I have a two month old iguana that I have been feeding mustard greens, collards, orange squash and strawberries, plus a alfalfa supplement. He doesn't seem to eat any of the green stuff he just goes for the orange. Is this okay? What should I do?

And has anyone ever feed their iguana alfalfa hay? It seems very sharp and dangerous for a little one.

Also he seems to be turning a little more brown in color. Does this mean he's going to shed in the future? Or is this a sign of him not eating his greens?

Steph

I'm not an expert on igs, but we have plenty of members who I'm sure will be able to help you out more than I..

A couple of questions might assist us in helping you;
How long have you had your ig? - if he has not been with you long he may just be taking his time to settle in. Also where did he come from? - perhaps he wasn't used to the variety in his diet and isn't used to greens? Squash I know is very high in calcium and can be a staple veg in a bearded dragon's diet,. I'm not sure if the same is true for igs, but I know variety is the key to a healthy animal.

Perhaps you could try some tricks to get the ig to eat - do you put the different foods in his dish individually or mix it all in? If you chop it up and mix it all in he won't be able to help getting some of the greens and might get the taste for it. Also, just keep persisting - he's only young and keep trying him, he should eventually start eating the greens.

Alfalfa hay? - i wasn't aware this could be part of an ig's diet? - but again I'm not clued up on igs so if it is then I guess you learn something new every day!

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"If you know everything you may as well blow your brains out because the reason for existence is to learn more everyday." - Mark O'Shea, 2004

You do NOT feed an iguana alfalfa hay. You either feed the mature green leaves (not sprouts!), or you can use powdered afalfa from the health food store or ground up rabbit pellets as long as they don't have any animal protein additives. The good ones don't. Check out our care sheet
http://www.herpcenter.com/showthread.php?t=2734
70-80% of the diet should be the collard, mustard, and turnip greens. The squash(grated fine) is ok along with other veggies that you will find on the caresheet. Try chopping the greens and veggies up really fine about the size of a grain of rice (food processors are wonderful!) and mix it up so that he can't pick out the squash. Leave the strawberries for an occasional treat.
The brown color could be preparing to shed, could be a sign of stress or temperatures too low.
Did you ever get the thermometers? If the temp is too low he can't digest his food.

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Merlin,
What's Life Without A Little Magic!

Citrus fruits are not very good for him either.
If he doesn't have his favorite foods, he will be forced to eat the greens

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Some think they can. Some wish they could. Some do.

You might try squeezing some fruit juice over the greens to get him started again. Grapes squeezed over them works really well... .

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Veronica
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When I feed my ig squash and greens, he neglects the greens and goes for the squash. From my experience, Iguanas (at least my ig) will go for the best tasting food over anything else. If you only leave greens in his dish, like Jem Scout said, he will be forced to eat it.

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RIP: Rex and Cheeba

Iguanas also tend to eat "colors". The orange squash is attracting his attention. You should only be feeding about 10% of the diet as the veggies. Try just giving just the greens for a couple of days. you could also put just a light dollop of squash on top of the greens. If hes still hungry he should continue eating the greens.

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Merlin,
What's Life Without A Little Magic!