Anyone have a Green Iguana as a pet?

Contributor: kinky girlfriend kinky girlfriend
I have had one before it died years ago..Yesterday I ran into someone I know at Wal Mart and she purchased one for a friend but I guess now he has decided he can't keep it and now she is giving it to me when the order arrives at the pet store...I'm so excited. I already have a 600 page book on Green Iguanas and a place to put it...although it needs fixing up. This will be interesting with a cat and a dog..dog won't bother it but I wonder how I can teach the cat to leave it alone.

Well Looks like I need to save money for alot now. Lighting and things to fix up enclosure everything pretty much will be re done. First I have to clean it. They are expensive to feed and care for but I'm so excited I hope my dad lets me keep it.
08/15/2011
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Contributor: Ansley Ansley
You hope your dad let's you keep it? I think that's something you need to clear up before the little guy comes home. Iguanas are aggressive, I don't think you'll need to worry about the cat attacking it; it'll probably be the other way 'round. (My sister had one for years and had several cats, they got along fine.)
08/15/2011
Contributor: kinky girlfriend kinky girlfriend
Quote:
Originally posted by Ansley
You hope your dad let's you keep it? I think that's something you need to clear up before the little guy comes home. Iguanas are aggressive, I don't think you'll need to worry about the cat attacking it; it'll probably be the ... more
he said no...its so stupid I still have all my Iguana stuff here. He liked the Iguana when I had it. Im going to sneak it in an aquarium and but in the extra bathroom..when it gets bigger I will put it in the large enclosure and put a blanket over the plexi glass and hope he doesn't notice LOL
08/16/2011
Contributor: Jul!a Jul!a
I hate to say it, but if you can't properly take care of the animal, you probably shouldn't have it. Hiding it in the bathroom and then keeping it in an enclosure with a blanket over it where the iguana will have to live in the dark isn't a good environment for it. And what happens if he does find it after he specifically told you no? I totally get that you should be able to do things as an adult, but you do also have to follow the rules of the person you live with. My husband and I live with my mother right now, and we have to follow her rules too.
08/16/2011
Contributor: kinky girlfriend kinky girlfriend
Quote:
Originally posted by Jul!a
I hate to say it, but if you can't properly take care of the animal, you probably shouldn't have it. Hiding it in the bathroom and then keeping it in an enclosure with a blanket over it where the iguana will have to live in the dark isn't ... more
then I will just try keeping it in the extra bathroom for a few weeks then telling him it may be the only way he will let me..Im thinking about just taking action then responsibility after I have it for a few weeks and tell him i've had it for a while and he sees its cared for maybe that wil persuade him. The worst that will happen is he will ask me to get rid of it. I have a 600 page book on Green Iguanas and supplies here...so I also ahve that going for me..
08/16/2011
Contributor: Dawn (Lilac Distraction) Dawn (Lilac Distraction)
You can't just keep one in the bathroom. They need so much to thrive. I've had about 3 of them. They need such a huge enclosure to really be able to grow correctly. They're really hard to keep as pets. Iguanas aren't something you can easily hide because they need so love and care. I'd say that when you get it, make plans to hand it over to someone else. Post ads at local pet shops or online. You may be able to sell your supplies with it and get a little money for them.
08/16/2011
Contributor: kinky girlfriend kinky girlfriend
Quote:
Originally posted by Dawn (Lilac Distraction)
You can't just keep one in the bathroom. They need so much to thrive. I've had about 3 of them. They need such a huge enclosure to really be able to grow correctly. They're really hard to keep as pets. Iguanas aren't something you can ... more
im not selling supplies because I hope to be able to keep an Iguana again someday. I will have it in a fish tank for a few weeks then I will tell my dad

i have severe irritable bowel if I was in the bathroom for an hour my dad wouldn't think much of it..hes not home much anyway
08/16/2011
Contributor: Breas Breas
Ive never had one but knew someone that did
08/16/2011
Contributor: P'Gell P'Gell
I have also owned Green Iguanas. They are not an animal you can "hide." They need not only natrual sunlight or they will die of bone disease, but they need heat rocks, a heat and UV sun lamp, a machine that creates a VERY humid environment, liquid Vitamin B3, and a host of other medications.

They are used to living in tropical area. That means if they don't get enough sunlight they will DIE. You can't put a blanket over their housing, because the heat will build up and that will kill them. Iguanas need to be kept at a constant temperature and that is high at least 86 tp 95 degrees. If it is a female, you have to make sure they lay even their unfertilized eggs, or they need surgery to remove them. This is a procedure which costs about $1,000.00 in our area, if the eggs are left in the Inguana she will die.

