Help Me Care For This Baby Green Iguana!

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Sarcosuchus

Candiru
MFK Member
Oct 28, 2006
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The Green Iguana

Some of you know of my situation after witnessing a baby Iguana in such a sad condition being sold in a petstore.

I was being advised not to buy this baby Green Iguana, because I would only encourage the shopkeeper to bring in more and continue treating badly, I still bought the baby Green Iguana and I just did. I may not keep it, just wanted to rescue it and give it to someone who can adopt it.

Iguana's condition in petstore:

-In such a tiny and dirty plastic tank with wood chips as substrate. It also had tiny little flies...

-I have no idea what he fed the Iguana or if he fed it at all. And there was no waterdish.

-No Full Spectrum Lighting nor Sunlight being provided.

-Iguana's appearance, some of its tail is gone and has rotten scar..and its entire body has unshed skins all over...

-Iguana looks active, all toes present, maybe some claws are gone..will check again...unshed skins all over, sad looking.

-Is afraid.

It was sold for Rm150, I told him if I don't buy it would die, and the only reason I am buying is to save its life. I asked for free, to allow me to care for it...he said he wanted some money at least, he said he bought it for rm80, so he could give me for rm80, I said fine...I bought it. I told him if he was to bring more stock, he better study about Iguanas before doing business. But I am going to report, I figured I would buy and report...I know I disappointed some of you by buying this Iguana. Besides I am a newbie. The Iguana is about 6 inches in length, in an almost a foot in width by over a foot in length glass terrarium with bogwoods. The waterdish is mixed with sera calcium powder ( a mix of both D3 and Multivitamin ).

Right now the Iguana wants to come out, all I ask is to name me the proper diets, the required vegetables and fruits..anything at all, I am reading online too. Tomorrow I am going to see a 15 years of reptile vet from the National Zoo. I am going to check on my Leopard Gecko, I will take the Iguana with me as well. Thank you for reading! I took these pictures with my cam, wire not long enough, I just wanted to show you. I will take the Iguana for the sunlight everyday, but tell me..for how long?

In my heart I feel I did the right thing, if I think so many are dying out there, and I ignore because of that, then I never tried to save even one...perhaps this is the beginning of gain in knowledge and experience towards rescuing Green Iguanas.

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It's great that you are trying to save animals, it really is. But, make sure you can care for it. I'm not an iguana pro, but I'll say you should get a larget tank. After he settles in, you can get him slightly used to you.
 
Thank you, I will keep you guys updated. I have shifted it to a larger environment, it is basically a space I created at one corner of my room, giving it an over 2 feet in length of space by definitely over a foot in width ( I will measure it properly, don't want to scare the Iguana ). The Iguana is very afraid of me, everytime I have to do something it jumps and flees from me. It cannot trust human yet because of you know what. It ate sliced carrots mixed with sera calcium powder.
 
I'm glad to hear that the iguana is eating! That's a very good sign. Kale, Mustard and Collared Greens are good leafy plants for your guy to eat. You can also feed him Pansies, Violets, Dandelions, Geraniums and Hibiscus leaves and flowers. Avoid Iceberg lettuce at all cost! Grated carrots, zucchini and squash are good to feed too. You can also add sliced banana, mangos and strawberries as a treat. Make sure you always lightly dust his food with vitamins and calcium. I would let the iguana soak in a bucket of warm water to help hydrate it's skin and that might help it to get rid of some of it's shed. You do have a basking light for him? Good luck and keep us posted.
 
Thank you very much for your reply Vicious_Fish, I was expecting your reply. So far I have just fed it grated carrots mix with that sera calcium powder. And yes I was thinking of soaking it in warm water also for that unshed skins. I will do that later, besides I am taking it to the vet as I stated.

I do not have a basking light, I wanted to take it out everyday for the sunlight...may I know how long I should let it bask? Thanks again!
 
Because Iguanas are diurnal animals, they should have access to basking light during the day for 10-12 hours. What are you temperatures inside the cage? To properly digest food, one side of the cage should be in the mid 80's. A basking spot temperature should be about 95 degrees F. Do you live someplace warm enough to keep an iguana outside all year? You could build a cage for him and keep him outdoors, weather permitting.
 
If he doesn't like bathing in the warm water you can mist with warm water and a spray bottle that's what I used to do with mine, but like stated above you will need a basking light for him to digest properly unless you live somewhere very warm. Mine used to run the house and loved basking in the window and climbing the curtains. Vicious_Fish listed a good varied diet.
With proper care and a good diet he will come back quote nicely.
 
UVB LIGHT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT!!! this is the light you need for 10-12 hours. i realize you take him outside but unless he's outside for 10 hrs day he will eventually get calcium deficiency. the thing is iguana's need the radiation from the sun to absorb the calcium, and that is what the uvb bulb does. however the bulb is alittle pricey i paid $45 for an 18" florescent tube (then again i live in california and everything is more expensive here). i applaud you on this one iguana's are a handful especially females they always seem to become aggressive.
 
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