Iguana food

Those of you who keep iguanas, what do you feed?

I am not going to iguana sites for advice. I've long ago found that some specialty sites have a few knowledgeale people, but also frequently have empty headed parrots who have no idea what they are talking about. My foray this past year on a sugar glider site had people loudly repeating things they had once read, and when pressed they had no clue.

Some dude here in the Houston area once told me he feeds his ig tunafish casserole.

While I have some responsibility to see that my critters get good nutrition, I am not going to completely deny them what they find particularly delicious.

So lets hear from actual owners (and not from lecturing biddies) about ig cuisine.

check out http://www.greenigsociety.org/food.html. what ever you do, STAY AWAY from lettuces. and if you feed iguanas animal proteins it slowly kills them, so id call that guy in houston and let me him his iguanas kidneys are propabbly gonna fail any minute

no meats or insects.

When I had my iggy, she got a salad twice a day that was a mix of the following (it varied)
50% (or more)
collard greens
swiss chard
mustard greens
dandelion greens
the remaining %:
green beans
bell peppers
butternut squash
raspberries
green onions
carrot
leeks
parsley
and the morning meal was sprinkled with alfalfa powder and calium powder (I bought in bulk from GNC)
She got hibiscus flowers or rose petals every once in a while for a treat.

some people also offer beans (black beans, pinto beans) but I never tried that.

I'd make a big salad mix twice a week and bag it up in advance while watching tv. It's work... that's for sure.

If you get a book, I highly recommend James Hatfield's - Green Iguana, the Ultimate Owners Manual. Great book, well worth the price.

I had my iggy, Wasabi, from a baby to just over 3yrs of age and she did wonderful on this diet. Hope this helps!

Originally Posted by AbsoluteApril

no meats or insects.

When I had my iggy, she got a salad twice a day that was a mix of the following (it varied)
50% (or more)
collard greens
swiss chard
mustard greens
dandelion greens
the remaining %:
green beans
bell peppers
butternut squash
raspberries
green onions
carrot
leeks
parsley
and the morning meal was sprinkled with alfalfa powder and calium powder (I bought in bulk from GNC)
She got hibiscus flowers or rose petals every once in a while for a treat.

some people also offer beans (black beans, pinto beans) but I never tried that.

I'd make a big salad mix twice a week and bag it up in advance while watching tv. It's work... that's for sure.

If you get a book, I highly recommend James Hatfield's - Green Iguana, the Ultimate Owners Manual. Great book, well worth the price.

I had my iggy, Wasabi, from a baby to just over 3yrs of age and she did wonderful on this diet. Hope this helps!

Excellent post... Basically the same thing I did with my 7 Rescues They had free roam of my house and got daily salads! Collard and Mustards are the best for their staples and then just a bit of everything else varying it from day to day!

Mine LOVED Strawberries.. they would get fruit treats like that about once or twice a week!

Our igs have free choice bowls of pellet diet (alfalfa/timothy hay based) and turnip/mustard/collard greens daily with fruits and veggies on top. Watch the calcium suppliments- vitamin D additives are animal livers!

Becky of ARRS has a person pet Iguana, Grem, 7yrs old
ARRS has Mr Echo the adult black spiny tailed iguana, 8yrs and 15lbs!
ARRS has Shatter the baby ig with multiple fractures from previous abuse. 1-2yrs old

Best book for iguana care- Iguanas for Dumbies by Melissa Kaplan

If your ig goes outside or eats fresh from the garden veggies- check them 2x a year for parasites. easiest way to medicate- hide pill or liquid in foods like sweet potatoes, strawberries, or bananas.

Originally Posted by ARRS org

turnip/mustard/collard greens daily with fruits and veggies on top.

I like this idea best.