Finding a new vet seems very difficult. I should stick to the ARAV list, right? The closest one is at least an hour's drive, and when i look it up online, all these people are saying bad things about the place. I don't know, I'll keep looking, but it doesn't look good. It seems like I'd be better off going back to the place I went before. How will I know if it gets to a point beyond return?
Is my vet trustworthy?
- Thread starter lvke33
- Start date
Texas Panther Man
New Member
As long as he still has fight left in him i would keep trying to save him. His mouth doesnt look that bad in the pics i'm seeing. Ive seen worse looking infections and they pulled through. I would try to find a vet that saw exotics/reptiles. I know thats no help. A great place to look is your local herp society. They can give you a list of local vets that see reptiles often. If you dont know the name of local herp society often times you can call your local zoo. Our herp society meets at the Houston Zoo. Thats how i found my old vet, unfortunately he is now head vet for san antonios zoo. Or if you are near a university that has a veterinary program that can be a good place to go for vet assistance. They keep up w all the new treatments and often it is cheaper too.
draetish
Avid Member
Have you looked online in the yellow pages in your area? You have info to print to take with you that I posted right? Okay, go back to the same vet and see what he recommends and if it is not what the article says, show it to him and discuss. Your cham is in trouble and needs help asap. Don't let the vet rush you out, ask a lot of questions. Read what I posted so you have knowledge.
It looks like a temporal gland infection....and if its not cleaned out properly and a culture and sensitivity test done and the chameleon put on the appropriate antibiotic, it will keep coming back/continue to get worse.
There is an article on the net about this....complete with pictures...but I can't find it right now. It would show the vet what to do.
There is an article on the net about this....complete with pictures...but I can't find it right now. It would show the vet what to do.
Elizadolots
New Member
Here’s one that discusses it and has pictures, but I don’t think it’s a great explanation of what the process is:
http://www.chameleonnews.com/?page=article&id=103
Here’s a vet report on a successful procedure:
http://www.kirkmanareavet.com/Johnstonii.html
Here’s an old post (another board, I think) by someone who I believe posts here:
http://www.reptileforums.com/forums/archive/index.php?t-24790.html
and, yet another….
http://www.reptileforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24634
http://www.chameleonnews.com/?page=article&id=103
Here’s a vet report on a successful procedure:
http://www.kirkmanareavet.com/Johnstonii.html
Here’s an old post (another board, I think) by someone who I believe posts here:
http://www.reptileforums.com/forums/archive/index.php?t-24790.html
and, yet another….
http://www.reptileforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24634
OK, so I decided that I have to go back to the same vet. Since I was looking elsewhere I missed my chance to call today. I'll have to call tomorrow and hope for an afternoon appointment, otherwise it's gonna be Monday. Hopefully that information will help. I just swabbed some loose crud out of his mouth and it's bled a little bit. gave him a long warm shower. Reading some of the other experiences that people have had with this, it seems like this kind of thing is just the beginning of the end. They seem to recover for a while, then come down with something else or the same thing all over again. Like the guy who had to keep pulling the tongue out of the chameleon's stomach and consider amputating it, just for the chameleon to eventually lose his tongue anyway. It comes to a point where you have to ask yourself, is it really worth it to be spending all this money just to keep your chameleon alive, while all the while he is still suffering? Anyway, I'm not giving up on this guy just yet, but I would rather see a chameleon live a short, sweet life than a long and painful one. So, if after this next visit a solution is not found and/or he doesn't seem to have great improvement, I'll have to consider euthanizing. I read in a chameleon book that you have to wrap them in a towel and put them in the freezer, that the chameleon would feel no pain, just go into a sort of hibernation sleep mode that they never come out of. Is this true? I don't even like to think about it, but if it is a necessity then I will do it.
gpmo
New Member
hi,
I am sorry you and your Cham are having a rough time!
On the subject of euthanasia, putting them in the freezer is no longer considered a humane method of euthanasia. The American Veterinary Medical Association as well as the AARV and the Zoo Veterinary societies in the US recommend anesthesia (knocking them out like you would for surgery) followed by injection of euthanasia solution (an overdose of an anesthetic) , commonly directly into the heart. I have assisted with this procedure in both reptiles and small mammals, it is not painful for the animal and is accomplished very quickly.
Sending good thoughts your way for your cham's appointment, hope all goes well!
I am sorry you and your Cham are having a rough time!
On the subject of euthanasia, putting them in the freezer is no longer considered a humane method of euthanasia. The American Veterinary Medical Association as well as the AARV and the Zoo Veterinary societies in the US recommend anesthesia (knocking them out like you would for surgery) followed by injection of euthanasia solution (an overdose of an anesthetic) , commonly directly into the heart. I have assisted with this procedure in both reptiles and small mammals, it is not painful for the animal and is accomplished very quickly.
Sending good thoughts your way for your cham's appointment, hope all goes well!
Elizadolots
New Member
kinyonga, any idea how we can find the article with good treatment you mentioned? Or, did I accidentally find it already?
Also, even if this is "the first step down" I don't think it's automatically time for euthanasia. As long as the chameleon can be brought back to a state of comfort and functionality, even if it's not going to last for years, it seems worthwhile to have that time with your animal.
Obviously, this is a decision every pet owner has to make for themselves, but I've taken non-reptiles down some pretty long and difficult roads to the end and it's been worth it.
Also, even if this is "the first step down" I don't think it's automatically time for euthanasia. As long as the chameleon can be brought back to a state of comfort and functionality, even if it's not going to last for years, it seems worthwhile to have that time with your animal.
Obviously, this is a decision every pet owner has to make for themselves, but I've taken non-reptiles down some pretty long and difficult roads to the end and it's been worth it.
OK, here is the update. I went back to the vet yesterday,showed him the information that I printed out, and I paid almost 70 dollars for a culture test. He gave my chameleon a dose of Baytril and gave me five more doses for once a day. He had advised me not to spend the money on a culture test but I said I wanted it anyway. If I don't see improvement in the first 72 hours then its not working. The culture and sensitivity test results are going to take about 7 days to come back. He said if this drug doesn't work then there's not much else to try after that. Anyway, thanks for all the help you guys!
kinyonga, When I brought the chameleon back in he started to basically do what he did the first time, with his tweezer things or whatever you would call them. I pointed out how the paper said it should be surgically drained. He said "that's what I'm doing right now, it's not really a surgery" something along those lines. He told me that I could run cotton swabs with iodine along the gum line after cleaning out crust or dead tissue. I wasn't really sure that was a good thing to use so I said what about that clorhexadrine stuff, he said yea you could but I would use iodine. So should I use some of it? I would think that its safe if the doctor says it is but sometimes you never know. It's been less than 48 hours since his first dose of Baytril , but I think I see some signs of improvement. It looks like he can at least close his mouth more now, before it was kinda hanging open. All I can do is wait and see.
I would bring him back to the same vet. He may have been trying the least costly method for you to solve the issue. I would hope he would now up the treatment to include antibiotics and whatever else is needed to solve the problem. What other choise do you really have? Diagnosing a problem is not always cut and dried. Do it soon as these animals are very fragile and difficult to care for even when healthy. And ASK QUESTIONS of the vet. What do do next if this dosen't work, what does the medication exactly do, should you force feed more food? Have him weigh him to get a baseline for if he's gaining or loseing weight. Good luck.
It sounds like the vet did clean it out...I would do what he/she said to do and hope all goes well this time. If it starts looking worse, then it will have to be dealt with again. Mouth/temporal gland infections often contain pseudomonas and its not the easiest bacteria to get rid of.
