Getting a Rhino, Need Home Advice

[bcshepard]

Ok folks so I've researched all the info I need to know about feeding, general care all of the info I need to know for a Rhino Iguana but the one thing that lacks is seeing pictures of these guys living in a captive environment. When I built my cage for my Green Igs I saw what others had done, took many concepts and built into my own. THese guys lack that content on the web.

So I'm posting a picture of a basic floor plan (at the bottom of this post) the lines are not drawn with mathematical precision I eyed it. But basically in this picture there is a 6 1/2 foot wide by 14 foot wide room in my house... I want to use this to house the cyclura. Looking for peoples advice how to make a barricade to separate this from the rest of my house, basically. I dont want the Cyclura to have complete free roaming abilities unless I'm home. I was thinking of building a wall with PVC and flexible mesh (not wire). I could also build a 2-3 foot divider wall, frame it up and make it look nice and make a door. Which way to go? Ideas?

I also want ideas on what I should put IN the Cycluras living space to make him comfortable. What does everyone else do? Anyone else have pics of their cycluras in their cycluras livings space? They seem hard to come across..

[Patrick Kubeja]

Hello Shepard

Welcome to the Forum

Well your getting a Rhino well the first thing you need to know is that they are more of a ground dweller then a climber but this you probably know that already if you researched them, but the food? What are you going to feed the guy? When I first got mine I read all the info. On the web and a lot was wrong for a Rhino in captivity.

Now Ideas here is were I am Good at you have a 6 ½ foot by 14 ft area by any chance do you have a spare bed room that would work better. These guys need a lot of floor space I have mine in a 10 ft. by 10 ft. bed room Works Great! (But she stills tries too get out of it) But she is a baby yet only about a year old. How old is the one you’re getting?

The space is what I am having a problem with in less you let the guy free roam when your home it will house it for about 5 yrs after that need a bigger room this is my opinion you have to remember that your getting a reptile that will get as big as a small dog and weigh about the same. And them and Greens are not likely to get along with each other plus a Rhino will kill a Green Iguana in a hot second if it want to. These are all thing to look at they are enemies in the wild.

Now back to the room I like your idea but not wide enough for me but good idea they do not need Humidity like the green iguana does so the PVC mesh wall should do GREAT! I have some pictures here of the way I have mine set up. What I did is I have 2 windows and a big Floor LOL! I went on vacation and on the way back I picked up Rocks from the different states I was in. It help a lot be because, I drove across country in a pickup truck. What I did after I got home is soaked the in Beach and Water to remove any bugs and stuff and let it air dry for a couple of days. And then a made a rock island in the middle of the room and had a couple of fake plants that I had lying around and put that in the middle of the island.

Well I Hope this helped
Again thanks for Joining
And Welcome to the Forum
Patrick

Ps if you have any other Questions let me kinow
Brian LOL!!!!!

[bcshepard]

Thanks for the reply Patrick.

For the diet I had considered the occassional mealworm dish and fuzzy twice a month like the current owner does but I wont be doing that - dont tell her that she might be ticked and not let me have him. So what am I doing for the diet? Same thing I do for my greens. Collards, Mustards, Dandelion Greens Turnip greens, etc.. Mix up and vary other foods like green beans, papaya, parsnip, turnips strawberries banannas etc. The main fruits/veggies I use are like green beans papaya and similar. I try to stick away from non-accidic foods that are high in protein, calcium and fiber.. If I mix in 2 or 3 of these varied fruits/veggies then I let other stuff slip through that are not as healthy like the bannana for a snack during taming and the strawberries and stuff. so good healthy greens. I was debating feeding them animal-protein foods fuzzies whatever but I've done more and more research and I'm leaning against that. If he catches a bug good for him but that might be it lol. I make a point of feeding my Greens 3 every feeding session (which isnt hard to do considering they eat it all down before the food has a chance to rot).. And usually mix in a 2 veggies and a fruit.. My igs all love squash and I chop up my greens and usually always mix in some sort of squash (I freeze it in chunks, microwave it and grate it the aroma gets them going BIG TIME) and add that with parsnip and green beans - use those two items all the time.. whatever else I add is the daily treat.

