November 7
OK, so it has been 10 months since I adopted my shelter girl, Angel. I am reviewing my journal and I see how far she has come.
This little iguana, with all the physical and emotional scars endured, has transformed into the perfect iguana for me. Not only has she blown me away with her ability to learn, she has accomplished things I only dreamt of. Now let’s face it. If you knew Babe, like I knew Babe, you would have known he is a tough act to follow. His demeanor, intelligence and kindness were one in a million. I never imagined another iguana could show such promise. But Angel has really come up to the plate.
Being a youthful juvenile, I have been able to tame and guide her in a way that I wasn’t sure was possible when I began. Yes, I call myself the Iguana Whisperer, but being unsure of her background and witnessing her extremely wild behavior, made me doubt how far I could take this. I was only hoping to save her life and tame her down enough so we could coexist peacefully.
But here we are, 10 months later, with 6 airline rides in cargo under our belt and an iguana that is turning into a super star. Heads are turning and people are beginning to see just how well training has gone.
It has only been in the last month that I began to witness the true presence of respect and gratitude in her. The gleam in her eye as she witnessed the building of her winter room. Her growing realization that this was made just for her.
The warmth of the southern sun on her body all day and the creation of her own cubby cemented the fact that this is my gift to her. The same window she rubbed her nose against until it bled is now accepted as a safe place to live out the cold days of winter. Happily she appreciates this world of comfort that protects her for the world beyond.
Today will be a special day. I will allow her to accompany me in the store. We are even going to the bank today. I have a nice large purse that she has taken to. It allows me to bring her with in and she is enjoying the ride. The purse does 2 things. It allows me to hide her to a degree and I would say only one of 50 people notice her head sticking out. This is great for me and her. It also gives her a platform of comfort and security and keeps her calm.
FYI I find the purse helpful on walks on the beach as well. She enjoys the walk and the crowds don’t gather. At the beach I also wear a hat. She is still small enough to ride on my head and having a straw hat allows her to grip and be comfortable. If I walk in the surf, people don’t bother me as much and I enjoy the waves on my feet anyway.
Also on my list is buying a hot glue gun. I am going to use it to make her things. I dislike the effort of nails and screws and my brother suggested just hot glueing stuff together. What a brilliant idea!
I want to make little ladders for her to climb up to her cubby and her upper bedroom I want her to get used to the design so when I am in Reno I can build the same thing and she will recognize that these lead to good places that are just for her.
Reno will be difficult in the winter. The sunroom will be too cold so a new area will have to be created that she will accept.
(This is one of the reasons I didn’t adopt her last Christmas and waited until I returned. Looking back, it I was the right decision to wait, it would have been nearly impossible to handle her back then. But with that said, returning her was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life. Oh how my spirit cried!)
My plan is to create a window shelves in Reno, similar to the one here. I will take a few pieces of the carpet with me so she will relate to the smell. I duplicate the look the best I can and created ladders that resemble the ones I am to create today. It will be a test to see just how well we understand each other.