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About
Melissa Kaplan
by Melissa Kaplan
Now
Available!
Captive Care
of the Green Iguana video, interviews with Melissa
Kaplan, and more!
Advance
Care Directives
Chronic
Neuroimmune Diseases
Lyme Disease &
Coinfections
Blogs:
Lizards-in-Scarves
Eggs-in-Hats
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The
Blue Iguana Recovery
Fund helps fund ongoing conservation efforts
in breeding-for-release, community education, and
habitat conservation programs in the Cayman Islands
for the endangered Cyclura lewisi. Help support
their work by making direct donations, or buy one
of their new King
Blue Bobbleheads!
Also,
check out a day
in the life of a volunteer at the BIR facility
doing noosing, measuring, behavior observations
and more.
SIX
BLUE IGUANAS MURDERED IN BOTANIC PARK
Press
release May 5, 2008
Additional
information is linked to my May
5 Lizards-In-Scarves
blog.
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The
Advanced IguanaMail list was disappeared by Yahoo
Groups in late June 2006. The moderators have created
a new list to replace it, AdvancedIguanaCare
(AIC). As with the old AIML, the AIC is for
advanced health care discussions beyond those covered
in the more basic IguanaMail
List (IML). Both lists require members to have
already done their reading on iguana care, health
and behavior, such as my ICFS
article and articles here in my Green Iguana page
and in the Captivity
Issues, Health,
and Behavior
pages, before posting questions.
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Introduction
If you are looking for a simple, quick, all-inclusive
article on green iguana care on one page or less, you
won't find it here.
You
won't find it anywhere because there is no such thing,
not if your intent is to take care of your iguana properly.
My
Iguana Care, Feeding, and Socialization
(ICFS) article provides the basics on iguanas, where they
come from, how they act, and how to get them set up and
started eating right. It also goes into the first steps
involved with taming and socializing, and why all new
igs, regardless of age, need to see your reptile vet...and
why just any vet won't do.
The
other articles here in my Iguana Care Collection
expand and build on the ICFS information. You will also
find many articles in my Herp
Care Collection that apply to green iguanas, especially
in the areas of behavior, health, conservation, and captivity-related
and human health issues.
There
is a lot to read, to learn, and to absorb. Iguanas are
not for everyone. They are, sadly, not for the too many
people who get them only to turn around and dump them
because they were completely unprepared for what iguana
keeping involves.
If you
aren't up to all the reading that needs to be done to
learn to care for iguanas properly, then iguanas aren't
for you. If you are not ready to accomodate all the intrustions
keeping an iguana will make into your life (and finances),
then iguanas aren't for you.
Still
reading? Good. You will find that I am a strong believer
in people learning whether or not a particular type and
species of reptile is the right choice for them before
they actually get the reptile.
Iguanas
are difficult, frustrating, complicated, complex--and
potentially dangerous. If you aren't starting to feel
like perhaps you've made the wrong choice when considering
keeping an iguana, then you haven't been paying attention!
Seriously,
though: do the reading. You can join the IML and
talk to people before you get an iguana. If you
do all that, and still feel an iguana is right for you--rather,
that you are right for an iguana--then you both
will have a much better chance at a long, healthy, successful
relationship.
Make
yourself comfortable, now...you've only just begun!
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Page
Index
Before you get an iguana
Basic Care Information, Online &
Off
Iguana Basics
Behavior
Breeding & Reproduction
Captive Environment
Care & Maintenance
Diet: Food, Feeding & Supplementation
Growth & Development
Health
Keeper-Iguana Issues
Natural History & Conservation
One Page Caresheets
More Items of Interest
Reprint Rights & Permission
Before
you get an iguana...
Iguanas are still the #1 dumped reptile in the US and,
increasingly, around the world. If, after reading about
what it takes to are for an iguana properly, you realize
that you can't provide all that is required, that's okay--so
long as you don't get an iguana!. It may not be the right
time in your life for the commitment a green iguana demands.
There may be another reptile, or another kind of pet,
that will be a better match for you. While keeping any
animal as a pet requires a certain amount of learning
and long term commitment, green and other types of iguanas
demand more than most other species.
Context
If you haven't been involved in reptile rescue, you most
likely will not understand why I am so dogmatic you on
about finding out whether an iguana is the right choice
for you--or not. To help you understand where I and other
rescuers and herp educators are coming from, please read
the following:
So,
you think you want a reptile?
