One of the main requirements for iguanas is the high humidity in the cage. Green iguanas come from tropical rainforests with high humidity. But sometimes, iguana owners face humidity problems. In this post, we will discuss how to increase humidity in iguana cage and important rules to remember to keep the humidity stable.
What should an iguana humidity be?
Iguanas come from rainforests, and require constant high humidity of 70-85%, up to 90%. Anything below 55-60% is low for iguanas, and will cause problems with shedding, hydration, kidneys and other functions.
However, you don’t need to worry too much if the humidity in iguana’s cage drops to 50-60% for a short period of time. In fact, you must allow humidity levels to drop to around 50-60% for some time during the day, to let the cage dry and to prevent any fungal/bacterial growth. Never keep the humidity at 90% or so all the time.
Iguana humidity problems
Sometimes, you might face problems with humidity in iguana’s cage. These might include not being able to increase the humidity or to keep it stable. Let’s look at the ways to increase the humidity in iguana’s cage and how keep it stable.
How to increase humidity in iguana cage?
Place a large water bowl in the cage
Placing a water dish in the cage will cause water to evaporate in the high temperature setting, increasing the humidity.
Iguanas naturally poop in water, and the large water dish might be necessary anyways. Start potty training your iguana as soon as you get it – this will ensure that iguana poops in the same place every day.
You might train your iguana to poop in the bath tub or even toilet. After your iguana is potty trained, you can move the water dish in iguana’s cage so it can poop there.
Make sure to have one water dish with drinking water, and another one for pooping or soaking. Change the water in the bowls as soon as it’s soiled.
You can read about potty training your iguana in this post.
Mist your iguana twice a day
To increase the humidity in the cage and to help with hydration, make sure to mist your iguana twice a day. Mist your iguana with a spray mister once in the morning, and once in late evening. Misting will add up to the humidity levels in the tank.
Apart from misting, you will need to bathe your iguana at least 4 days a week, or even better – every day. Especially when your iguana is shedding.
Ensure there is proper ventilation in the cage
Please remember that ventilation is key in any terrarium – including iguana’s cage. If you have high temperatures + humidity in the cage, proper ventilation is a must. Otherwise, it will create a sauna-like space, and your iguana won’t be able to breathe. Lack of ventilation will also cause high fungal and bacterial growth in the cage.
If you are building your own custom cage, make sure to include ventilation holes from front and then have a mesh to allow the air to come out and not build up in the cage.
This is the ideal ventilation for your iguana’s cage, because you will be using heating lamps from overhead. Fresh air will be entering the cage from bottom front, getting heated, heating the whole cage and then moving up and exiting the cage from the top holes.
Another form of acceptable ventilation in iguana’s cage is when there are ventilation holes near the bottom of the cage – one one side. This will ensure diagonal ventilation.
And then on top of the other side, the air will escape the cage. This way, the heat in the cage will be distributed evenly and proper ventilation will be in place.
Set up a humidifier
A humidifier, or a reptile fogger, is device that will create a humid fog in the cage, using the water that you fill in the small tank. There are different humidifiers for reptile cages, such as this ultrasonic fogger with adjustable output controls.
You will need to place the fogger on the side of the cage, and then place the hose inside the cage. The hose will send the humid fog in the cage. Most owners choose to use a humidifier because reaching and controlling 70-85% humidity in iguana’s cage, especially in drier seasons, is hard.
Do not have the humidifier on all the time, let the cage dry a little between the fogging sessions. It is fine to let the cage humidity to drop to 50-60% during this time. This will help to prevent mold growth in the cage.
Depending on where you live, the water can have a high mineral content (be hard). This can shorten the life of your fogger. If you know that the water is hard in your area, you can use the waster softener. Buying distilled water will be expensive, than using the water softener.
A good tip is to fix the hose on top of the soaking dish, because it will be leak a little bit from fog condensing in the hose. Another tip is to put the fogger on a low setting at night, because with less heat in the cage, water will not evaporate as fast. This way, you can reach high humidity easier.
Some owners used to use an automatic mister in iguana’s cage, but there are drawbacks. Unlike the fog, the mister will spray water and it will not evaporate quickly, causing water puddles on the bottom of the cage.
Think about cage material
If your iguana’s cage is made of mesh, it will be harder to keep humidity in. Glass and wooden cages with proper ventilation are easier to keep humidity levels in more stable. With wooden cages, the wood must be resistant to rot and non-toxic to your iguana.
Make sure to set up a hygrometer
You will need a hygrometer like this, to check for humidity levels in the cage. Having a hygrometer in the cage is crucial. It will tell you about humidity levels in the cage and you will be able to make any changes as necessary.
This is especially important when you are using a fogger. Humidifier will have to be put in different setting depending on the current humidity levels in the cage.
You can also get a thermometer + hygrometer combo. Make sure to get two, and place one higher in the cage – near the basking spot, and one lower – in the cool spot. You will be able to see the humidity in different parts of the cage.
Introduce live plants in the cage
Iguanas will eat most of the plants that you put in the tank. That is why if you want to introduce live plants in iguana’s cage, make sure they are non-toxic. Most owners add fake plants, but you can add some live plants if you are struggling with keeping humidity up. Live plants will also add to the enrichment of the cage.
Few of the best live plants are palms, such as Kentia, Parlor, Lady, Areca palms. You can also use Boston Fern and Bird’s nest fern. Make sure to cover the soil in live plants, because your iguana will eat it.