Pet Blog April Archive

Call the Fire Department..the Iguana is in the Tree!

By Lizzie Botticelli at 04/25/07 14:11

I just recently moved my Iguana's cage, which USED to be in my bedroom, out to the sun porch in my home. Since the weather is getting nicer, I thought it would be a good opportunity since having your bedroom shared by a six foot green iguana is not my idea of comfort.

A couple of days ago, it was so sunny and beautiful outside, I decided to let him sit on the deck rail (which he has done many times before) to catch some good UV rays. I thought he would be fine while I went to Wal Mart for an hour.

When I came home, i found him not on the deck rail where i left him...but about twenty five feet up a tree! I decided I would let him be for a while to see what he would do...not that I could have done anything since there were really no climbing branches on the particular tree he chose.

Well, the enxt thing I know, the weather starts to turn chillier, then the skies got black, then the doggone tornado wirens start wailing! Of all times, we had just been put under a tornado warning and it was getting pretty windy! My kids were all upset. The storm passed pretty quickly with nothing further than a brief, very hard rainfall. Still, the dumb iguana is up in the tree swaying back and forth.

I wasn't really sure, since he has been captive all his life, that he would actually climb the twenty some feet back DOWN the tree although they are arborial creatures by nature. By the time dark arrived, he was still up the darn tree. Kids are now crying, because he will be very cold and wet. What do they expect me to do? Fire department can't get the truck in the backyard, mom cant shimmy up the tree..what am I to do? Well, the answer was..nothing, not a darn thing. He stayed in that tree all night and forze his scales off (not literally).

The next morning as soon as the sun came up, he got down that tree. I still don't know whether he fell down, climbed down, or even jumped down. He was really cold. As he has been cold a few times before, I knew he would pretty scary to try and pick up, but I did anyway and brought him inside and put him on his bed with his heating pads and warming light. They have very little muscle control when they are cold, and subsequently are kind of violent because they can't really protect themselves.

I have a question directed to whomever may be able to give advice on this subject: I know that Iguanas are tropical creatures and I know what their normal temperatures SHOULD be, and I also know that if they are subjected to really cold temperatures, they are sorry creatures for a bit, but bounce back pretty good. My question is, does this have any long term effect on an iguana to get that cold? Does it kill off their tiny brain cells? Will my iguana be retarded if he keeps getting cold? Please someone, help me know the answer!

Lighting Requirements for Green Iguanas

Iguanas need a special light in order for their bodies to flourish and be healthy.

A source of UVB lighting in an iguana's cage is imperative. UVB lighting helps them synthesize vitamin D3, which is necessary to metabolize calcium in the Iguana's diet. Dietary vitamin D3 cannot be processed by iguanas, and they require a strong UVB source to help their bodies produce it. Without a UVB source, they cannot process calcium properly, and will be prone to Metabolic Bone Disease, an often fatal result of calcium deficiency.

UVB lighting cannot pass through plastic or glass, so the iguana needs to be close enough to benefit from the rays. On the other hand, they can't be placed too close, because they could be burned.

Find a Zoo for a Green Iguana

Remember the cute little green iguanas that were so popular a few years ago in the pet stores? I am not sure if that is still so, but I can remember seeing them everywhere then.

The pet store workers promoted them heavily. They were easy to obtain and pretty easy to sell. This was primarily because they knew NOTHING about the care required in reality, or if they did, they SURE weren't telling the buyers about it!

I bought a little green iguana about 5 years ago as a pet for my daughter. The pet store worker sold us a little 5 gallon aquarium (since he was only about 5 inches long tail and all) and told us to feed him lettuce and some green beans. An occasional cricket would be a treat. Well, not too hard I thought, so out I walked with a glass tank, green iguana, and a warming lamp.

Well, I thought there must be more to the story, so I did some research on some really good iguana sites and found out the REAL story! Little did I know that within the next five years, the cost of feeding this little green guy would equal the cost of feeding a couple of teenagers, or that he would get to be about 6 feet long, be very territorial, and live about 35 years!

The pet store industry should be ashamed of their behavior! I have made an extreme effort for my green guy, but think of how many are just left to starve or just plain die from lack of proper nourishment or care.

Now that my iguana is full grown, I would like to be able to find him a home in a zoo, or somewhere that is knowledgeable and equipped to house an iguana properly. He is healthy and has a pretty good attitude under the circumstances. If anyone has any ideas, let me know. It is not that I cannot care for him, because I can. The RIGHT thing to do is to try and find a better place that is closer to his natural environment.