Are you thinking about getting a green or blue iguana for your pet? It’s great if you’re ready and have all the resources you need to prepare for reptile parenthood. We will discuss the things you need to know before adopting an Iguana as a pet or you are looking into it.
One of the most popular pet lizards is the iguana. However, they require a significant investment of time and a high level of care. They have specific food and housing needs and can grow quite large and extremely powerful. They can also be difficult to tame and can become aggressive if not cared for regularly. Therefore, here are some things you should know if you decide to keep an iguana as a pet.
Behavior and Temperament
It is necessary to hold and hold your pet iguana regularly so that it learns to trust you and feel comfortable in its environment. This can be difficult because they often find human interaction strange and may be resistant. Therefore, you must handle your iguana with care and compassion.
Some iguanas enjoy climbing on their owners, so if your pet iguana enjoys this pastime, wear protective gear. An adult iguana’s tail is strong enough to break a human bone. When handling them, be alert for any squirming or aggression, especially if there are small children or other pets present.
Common Health Problems
Iguanas, like most pet reptiles, carry salmonella bacteria, which can be found in the iguanas’ digestive tract. Before and after spending time with your pet, wash your hands thoroughly and avoid touching your face. Take special precautions if you have small children, elderly people, pregnant women, or immunocompromised people in the home.
Iguanas can be tamed with adequate daily care, but they have strong self-defense instincts and will bite, scratch, and lash their tails if challenged.
Kidney disease, often caused by dehydration, is a common health problem in iguanas. If your iguana is sluggish, has a swollen body, and is drinking or urinating frequently, take it to the vet immediately.
Diet
Fresh food is essential for the health of iguanas, and a high-protein diet can lead to health problems such as kidney failure. Iguanas are naturally strict herbivores, avoiding animal protein, even insects.
In addition to high-quality commercial pellets, give your iguana some fruit and a calcium supplement. Additionally, iguanas need constant access to clean water. Follow your veterinarian’s recommendations to keep your pet at a healthy weight for its size.
Since iguanas eat whole food without chewing, everything you feed them should be diced or shredded into small pieces.
Iguana Housing
Iguanas can grow up to 7 feet long including the tail, and they typically weigh around 20 pounds. Therefore, a fish tank or small reptile enclosure is a very short-term home for baby iguanas. This size often surprises beginners with baby iguanas.
Most commercial cages are not suitable for this arboreal species. A suitable enclosure for a single iguana is about 12 feet long, 6 feet wide, and 8 feet high. Many iguana keepers prefer custom-built enclosures with ramps, shelves, and climbing branches. Some even turn a full room or large closet into an iguana habitat.
Iguanas need a temperature of about 85 degrees Fahrenheit to digest their food. Heat lamps, usually placed less than a foot from the basking ledge, can be used to achieve the ideal temperature. Iguanas prefer to bask at 95 degrees Fahrenheit, and their habitat should not be colder than 75 degrees Fahrenheit.
Use a reptile UVB light to provide adequate light for 10 to 12 hours a day. Mercury vapor bulbs are suitable for large enclosures or rooms. Your iguana will be able to bask in these lights thanks to the large branches and shelves in the cage.
Iguanas need at least 70% humidity in their environment. You can make your iguana’s environment more humid by adding a pond to the cage or using a misting machine. Typically, you should mist your iguana twice a day to increase humidity and keep its skin healthy.
Pros and Cons of Keeping an Iguana
Here, we’ll list some of the pros and cons you should consider before keeping an iguana as a pet.
Pros: Longevity
With proper care, iguanas can easily live for more than 20 years. With dedication, there’s no reason why your iguana can’t live that long.
Cons: Expensive to Keep
Iguanas need the right living conditions to live a long and healthy life. They’ll need a terrarium large enough to accommodate their eventual size, as well as the right lighting, humidity, and temperature. Not to mention expensive appointments with an exotic animal veterinarian. If you think you’ll struggle to keep an iguana for the next 20 years, you might want to consider a different pet.
Pros: Relatively easy to feed
Iguanas eat leaves, fruits, flowers and vegetables in the wild, and this strictly herbivorous diet must be replicated in captivity. Iguanas do not drink much water in the wild because they eat greens and the humidity in their environment keeps them hydrated. We recommend consulting a veterinarian for a more specific diet for your pet iguana.
Cons: Difficult to train
If your iguana is particularly resistant, taming can take YEARS. If you don’t have the patience to wait that long, there are many more docile lizards. You can also hand-feed them; this way they will understand that you have no intention of harming them.
Pros: They are active during the day
If you enjoy observing iguanas, it is best if they wake up at the same time as you. Iguanas are diurnal, meaning they wake up when the sun comes up. In the wild, they can be found sunbathing on tree branches.
Cons: Not for children
Iguanas have powerful jaws and will bite if they feel threatened. Rapid or sudden movements can shock an iguana and can make toddlers nervous. If an iguana feels threatened and decides to attack, its powerful tail can cause significant harm. So if you have small children, you may want to avoid keeping an iguana for now.
Want to learn more about keeping an iguana as a pet? Contact Paddock Park Animal Care today for more information.
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