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#195828
Ravenous_angel27
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Biting Iguana 
I got my iguana about 3 months ago and he was alright with me holding him. Now whenever anything goes in front of his cage or i try and feed him he would whip his tail at me. The people at the pet store who i got him from said that i just need to hold him every day to get him used to me. I would hold him for about 2 hours everyday but when i put my hand in his cage last night to give him food and water he bit me and i had to go get 3 stitches. How can i get him to at least let me put my hand in the cage to feed him with out him biting me again?
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12/08/04 1:26am
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#195887
Suzook242
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Message To: Ravenous_angel27 In reference to Message Id: 195828
Biting Iguana
How old is your iguana? In my experience, mature males can have "mood swings" at times.How do you pick your iguana up? If you open the cage from the top, it’s possible that he is viewing you as a predator and reacting accordingly. Is he sick? Sometimes iguanas will have personality changes when they are sick. If he is in pain, he may bite you because he isn’t feeling well. It is also possible that your iguana has finally acclimated to his new environment. If this is the case, he may no longer be scared (read: docile) and may be trying to show you who’s boss. Try wearing gloves and long sleeved shirts when you handle him. That way, if he does happen to bite you, you probably won’t need stitches. Just keep working with him! I have rescued animals that experienced breeders told me could never become tame ... and with lots of time and love they became the sweetest pets in the world :) good luck.
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12/08/04 8:27am
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#195962
Hammer
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Message To: Suzook242 In reference to Message Id: 195887
Biting Iguana
That’s the nature of an iguana. He sounds perfectly normal to me. And I don’t mean to sound sarcastic; that’s just the way they are. Iguanas are very aggressive animals and you should always be careful when handling them. The biggest mistake people make is that if they hold it for a week without incident, they feel that on day-8 everything will be just fine and can’t understand why, on the 8th day, the iguana went postal on them. You can hold it 24 hours a day, and it won’t change its nature. Once they survey their surroundings, get a sense of ownership, then you are on his turf and an intruder. He may always be aggressive no matter what you do. I never had the burning desire to hold mine, so he roamed free when it was possible. Even at that, he’d charge me with bad intentions every chance he could. And all I was doing was giving him his food. Just be careful and re-evaluate the need to cuddle him.
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12/08/04 11:56am
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#196358
MJ
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Message To: Hammer In reference to Message Id: 195962
Biting Iguana
I gotta agree with Hammer...Your ig is like BRAND NEW...it takes a lot of time and patience..I’ve had my ig Cannabis for over a year now and he still whips me and runs from me...it’s just in their nature...Remember it’s an iguana not a cat or dog...It’ll take a lot of time a patience man, so just hang in their.
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12/08/04 9:24pm
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#196802
Iggy Mom
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Message To: MJ In reference to Message Id: 196358
Biting Iguana
Will agree with above-
Will have had my Igg 3 years in Feb. He is very very moody- to be honest he is kind of a jerk. I have a bite mark on my wrist now. Just keep working with him. I would get some leather type gloves to protect the fingers and hope for the best.
Is he/she in season??
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12/09/04 9:06pm
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#197055
Iluviggy
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Message To: Iggy In reference to Message Id: 196802
Biting Iguana
i agree, too. mine has not let me near him/her for quite some time, unless i come bearing treats!! (especially fruits) But i won’t spoil him....
Any time i go into the cage to get him/her, i get the half tail whip warning, a small head nod, and picking him up is near impossible w/ out a fight. this is just the way that it is, and i’ve grown to accept it.
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12/10/04 12:10pm
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