My Iguana
 

I haven't named her yet. Could be a male. :winky: But after breaking her tail off the first week I had her, she's doing just fine. They often do that, no need to get upset, it'll grow back. She was just so scared that she ran around the tank in a panic, but she has calmed down now. I hold her, talk to her and put her in different tanks so she doesn't get bored. I even let her into the bathtub a few minutes each day so she can swim and get some exercise. Warm of course.

Eventually she will know her name when I say it and will miss me if I go out.

My roommate in college had a gecko and his name was Slick....it was a good name because it wasn't gender specific. You could go with VII for Very Important Iguana. Just a couple of thoughts off the top of my head. Enjoy your new pet!

Hi Wiix,

I agree with Kanna. Try using a gender non specific name. Try something descriptive like Chef, it seems to like the kitchen from another post I read. I had one some time ago. My nieces named her Sally. It was lucky she turned out to be a girl. When I got engaged to my now husband, he wouldn't let me keep her so she had to find a new home.

It sounds as if she is still a juvenile so it will be difficult to determine it's gender, but the one way I remember how to tell is, on the underside of its rear legs is a line of pores. Females will have smaller ones than males. Once they are about 8 months to a year old, males will secrete a waxy substance from these pores. Males will also usually start displaying a bright orange color in the fall once they are mature enough to bread.

I hope you know what you are getting into. Iguanas need a large space to live in and love to climb anything they can get their claws on. Sally was given her own room that I turned into a small jungle for her. Because she was female, she also needed a large egg laying box when she started laying eggs.

I would recommend reading Melisa Kaplan's website.
.
. She is known worldwide for her studies on iguanas. If you can, I also recommend the book Green Iguana: The Ultimate Owner's Manual by James W. Hatfield III. It has a wealth of information. More than most people want to know, but well worth the money.

Enjoy your new little friend and the experiences you will have raising it.
:hug:
Alaina

Thanks PurpleFoot but I have had over 30 over the years. I had The Green Iguana book and read it. I don't think I have it anymore. I gave it away.

She is not a green Iguana, she is A Blue. Beautiful, turquoise colour. I don't know what sex she is, she's too young. But that'll come in time.

There are disadvantage sto both male and female. With a female you risk her getting egg bound and losing her. With a male you get chased all over the place when they are in heat. That's why I'm hoping it's a girl, she looks like a girl. :D

No offense to your knowledge of iguanas, I too have done extensive research on iguanas over the past 30 years. How is it that you came across a blue iguana? It is my understanding that they are one of the worlds most endangered species!

Think the Grand Caymens. :winky:

Then I take it you are part of one of the research teams there?

Could be. :winky:

Well, I've lived with her now for about a month and think I've settled on a name. It's Bella. :winky:

What a great name. Could go either way for gender so you have nothing to worry about there. Plus it is a pretty name.
:winky:

i love the name bella. i think it means beautiful in italian. very nice choice!

I put her in the bathtub for a few minutes each day, it really calms her down. We're beginning to get a routine going. Eventually, I'd like to take a bath with her, that's really fun. Not yet though, she's too tiny. :winky:

She's doing well. She is getting interested in cartoons. :ROTFLMAO:

Funny Lady! :D

After her bath I wrap her in a baby blanket and lay down with her on my chest for a while. I stoke her head and body and she falls right to sleep. I am hoping that this time will register with her so she won't be so afraid.

It will take time. I've always said it takes them 6 months to trust you and another 6 months for them to love you. :winky:

Can't get my camera to work on this new computer so I can't get any pictures of her yet. There must be a way it will work. Can't imagine it not working. :Bang-Head:

She licked my thumb yesterday. Doesn't sound like much but she's warming up to me. :rolleyes:

When I finally had to give up my little sally, she was 10-1/2 inches Snout Vent Length and a little under 6 feet overall length. Watching both of the videos you posted make me miss her so much, but it was either her or my husband. She was only 7 years old when I gave her up back in 2007. I often wonder if she is still healthy or even alive any more.

It hurts when you have to give them up especially when you have bonded with each other. I hope he is worth it. :confused: You never know with men. :o

Too bad that you have to give up something that you love just to be with him. :hug:

I had to give up two baby geckos two years ago but that was because I was so sick I couldn't take care of them, that really hurt but it was for the best. I dropped them and their fishbowl they were in and one of them got cut. That was during a fall. I got hurt too. Long story. :o

Finally got a UV light for her. She really enjoys it. I've caught her laying right under it sleeping. I can see she has grown to almost double her size now in only about 3 months. And her tail is growing back. :winky:

This morning we had an escape. As I took her from her sleeping tank, it's in my bedroom right next to the bed, down the hall she flipped right out of my hands. AS they often do this to escape and hide for weeks at a time. She was hiding all day but tonight I saw her right in front of my bedroom door in the hall. I scooped her up and put her back in her tank for the night. I almost think she wanted me to do that. :winky: She's coming around. :p

I put her in the tub tonight. I try to do that everyday but some days it just doesn't work out. She seemed very calm, for her. I wrapped her up in a baby blanket with just her head sticking out and layed down with her for a while. I rubbed her head with my finger and she tried to scootch up to me as if to cuddle with me. It was so cute. :hug:

It's a slow process but you really do need patience. :winky:

Her flipping out time when I try to take her out of the tank is now down quite a bit. She flips out now once or twice then she lets me touch her. :rolleyes: I can rub her back now while she's in the tank, before she wasn't having any of that. :D

This is so cute I just have to share.

