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Posted by desiree on January 26, 2003 at 14:02:42:
Animal lovers across the country wanted to claim Dragon the iguana
Julie van Hoboken and Kim Myers readily attest no good deed goes unpunished.
Jerry Zellers of east Fort Myers died Jan. 11 and left a pet iguana named Dragon.
Zellers, 46, an electrician, didn’t leave a will, but his mother says the 3-foot-long iguana’s future residence was an important concern.
“My son asked me to find it a good home,’’ says van Hoboken of Fort Myers. “I called Calusa Nature Center and found it a good home.’’
Good deed No. 1.
The Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium doesn’t take exotics, but Myers, education naturalist, answered van Hoboken’s call for help.
“If she was giving it away, I could give it a good home,’’ says Myers, 21, of Fort Myers. “I just thought I was getting a new pet.’’
Good deed No. 2.
Or so they thought — until Jan. 16.
“Some woman called me from California,’’ Myers says. “She said the iguana belonged to her fiance and they wanted it back.’’
The fiance is Nick Zellers, Jerry’s 19-year-old son, who lives near San Francisco with 18-year-old Becky Eason.
“My dad gave me Dragon as a birthday present when I was 11 years old,’’ Zellers says. “I raised it since it was eight inches long.’’
Myers says she arranged to give Dragon to them Jan. 18, but they didn’t show.
“Our flight was late. It didn’t get to Fort Myers until midnight,’’ Zellers says. “We couldn’t find her Sunday.’’
That’s because Myers flew to Ohio for a vacation Jan. 19.
I contacted Myers on Wednesday and asked what was up with Iguanagate?
“I really love that animal a lot, but it’s not worth it,’’ she says. “The only way I get out of this family feud is to give the iguana back to Julie.’’
Myers, animal lover she is, let go reluctantly and echoed the deceased’s concerns.
“The thing I’m worried about is if the iguana will get the right care,’’ she says.
The Green Iguana Society Web site says Dragon is as unique as a pet gets.
“They are not creatures happy to be stuck in a cage, fed, cleaned and ignored,’’ the site says. “They need contact, interaction, and yeah, love.’’
An iguana needs to eat fresh vegetables and fruit, get routine pedicures and live near a herpetologist.
The site asks: “Are you prepared to own an iguana?’’
Good question for Zellers.
Which begs another: If Dragon is the son’s pet, why did it live with the father?
Zellers hesitates slightly.
“I was moving to different places,’’ he says. “I had roommates at the time who didn’t want an iguana around.’’
He gets a second chance.
His grandmother says Myers told her Wednesday she would return Dragon.
“What am I going to do with a lizard?’” says van Hoboken, 69.
She knew Thursday after her grandson and fiancee returned to California.
“Nicholas being the legal heir, I wanted to do the right thing,’’ van Hoboken says. “I’m shipping it to him.’’
For the pet’s sake, let’s hope Dragon finds a responsible owner when the iguana gets back to California.