They also get a condition called "Sunlight Aggression." Our female Iguana was very tame, but in the spring when she was making eggs and the sun was stronger, she would run around her cage and vocalize and bite anyone who even tried to feed her. We had to buy special protective gloves to be able to feed her during her Sunlight Aggression Period. Then, she didn't lay her eggs, so they had to be removed, at a great cost to us. We were able to afford it then, and I would say we spent about $5,000.00 over the life of that Iguana. Sadly, we KNEW what we were doing and she still contracted Metabolic Bone Disease, (even with lots of natural sunlight, liquid "sunshine" (about $35.00 a bottle) liquid Vitamin B3, extra calcium, two sunlamps (at a cost of about $200.00, 10 years ago) and was also allowed to run around the house when she wasn't aggressive.

She had to be taken to the vet to have her nails cut, because it has to be done properly or they will get hurt. (About $100.00 a session, about 3 times a year.) She loved running around the house, (and she pooped EVERYWHERE) and it was needed according to our Vet to make sure her bones and muscles developed properly. Her cage alone cost us about $300.00 and in less than a year we needed a new more expensive one, because she grew.

Iguanas are NOT "beginner pets." They require 100 times the care of a cat or dog, and if not properly taken care of, regular vet visits and all the proper equipment, they will die from either egg issues or Metabolic Bone Disease.

Please, find a home for this animal with someone who can afford to feed and take care of her properly.
08/16/2011
Contributor: Tori Rebel Tori Rebel
Quote:
Originally posted by P'Gell
I have also owned Green Iguanas. They are not an animal you can "hide." They need not only natrual sunlight or they will die of bone disease, but they need heat rocks, a heat and UV sun lamp, a machine that creates a VERY humid environment, ... more
I have to agree with P'Gell. There's a reason you see so many iguanas in zoos and rescues - they're a royal pain to care for and need a LOT of space and treatment. My husband used to petsit for a pair of them frequently for a friend and even though the pair we watched were wonderful well behaved and healthy, just the fact that they would cut into your skin with their nails (unintentionally, they're just holding on) and the nasal salt expulsion was enough to turn me off of them. Never mind the fresh food feeding, the light/humidity factors, and simply the size they grow to.
08/16/2011
Contributor: Jul!a Jul!a
Quote:
Originally posted by kinky girlfriend
then I will just try keeping it in the extra bathroom for a few weeks then telling him it may be the only way he will let me..Im thinking about just taking action then responsibility after I have it for a few weeks and tell him i've had it for a ... more
P'Gell makes a very good point about the care required for a green iguana. And taking care of it for a few weeks behind his back might not persuade him. If I were in a position where I had told somebody not to do something like this, and they did it anyway hoping they'd be able to change my mind, I'd be really angry and lose the ability to trust that person for a very long time, if not forever. Just having a book and supplies doesn't guarantee a happy outcome. I had books on birds that I owned and all the supplies and because I wasn't prepared to properly care for them at the time, they didn't live very long. Don't force this animal to live in an environment that it's going to fail in, for the sake of the iguana if nothing else.
08/16/2011
Contributor: kinky girlfriend kinky girlfriend
Quote:
Originally posted by P'Gell
I have also owned Green Iguanas. They are not an animal you can "hide." They need not only natrual sunlight or they will die of bone disease, but they need heat rocks, a heat and UV sun lamp, a machine that creates a VERY humid environment, ... more
if it doesn't work out I can get some fish...but I would rather have Iguana
08/16/2011
Contributor: Ansley Ansley
Quote:
Originally posted by kinky girlfriend
if it doesn't work out I can get some fish...but I would rather have Iguana
If you do get the iguana and it does become sick, do you realize you could be brought up on charges of animal cruelty and neglect? If that doesn't stop you from going through this half-cocked plan of yours, I don't know what will.
08/16/2011
Contributor: kinky girlfriend kinky girlfriend
Quote:
Originally posted by Ansley
If you do get the iguana and it does become sick, do you realize you could be brought up on charges of animal cruelty and neglect? If that doesn't stop you from going through this half-cocked plan of yours, I don't know what will.
im not going through with the plan I'm setting it up in an aquarium for a while then I already have a large enclosure if my dad tells me NO after he finds out guess It will have to have a diffrent home...he can find out after the iguana is in the large enclosure and he sees it.
08/16/2011