22/01 (4)
  - Re: PS. Zilla 10/22/01 (3)
    - Vent part II IC 10/24/01 (1)
      - Re: Vent part II Zilla 10/24/01 (0)
    - Vent nanci 10/23/01 (0)

Post a Followup

Name:
E-Mail:

Subject:

Comments:
: first of all, i'm taking him to the vet tomorrow but until then i'm hoping i might get some advice. : about 2 months ago i had my green iguana out for his daily sunbath (in my hands... this was temporary while i waited for my UV light to come in the mail). well, he caught me off gaurd with a quick burst of strength and speed and ran away. :*( after a chase he ran up a huge tree and was never seen again. i live in virginia and it had just started to get colder outside... and it's been getting quite chilly out lately, especially at night. i figured the poor guy wouldn't survive. : WELL... he did. i got a call today saying that he was found sitting on a rock in the exact same area we were in when he ran away (my old front yard). my ex roomate, who found him, pet his head and picked him up with no trouble because the iguana was so weak (he was very fiesty because he hadn't been tamed yet). i immediately went to pick up the iguana. my first impression was that he looked amazingly well. still bright green (only the top of his head was a tad bit darker than before) and didn't look like he lost much weight. i picked him up and his movement was very slow, his body was cold to the touch. i kept him in my hand to slowly warm up his body temperature and brought him home. an hour later his body temp seemed much better and he seemed a lot more alert, but i noticed he wasn't moving his rear legs. i set up his old tank (i never thought he would come home) and set him in there to let the heat lamps bring him back to proper warmth, but he still doesn't move his rear legs. he just crawls around with his front legs and rear legs dragging. :******( this is heartbreaking to see. he still moves his tail around without any trouble and he doesn't seem to be in any pain. what could be wrong with him?!?!?!? : as far as feeding goes, i sprayed him down good with water and gave him a bit of the recommended lowfat "active culture" yogurt. i then gave him some alfalfa pellet/water slop which he ate with enthusiasm but he didn't eat much. :\ i've got the iguana salad ready to begin feeding in the morning. : hopefully the vet will know what's wrong and what to do about it.... i hope it's nothing TOO serious but it seems pretty bad if he can't move his back legs. :( any suggestions??

Optional Link URL:
Link Title:
Optional Image URL:

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Iguana Forum ]