As for the housing.. that particular area would be temporary. The upstairs of my house has two huge, open rooms one of them is going to be Diggers home but the ambient temp there stays at about 55 I can put various basking bulbs in a main area and put a space heater but I'm afraid of him going to the cold spots. I was planning on using two 250W lamps placed a safe distance from him for heat or in a bigger space maybe like 4 or 5 100-150 watt bulbs in various spots. The big room in the upstairs has a large ceiling on half of the house it goes up 15 feet then drops down on a sidewall which has some outsiide windows I was goiing to make a ramp to the windows so he can have an outside view, bask there, then at the bottom of the ramps put more lamps for ground basking. ... I do this for Spaz it works great but he only has 1 basking spot... not 2 or 3 I'd do for digger. I spent a lot of time working the bulbs in the right place. The room is probably 20x20 that I'd use for Digger. If I put him there during winter the flood basking lights will keep a good sized area warm but if he ventures elsehwere it may be warm enough for me at 55 but not for him... I suppose I can try to crank up the ambient temps there. I have a laser probe that tells me the body temps of the lizards so I can adjust lighting at appropriate distances the 250's I buy work great at improving overall heat/temps in the area and making a good basking zone its just a matter of distance so I dont burn them.. I've done good with this with my laser probe.. cost 150 bucks its worth it.

I'm going to use Megaray EB's for UVB. I'm ordering in 2 more. I have 2 spare Megaray SB's for now as well.

I was thinking of putting him in the smaller area until this spring when it warms up then put him upstairs. he's 3 and a half foot long.

[Patrick Kubeja]

Hey Brian

That sounds like a good diet, I stick to 3 basic greens and about 4 different kinds of veggies but rarely feed them fruit. Maybe an apple or two here and there but hardly at all
Me as well like to stick to staples in their diet.

On animal protein that is a really big no no usually they will not go after bugs to eat in less they are really hungry. With the way I work I feed mine in the morning and spray water on the food to last all day.

On the enclosure I do not like temporary I figure do it once and be done. Now on the room that 20x20 that is a Nice size room for a Rhino and you can easily fix the heating problem what I do in the winter time is electric heat in the room now your probably wondering how the hick I do that well that is simple electric heat placed on a shelf or covered with a box so they can not get to it, with the natural gas being so high these day I decided to go this rout.

Now I have Quazi in a Sunroom that is not insulated and it has a lot of window and here in Cleveland it get pretty cold in the winter time what I did there is put a electric heater in her room that is oil filed so when the oil heats up it heats up the room it kind of looks like a old radiator heater. Now I have this hooked up to a rheostat that keeps her room at 77 degrees on the coldest days and nights of winter. And she has 2 basking spot one with a Mega Ray and the other with 15” 5.0 bulb for the lamps I use in the winter 100-watt floods. It heats it up pretty good in there.

Now for Bronx and the Bed room like I said with the gas bill going out of this world I have a electric baseboard heater in there mount on a shelf about 4 ft high in a corner of the room tonight I can take some pictures of it and post them if you like. I have a Zoo Bulb for Bronx from Mega Ray but I also have a meter reader so I can set it at the right height in her basking spot I just have 3 100 watt flood lamps set up in her room it is 10x10 so it is pretty easy. Like I said I do not have a lot in her room like I said a Rock island with some fake plants in the center of it and 2 100 watt floods focusing down on the rock which heats the surface of the rock to about 88 – 90 degrees and she will lay on it but in the window which she lays in the most there is a 100 watt lamp and the Mega Ray Zoo Bulb I do plain on getting one more of the Zoos for second basking spot but am not sure yet. I will have to talk to Dominick or Bob Mac to see what they think or maybe a high output EB Kit.

But that is how I keep my heat up in there two room but Mr. Worf is another story LOL!!!!

I can post pictures tonight if you like to show you my setup

Patrick