Iguanas As Pets

Very frew iguana sold in the pet trade are actually captive bred.

Mot are, infact, captive-farmed.

This means that gravid females (those with fertile eggs in them) are collected up and placed in pens until they lay their eggs.

These eggs are then hatched and the mother is released. The babies are shipped to your petshop for you to buy.

Selecting a healthy iguana is pretty easy in the whole, and is of equal importance whether you're looking for iguanas for sale or you're looking to adopt green iguana.

I should point out here that there are some things we can't see with a simple health check, and so even with the simple iguana health check I'll outline for you, it is worth taking a new iguana to a specialised reptile vet for a checkup.

A specialised vet is important as you'd be amazed how little your average vet knows about exotic pets (trust me, worked at one for a short period of time, and I ended up giving the vet advice on reptiles!).

Incase you're wondering what sort of problems are difficult to check for with an external checkup, one example is internal worms which are commonplace because, as I've said, many iguanas are not captive bred. Please note that captive bred animals are generally more expensive than captive farmed individuals, so even if someone says their iguana babies are captive bred, still have them checked out incase the guy was just trying to overcharge you for captive farmed stock.

OK, health check time, ladies and gents, and it's pretty easy to remember.

Bascially, we want to start at the very front of the head and slowly work out way back looking at each area as we go until we reach the very end of the tail.

Doing it in this manner means it's very difficult to miss anything out, rather than the random way in which some people do it, when things get forgotten.

Let me start you off.

Tip of the nose - in iguanas which have been kep in cages that are too small, or have been overcrowded or otherwise stressed, they will often have rubbed part of their snout away on the walls of the cage. This can lead to an iguana looking like it's "smiling" at you. The line of the mouth when viewed sideways on should be pretty much a straight, horizontal line.

Nostrils - a sign of breathing problems will be runny nostrils so give them a cursory glance. Any runny-ness will be immediately noticeable if there. Also, listen carefully to the breathing putting your head close to the iguana and make sure you can't hear any wheezing.

Mouth - if the iguana is of a safe size, open up the mouth by gently applying pressure to the lower jaw. If the iguana's mouth remains shut, continue the pressure until it opens. Do not under any circumstances, continually increase this pressure as you may damage the iguana's jaw bone. In time, the muscles holding the jaw shut will tire and you will be able to safely open the iguana's mouth.

Once open, insert something like a cocktail stick sideways across the iguanas mouth to "block the hinge" so you can safely take a look inside. A common problem in reptiles is a bacterial infection known as "mouth rot" which you will see as a sticky, cheesy residue in the mouth. Also check the color of the membranes inside the mouth. They should be a healthy pink in color, not raw or reddened.

Eyes - are they clear and bright? Beady? Eyes which appear "sunken" suggest a dehydrated lizard.

And so you continue back, checking all 4 limbs, that there are no obvious breaks in the tail, that there is no swelling in the limbs which might suggest problems, but equally that the tail andbody of the iguana are generally fat and muscular. Check the skin for any abrasions or cuts, any external parasites, any skin that wasn't moulted properly last time.

Take a look at the toes and claws, ensuring they are all there, unbroken.

Check out the anus of the animal making sure it is clean and there is no sign of a stomach upset.

If anything appears wrong, you are best to put the lizard back and try another store.

Sick reptiles can be a lot of trouble to get back to full health and my suggestion is that you start with a healthy individual to give you the greatest chance of success with your new hobby.

Iguanas As Pets A basic introduction to keeping iguanas as pets with lots of information on iguanas in captivity and what sort of pets they make. You'll also find advice on such topics such information on iguana suppliers and breeders and how to select a healthy individual. To finish this section off I'll tell you about iguanas for sale (including places that sell iguanas in the uk and my personal favourite iguana classifieds) and what you should know if you want to adopt a green iguana.