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Posted by xta on January 27, 2002 at 11:27:41:

In Reply to: I don't really think I had a choice..... posted by Mr. D on January 26, 2002 at 22:08:34:

: Growing up, I was allergic to everything - I got a 100 on my allergy test. 50 out of 50 things tested, ncluding anything with fur or feathers. If I had ever wished to flunk a test in my life... And Mom wouldn't have anything to do with anything other than fish.... Too slimy....

: I blame all of this on my youngest brother actually. HE was the one that came home with Dewey 12 years ago as a "surprise". Little did I know that this would be the first "rescue" (shch as it was) that I would be involved with. Dewey was a frat house iguana and wasn�t really getting the most out of his college experience. He was actually in pretty rough shape. He was about 2 � feet long when he came home, rubbery, and extremely thin. Longest possible story short, Dewey survived another 6 years with us. My brother found other interests and soon forgot about him. It was then that I took over full time �care�. Untreated 2x4s and plywood for an enclosure, covered with chicken wire, zero humidity until summer (we only lived � mile from the ocean at the time), spinach, broccoli, lettuce and carrots for a diet, and outside as much as possible to bask in the sun � leashed to the bushes in the front of the house. To this day, I don�t know how or why I brought him outside as much as I could � it just seemed like the right thing to do for him.

: Dewey finally gave up his struggle after suffering from a perforated bowel cause by an errant paper clip and �unclosed� staple which, I can only assume, stuck to his tongue during a free roam session. The worst part for me was twofold. One - looking back knowing what I know now, it was MY fault that he died due to lack of knowledge. Two � he had to be put to rest in the company of �strangers� (my mother and brother) because I was 2500 miles away working for Cirque Du Soleil.

: Flash forward to May 2000. Ig Chick has a life threatening accident at our �new� home. 6� fall resulting in a fractured skull, separated shoulder, and ruptured eardrum. Of everything that happened the day of the accident and all of the people that she talked to, it would figured that the only thing she remembers of the entire day is not the fall itself, not the ambulance ride, but me telling her that if she would just stop bleeding I�d get her the puppy she wanted. Talk about selective hearing�. Three months later, when she�s well into recovery we walked into a mom and pop shop for fish supplies and saw the tank of iguanas. Now both of us had kept iguanas before we met and we both, for some reason, had kept up on the basics in the evolving care and husbandry even after our igs passed away so when soon to be Flash scampered up my shoulder and perched on my head he turned into that puppy that we both knew really had no place in our current neighborhood for too many reasons.

: Once bringing Flash home we began delving back into the world of iguana care with both hands and feet � only to find out that something had gone terribly wrong since the last time we had igs. The information was right in front of OUR noses, but for some reason, it wasn�t finding it�s way to many other households with iguanas. We began toying with the idea of adopting/fostering an ig when we found Mel sitting all of 15 miles from us looking for a new home. I�ll end this here as it is already too long and the rest of my story, if anyone is interested, can be found throughout the pages at The Iguana Spot.

: Thanks for asking this question, Christy. And, Xta, you should�ve warned me�. I never knew that last part about Salvador�....;)
:

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: : Growing up, I was allergic to everything - I got a 100 on my allergy test. 50 out of 50 things tested, ncluding anything with fur or feathers. If I had ever wished to flunk a test in my life... And Mom wouldn't have anything to do with anything other than fish.... Too slimy.... : : I blame all of this on my youngest brother actually. HE was the one that came home with Dewey 12 years ago as a "surprise". Little did I know that this would be the first "rescue" (shch as it was) that I would be involved with. Dewey was a frat house iguana and wasn�t really getting the most out of his college experience. He was actually in pretty rough shape. He was about 2 � feet long when he came home, rubbery, and extremely thin. Longest possible story short, Dewey survived another 6 years with us. My brother found other interests and soon forgot about him. It was then that I took over full time �care�. Untreated 2x4s and plywood for an enclosure, covered with chicken wire, zero humidity until summer (we only lived � mile from the ocean at the time), spinach, broccoli, lettuce and carrots for a diet, and outside as much as possible to bask in the sun � leashed to the bushes in the front of the house. To this day, I don�t know how or why I brought him outside as much as I could � it just seemed like the right thing to do for him. : : Dewey finally gave up his struggle after suffering from a perforated bowel cause by an errant paper clip and �unclosed� staple which, I can only assume, stuck to his tongue during a free roam session. The worst part for me was twofold. One - looking back knowing what I know now, it was MY fault that he died due to lack of knowledge. Two � he had to be put to rest in the company of �strangers� (my mother and brother) because I was 2500 miles away working for Cirque Du Soleil. : : Flash forward to May 2000. Ig Chick has a life threatening accident at our �new� home. 6� fall resulting in a fractured skull, separated shoulder, and ruptured eardrum. Of everything that happened the day of the accident and all of the people that she talked to, it would figured that the only thing she remembers of the entire day is not the fall itself, not the ambulance ride, but me telling her that if she would just stop bleeding I�d get her the puppy she wanted. Talk about selective hearing�. Three months later, when she�s well into recovery we walked into a mom and pop shop for fish supplies and saw the tank of iguanas. Now both of us had kept iguanas before we met and we both, for some reason, had kept up on the basics in the evolving care and husbandry even after our igs passed away so when soon to be Flash scampered up my shoulder and perched on my head he turned into that puppy that we both knew really had no place in our current neighborhood for too many reasons. : : Once bringing Flash home we began delving back into the world of iguana care with both hands and feet � only to find out that something had gone terribly wrong since the last time we had igs. The information was right in front of OUR noses, but for some reason, it wasn�t finding it�s way to many other households with iguanas. We began toying with the idea of adopting/fostering an ig when we found Mel sitting all of 15 miles from us looking for a new home. I�ll end this here as it is already too long and the rest of my story, if anyone is interested, can be found throughout the pages at The Iguana Spot. : : Thanks for asking this question, Christy. And, Xta, you should�ve warned me�. I never knew that last part about Salvador�....;) : :

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