OOPS! How'd HE get in there...???

That's me *blush* giving a demo at US Coast Guard HQ in Washington, D.C. during National Hispanic Heritage Month...my brother's a "Coastie" and he asked me to give a little talk on herps common to Latin America. I'm holding Rhoda, a young female Cuban rock iguana. Around my neck is Julius Squeezer, a young red-tailed boa. And ol' Big, Green, & Scaly to my front there is Thor, a male green iguana that has captured the imaginations and hearts of many schoolchildren during the five years he went to "Show and Tell"...

Now, here's a very special iguana:

Her name's Christie, and she had suffered severe thermal trauma to the area above her hips from staying underneath a spotlight. The skin and underlaying tissue had literally baked through. The vet didn't think she'd make it, because the affected area was very prone to infection, plus he thought that she'd lose her tail and hip/rear legs...I stuck with it and stayed with her and nursed her for over a year, giving her daily warm baths, painting the area with betadine, applying Silvadene ointment, and giving her antibiotics every 5 days(alternating between Amikacyn and Baytril). Miraculously, she pulled thru! ...Didn't really like the shots, tho...heck, who would?

Below is another re-habbed iggy, named Tim:

He was a possible "blue" iguana, because his head was a sort of steely-blue color, and his body was covered with black specks all over. His problem was incipient MBD(Metabolic Bone Disease)...before I got him his diet was mainly peas and lettuce! The poor guy could hardly move his legs! I'm glad to say that he recovered fine, after a few months on a good diet of dark leafy greens, vitamin supplements, and plenty of natural sunlight...

Ah, say hello to the happy newlyweds:

This is Thor (on the left) and Agatha(on the right)...they mated several times but I never got any good eggs...the cage they are in is made of plywood(a basic box-type affair), sealed with polyurethane; I used storm windows, placed on their sides and facing inside-out, screwed to the front as sliding glass doors. Their perch was made of PVC piping(3-inch, I think), covered with Astroturf.

Here's one more picture of Rhoda, the Rock Ig:

She's in the same type of cage as above. She came from the Island of Magueyes, off the southern coast of Puerto Rico, from the only population of Cycluran iguanas not currently regulated under CITES. This will soon change, however, as recently someone snuck onto the island and made off with almost half of its population!). Access to this island is strictly limited to personnel belonging to the University of Puerto Rico's Mayaguez Campus Marine Science Department; the colony is monitored and under continuous study by the University. I was graciously allowed to have Rhoda for a while, in addition to another specimen, to start a breeding program, but it turned out that the other animal was also a female; both were returned to Magueyes.

Well, that's about it for now...I'll add more as time permits...