I put her in the tub this afternoon for a swim and she POOPED! Now that's a first. A good sign she is starting to relax. AND when I bent over the tub and was talking to her she didn't try to get away. She stayed right there under my voice and wagged her tiny tail. :D Progress.:D

She's relaxing more but she still has her little flip outs. Today, twice, I caught her laying on the tiny pillow I made for her , watching TV. She really does like cartoons now. :hug:

Progress. :winky:

hi Wix. i'm glad you're iguana is making progress. she sounds so cute!!!

She really is. I wish I could get my camera to work so I could take some pictures of her. She really is a beautiful shade of blue.

She usually goes to bed, to sleep, around 3. But tonight she crawled out from under the blanket and was watching TV. When she gets a little calmer I will try her with some picture books. Many of my other iguanas loved the picture books, especially of dinosaurs. I have a pop-up books. Really freaks them out. :D In a good way. :hug:

Yesterday I noticed her flipping out and hiding a lot. Late yesterday I took her out of her tank with the usual scrambling to get away from me. Once I had her she was " crunching". I turned her over and she was a mass of skin. I had to peel her. I guess the noise was making her crazy. She settled down after that. Shedding can do that to them. They must think something is after them. :ROTFLMAO:

Wiix,

I would love to see pictures of your little baby Bella. When you are finally able to figure out how to upload a picture of her, please do that.

I have a particular love for herpetology and most of that love is for iguanas. I have done extensive research on them over the past 30+ years and had my first one when I was around 8. The last one I had, Sally whom I have mentioned a few times in this thread, I had for almost 8 years. I had to give her up when my Husband and I became serious and moved in together, he hates reptiles. Although I seriously miss her, I do love my husband very much and have no regrets of giving her up. If the time ever comes where I can care for another, I wouldn't hesitate one bit on raising another.

Take good care of your little Bella. She sounds like a real sweetheart.

It's not that I can't get the camera to work, it's uploading to this new computer. I think they are just incompatible. :( I'll try again when I'm not so frustrated. :o

Well she's coming around a bit more yesterday and today. When I kissed her on the nose, she kissed back. :winky: Not an actual pucker but her version of a pucker, the tongue came out. Each time I kissed her she licked me. :hug:

One step forward then two steps back. :o She's just an animal, I keep telling myself but it does get frustrating. The past few days were promising but today no such luck. BUT she did stop jumping around franticly and looked at me as if she wanted me to stay right in front of her. :o Two months to go then she will trust me. I hope. :hug:

Today was another first. I layed down with her wrapped in a flannel baby blanket. I was on my side with her right up on my shoulder and in my arms and we both fell asleep. When I woke up about an hour later she was still there. She woke up too with her usual start. I put her in her tank for the night. :D

She seems to be sleeping a lot the past few days. I think the seasons have a lot to do with this. :confused:

I want to talk about Super Worms. I bought some on the day I got her. I keep them in a vegetable tub with a cover. It's been nearly 5 months and there are only one or two still alive. But the Do turn into something else, beetles. I have found a couple of the beetles in other rooms of the apt. The first one I stepped on only because I didn't realize what it was. They do get out. Since then I have put them back in the tub and they stayed there until they died. I do uncover them and put them on the window sill during the day. It seems a shame to allow them to mature just to kill them, they don't last that long anyway.

She has never eaten one of them, they were just too big.

Iguanas are strict vegetarians. They may eat an occasional bug by accident, but it should not be a normal part of their diet. The best source of protein for an Iguana that I have found is alfalfa hay or fresh tofu, (use the firm not soft).

Super worms are a larval form of a beetle. they will eventually reach the pupal stage and change into a beetle. If you can keep them captive, oats and other grains are a good food supply and you will soon have a new crop of super worms. Breeding them can be a pain, so I would recommend just not doing it unless you have a reason to, such as having a number of chameleons or other bug eating lizards.

Tofu huh? I love tofu. :D

Another new behavior has come about. While in her tank she just stares at me and bobs her head. I think that's good. She doesn't run in a wild panic like she did, well sometimes but not constantly. She still wake in a wild panic too but once in a while I'll grab her before she gets too out of control.

She is the wildest iguana I have ever had. All the others, about 30, have been very easy to handle. I was able to spend a lot more time with the others but she make it nearly impossible to. :o Could be her breed or she was wild for the time before she was caught. :confused:

Today is the first time her dewlap has unfurled.

Here is a video about Super Worms:


She is in the middle of a full body shed. She can't wait for me to peel her. The itching makes her crazy. :o I do put her in the tub to help with that. :winky: