Adopting a 4 year old Green Iguana tonight

Graves923

Graves923

Chameleon Enthusiast
Got a call on Saturday from a friend of my aunt asking if we could take in another reptile. After talking to my wife and learning more about his current care situation, my wife gave me the green light to bring in the iguana. Current owner claims to not have enough time to properly care for him and would rather have him go to someone with reptile care experience which is why I got the call and he was not put up on craigslist.

He is currently in a 4ft tall by 2ft wide and deep terrarium which is small for his current size. But he'll do ok for a few weeks until I can build a custom cage which I plan to make expandable so it can grow with him for the next year or more. Currently has one heat lamp and what looked like a T8 fixture with no UVB bulb and they claim he hasnt had a UVB bulb for a couple weeks. I have an extra T8 and bulbs which will be used until I can get a T5HO setup for the new cage. Hes been given zoo-med calcium supplement twice weekly on his salads.

After seeing some photos of him, he doesn't appear to have any physical signs of MBD and appears overall very healthy. Had some stuck shed on his sides and belly but the current owners never gave him warm baths or any soak time beside when he would put a leg in his water bowl. Owners say he has a very calm personality and loves to have free range time and doesn't mind hanging out on your shoulders. Hoping he feels the same with me and my wife lol.

Excited and nervous about this new tenant to our house but the care is easy enough. Once we get into a routine I'm sure he will settle in nicely. Anyone have tips on care?

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I think at this point my biggest question is supplementation. Reading a lot of conflicting threads about the use of a D3 supplement and even basic supplement schedules
 
You will love him. My Iguana is the most favorite pet I’ve ever had. If you can free range him they are excellent free. My boy mainly lays on top of his box under his lights. He normally only comes down to use his poop box. They are highly intelligent and it took me 6 days to potty train him. He does go on my screen porch for sun sometimes but I’ve never used any supplements. I’m in south FL so I don’t use supplements on my chameleons either. If he will not get any natural UVB then supplement the same as your chameleons. Piper eats various greens and veggies and some fruit once in awhile. I give him tortoise mauzuri moistened on top of his salads daily.
 
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jannb said:
You will love him. My Iguana is the most favorite pet I’ve ever had. If you can free range him they are excellent free. My boy mainly lays on top of his box under his lights. He normally only comes down to use his poop box. They are highly intelligent and it took me 6 days to potty train him. He does go on my screen porch for sun sometimes but I’ve never used any supplements. I’m in south FL so I don’t use supplements on my chameleons either. If he will not get any natural UVB then supplement the same as your chameleons. Piper eats various greens and veggies and some fruit once in awhile. I give him tortoise mauzuri moistened on top of his salads daily.
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Awesome. Thank you for your input. Im getting excited to meet this guy and bring him home.
 
The iggies we had we also toilet trained...it's not hard at all. They also learned a few other words...something like a dog! :)

I did supplements similar to what I do for the chameleons...because I live in a colder climate and they couldn't go outside most of the year.
Of course, I also had to provide UVB.

They have a lot of personality and seem to be quite bright.

The one you're getting seems to be in pretty good condition except for the shedding which should be easy enough to solve.
Good luck with it!
 
Thanks all! We will be bringing him home wednesday night. The owner gave me the wrong dimensions of his current cage and there was no way to fit it in my little toyota haha. Borrowing my uncles truck to haul that home.

Met him last night and he is really calm and observant. Perks up when you say strawberries or green beans which are his favorite treats. He was a little on guard when I approached him but he let me give him some chin scratches and hand feed him some kale.

I am even more excited to get him home and acclimated to our home and routine so I can start working with him a bit. Even more excited to start building him a new enclosure thatll give him more space to really stretch out and lounge in.
 
janjan20 said:
Beautiful color! Does he have a name?
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His name is Turbo lol. Its fitting because he is fast. I picked him up out of the bin we were transporting him in and before I realized it he climbed up my chest and over my shoulder onto my back then back up to my other shoulder. My back is all scratched up from him now lol. Gotta file those nail tips down a bit when he settles in.
 
Im starting to think he's got a rebellious side... He keeps flipping his food dish and picking through it for his favorites. His previous owners fed him canned green beans and other canned veggies and fresh fruit all the time. I make a nutritious salad for him and he picks the fresh green beans and dandelion greens and left everything else... must be mad there was no fruit lol

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