Iguanas Should Never be Allowed to Roam Freely in the House

It is not uncommon practice for some iguana owners to allow their animals free access to the house.
I think this is a bad idea fraught with peril.

What say you?

In choice number 4, I meant "Chasing the iguanas is good exercise for the dogs and cats."

I would say as long as you have an area or room "iguana proofed", it would be ok. Many things go into "proofing" a room for free roam no matter what species it is. A lot of owners just don't take the time to do it. Or they find out they need to "proof" something they didn't realize was harmful until it's too late.

I really do not know how to vote. I have seen some free roam that have never been a problem except for leaving squishy bombs on the floor. Though I would never allow mine to free roam as she is to much trouble as it is in a cage. I think it depends on the home and the iguana, I have seen some with their own bedroom, some around the house and they did just fine.

Personally I like them in a cage. I did get chewed out by a guy because I did not allow my 7 inch bearded dragon free roam with three cats.

I think the most reasonable and practical solution is to confine them to a single room, set up and secured for the iguanas, or have a spacious cage for them.

There are those who think it is cool to allow the iguana to roam freely in the house, just like the dogs and cats. I think that this is a bad idea.

It is difficult to adequately iguana proof an entire house unless one is into minimalist furnishing and decorating. You also have the task of maintaining an adequate ambient temp and humidity throughout the entire house. Iguanas are notorious for eating non-food substances. Many a herp vet that treats a lot of iguanas has removed intestinal foreign bodies from them.

In addition to the dangers that the iguana can get itself into, I won't have it knocking things off, knocking things over, defecating on the furniture, down the drapes or under the TV. I don't want my curtains and drapes shredded or my houseplants trashed. And, I don't want to be rescuing the iguana from dangerous predicaments that it gets itself into.

I also do not want him intimidating the bird so he can have access to the bird's food.

My male has free access to one room. His lamp is set up in there for him, he has his branches, food, water and litter box. If he did not reliably use the litter box he'd be confined to a spacious cage. (The litter box is lined with newspaper, not cat litter or dirt.)

During the warm months he is allowed access to the sun porch. He goes out on his own and returns to his room on his own when he's had enough. The fact that he has these reliable "management" behaviors means that he has more liberty. Not every iguana that I have had has demonstrated these behaviors.

Well, my 16 yr old male ig has had free range of our house for 14 yrs. We haven't had any serious issues except for maybe the occasional potty accident. He's pretty much had the same schedule his entire life and follows it to a T. I think it depends on the iguana and how much time the owner has to spend training him early on in the beginning. I was 10 when I got him, so I had plenty of time to spend with him. If I got another ig though, I might not have as much time and might not have the situation now.

I could never let mine free roam..I wish I could but I have cats and dogs and kids.The kids leave legos and all kinds of toys that could be deadly to iggies around the house..Im thinking of making a free roam area up in my attic, its huge and empty, lots of potential there..

every iguana i have had 60+ were free roaming. i never had problems with my cats or dog. one good swat of the tail was all it took for my cats and dog to learn not to mess with the iggys