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Health Care for Green Iguanas
General Information
The green iguana or common iguana is an arboreal, or tree living lizard that is
active during the day. They are found mainly at elevations of less than 3,000 feet
in tropical and subtropical regions from northern Mexico to central South America.
IT is most often found in the vicinity of rivers and streams.
Iguanas have four short, powerful limbs with strong claws for climbing and digging,
and a long muscular tail. They are capable of reaching lengths of 6 feet. A large
flap of skin or the dew lap, hangs from the throat and aids in regulation of the
body’s temperature. Iguanas also have a prominent crest of soft spines (longer in
the male) that are arranged along the midline of the neck and back, beginning at
the base of the skull.
Male iguanas tend to be larger and have brighter overall coloration than females.
The colors are more pronounced during the breeding season. Males tend to have larger
heads than females, in part because of swollen jowls. The male iguana also has 12-13
prominent pores arranged in a row on the underside of both thighs.
An iguana’s skin is entirely covered with very tiny scales. Iguanas cannot change
their coloring, as chameleons do, but certain areas of their skin can become darker
when exposed to direct sunlight. Young iguanas are pale green with black ringed
tails. They mature to a lighter more earthy color, usually with dark vertical bars
on the body and tail.
Vision, hearing and the sense of smell are acute. In their natural habitat, iguanas
tend to be very wary, hiding or fleeing at any sign of danger. Iguanas are somewhat
clumsy, but accomplished tree climbers. They tend to bask by day on branches of
trees, often over water. When frightened or threatened, they will usually drop (sometimes
from great heights) into the water below. Being excellent swimmers, they quickly
make their way to protective cover by pressing their front limbs along their sides
and swishing their powerful tails from side to side, with rear limbs trailing behind.
Iguanas are also capable of safely landing on the ground and running to cover after
jumping from substantial heights. When threatened or cornered, iguanas can defend
themselves with quick, whip-like lashes of their tails and with claws.
The iguana mates in January or February. After a gestation period of about two months,
the female digs a hole in moist sand or soil, usually near the base of a tree and
deposits from 25 to 40 eggs. The hatchlings, measuring from 24-30 centimeters, emerge
in about two weeks. They become sexually mature at about 3 years of age.
In its natural environment the green iguana is almost completely herbivorous or
plant eating from the time it hatches. It is recommended that captive juvenile iguanas
be fed a small amount of animal protein in their diets. Older iguanas should receive
only vegetable and fruit in their diets.
Juvenile iguanas should be fed daily. We suggest that you feed a mixture of the
foods listed on the last page of this article. Chop all of the ingredients into
a size that can be easily handled by the young lizard. Prepare food fresh daily.
Owners should be careful to offer food high in calcium to help create good bone
structure in the young iguana. Phosphorus is also needed and should be fed in a
ratio of 1 to 2 with calcium.
Older iguanas can be fed two to three times weekly. Plant material, such as dandelions,
clover, rose petals and flowers of hibiscus, carnation and nasturtium can be offered.
Many health food stores carry dried dandelion and other edible herbs for year round
availability. Fresh fruit such as bananas, berries, apples, peaches, pears and plums
can be added to the diet to provide variety.
A reptile or avian vitamin and mineral supplement should be added to the food weekly.
Iguanas gain the needed bacteria in the intestinal tract by eating the feces from
an adult lizard. In captivity you should make sure that there is an opportunity
for a hatchling to ingest some feces from a healthy adult.
Sanitation is very important to the overall health of a captive iguana. A large
portion of the bacteria and fungal diseases of captive reptiles result from their
exposure to damp, environments with decaying food and fecal material,
In the wild, reptiles have acres of land and water over which their excrement and
uneaten food can be scattered. They rarely, if ever, come in contact with this material.
This is not the case when reptiles are kept in captivity.
Those caring for iguanas in captivity need to keep the enclosures as clean as possible.
