Iguanas communicate a lot through their body language, having their mouth open is one of them. There are a few reasons why iguanas open their mouth and most of them are not good signs.
Iguanas open their mouth is a way to show how they feel. This could mean they are either too hot, curious, angry, or have a respiratory tract infection.
At first, it can be hard to spot and differentiate different kinds of mouth openings and what they mean. In this article, you will learn how to read what your iguana is trying to tell you from opening their mouth. Most of these are not good signs and the right actions should be taken immediately. If you don’t, the iguana could die.
Mouth Opening When It’s Too Hot
Often times, iguanas keeping their mouth open could mean they are too hot. Just because they love basking under the sun or heat lamp, doesn’t mean they cannot overheat.
Actions To Take to Prevent Overheating
The most important thing to consider is the enclosure set up. Make sure you avoid putting it close to a window with filtered sunlight. This can bake your iguana alive, that’s why heat lamps are invented.
With heat lamps, you can place it exactly where you want the heat to concentrate on. Not to mention, the control you have with the temperature.
Other than that, make sure your pet iguana has access to easy exit from the basking spot. So, if it gets too hot, it can easily move away.
Now, this brings me to my next point, shady areas. Cool, shady areas are extremely crucial for iguanas to cool down. They are cold-blooded animals which means they cannot regulate their own body temperature.
They make use of their surrounding temperature to do that for them. Moreover, you must make sure there’s always a bowl of freshwater for your iguana.
Placement of Thermometer
One of the most common mistakes that iguana pet owners make, is how they place the thermometer. You should have a minimum of 2, but ideally, 3 thermometers to monitor the temperature in your iguana’s enclosure.
You need to measure each part of the cage separately. The middle of the cage will not have the same temperature as the basking spot and so on.
Put one thermometer monitoring the basking spot, another in the middle of the cage, and the last one on the shadiest part of the cage. Make sure it is always within the range of ideal temperature for iguanas in each of these areas.
The ideal temperature for the basking spot is between 95°F and 100°F and between 75°F and 80°F for resting areas. Also, you should only monitor the places where your iguana actually hangs out on.
The 2 most important areas are the basking spot and the shady spot where your iguana goes to sleep.
If for whatever reason you do not have a thermometer and still want to check the temperature, you can. But only the basking spot.
To do so, place your hand under it the heat lamp. If it is too hot to put your hand there, it is probably too hot for your iguana. However, this is not very reliable to get the ideal temperature for your iguana. A thermometer is still a must.
Other Signs of Overheating
Like I’ve mentioned, iguanas opening their mouth could have meanings other than overheating. If you see these signs combined with their mouth open, there is a good chance it is too hot.
- Panting
- Extra hot to the touch
The first thing you should do when you spot these signs is to move your iguana away from any heat source. Once it is on a cooler area, just let it naturally cool down on its own.
Do not ever put it in cold water. This will cause a drastic change in temperature and that’s no good for iguanas. If you do want to use water on it, use a spray bottle. Just spray a little water, misting your iguana. This will safely and quickly cool your iguana down.
Mouth Opening When Curious
Iguanas are very curious creatures. They show signs of their curiosity when they open their mouth slightly, not very big. Even though they are curious creatures, do not always let them experience new things. This can really stress them out. Iguanas like the same routine day after day, preferably no changes at all.
Mouth Opening When Angry
When iguanas are angry, it can be quite obvious if you know what to look out for. Opening their mouth is one of them but there are also a few other things you need to look out for. Here are some confrontational signs to look out for:
- Head bobbing
- Extended Dewlap
- Standing high up on all fours
- Puffed Body
- Hissing
If you see a few of these signs combined with mouth opening, it is most likely mad. On top of these signs, if the iguana is following you while its mouth is opened, it is pretty certain they are about to attack.
Iguanas can be very dangerous if not taken care of properly. Most of the time, it is best to just leave the iguana alone when they are mad. They could cause you some serious injuries if you don’t.
Respiratory Tract Infection (RTI)
This is the most serious reason as to why iguanas might open their mouth. Other signs you should look out for to spot RTI include the iguana:
- Being tired all the time
- Loss of appetite
- Swollen/ bloated body
- Breathing with mouth open
Often times, at an advanced state, iguanas with RTI may have some audible sounds when breathing. These sounds include wheezing or clicking noises.
Furthermore, there could be mucus that may appear in its mouth and the head may be in a raised position to assist with the breathing.
RTI is caused by a bacterial infection in their lungs and most of the time due to improper care. An inappropriate living environment is the biggest reason.
Iguanas can get RTI if their enclosure is too cold, too wet, without proper basking and shady spots or if they are stressed for a prolonged period of time.
Other than that, a dirty enclosure or insufficient food will significantly worsen this condition. This will extend the recovery time. When you spot any of these signs, make sure to bring it to the vet as soon as possible.
Conclusion
There are many reasons why iguanas open their mouth. These reasons include being too hot, curious, angry, or having respiratory issues. Opening their mouth is one of the ways they communicate with humans and other animals.
Most of the time, when iguanas open their mouth, something is seriously wrong. You have to fix it right away to prevent any serious damage to your iguana.
