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Posted by Glacius on January 03, 2003 at 20:16:00:
alright, first, i'd like to thank you guys who've responded to a few of my other questions. you've been very helpful--thanks a bunch.
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some basic back ground info:
i have an iguana that is about fourteen years old. (she was 2 when i got her, and i have had it for 12 years.)
i *think* it is female. i base this on the size of her jowls (small). additionally, her femoral pores do not look ANYTHING like the pics i have seen of males, and she does not have the 2 buldges on the tail that males are *supposed* to have.
when i got her, she was VERY under developed. (fed only iceberg lettuce and no proper lighting (standard GE 100 watt bulb).
in all of the 12 years i've had her, she has NEVER laid eggs.
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lifestyle/care info:
she quickly outgrew her 55 gallon aquarium and i lacked the funds to purchase a larger enclosure, so...i let her free range around my bedroom (unsupervised mostly, because i'm at class, at work, or whatever), and occasionally the rest of the house with supervision (so she doesn't eat "stuff" off the living room floor or whatever).
her basking area stays about 97-100 degrees Fahrenheit at the warmest point, and with a gradient down to room temperature (70-80 (i like it warm) wherever else she moves.
she has several "hidey holes" around the room (under the dresser, under the tv, under the stereo cabnet, etc), as well as "stuff" to climb (beds, desks, stereo speakers (until i spot her), and shelves in the closet.
she gets handled often through out the day, and is generally pretty tame. she'll walk over for attention, sit calmly on my arm, pester me when i'm watching tv, etc...
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diet info:
first, it seems like my lizard eats A LOT (from the "feed a mature lizard once every 2-3 days" advice that i've read). mine eats EVERY DAY....and craps everyday. i don't suspect any kind of parasites, because she is about 4-4.5 feet long and 13 pounds (real pudgey, pig lizard).
and...she has been known to eat an entire head of romaine lettuce in a day (or other green stuff of equal size).
i sort of think of her diet in 2 parts...
1) everyday, she eats the standard iguana stuff.
(about 50%) lots of green leafy things (romaine lettuce, kale, collards, bok choy, dandy lions in the summer (when they are in the yard), etc....
(about 30-40%) zuchini, or sprouts, or green beans.
(about 15-20%) plain old wheat bread, or quaker oat ceral (she LOVES that suff)
fruit, i usually give to her sepperately as kind of a treat that she'll eat from my hand. she LOVES fig newtons, apples, strawberries, grapes, peaches....just about anything in the produce isle varying with season. she consistently gets apples and newtons (heh, they are mostly fruit :P).
......then....the other part of her diet....which maybe i should change.....
animal protien....
i sometimes eat and watch tv...the lizard has learned the pattern, and will walk over to me for a few bites of whatever i'm eating.
it varies, and it's no more than a few mouthfuls of:
chicken, turkey, ham, pizza, whoppers, big macs, salami sandwiches, "kids" cereal (with milk), cashews, potatoe chips....damn near anything that a person would eat.
(i've heard lots of mixed feelings on this stuff, and it doesn't seem to interfere with her "normal" veggie diet)
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the scenario:
i went home for x-mas a few weeks ago. i was gone for about a week. her light burned out while i was gone. her food (that i left) seemed untouched and she didn't deficate.
i came back over the weekend, and she hasn't eaten all this week (on her own). no green stuff, no fruit, no animal protien, not even her beloved fig newtons...
she was looking pretty sickly (lethargic, pale color, semi-closed eyes, etc...) and last night, i force fed her some of that t-rex hydrolife stuff as well as some romaine lettuce (seems to be her favorite green thing) with some calcium sprinkled on it.
this morning she looked MUCH better, had MUCH more energy, etc...but....
still wouldn't stay under her basking lamp nor would she eat on her own.
she camped under the dresser for a while (her normal sleep spot), then camped behind my mini-fridge for a while on the warm compressor. (the compressor is NOT warm enough to injure the animal.)
she doesn't seem swollen like she's got a clutch of eggs brewing or anything like that.
she is 14...maybe she's just old????
is it just shock from lack of basking for the time i was gone?
(cash is kinda tight, so i can't take her to a vet. i've heard that most things, short of surgery, can be done by the owner if they can figure out what the problem is.....)
any ideas?