How To Kill An Iguana
The Grim Reality:
Unwanted reptiles
College Students Speaks Out About
Iguana Ownership
Basic
Care Information
Online
Melissa Kaplan's Iguana Care
Feeding & Socialization
Adam
Britton's Wong's
Green Heaven
Jennifer Swofford's Iguana
Manual
Books
In Print
Iguanas for Dummies
by Melissa Kaplan
Green Iguana: The Ultimate Iguana
Owner's Manual byJim Hatfield III
Green Iguana Bibliography and
Suggested Reading
Videos
Video: Captive Care of the Green
Iguana (Britton & Kaplan)
Iguana Videos Review
If,
after all your reading, you still decide to get a green
iguana
Adopt one from a herp
society or rescue
Wild-Caught vs. Farmed vs. Captive-Bred
Iguanas
Picking A Healthy Iguana
Iguana
Basics
Diagram of Green Iguana Mouth
Green Iguana Anatomy Resources
Iguana Teeth
Reptile Vision
Rostral Horns
Skin Color
Sneezing
Journal Abstracts: Visual And Chemical
Reception: Iguana iguana
Behavior
(see also Herp Behavior)
Change-Related Stress
Female Iguanas -- Are They More
Difficult to Tame?
Head Bobbing
Introducing & Housing Multiple
Iguanas: Issues and Concerns
Interpreting Non-Breeding
Iguana Behaviors
Journal Abstracts: Circadian
Rhythm and Thermoregulation in Reptiles
Lizard Tough Guys
Lizards Have Personalites
Too, Study Finds
Moving, Vacation and Boarding
Stress in Green Iguanas
Size Doesn't Matter
Sunlight and Aggressive Behavior
Hormone
Issues
Hormone
Abnormalities as a Factor in Male Green Iguana Aggression
Testosterone, Aggression and
Green Iguanas
Testosterone Rules
Breeding
and Reproduction
Further Thoughts On Spaying
and Neutering...
Glossary of Reptile
Reproduction Terms
Iguana Breeding Season Basics
Iguana Femoral Pores
Iguana Ovaries and Testes
Sexing Iguanas
Females
Dystocia (Egg-binding)
Egging and Incubation
Reproductive
Disorders of the Female Reptile
To Spay or Not To Spay
The Use of Hormone Antagonists
to Inhibit Reproduction in the Lizard, Eublepharis
macularius
Males
Dealing with Iguana
Breeding Aggression
Hemipenes
LuvSocks for Male Green Iguanas
Male Iguanas in Season and Human
Females
Neutering Green Iguanas
Seminal Plugs/Secretions
Tough Love, or Attigtude
Adjustment
Practical,
Moral, and Ethical Issues Related To Reproduction
Captive Bred Iguanids
Fecal Innoculation
The Grim Reality
Akira
Yamanouchi's Iguana Page
Captive
Environment (see also Herp
Captivity)
Basic Iguana Cage Design Problems
Indoor and Outdoor Enclosure Designs
(Caging)
Finding Lost Iguanas
Housing Multiple Iguanas: Issues
and Concerns
Iguanas and Other Family Pets
Reptile Enclosures: Size, Dimension,
and Lifestyle
Setting Up Free-Roaming Iguanas
Why You Should Not Leave Your Iguana
Unsecured Outside
Care
and Maintenance (see also Herp
Clean/Disinfect)
Bathing and Swimming: Not Just
A Bathroom Activity
Claw Trimming - Britton
Claw Trimming - Kaplan
Reptile Skin Shedding
Treating Ripped-out Claws
Diet:
Food, Feeding, and Supplementation
The articles and resources below expand on the information
in the ICFS article.
Adaptations to Herbivory in
Iguanine Lizards
Additional Notes On Herbivory In
Iguana iguana
Alfalfa: Nutritional Contribution
in the "MK Salad"
Alfalfa and Bean Sprouts
Animal Protein - Britton
Animal Protein - Kaplan
Calcium Oxalate Content of Common
Iguana Foods
Commercial Foods/Diets
Green Iguana Diet: Not
just a matter of calcium:phosphorous ratios
"MK Salad": A Quick Recipe
"MK Salad " -
Nutrition Analysis
"MK Salad" - An Illustrated
Reference
Overfeeding Iguanas
Overview of Digestion
in Green Iguanas and Other Herbivorous Lizard Species
Nutrient Composition
Tables
Picky Eaters: How not to let
yourself be trained by your iguana
Thiamine Supplementation
Vegetable and
Fruit Names
Vitamin Supplementation
What Did Swanson Really Say?
What Size Should the Salad Pieces
Be?
You Say Yuca, I Say
Yucca...
Iguana Food For People (yes,
you can eat those greens, too...)
Growth
and Development
Determining Iguana Age and Sizes
What Is Intelligence?
