After years of begging and pleading with my poor wife, I recently purchased a green iguana (not sure of exact age - more juvenile than hatchling) at the Reptile Expo in Kyalami (Pics here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikestopfo ... 7214644279).
Because I have kept reptiles before and am serious about it, I decided to read up as much as I could before getting an iguana. Being a beautiful, exotic and large lizard, it's not surprising that iguanas are in demand. It's also surprising, if you consider their are in excess of 8 million iguanas in captivity in the US (no ideas of numbers in South Africa), that so little is known about them, except for a small segment of herps who give a damn about acquiring and sharing knowledge. I found a stack of info online at the Green Iguana Society (http://www.greenigsociety.org/) and bought some excellent books from Amazon (the best being James Hatfield's Green Iguana: The Ultimate Owner's Manual) and was shocked at how little I actually knew.
The scary thing is at the Expo and in dealings in general with reptile stores and retailers (and I've visited maybe 20 or so different places), it's shocking 1. how badly captive iggy's are kept and 2. how little the so-called 'experts' know about these fascinating lizards.
Our little one (not sure of sex yet) has completely stolen our hearts and even though, having had both a human and iguana baby, it's easily more demanding
So I was hoping, as someone absolutely dedicated to exceptional care and handling of iggys, that this forum (and more specifically this thread) could put me in touch with others who want to share knowledge and enjoy their pets as much as I am doing. Hopefully I can also, as I learn, provide some advice and insight for new and potential iggy owners.