Can iguanas get bored

Question

i have an iguana and it looks to be bored all it dose is sit around in its little hamic thingy i bought it and it sits on the top of the lader it uses to climb up there i have a 10 gallon tank im gonna get him/her a 25 gallon tank my iguana isnt tame yet i had a other iguana but it died of a intestnal virous we bleached the cage ans water bowl and bought ut new thingss to bask on we rinsed out the cage 2 or 3 times with water than let it air dry the same with the water bowl buit back to the boredom proublm i have a little log thts hollow and cut im half from the pet store and the hamic and ladar but it looks really bored

Answer 1

Evanesence said it - your enclosures are waaaay to small.  The lizard is unlikely to get bored, but it most assuredly is unhappy and stressed.

Answer 2

Unless he is acting or looking ill, I wouln't worry too much. Reptiles are pretty "lazy" for the most part.

I just got a 2yr bearded dragon and at first I thought the same thing - Wow this thing must be sick cuz all he does is sit their.

I would do some research about the different illnesses the iguanas can aquire that way you have a better idea of what to look for just in case.

Iguanas LOVE to "play" in the water. Be sure that your water bowl is big enough where he can get into it if wanted. You could also put him in the tub - just a little water about luke warm.

I would deffinately try to work on th tameness thing. Work with him/her everyday. They are stubburn and sometimes just mean, but just kep working.

Best of luck!!

Answer 3

10gallon and 25gallon are not the proper recommended sizes for iguanas, even if they are small in size. You can not provide the proper temps for iguanas in those sizes of tanks, nor do they provide the space that your iguana needs. 55gallon or bigger is recommended, and that will only hold your iguana 8-12 months of age.

Iguanas are not animals who need to be running around threw out the day, they should at least go to the bottom of the enclosure for food, water, soaking. They will most likely sit under the UVB tube and heat source threw out the day.

I'm sure you would be bored if you were sitting in a closet that was 3/4 the size that you needed.

Young iguana (8-12 months of age) should not live in anything smaller the a 55 gallon tank. Smaller the tank you can not process the correct temps threw out. Enclosure needs to be at least 1.5-2 times it's total length ... an adult you will need a space of 6-7ft tall x 8-10ft long x 4ft wide.

Temps:

never let drop below 70F ...

basking 92-96F if temp is too low digestion is slowed too high food digests too fast and nutrition is lost

medium/middle (overall) 88-92F

cool 75-84F

at night 73-84F ... having a temp gun works the best to know what your igs body temp truly is.

*** NO HEAT ROCKS PLEASE ... they can cause major burns on the under belly ... igs dont feel heat from below so they will sit there not knowing they are burning themselves ***

UVB: (12 hrs on during day - 12 hrs off during night no light)

US: ReptiSun 10.0 distance 8-10 inches from your igs body

Repti Glo 8.0 distance 6-8 inches from your igs body

ReptiSun 5.0 distance 6-8 inches from your igs body

UK: Arkadia distance 6-8 inches from your igs body

- You will need to adjust the distance as your ig grows

- Using a shop light from a home improvement store works the best, get one that has 2 tube plugs and using 2 UVB tubes

- The UVB listed are in tube form, using the 36-48inch tubes are the best more length for your ig

- Surface under the UVB tube lights need to be a flat surface if at an angle your igs body will not get the proper UVB threw out

- There are UVB's out there on the market now that can cause eye damange to your ig

- W/out UVB your ig may end up w/ MBD (Metabolic Bone Disease)

- UVB information that you may find interesting:

http://www.uvguide.co.uk/index.htm - http://www.uvguide.co.uk/fluorescenttube... - http://www.uvguide.co.uk/whatreptilesnee...

Sites for you to read:

http://www.greenigsociety.org/ - http://www.iguanaden.org/ - http://www.anapsid.org/iguana/index.html

A great book to read and have on hand:

Iguanas for Dummies by Melissa Kaplan

Yahoo has some great sites for Iguana owners... these groups helped me and still help w/ questions .. if you'd like to join:

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/BabyI... - http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/Iguan...