Health
(see also Herp Health)
If your herp is bleeding, paralyzed, or has abnormal swellings
on any part of its body, or has bone fragments poking
through its skin (or its shell is cracked), do not post
a message or send an email: get your pet to a herp vet
right away.
Black Spots on Skin
Blackening Skin/Blackening
Skin Syndrome/Vesicular Dermatitis
Calcium Metabolism and Metabolic
Bone Disease
Characterization of the Renal-Portal
System
Clinical Pathology in Green
Iguanas and Other Herps
Clinician's Approach to
Kidney Disease in Lizards
Cloacal and Hemipenal Prolapse
Constipation and Diarrhea
in Iguanas
Coprophagy (Feces Eating)
Crusty Deposits Around Mouth
Dry Gangrene of Tail and Toes
Effects of Hemolysis on Plasma
Electrolyte, Chemistry Values
Emaciation (Starvation) Protocol
Fecal Innoculation
Feces and Urates
Fluids and Fluid Therapy in Reptiles
How can you tell if a
nonresponsive reptile is alive?
Hypercalcemia
Hypoglycemia and Hyperglycemia
in Reptiles
Hypothermia in Iguanas and
Other Reptiles
Hypothyroidism in Green
Iguanas
Idiosyncrasies of Vitamin D
Metabolism in the Green Iguana (Iguana iguana)
Iguanid Herpesvirus (IgHV-1)
Kidney Failure (and Iguana
Kidney Disease: Personal Perspective)
Metabolic Bone Disease: Identification
and Treatment
Myoclonic and Other Spasms in
Iguanas
Pros and Cons of Prolonged Probiotic
Use In Iguanas
Plasma concentration of ionized
calcium in healthy iguanas
Reptile Mites
Paralysis
Signs of Illness & Stress
Tail Breaks and Drops
Tail, Limb and Digit Autotomy
Tetany
in Reptiles
Ulcerative Stomatitis ("Mouth
Rot")
Keeper-Iguana
Issues
Allergy To Iguanas
Dealing with Iguana Bites
Iguana Bites Dog
Iguanas: They're ornery, exotic
- and often a real pain
Lizards do really learn
to recognize people
Moving Your Iguana
Moving and Shipping
Reptiles
Pheromones in Humans: Myth
or Reality?
Playing With Your Iguana
Zoonoses
Iguana
Natural History and Conservation
(See also Conservation
and Herpetology)
Classification of Green Iguanas
Diet of a Generalized Folivore, Iguana
iguana, in Panama
Green Iguana: Conservation and
Consumption
Green Iguana Dewlaps
Iguana Salad For Humans
Iguana: Survival of the Tastiest
Iguana
Park: Pro Iguana Verde Foundation
Kidnapping males could save
species
Plants Consumed by Iguanas in
the Wild
Raise and Eat Your Own Iguanas
Why Call Them "Giant Green Iguanas"?
Optimal Foraging of a Herbivorous
Lizard, the Green Iguana in a Seasonal Environment
The
Ecological Consequences Of Habitat And Microhabitat Use
In Lizards: A Review
More
Information of Interest
Alfalfa Sprouts: Health Food
or Health Risk?
Alfalfa Sprout Safety: FDA
Warns High-Risk Groups: Don't Eat Sprouts
Are Sprouts Safe To Eat?
The Amazin' Shrinkin' Iguanas
of the Galapágos
Calculating the Cost
of Electricity
Carnival Iguanas
Easter Igs
Enclosure Materials
Suppliers
Herp Care Products
Translations and Equivalencies
Iguanas Bite The Hands That Feed
Them
Iguana
Sitters List
Imagine: A Visualization Exercise
National Animal Poison
Control Center
Pet Travel Agents
Book Any Beast
Reptile Give-Aways
at Fairs
Reptile First Aid/Wound
Management
HerpNutrition's
Quantum Series Food Mixes
The Facts About Alfalfa: Anatomy of a Non-Controversy
The Iguana Diet "Wars":
What if they started a war and nobody came?
UV-lamps
for terrariums: Their spectral characteristics and efficiency
in promoting vitamin D3 synthesis by UVB irradiation
One-Page
Iguana Care Handout
Giant Green Iguana
Information & Care (PDF)
Poll
How Long Does It Take To Tame A Green Iguana? (Survey
and Results)
Rights
& Permissions
I
reserve all rights to my material.
Andrew Tower does not have my permission to use
my information at his site.
Due to my life having to revolve around the limitations
of ongoing illness, it is extremely difficult for me to
do what I need to for myself and for my reptiles on a
daily basis. If you have questions, please
consider joining the Iguanas
Mailing List (IML) where you will find many knowledgeable,
helpful people who have been through what you are going
through with their own iguanas.
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