It's hard to resist a friendly dinosaur, and the green iguana's enormous popularity rests on that amusing truism. This large lizard presents few difficulties and for keepers and can live for a couple of decades. One of the authors' purposes of The Green Iguana Manual is to promote responsible ownership for this noble lizard that can grow to be the size of a medium size dog with an unusually long, leathery tail! The Green Iguana Manual takes a close look at the characteristics of this species that have made these attractive lizards so amazingly popular in the pet world as well as their lifelong requirements. Author and herp expert Philippe de Vosjoli is joined by iguana specialists Dr. Roger Klingenberg, Dr. Susan Donoghue, and David Blair, who each contribute special chapters to this up-to-date and authoritative guide. This colorfully illustrated guide provides excellent general guidelines for keepers who wish to add a green iguana to their vivarium and maintain their "prehistoric" pet in excellent health and condition.
The authors provide an introduction to basic iguana characteristics including distribution, size, longevity, and varieties and morphs, to help beginners better understand the anatomy and behavior of these fascinating lizards. This Advanced Vivarium Systems title includes information about selecting a healthy green iguana, handling, housing needs, breeding, and life stages. Dr. Donoghue provides the chapter "Diet and Feeding Management," which discusses food sources, supplementation, and feeding guidelines for green iguanas of all ages. Dr. Klingenberg provides the chapter on diseases and disorders, which covers nutritional and metabolic disorders, infectious diseases, reproductive disorders, parasites, and environmental issues. The chapter concludes with a very useful five-page troubleshooting chart for common disorders. The book also discusses the iguanas of the West Indies (chapter by Blair) as well as seven other iguanid lizards, such as the spiny-tailed iguana, Fiji Island iguana, and chuckwallas.