Help (Sdaji) monitor has a cold!

[Gilleni]

What would be the point of this herp help forum if everyone just said take it to the vet?

And what would be the point of taking it to the vet if the answer was something as simple as turning up the temps?

I was asking on here before i took it to the vet to have him/her say raise the temperature...

And that is what i have done and notice it has stopped sneezing and has a vicious appetite...

It would be like a person going to the doctor as soon as they had a runny nose, it is better to wait and see if it goes away by itself than to go straight onto anti-biotics...

 

[herptrader]

I am glad that your guy seems to be on the mend.

IMHO a breeder is an excellent first port of call if you suspect husbandry problems. To get many herps to breed you must have a fairly reasonable understanding of the husbandry.

One of the original ideas behind the Herp Trader was to get buyers in direct contact with the breeders. If the purchaser needs advice it is really good to be able to go back to the breeder. I have heard many horror stories relating to the advice given by pet shops.

 

[Gilleni]

Yes, thankyou herptrader.

The first person i went to was the breeder i got my monitor from, then i thought i'd ask another breeder of these animals, and anyone else who would like to help...

i got varying opinions but i will dicide what i think is best... by using the best of everyones info.

Oh Yeah, i didnt want to use a wall thermostat because i want something that is easy to connect and can be moved to another cage if needed. also i can't really fix a wall thermostat to glass...

 

[peterescue]

My reptile is sick, what should I do?
I'll ask a bunch of people what thermostat I should use.
I'll ask a breeder but I wont ask an animal health professional who specialises in herps.
Thats all I have to say. If that is bitchy, Yo bitch.
ps, the plastic tub still has drivel in it John, please clean it first next time.
I think I'll take a couple of weeks break from the site.

 

[freerider]

Wa,wa,wa the kid asked for help.. he got it.... get over it...sook

 

[Gilleni]

I didnt just ask what thermostat to use, i said any help would be appreciated, part of the question was about a thermostat.

I didnt say i wont take it to an animal health professional who specialises in herps. i asked breeders 1st because they would have more thn likely experienced this themselves... and can help me without using drugs.

I have raised the temps in the enclosure and the animal appears to be recovering. just proves there was no need for a vet...

And who said an animal health professional knows more about the captive husbandry requirements than a person who keeps, and breeds these animals successfully year after year???

 

[geckodan]

I didnt say i wont take it to an animal health professional who specialises in herps. i asked breeders 1st because they would have more thn likely experienced this themselves... and can help me without using drugs.

Many breeders have a wealth of experience and can be helpful. Many however are set in their ways and have been making the same mistakes for 20 years. The most dissapointing thing we see treating bird and reptiles is that breeders with 100's of animals often give advice based on that animal being a piece of livestock that is expendable. This advice is taken readily by an owner but to this owner the animal is a family member and is not expendable. As a vet we need to find out where the emotions stop and the business starts and then offer options based on this.

I have raised the temps in the enclosure and the animal appears to be recovering. just proves there was no need for a vet...

Don't go rubbing yours hands with glee just yet. You may have warmed up the animal and kicked in its immune system but you have also possibly warmed up a pathogen and sped up its rate of growth. Success will be determined by which organism is the fastest to respond.

And who said an animal health professional knows more about the captive husbandry requirements than a person who keeps, and breeds these animals successfully year after year???

My grandfather was an alcoholic for 30 years but new nothing about fine wine. The guy at the local bottle shop knows which wine to serve with witchetty grubs but can't hold his liquor at all. Advice is only as good as the person that provides it but it also has to be used appropriately. As a breeder I would certainly have advise you to warm the animal first. As a vet I would have warned you that this may not be the last you have seen of this and would have suggested a vet check in two weeks with a swab taken to determine if an infection exists and a culture run if a pathogen was present. There is no right or wrong, just dead or alive, guilty or not guilty and stupid or not stupid. Make your own choices but accept the consequences if you make the wrong one and learn from those mistakes. Off my soapbox now, its starting to crush under my increasing weight.

 

[Gilleni]

Thank you dan, your advice was a little worrying but it was also a hec of a lot more helpful than someone sayin take it to the vet you cheapskate or some of the other useless comments i have recieved....

Is there anything else you can suggest i do?

 

[geckodan]

Is there anything else you can suggest i do

Not much more. You can either sit and wait or be proactive and rule out nasties up front. If it were my animal and a trip to the vet was not an immediate option (remember I have to take my own animal to work to do diagnostics as well) I would be catching it out and checking its breathing daily. If it stresses when being caught and breathes a little heavy then off to the vet we go.

 

[Gilleni]

how much is the average vet checkup? NO, i dont ask this because i'm a cheapskate, before anyone says anything. just curious.

and what exactly would a vet do?

Thanks dan.

 

[Morelia_Hunter]

Do yourself a favour, buy the new reptiles magazine. The american one. they sell them at borders book stores. There is a whole article on the husbandry of the small monitors. Sure its not Australian but the americans know how to breed and keep Ozzie reptiles. Best $14 you will ever spend!!!

 

[stencorp69]

hey, I breed children, got two, if they get sick, I ask a doctor, not the nieghbours, who also breed them. Take it to a vet.
99%er

What are you a Mr Mum? - I bet you don't take them to the doctors, I bet your wife does and I bet she'd have talked to her girls friends or sisters or mum regarding the kids health many times before taking them directly to the docs - women are resourceful that way.

 

[geckodan]

how much is the average vet checkup? NO, i dont ask this because i'm a cheapskate, before anyone says anything. just curious.

and what exactly would a vet do?

Consultation charges vary between vets. Syndeys prices are almost double SEQld prices - as much as $80 a consult, we are $40. Some specialist vets include a basic barrage of tests within this price and that is why it is high, others charge only for what is needed.
If I was presented with this guy it would be $40 for a clinical exam (checkover, listen to lungs, take faecal swab and examine), $22.00 for a lung wash exam (small swab down the windpipe and a stain called a gram stain to determine what bugs are present), $28 for an in house culture if significant bacteria were found and then $30 or so for antibiotics depending on the result of the culture. Thats $60 + if its nothing serious and $120+ if it requires actual medication to save its life.

 

[Gilleni]

ok thanks, i'll be keeping a close eye on his breathing...