| Many people have the wrong assumption that the | | | | as water possible. Since the iguanas do not do this |
| iguanas should be fed with lettuce only. They are | | | | naturally, steps have to be taken by you to |
| very well wrong in that notion. There are many | | | | accomplish this job. One of the methods is to get the |
| issues to be considered and a good owner of an | | | | iguana?s food sprayed with water, so that the |
| iguana should learn about this completely. Here is a | | | | moisture required by it is got by the iguana during its |
| simple guide to help in getting the right food for your | | | | feed itself. |
| iguana: | | | | Another method would be is to try training the |
| 1) Vegetables - many guides are still in existence | | | | iguana to drink the maximum amount of water |
| which state that iguanas should also be given insects | | | | possible. This can be achieved by keeping a treat at |
| and they can also eat dog and cat food. But the fact | | | | the bottom of its water dish. Regular practice can |
| is, the iguana?s body is suited for plant protein | | | | get your iguana to have some water by itself. |
| consumption. This means that iguanas are better as | | | | 3) Heat levels - iguanas are actually cold blooded. |
| vegetarians. Vegetables such as mustard greens or | | | | Iguanas depend on the surrounding heat for their |
| collards which have high nutritional content should be | | | | bodily activities. However good the diet may be the |
| included in the iguana?s diet. Most of the salad lettuce | | | | iguanas will not be able to digest the food without |
| types contain very less nutritional value; therefore a | | | | proper temperature. After the meal, a minimum |
| regular feed of lettuce to your iguana should be | | | | surrounding temperature of 85 degrees Fahrenheit is |
| avoided. | | | | required by an iguana. This will help them in proper |
| Why the iguana is best suited as vegetarians? Well, | | | | digestion. |
| processing animal proteins is tough job for the | | | | 4) Phosphorous and calcium - when choosing the |
| iguanas as it requires much job to be done by the | | | | iguana?s diet a good owner should always remember |
| kidneys. So there is an increased chance of | | | | that iguanas need phosphorous and calcium in 1:2 |
| developing some kidney problem. It is also difficult to | | | | ratio. This means that food with the right amount of |
| absorb animal protein. Often the unabsorbed animal | | | | nutrients should be chosen. |
| protein gets stored in its body in the form of uric | | | | 5) Luminosity - another important consideration in the |
| acid which may lead to diseases such as gout. | | | | field of iguana food is the necessity of proper lighting. |
| So know we know why the iguana?s diet should | | | | Iguanas require UVB and UVA rays to generate |
| mainly consist of veggies. | | | | vitamin D3. This helps in the proper calcium adsorption |
| 2) Water - only a trivial amount of water is | | | | in its body. There are many artificial light sources to |
| consumed by iguanas. So the iguanas will at least | | | | provide these types of rays, but still the best |
| stay partially dehydrated if enough humidity is not | | | | remains as sun rays. So for best adsorption of |
| present in the surrounding of the enclosure. This is | | | | nutrients from the iguana?s food, you should make |
| vital for the health of your iguana. | | | | sure that it gets direct sunlight as much as possible. |
| A good owner should get the iguana drinking as much | | | | |