Green iguana

[castaren]

Hi There

I'm contemplating getting a Green Iguana, but as I'm at work all day I was thinking if it'll be happy staying in it's enlcosure all day whilst there's nobody at home. I have read that it needs daily interaction if I want to tame it, however I'm not sure if it'll be happy with having it only in the evenings and at weekends.

Also I've been told (and don't know if it's true or not) that iguanas tend to bite girls who are on period???

Any suggestions/answers welcome. Many thanks

[motty123]

yep tht is true and also it will not be tame if u do not intract with the animal

[hysteria_uk]

Yes you should try and interact daily if possible. You will be able work and still have an iguana. It has been said that male Iggys can be off with women on their period but I've never heard of anyone first hand having a problem. Some iggys can never be tamed and a lot of young iggys that people claim are tame are just cold or ill. When you get your iggy, ideally you should be looking for an alert skitty iguana

[motty123]

Originally Posted by hysteria_uk

Yes you should try and interact daily if possible. You will be able work and still have an iguana. It has been said that male Iggys can be off with women on their period but I've never heard of anyone first hand having a problem. Some iggys can never be tamed and a lot of young iggys that people claim are tame are just cold or ill. When you get your iggy, ideally you should be looking for an alert skitty iguana

yes this is true i forgot to mesion that when the guy try to catch it it shoud be runing away from him and he should be trying 2 catch it what a job it is

[elliottreed]

You shouldn't look for a "skitty animal", I think you mean active and well cared for.

Can say from first hand, Igg vs Menstruation... it can be quite a display in the viv / defensive mode

I can still handle Hooch when i'm "on" but he is noticeably more lively and a little more scratchy, no major problems mind.

And Hooch was a rescue so generally more angry after circumstances he was in.

[hysteria_uk]

Originally Posted by elliottreed

You shouldn't look for a "skitty animal", I think you mean active and well cared for.

I think I actually mean what I say

[motty123]

Originally Posted by hysteria_uk

I think I actually mean what I say

yep mine is only baby and what are hard job it is to catch him

[hysteria_uk]

Originally Posted by motty123

yep mine is only baby and what are hard job it is to catch him

Yeah mine and all the other young

Originally Posted by elliottreed

active and well cared for

ones are complete headcases at first. Mine will take food from my hand and after a min or two of having my hand in the viv lets me stroke his leg and back (most the time anyway). Been able to pick him up a few times but i dont push it too much. He is still young and still have plenty of time to earn his trust. I still need to get some pics of him (her) as he still have the most amazing colours. I really hope they are there to stay like Crownans 'Spike' as all but his lose their colour over time.

[laura_2020]

I understand where your coming from

we own a 4 month old iggy now and for the first week or 2 i just let him adjust to his surroundings and begin the process of earning his trust its a long road and alot of time has to be put in, before i even tried to pick him up from the viv i would just place my hand inside the viv so he would start to get used to my hand, and to talk to him (alot) so the iggy can get used to my voice

he has come along way he understands my voice change if he decideds to try tail whipping me, which at the time can be rather scary but i can say now he does not show me agression he is fantastic.

Its a long process but when you have sucess in handling and see the responses from them it feels fantastic and you feel good for yourself and your iggy, there amazing animals and once you have that trust you will have a friend for life just make sure you keep that trust

iggys need alot (alot) of time and interaction to tame them down my iggy is handled now daily for at least 45 mins to an hour i was lucky in a sense as i took a little time off work to spend with my new iggy which was fantastic but understand that this is not possible for everyone, all iggys adjust and tame differently some can be quick some take months or years it all depends on the time spent with them and the work put in

i would not change my mind now i have my iggy i love him to bits you build a fantasitc relationship with them and would not change him for the world

good luck

[mahender]

hi there,

this is the life of an ig:-
wake up, warm up, poo, eat, bask, maybe eat some more, bask, bask , bask, bed.

they do need interactionas much as possible, they also need their own time. the interaction is to tame them to you.
i can now get seraphine to come out without having to chase him round his viv, i jus call his name and say "come out" he will eventually come on to my hand. i have no problems with him when i am ammending his viv, he just sits and watches.

when you get your enclosure, try setting it up near a window, they call this ig tv, my seraphines' viv looks otu of my bedroom window so he sees my joyous estate.
i sometimes also put my tele on timer to come on for a couple of hours.
i think he likes emmerdale (sad-o lol)

try and make up the interaction time when you can.
i work 8-430 mon to thur and i train a lot in the evenings.

i currently spen monday evenings with him,
tuesday i dont see him at all except before i leave for work,
wed a couple of hours after work and mornings before work ( 20 mins)
thursday i spend the evening
friday i finish at 2 so i spend a litlle time with him before training, a
sat and sunday i make up the time with him.

i too am paranoid about his mental wealth, as long as it has enough things to keep him stimulated day-to day then you should be ok. ( climbing areas, visual stimulation, and food and water)

excuse the ramble, hope this helps.
seraphine and mahender.
as someone else said you will have an amazing friend when you get there.

edit, as for the menstruating thing, i have no witness to this but i do beleive they sense the increase in hormones and can go weird, especially in breeding season.
i have heard stories from people where the ig will think they own the female and the male will get all the fighting talk and the female will try and get humped, but i guess this is no different than girls and human guys on a friday night lol. try and get a love doll in breeding season for him/her to love and fight with.