The best housing material for the bottom of the enclosure is clean newspaper, preferably
unprinted or butcher paper. The next best substrate is indoor/outdoor carpet. Paper
towel squares can also be placed end to end in order to cover the entire bottom
of the enclosure. When one of the squares becomes soiled it can be easily removed
and replaced without disturbing the entire floor of the cage. One should not use
gravel, corncob, wood shavings, sand, litter or sawdust in the enclosure. None of
these promote adequate cleanliness and they may be ingested while the iguana is
feeding, resulting in intestinal blockage.
After removing the lizard to a safe holding area, the enclosure should be cleaned
with a dilute bleach and water mixture and rinsed very well and dried before putting
the iguana back. The frequency of cleaning will be dictated by the way the cage
is set up and the size of the enclosure and the iguana.
The cage needs to have a hiding area so the iguana can feel secure. This will help
with the stress that a captive reptile will invariably feel. You can use branches
and artificial plants to help make the iguana feel comfortable as well as help with
exercise. Sprinkling the plants with water daily is a good way to allow the iguana
to drink adequate water they rarely drink from water containers.
All reptiles require an increase in the environmental temperature in order to raise
their body temperature, and therefore, increase their metabolism and activity level.
In the wild a reptile can bask in direct sunlight to achieve this goal. In captivity
you must supply the iguana with a heat source to do the same thing. A heat lamp
can be put in one corner of the enclosure to increase the temperature in that area.
The iguana can then move to the warm area of away from it to a cooler area depending
on his individual needs. Hot rocks can burn an iguana and should not be used. A
thermometer in the enclosure is a must to determine if the environment is adequate.
Some area of the cage should approach 95-98 degrees for several hours of the day.
At night the temperature can drop to the mid 70s to simulate the nature.
All reptiles need a source of ultraviolet light, either direct sunlight, or more
commonly in captivity a UV light. These lights do not normally produce enough heat
to replace a heat lamp. The light bulb must be replaced periodically, usually around
every 6 months to make sure it is working properly. Filtering sunlight through glass
windows or aquarium sides is not an effective way to get the UV radiation reptiles
require. Glass filters out the needed rays and the “greenhouse effect” created by
sunlight through glass can quickly overheat a reptile.
Iguanas are very good swimmers and they should be allowed access to shallow water
periodically to keep their skin moist and for exercise.
A cage mate for an iguana is not advisable. They are not social animals and can
be very territorial. A cage mate can cause aggression and possible injury.
The most common disease problem in captive iguanas is related to malnutrition. A
common mistake is to feed iceberg lettuce. It has no nutritional value to the reptile
and many iguanas like the taste to the exclusion of other better foods. A diet that
doesn’t have adequate calcium and phosphorus as well as not having a good source
of UV light to provide vitamin D3 can cause severe bone disease. This is called
osteodystrophy and can result in listlessness, enlarged lower jaw, difficulty eating,
swollen limbs and very fragile bones.
A good diet includes a variety of dark green leafy vegetables and a mixture of other
vegetables and fruits. A reptile or avian vitamin/mineral supplement can be powdered
on food weekly.
Rear limp paralysis may result from vitamin B deficiency or calcium deficiency and
can be corrected with supplementation.
Many iguanas do serious injury to there noses by continuously trying to escape the
enclosure. The trauma can result in chronic ulceration of the nose. You need to
look very hard at the environment your iguana is living in to provide hiding areas
to prevent stress and injury.
It is not uncommon for gangrene to develop in a toe or the tip of the tail due to
incomplete shedding and sanitation issues. The tissue may require amputation and
antibiotic therapy.
An iguana in a captive environment is unlikely to have mites or ticks unless contaminated
housing material is used.
It is not uncommon to find an iguana with bladder stones or that become egg bound
and unable to pass eggs. These conditions can feel similar and an x-ray is needed
to determine the condition.
IGUANA DIET: mulberry leaves, rose petals, hibiscus flowers and leaves, grape leaves,
dandelion greens, turnip greens, beet greens, mustard greens, collard greens, kale,
spinach, cilantro, parsley, Bok Choy, green beans, snow peas, tofu and seasonal
fruits in small amounts.
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