# new iguana not eating



## kylepiggy (Dec 13, 2010)

i picked up 2 iguanas last friday. they have both slowly settling in. the red iguana is eating fine but the green ig has not eaten anything. should i be worried also the green iguana spent most of the evening submerged in the water bowl is this normal behaviour. temps in the viv are 32c basking 27c middle and 24c cold side and at night. also food is all fresh taken form the list from the green iguana society an help would be great


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## ruthyg (Oct 15, 2010)

Are you sure he / she hasn't eaten anything? Sometimes a young ig will come down in the night to feed. Personally if all the conditions are all good then I'd give him a while to settle in yet. Where is the viv? ie what room of house? Are there any other pets there which might be stressing him out? How old is he? *My best, bestest advice would be go to the lizards care sheet page and download the Kaplan care sheet.* It's long - a book really, but is absolutely invaluable in my opinion.
Oh, when I got my ig I was concerned he wasn't eating properly but I was feeding him in the evening, I switched to morning and baddabing - he started eating  Also if you've got him from a pet shop, they might have been feeding him different food (ahem - crap!) so he might not recognise yet that what you are giving him is actually food. What are you feeding him btw? Again, Kaplan Kaplan Kaplan for best food advice 
Good luck and keep us posted  :2thumb:


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## kylepiggy (Dec 13, 2010)

the viv is in the lounge i have been putting a towel over the viv at night so it bloacks out light from the tv if im still in there. i have been feding them collard greens carrots carrot tops mango kale basically got all the food suggested from the green iguana society. i also have a dog but have been keeping him out of the way of the viv. i imagine maybe the shop might have been feeding him pellets and agree with you that he/she might not recognise the food. i have not tried feeding by hand as i imagine it must take a good couple of weeks to settle. with the feeding i was advised not to leave the food in all day and put food in from 6am til 12:00 and then from 3pm- 6 as this promotes feeding times suggested by the green iguana society


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## ruthyg (Oct 15, 2010)

Basically I would just say keep on keeping on - you can have to present food 20+ times before it takes their fancy. Let's face it, he's been taken to a new place, new smells etc, he's going to be suspicious of new foods etc lol. 
Also remember that it's winter so they might not fancy eating as much. I'm not actually sure to what extent igs brumate as they are rainforest creatures, but it may well be a factor. 
Don't give them carrot every day - again read Kaplan for the full reasons, but I hope you know a bit about calcium / phospherous ratios (you want 2.1:1 according to Kaplan) and there are a few other bits you want to know about - it's all in the document I mentioned before, which is on the lizard care sheet page  
I'm made up that I just went upstairs and my iggy's having another chomp on his din dins - hurrah  x


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## VW_Rick (Nov 8, 2009)

It'll just take some time dude, it's expected most reptiles after being moved don't eat very well for about 1 week - 10days, it's no big deal. && up your basking temp a few degrees aswell if you can to around 35*c


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## Whosthedaddy (Nov 29, 2009)

Could the red and green be having dominance issues regarding food?

Am I right in thinking the food should be offered at different levels as some wont take it from the floor?


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## kylepiggy (Dec 13, 2010)

thanks guys for all the advice will try the food at different levels. the red igy is smaller than the green igy but seems to climb over the green igy more and is more active around the viv. i will be moving both iggys to my new tall viv within the next 2 weeks so i guess they will have to settle all over again


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## VW_Rick (Nov 8, 2009)

Food should be up high ideally btw, this is because they feel safer above their surroundings, being arboreal & all that..


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## ruthyg (Oct 15, 2010)

VW_Rick said:


> Food should be up high ideally btw, this is because they feel safer above their surroundings, being arboreal & all that..


Yup I'll definitely vouch for that - my ig won't eat anything provided down bottom - only eats up top  Rick I'll be harassing you for advice soon!  xxx


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## kylepiggy (Dec 13, 2010)

VW_Rick said:


> Food should be up high ideally btw, this is because they feel safer above their surroundings, being arboreal & all that..


thanks for the advice will try this. quite hard as only in a 4ft viv but maybe i will put the food on top of one of the climbing logs in there


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## Whosthedaddy (Nov 29, 2009)

kylepiggy said:


> thanks for the advice will try this. quite hard as only in a 4ft viv but maybe i will put the food on top of one of the climbing logs in there


Yep sounds just right, or maybe on the log he basks on the most.

Think of bird feeders for parrots and budgies, little metal dishes that could be secured or screwed to the viv

http://cdn1.iofferphoto.com/img/item/157/222/069/VJlz.jpg


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## VW_Rick (Nov 8, 2009)

I use a hanging basket and stick a dish in the top in my 4ft viv, I dangle it from a ceiling hook.


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## Whosthedaddy (Nov 29, 2009)

VW_Rick said:


> I use a hanging basket and stick a dish in the top in my 4ft viv, I dangle it from a ceiling hook.


I like it!


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## ruthyg (Oct 15, 2010)

Whosthedaddy said:


> I like it!


Maybe my ig ain't so smart - he's happy with a plate on his basking log! Lol xxx


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## VW_Rick (Nov 8, 2009)

Yeah that'd be favoured but with my lil shit picking all his food up of the floor would not be the favoured option, =P. I like the parrot food holder, awesome, might have to do that in my new viv.


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## ruthyg (Oct 15, 2010)

Right, you know how you cut up all your iggy's food so it's nice and small for him to gulp down? Yeah, I take the time to do that - but you know how you miss the odd bit and it ends up a bit too big? Well is it just MY ig that decides THAT'S the bit he wants to eat?! Then looks at you reproachfully like "Dammit you're a bad mother not cutting up my foood enough?!" Lol x:flrt:


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## VW_Rick (Nov 8, 2009)

haha, they hate us really, i'm sure of it.


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## Iguanaquinn (Nov 13, 2010)

Ig's can go a while without food. When I got mine he never ate for around a week mibby ten days. He started eating and everything was fine. He will only eat things if they are green though. I have to blend fruit and spread it on the leaves or he won't touch them! Mine has went off his food again also, think the time of year has something to do with it as mentioned. If you are really worried though call the vet. Even for advice.

Hope the wee guy eats for ya, take care.


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## ruthyg (Oct 15, 2010)

I'm glad the last guy mentioned the time of year, I thought I might just be being a little silly  I also think we have to take into account our ig's individual personalities - it's too easy to overlook  Mine hates broccoli lol. Much like me actually  xxx


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