Well, let's give it a shot.....

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Posted by JohnT on May 05, 2001 at 21:20:08:

In Reply to: Long list of questions from soon to come owner posted by Fred The Lizard on May 05, 2001 at 17:45:23:

: hi i'm an up and coming owner of an iguana. I've been doing a lot of studying on them (AND I MEAN A LOT) and i've heard a bunch of conflitciting opinions and such jsut wondering if you people could clear some things up for me

I hope you're looking at obtaining a "used" iguana, as there are many out there that need homes...

: 1. is it ok to mainly let your iguana free roam around the house with a basking light here and there for him to bask. and some food dishes around.

Many people freeroam thier iguanas, but you probably should start with an enclosure, so that your ig has a place to call home. After you have had him a while, and he has adjusted, AND you have completely igproofed your home in the rooms where he will freeroam, you can let him out for longer and longer periods of time. He'll show you where he wants basking lights and lounging areas.

: 2. (silly question) can an iguana be trained to like scratch on the door when he wants to pee or something or be trained to go in a litter box.(a guy said he got his tegu to scratch the door, and i got both of my previous rabbits to be litter trained, this only needs to be answered if you think its ok for them to free roam)

I don't think you'll ever get your ig to signal that he needs relief by scratching, but they can be trained to use a certain area. Keep in mind that igs have a VERY strong urge to defecate in water. This is your training starting point. Many owners poop thier igs in the tub at certain times of the day. You can also use a rubber or ceramic container full of water in the enclosure to start things off...

: 3. Just exactly how fast are they, if i let him in the back yard(which is fenced) if he started to run could i catch him. (i have a collared lizard already and i know i couldn't catch him,SPEED DEMON)

Allowing your ig to go free in the back yard will probably be a death sentence. Two things: no fence is tall enough to stop an ig, and an ig will give your collard lizard a run for his money. You could not possibly catch him.

: 4. exactly what is your salad made of about the only things i've heard to put in it that has remained constant is squash and some leafy greens for a dessert the rest have all had a variety of things to put in with the squash

You will have to determine what to use by looking at what others use, and coming up with what seems to be consistent among what everyone feeds. Personally, I use collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelions (leaves and flowers), shredded butternut squash, green beans, snap peas, and snow peas as staples, with escarole, parsely, grape leaves, hibiscus flowers, squash blossoms, slivered asparagus, slivered okra, sweet potato, and green pepper for variety, with occasional fruits such as blueberries, raspberries, figs, and strawberries.

: 5. i live in northern florida. if i let my iggy out every day to sun himself in my back yard for awhile would he still need a uvb light.

There will be times during the winter when you will not be able to put him out enough, so, yes, you should have UVB lights. (zoomed reptisun or iguanalight, same tube) When he's sunning, be sure he's in a sunning cage, and has a shady area.

: 6. i have a calcium adder already that i use for my collared that has calcium and D3 but no phosphurus, would this stuff work since the iggy will get the phos he needs (which i know is not much) from his salad.

If you suppliment, use a calcium only suppliment, or possibly a crushed multivitamin tablet. (or a crushed tums tablet) DO NOT use any D3 supplimentation. If your ig is properly exposed to sunlight and/or uvb, he will make his own.

Lastly, here is a link to a good ig site. Also, if you're not familiar with it, try Melissa Kaplan's site at WWW.anapsid.org

Best wishes,

John

Jen Swafford's Ig pages

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: : hi i'm an up and coming owner of an iguana. I've been doing a lot of studying on them (AND I MEAN A LOT) and i've heard a bunch of conflitciting opinions and such jsut wondering if you people could clear some things up for me : I hope you're looking at obtaining a "used" iguana, as there are many out there that need homes... : : 1. is it ok to mainly let your iguana free roam around the house with a basking light here and there for him to bask. and some food dishes around. : Many people freeroam thier iguanas, but you probably should start with an enclosure, so that your ig has a place to call home. After you have had him a while, and he has adjusted, AND you have completely igproofed your home in the rooms where he will freeroam, you can let him out for longer and longer periods of time. He'll show you where he wants basking lights and lounging areas. : : 2. (silly question) can an iguana be trained to like scratch on the door when he wants to pee or something or be trained to go in a litter box.(a guy said he got his tegu to scratch the door, and i got both of my previous rabbits to be litter trained, this only needs to be answered if you think its ok for them to free roam) : I don't think you'll ever get your ig to signal that he needs relief by scratching, but they can be trained to use a certain area. Keep in mind that igs have a VERY strong urge to defecate in water. This is your training starting point. Many owners poop thier igs in the tub at certain times of the day. You can also use a rubber or ceramic container full of water in the enclosure to start things off... : : 3. Just exactly how fast are they, if i let him in the back yard(which is fenced) if he started to run could i catch him. (i have a collared lizard already and i know i couldn't catch him,SPEED DEMON) : Allowing your ig to go free in the back yard will probably be a death sentence. Two things: no fence is tall enough to stop an ig, and an ig will give your collard lizard a run for his money. You could not possibly catch him. : : 4. exactly what is your salad made of about the only things i've heard to put in it that has remained constant is squash and some leafy greens for a dessert the rest have all had a variety of things to put in with the squash : You will have to determine what to use by looking at what others use, and coming up with what seems to be consistent among what everyone feeds. Personally, I use collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelions (leaves and flowers), shredded butternut squash, green beans, snap peas, and snow peas as staples, with escarole, parsely, grape leaves, hibiscus flowers, squash blossoms, slivered asparagus, slivered okra, sweet potato, and green pepper for variety, with occasional fruits such as blueberries, raspberries, figs, and strawberries. : : 5. i live in northern florida. if i let my iggy out every day to sun himself in my back yard for awhile would he still need a uvb light. : There will be times during the winter when you will not be able to put him out enough, so, yes, you should have UVB lights. (zoomed reptisun or iguanalight, same tube) When he's sunning, be sure he's in a sunning cage, and has a shady area. : : 6. i have a calcium adder already that i use for my collared that has calcium and D3 but no phosphurus, would this stuff work since the iggy will get the phos he needs (which i know is not much) from his salad. : If you suppliment, use a calcium only suppliment, or possibly a crushed multivitamin tablet. (or a crushed tums tablet) DO NOT use any D3 supplimentation. If your ig is properly exposed to sunlight and/or uvb, he will make his own. : Lastly, here is a link to a good ig site. Also, if you're not familiar with it, try Melissa Kaplan's site at WWW.anapsid.org : Best wishes, : John

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