Common Ailments With Iguanas

Iguanas also get sick like human beings. You will like to keep your pet iguana healthy and want him to live long. We have discussed here the most common types of sicknesses of iguana that demand prompt vet care and will require suitable medication so that you do not lose your pet.

Fibrous Osteodystrophy: Metabolic bone diseases are very common with iguanas. In fibrous osteodystrophy their bones become weak and may fracture also. This is basically due to malnutrition and lack of vitamin D3, calcium and phosphorous in food. You can get the details of the nutritious food advice for iguanas from those selling the pets. Many people like to feed their iguana with crush and lettuce, but they are not aware that it is just like sponge and does not have any nutrition value.

The problem can further deteriorate with inadequate supply of calcium and vitamin D3 in food. The iguanas may die, if the condition is serious. The critical signs of this disease are swollen jowl, torpidity, soft face and lower jaw like rubber, problem in eating and swelling of limbs. Most of the times, limbs and spine gets fractured. The hind legs are paralyzed as a consequence of deficiency of vitamin B1 in food. The tail is also impacted. The condition can be treated only by injecting the important vitamins and minerals and altering the diet as suggested.

The nose abrasions: When iguana is suffering from nose abrasions the reptile tries many times to escape and gets the nose scraped or scratched with enclosures. The nose scrapes are resulted from wires, plastic or glass used for their enclosure of cages. If these abrasions are not treated, there is formation of ulcerian sostrum, infection with bacteria and disfiguring of nose.

Thermal injuries: Burns and thermal injuries can come, if iguana comes in direct contact of heat sources in their enclosure. The main cause can be exposed hot rocks or light bulbs and heaters. It is necessary to look for the safety of pet and keep all these things out of their reach.

The bacterial infection: The iguana can be infected by many kinds of bacteria. If they live in dirty environment, they can get recurrent exposure to blister disease. They also get dry gangrene on their toes and tails and these parts turn gray or black and become brittle to fall off. The basic cause is poor sanitation.

The inflammation, swelling and pus are formed in mouth rot. The blisters cause pus formation.

The parasites: The fleas get settled in the gastrointestinal tract of blood in iguanas and these are the main cause of their death when kept in confinement.

Viral Infection: Many death of iguana occur due to the viral infection in iguana. The research is still on to find the causes and treatments for this virus.

Organ failure: The natural aging process results the failure of organs. In some cases, there is bacterial infection that causes the failure. The predominant signs are loss of weight and appetite, bloating and even death.

Bladder stones: There abdomen gets swelled due to formation of stone in bladder.

Egg-binding: The female iguanas die due to this problem particularly when they cannot pass the eggs through their reproductive tracts.

In addition to the above common sicknesses, there are a few more common ailments, which should be immediately attended to save the life of pet iguanas.