We Miss Her Already

Komodo Hansen

July1, 1988 - March 8, 2009

For those of you who have met Komodo, you understand what a loss it is for our family. Komodo passed away peacefully while sleeping in the bathtub, as she frequently did. It was a relaxing time for her and it was enough to send her to heaven this time. Komodo has been a member of our family since 2001 and an important family member too. She has been with Kris and I for our entire married life, and she is our "first born."

When we first bought her, she was very sick. Her kidneys were shutting down, she had low blood count, and mites. She had a miserable time at the vet for a while working to improve her health, but she pulled through. A year or so after she came to our family, she produced eggs and she could not lay them. She had them surgically removed and she's had no health problems since. Many people were concerned about us having an iguana when I became pregnant with Kyson, worried that she would carry salmonella to him or me. We had her tested, and she did not carry salmonella. She was the smartest, and sweetest reptile you'd ever meet. The average age for iguanas is 13 years, and Komodo has pulled through those years of difficulty to live nearly 21 years.

The first time she met my grammy from New Hamp- shire, she liked her so much she ran and jumped on her head. Komodo isn't a small lizard. She's about 4 1/2 feet long and my grandma was such a good sport that she laughed it off and has since bragged about her to her friends at home. She always said, "I've never heard of anyone having such a pet!" This Christmas when my grammy came out for Christmas, the two of them looked at pictures together.

Komodo was a very well behaved little girl. She was potty trained and never messed up the house. She would scratch at the back door to go to the bathroom and would relieve herself outside - even when it was snowing. She would beg for bananas by standing on her hind legs and waving her hand. Because she loved bananas so much, Santa would put one in her stocking every year.

Since adding Kyson to our lives, the two of them have really gotten along well. Komodo was one of his first distinguishable words, "Bobo," which has now evolved to "Modo." When I found Komodo and brought her dowstairs, Kyson was petting her head, saying "Modo," and trying to talk to her. It broke my heart. That evening, Kyson chose to read the book about Lenny the Lizard which is about a lizard that looks like Komodo. Every time we read that story, he calls the lizard in the pictures Komodo. It was just another moment that reminded us she was gone.