The Iguana Spot Ig Alert Page

Iguana Alert!!

Your iguana may needlessly suffer and possibly die because of misinformation!
Don't let this happen to you!

    Many of you reading this article right now already know about the problems with misinformation pertaining to the care and feeding of iguanas that are stemming from the pet trade. Countless pet stores, both corporate and small "mom and pop" stores, for whatever reason, are still handing out information that may make your iguana sick, if not kill it altogether. I am here to talk about a larger source of misinformation ... The Internet!

     When you stop and consider how large the Internet truly is, I think it's reasonable to assume that not everyone who has access to it or the ability to create a website has the same level of common sense, intelligence or integrity. That being said, we here at The Iguana Spot would like to take this opportunity to point out some vary common hazzards on the web and how to avoid them!

Would you put the life of one of your friends, family or beloveds in the hands of a stranger?

    The common sense answer would be no, yet every day hundreds of people log into message boards and chat forums and do just that! People log in and ask for medical advice, sometimes basic (ie - "I cut too far into the quick when trimming my iguana's nail"), sometimes to such an advanced degree (ie- "My iguana has been rejecting food for two weeks and appears to be dying.") that common sense dictates a visit to the vet, from complete strangers!

    Please remember that when you are visiting these interactive websites and posting your questions, that you'll never know who is behind the answer, much less if the answer they are giving you is correct. I've seen people who have only had their iguanas for several months passing out care information and advice like they are seasoned experts. Most of the time the information they are giving out is questionable at best if not outright wrong.

     Qualify any information you may receive on one of these forums BEFORE you try out the suggestions on your pet.
Research the information yourself, ask a qualified vet or look for the same answer given by more than two or three people. Before you enter into any type of long term information exchange with anyone on the Internet, qualify their background. Remember, education is important but nothing beats experience!

Websites: The Good, The Bad and The How Did This Person Ever Figure Out How To Turn Their Computer On???

    There are tons of iguana related websites on the Internet. With so many to choose from, it's often difficult to know which are okay and which are not. As with message boards and chat forums, you never really know who is behind the website! Even young children know how to build a website these days and many of them have done so.

    When choosing a website to use for research purposes, it's important to really take the time to investigate the site well. Are there original photographs and articles or does everything on the website belong to someone other than the "author"? Many times, for whatever the reason, someone will put up an iguana related website and copy information from other well known sites in an attempt to have a large site with many pages. Aside from any possible copyright infringement, many times in an ill atempt to skirt around copyright laws, the person will change one or two key pieces of information. In changing the information, the often under educated person, will end up passing out misinformation on their site.

    Again, this is a case where experience counts! If someone has only had their iguana for a matter of months, should you really be taking advice from them? A good rule to follow is to NEVER under any circumstances take medical advice from anyone on the Internet, unless that advice is "Go To The Vet". While it's nice to look at all these websites and gather ideas (especialy in areas of building enclosures), it just isn't a good idea to let a stranger attempt to diagnose your iguana through an email. Look for sites by well respected authors and sites from people who have been keeping iguanas for years that are giving examples of iguana care that you have read about from the well respected authors. Don't be swayed or lulled into a false sense of security because someone claims to be a member of an iguana related group, club or society. Memberships in most of these groups is not based on anything more than the person filling out a membership form.

Beware of misleading symbols!

    Symbols and programs such as Top Sites and others like the ones seen on this site, ARE NOT INDICATIONS OF ACCURATE INFORMATION!
    The "Top Sites" programs are solely based on the number of hits/visitors a site receives and nothing else! There is no review process to join and the only qualification is that you have a lizard/iguana/reptile related website. What that means is that the site could be filled with errors and bad/incorrect/misleading information and still have a high or good rating because of the traffic it receives!
    These programs were designed mainly as a fun way to see how the traffic to one site compares to another! Often times, visitors to the site will click on the button and mistakenly think that just because a site has a higher rating that it must be okay! While in some cases highly rated sites are fantastic information sources, many times they are not.

In closing we'd like to point out that just like with anything else, common sense should always prevail! You wouldn't let a stranger tell you how to care for your human family, friends or beloveds, you wouldn't let a stranger diagnose a medical problem either. Iguanas, like all animals, need proper care and that includes vet care! If you don't want to, can't afford to, can't be bothered to, for any reason, be committed to providing your animal with the best possible care, it's not a wise idea for you to get an animal. Allowing strangers, who may or may not be qualified, to set up care and health routines for your animals is a dangerous road to travel.
Always reference more than one informational source when researching care methods. Get advice from more than one source. Compare information. Talk to people who run rescue shelters, they will tell you that misinformation is one of the top 5 problems relating to iguanas today! Don't get dscouraged when you are flooded with tons of different opinions. Take the time to sort them all out and see which ones make sense.

Above all else, the welfare of the animal should always come first!