The cat and the Iguana

The cat and the iguana.

2008. New York. Rina Deych rescued a foot-long iguana without question and quickly researched what he needed. She bought an enclosure, humidifier, heaters, and special bulbs that mimic sunlight. She named him Sobe.

The reptile thrived under her care, soon stretching to four and a half feet, nose to tail tip. Meanwhile, another needy critter found his way to Rina’s door. “The kitten was near death when I found him,” she says. Even though the tiny feline had pneumonia, eye infections, and nasty infestations of fleas and worms, Rina refused her vet’s offer to euthanize him.

Johann the cat soon improved markedly, and Rina decided to see how the two castoffs would get along. “When I put Jo into the iguana’s enclosure, Sobe puffed up like Godzilla and hissed. He can look very big and threatening. But Jo didn’t know to be afraid, so he just rubbed up against Sobe’s rough skin and purred. Sobe probably wondered, What the heck? Why isn’t he scared?” But the iguana calmed down quickly. He closed his eyes and let the kitten rub against his face and play with his tail. He did nothing to discourage the contact, and even seemed to relish it.

Nowadays, Sobe is a free-range iguana in Rina’s home. He’ll get up on the bed with Jo and Rina’s other cats and let them curl up around him, and he doesn’t mind when they attempt to groom him or join him on his warm perch in his reptile enclosure. In fact, if the perch is empty, he’ll wander around looking for the felines.

Although iguanas can be aggressive, especially once they are sexually mature, “Jo and the other cats have learned to read those cues and get out of the way when Sobe gets ‘too affectionate,’” Rina says. Even the best of friends have their limits, after all.







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ohhhhhh the pics are adorable.

Bless x

I thought it was quite cute .x

aww this is sweet

Lovely

xoxox

True friends

Just when I thought I had seen everything sweet, this is truly marvellous.

Hugs

JO xx