Here's what we do...

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Posted by Diana on June 23, 2002 at 18:15:38:

In Reply to: Bath Time posted by Wendy on June 23, 2002 at 14:56:54:

Hi Wendy,
Here's what we do with our igs regarding the bathroom.

We have trained both Habib and Bobbit to go in a big shallow Rubbermaid plastic bin with about two inches of water in it. Right after they use the bathroom, I pick them up out of the bin and take them to the bathtub for a soak and a quick wash off. Neither one of them seems to really like the bathing part, but I like to keep them clean so I do it anyway.

So, to keep your mom happy (and it's a nice thing, to have a happy mom!) you could possibly buy a large shallow plastic bin (the ones we use measure in at about 22 inches by 16 inches in size and we have one for each ig) and train your ig to go in there instead of going in the bathtub.

We trained Habib to go in a bin ever since she was a baby, so she is perfect about it and never goes on the floor.

But, Bobbit, who was rescued by us when he was about two years old, wasn't used to bin-training at all. When I rescued him, he was used to going to the bathroom where ever he happened to be sitting--because the tiny cage they had him in was so small. He was covered in his own feces! It was so sad.

Anyway, to train Bobbit, I began placing Bobbit in a rubbermaid tub with a little warm water in it each morning at around the same time. To stimulate his need to go, I would sit by him and pour cups full of warm water over his spikes and back. He would usually go to the bathroom then. Something about the water makes them need/want to go. It's very convienient and clean!

It got to the point that we now just leave out the bins with a bit of water in them and they crawl off their lighted perches and down their branch and go to the bathroom in their bins all on their own. They I usually just take them in to the bathroom for a wash-off and we're done.

Bobbit is a good example of what iguanas can really learn if their owners are patient with them. He is really good about using his bin now, and wasn't very hard to train.

So, even if you adopt an older iguana, they can be taught to use a rubbermaid bin. The clean up is easy--just pick up the bin and pour it in the toilet, flush, and disinfect. Then I rinse off the igs in the tub and pat them dry with a towel and we're good for the day. It's great that my igs only go once a day, and sometimes every other day. It makes for much less clean-up than my kitties leave me!

Hope this helps!
Love,
Diana

: Hi Everyone!

: I'm still researching like mad and things are ever so slowly begining to piece together in my mind. I've got a much better understanding on a lot of things. I'll just ask questions about this one topic for now as I continue to research everything else.

: My mom is not comfortable with the idea of letting a lizard poop in the bath tub. However, she is okay with buying a baby bath to put in our shower. We have a huge walk in shower with a hand shower as well as an over head showerhead. What I would do would be fill up the baby bath to the appropriate level with nice, warm water while it is in the shower, then put the iguana in the little bath for his morning poop. After that she wants me to dump the dirty water down the tiolet, then disinfect and fill the tub back up in the shower for the iguana's soak. After he was done soaking, I would disenfect the shower and everything again. I'm not sure that a baby bath would be big enough though, is it okay if the lizard can't stretch right out in the container? I'm sure that I could get some sort of plastic container that was bigger if that would be better. How does this sound to you? I'm trying really hard to make sure I'm really prepared to take on this animal!!

: Thanks! Wendy :)

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: Hi Wendy, : Here's what we do with our igs regarding the bathroom. : We have trained both Habib and Bobbit to go in a big shallow Rubbermaid plastic bin with about two inches of water in it. Right after they use the bathroom, I pick them up out of the bin and take them to the bathtub for a soak and a quick wash off. Neither one of them seems to really like the bathing part, but I like to keep them clean so I do it anyway. : So, to keep your mom happy (and it's a nice thing, to have a happy mom!) you could possibly buy a large shallow plastic bin (the ones we use measure in at about 22 inches by 16 inches in size and we have one for each ig) and train your ig to go in there instead of going in the bathtub. : We trained Habib to go in a bin ever since she was a baby, so she is perfect about it and never goes on the floor. : But, Bobbit, who was rescued by us when he was about two years old, wasn't used to bin-training at all. When I rescued him, he was used to going to the bathroom where ever he happened to be sitting--because the tiny cage they had him in was so small. He was covered in his own feces! It was so sad. : Anyway, to train Bobbit, I began placing Bobbit in a rubbermaid tub with a little warm water in it each morning at around the same time. To stimulate his need to go, I would sit by him and pour cups full of warm water over his spikes and back. He would usually go to the bathroom then. Something about the water makes them need/want to go. It's very convienient and clean! : It got to the point that we now just leave out the bins with a bit of water in them and they crawl off their lighted perches and down their branch and go to the bathroom in their bins all on their own. They I usually just take them in to the bathroom for a wash-off and we're done. : Bobbit is a good example of what iguanas can really learn if their owners are patient with them. He is really good about using his bin now, and wasn't very hard to train. : So, even if you adopt an older iguana, they can be taught to use a rubbermaid bin. The clean up is easy--just pick up the bin and pour it in the toilet, flush, and disinfect. Then I rinse off the igs in the tub and pat them dry with a towel and we're good for the day. It's great that my igs only go once a day, and sometimes every other day. It makes for much less clean-up than my kitties leave me! : Hope this helps! : Love, : Diana : : Hi Everyone! : : I'm still researching like mad and things are ever so slowly begining to piece together in my mind. I've got a much better understanding on a lot of things. I'll just ask questions about this one topic for now as I continue to research everything else. : : My mom is not comfortable with the idea of letting a lizard poop in the bath tub. However, she is okay with buying a baby bath to put in our shower. We have a huge walk in shower with a hand shower as well as an over head showerhead. What I would do would be fill up the baby bath to the appropriate level with nice, warm water while it is in the shower, then put the iguana in the little bath for his morning poop. After that she wants me to dump the dirty water down the tiolet, then disinfect and fill the tub back up in the shower for the iguana's soak. After he was done soaking, I would disenfect the shower and everything again. I'm not sure that a baby bath would be big enough though, is it okay if the lizard can't stretch right out in the container? I'm sure that I could get some sort of plastic container that was bigger if that would be better. How does this sound to you? I'm trying really hard to make sure I'm really prepared to take on this animal!! : : Thanks! Wendy :)

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