Rescued Iguana is having troubles?

Well, I did great with my Beardies and my Niles but for some reason this Iguana is still something new to me. I'm starting to wonder if he's just upset or ill. Either way, he has a vet appointment, but the closest one is in a week...



He is about 24 inches long and he was sort of a rescue since the previous owner did NOT take care of this guy and she offered him to me for some Christmas money for her.



He was never given more then 30% humidity where she had him and I've definitely changed that!



He did not come with a thermometer or hydrometer (and I got his cage from her, too) so I am guessing he was never given the right temperature too. I've changed that as well. Now he's got between 60-70 percent humidity and it's 90 in his cage.



I've ordered him a new UVB bulb. He has never had UVB lighting, either, apparently! The bulbs he had when I picked him up were a common light bulb and a heating-coil bulb. Ouch!



He's a gorgeous green color but from the shoulder's up it's all a dull, moldy green color. Like rotting spagetti, or something like that color, to be honest.



And he is not eating. Last night me and my husband had to make him angry a bit for him to open his mouth and then when I gave him a bit of mustard greens he ate them right up. But only one leaf last night. Today I got him to eat about ninety percent of a mustard green leaf and then he just wanted to sleep in my lap. So I'm going to try every few hours to get a little more in him. When I went to go pick him up, I asked her if he had any favorite foods so I could try and bond a bit with hi and she told me his diet was solely turnip greens and apples or oranges. I almost don't blame him for taking no interest in the turnip greens or apples last night, I'd be tired of them too! And he doesn't seem to like banana or mango either...



He has not had a bowel movement in twenty-four hours, either.



When I pet this guy I can feel his ribs, and when he breathes you can see his upper chest sink lower then his ribcage sits on his lower chest.



And he is alert as well as checking my out everytime I say his new name. But if I get a hand within a foot of him I get the tail. Anything closer and, well, his claws left blood down my arm this morning. He was never handled and he never has had his claws clipped. Any ideas on how I could safely get these claws clipped since he has such a bad attitude?



I'm working with him, but it'll take some time. Last night in the bath he actually looked like he was shivering even though I had the water about 95 degrees. I don't think he's ever been given one of those either.



I have tried to contact the previous owner by phone and email now but no responces from her or her husband. Which makes me think even more that they knew he was ill and wanted to make some money off of him before he died because they could not afford veternarian care. This makes me very angry, as I am sure most of you understand. This poor guy has been through so much and been given so little, I'm surprised he made it to this age and size in his life.



I am, to say it bluntly, asking for any help with his eating problems. coloration problems, temperment problems and maybe some advice on clipping his claws with him in such a bad tempered state.
Rescued Iguana is having troubles?
First, let me say you are doing a really good thing here by taking in a mistreated iggy (there are way too many out there!) and actually knowing how to take care of him!!! This is so rare and it's a relief to know that there are still people out there who have managed to keep hold of their own brains. =P



His lack of appetite or bowel movements could be a sign of impaction. Who knows what he was being kept on at his previous residence?! I wonder if it could also be some sort of worm...? When he does defecate, is it extremely smelly or runny? Worms can obviously cause bowel problems, although usually internal parasites cause excessive defecation, but they would also explain the loss of appetite and weight. It's very good that he is still alert, at least (although I'm sure this has resulted in a few bites and scratches on your end). Something that may help keep that up is an electrolyte powder that you add to the water and provide a warm bath with. Nutralyte is what we use at work. I swear by this stuff--it's amazing supplemental treatment for sick herps. You can find these electrolyte powders at most specialty pet stores. (They may be in the bird or even the horse section if not in the reptile section.) You can also ask a vet if they know of where you can get your hands on some.



I would try every food under the sun to try and get him to eat more. Keep it up with the mustard greens since he has eaten a little bit of those. He may go for other kinds of greens as well, like dandelion greens or collard greens. Papaya is a must try. They LOVE it. Also, if you can get your hands on some cactus or hibiscus treats, they might spur his appetite as well. The green iguana society has a whole list of foods that are good for your ig as well, if you wanna check it out. http://www.greenigsociety.org/foodchart.鈥?/a>

These are the cactus treats we sell at work, by the way. There is a smaller package as well. The hibiscus treats I actually saw in a bird pet store...I haven't seen them since though. =( Maybe you have some good old fashioned flowers around? Hey, you never know. =P http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/pr鈥?/a>



The coloration is weird...do you have a picture? It may just be his natural coloration. If you don't have a picture, you can look at other peoples' pics online and see if it's just his normal color. Their heads are a bit lighter/more gray-green than their bodies. However, if it is more like a splotchy discoloration, it could be a bacterial or fungal problem with the skin. Your vet should be able to help you out if that is the case. It could even just be a pre-shedding issue, or just a result of stress.

Good old Melissa Kaplan. http://www.anapsid.org/iguana/skincolor.鈥?/a>



As for the sharp nails....yeah. For now, I'd invest in a nice pair of thick gloves. =D No need to stress him more than he is understandably stressed. You may be able to get the herp vet to help with that if it is really bad. It'll probably take more than one person to get it done if he is not very happy about it. And the bad attitude is normal, I'm sure you know. Taking his previous husbandry into consideration, I'd say you should count yourself honored that he even lets you pet him at all, let alone sleep in your lap! Anyways, I'd say temperament is something you should worry about once his overall health has improved more.



Wish you the best! You deserve for him to get better. I hope everything works out. Good luck, iggy!!! :D



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Dang! That is one lime green iguana! XD The greyish coloring looks like it is fading in from the patterning on his back and sides, so hopefully that is just his normal coloring. If it was a skin problem I would think it would be more sudden and blotchy looking than that. Again, you can ask your vet to make sure. Such a bright dude!!! :D