Temporary blacklight?....yay or nay?

[darkluvr]

Ok, i know Ben needs a UVB lamp, but there is no way I can buy one before the end of the month.....would that do ANYTHING for him?

[bgingras]

not that I know of...he needs a real UVB bulb!...if he doesn't get any uvb he is not obsorbing the nutrients he needs.

You could try taking him out in the sun for a few hours a day until you get the correct lamp.

[IguanaKing]

Nope, a blacklight will not do anything for him. There is only one blacklight that I know of that produces ANY UVB, and its a fluorescent made by NEC, but it doesn't produce much. Like bgingras said, the best thing for him would be to take him outside to get some natural, unfiltered sunlight. About an hour each day should be enough.

A few things about bringing him outside.

1. Use a hip leash
2. NEVER put him outside in his aquarium. The glass actually blocks almost all UVB, but the worst part is that it often magnifies IR (heat). An iguana left outside in an aquarium will quickly die from overheating, so bring him outside, on a hip leash.
3. Never leave him unattended while outside.
4. If its cloudy but warm outside, take him outside anyway, plenty of UVB still gets through clouds.

If you can do this on a daily basis for a few months, like I can in Colorado, it will actually be better for him than the light ANY artificial UVB source can provide. In fact, since Ben had such a rough start in life, I'd recommend getting him natural sunlight outside for at least an hour each day, for as long as your climate allows.

[darkluvr]

Thank you guys very much, I'm getting a UVB lamp at the end of this month, and i have to buy him another harness, because when I put him in the one that I have at the moment, all he does is roll in circles on the gound, and then it unlocks.......Trust me......It's hard to get an Iggy out of a tree.....The fire department were just laughing at me lol.....So I have to get a much thicker one.. ...Any suggestions?...and I'm building him a new outdoor cage at the moment....It's about 6 feet tall, 4 feet wide, and about 5 feet long...What u think for an outside cage?

[IguanaKing]

Your outdoor enclosure size is fine, but where are you putting your harness? It should be a hip leash, around your igs hips only, NOT his neck or chest. Igs often freak out when something is around their chest, which is what your's probably did. I commend you for calling the FD, but, unless he's over 60" STL and over 10 pounds...yeah, they're probably gonna laugh at ya. If over that, you'll be laughing at THEM. ;D Put the harness, gently, around his hips and he should be just fine. If a stressful situation comes up, quickly, but gently, cover his eyes. Putting one hand over his head and covering his eyes, while gently petting him with the other, always works for Herky monster when we go to the vet (with lots of strange people and animals around), and he's a 5'8", 16 pound male
iguana. Aside from that, the hip leash is the way to go.

[Merlin]

The blacklight you are talking about can actually damage their eyes.
You can make a hip leash for about a buck! And don't make the mistake of thinking that you can use it like you would a dog. It won't work. It is a safety factor only incase the ig makes a break for it. When they feel themselves restrained they will croc roll.

[prism_wolf]

Merlin is right...the black light can damage the eyes. Because it's not a bright light and iguanas eyes do not instinctually protect themselves as they would with bright light, the UV that does emit from it will damage the retinas with extended use.

[flyinlizard1]

Hey D L you can make a hip leash from a barrel clasp , you know, the thing on the hood of a winter coat or ski jacket used to cinch the hood tight, and a 4 or 5 foot piece of soft cord or shoe lace. Hope this helps and good luck with your iggy.

[darkluvr]

tankee