Reptilecare.com Logo
The Green Iguana Is Not For Everyone
Otherwise Known as "Why NOT to get an Iguana"

Great! You (or your child) want to get an iguana, now what?
Well, get ready to immerse yourself in the ways of iguana care. You need to read as much information about iguanas as humanly possible. And I don't mean making a trip to the local library. Most library's reptile books are very outdated and contain false, even harmful information about your future pet. I also don't mean going to the pet store and asking the personnel there how to care for an iguana. Unfortunately pet stores (in general) give out false, harmful and incomplete information about most of the reptiles they have for sale.

These are facts:
  • Iguanas WILL take up a lot of room sooner than you think.
  • Iguanas can get deficient in Calcium with the best of intentions (the diet can be difficult to keep straight)
  • Iguanas can get HYPERcalcemia which means there is too much Calcium because of the aforementioned dietary problems.
  • Male iguanas can get ornery for about 3 months every year in honor of breeding season.
  • Female iguanas are highly likely to produce eggs without a male around and without the proper care can die from it.

If you are up to the task and are prepared to someday give it it's own room, then go for it, but only after READING, READING, READING!!! I VERY HIGHLY recommend James Hatfield's book, "GREEN IGUANA, The Ultimate Owners Manual" and/or Melissa Kaplan's "Iguanas for Dummies". Both are VERY good and cover everything you need to know. If you read one or both of these books cover to cover and still want to take the time and effort, then GO FOR IT!

The Iguana Mailing List
I suggest subscribing to the IML (Iguana Mailing List). It gets a lot of traffic so I recommend reading the mail at yahoogroups.com.

Iguanas are not for everyone.
I recommend Bearded Dragons, Leopard Geckos or Crested Geckos as first time lizard pets. Leopard Geckos are smaller and more manageable, while Beardeds are larger (not so large as Iguanas though) and are more personable. Personally I think the Bearded  Dragon makes a better lizard pet for most people.

Perhaps another lizard might be better for you. I highly recommend the Bearded Dragon as a smaller, very personable, easier to take care of lizard. See my recommendations page.

Good luck and HAPPY RESEARCHING!

© 2005, www.reptilecare.com. All rights reserved.