to protect your hands, invest in some welders gloves =) np

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Posted by aysel on January 17, 2003 at 10:36:29:

In Reply to: Need help with aggressive male... (long) posted by sideman7 on January 17, 2003 at 03:04:29:

:I've posted a few times regarding my iguana Dexter's behavior during this years breeding season... I am at the point now that I am very concerned with where this is going, and I am afraid that it is getting worse. My two and a half year old (formerly very friendly) iguana started getting nasty in October (onset of breeding season), and has been up and down since then. However, the past three weeks he has become an absolute monster, and I am now at a complete loss as how to best deal with him.

:I did visit the vet (who has been very helpful) on Monday for a blood test because I am starting to wonder if there is something else going on here. Fecal test showed an over abundance of protazoa but was told that shouldn't be a serious problem. I did get some medication for that though. I should hear about the blood results tomorrow. The iguana appears healthy, and eats like a horse. The vet seems to think this is behavioral issue. She said some males develop this behavior over time. I hate to think that all the time I spent with him developing trust over the years is going down the toilet (he generally wants to kill me now).

:Anyway, I'm hoping that describing some of his specific behaviors will help with some thoughts as to how to deal with him... First of all, he has become fiercely defensive of his enclosure. Cleaning and feeding can't be done without removing him from the enclosure (he will leap from one side to the other, try to attack me, bite the plexiglass, etc.) . The only way I can get him out is when he is facing the other way so I can pick him up with his head facing away from me. If he tries to turn around and bite, I can still manuever him away from my flesh (he has tried biting my arm while I'm carrying him). I'll bring him into the bathroom to do his business, and as soon as he is done, he will start bobbing at me again. Generally he is OK in there, but has on occasion tried attacking my leg (at which point I pick him up and yell at him some ,although he doesn't seem to care less). The rest of my apartment he is manageable, so I can leave him in the livingroom while I deal with his enclosure. Eventually, he will wander back in, and try to get back into his enclosure (as long as the door is open, otherwise he sits there scratching). Before this behavior started, he rarely would go into his enclosure on his own (and would only scratch to get out). Now, I can leave the door open all day, and he doesn't want to come out, and I am not allowed anywhere near the thing. I can offer him greens (I have always hand fed these to him) and he will gladly take them, but if I move my hand the wrong way afterwards, he comes flying at me. The day I took him to the vet, he behaved OK. I guess he is not the master of the vets office, so he was his normal self. I get the feeling that he has picked out his "places", and those are off limits to me...

:So my question is this: So how am I supposed to deal with this? My once tame, social iguana now will tolerate me at times, and want to violently attack me others. He is almost 4' long, and has a lot of growning to do. Should I be leaving him alone for a few days and not deal with him at all, or will that make things worse? Or should I be interacting with him? I can't let him climb on me any more because he has bitten the back of my head and the back of my arm (both happened in October - fortunately no stitches were needed) and can't trust him unless I can see his head and its away from me. I make my primary living as a musician, and can't afford to get my hands bitten, so I have been very careful about that. The smallest things seem to set him off, and then he is just nuts. Dangerous even (to himself as well). This has been very frustrating.

:Sorry for the long post... I'm not sure what to do anymore. I've tamed several completely wild parrots and well as Dexter, but I have never had a tame animal turn so nasty. Like I said, I will be geting the blood tests back tomorrow. I'm almost hoping that there is some medical issue that can explain this behavior.

:I have the James Hatfield book, and have read all the info on Melissa Kaplan's site. Any other helpful feedback would be much appreciated. Thanks.

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