Laurie's vet update

[warpdrive]

Hi everyone,

(I'm keeping this short as I have to make an icecreem sunday...the first in over a year. yes, I lost 55lbs, but hey, it's time to party)

so I went into the city on this windy day/evening.
I met a real nice vet, he was quite good and understood chams real well.
since we just met, he grilled me on many topics and made sure I understood just how to take care of a chameleon.

the first thing he did was try to reach into the box and get Laurie out...lol, she hissed at him and got all puffy.
I got her out by singing to her and sticking my finger into the box...up she came to her daddy with ease.

he put her on the scale and she is 10 grams.
he next opened her mouth, not sure what he was checking.
then took blood and took her fecal to cook in the back.
he then came back and checked her heart.

he then asked why I kept saying that she was dehydrated...
so I showed him all her poop photos.
with eyes wide open, he asked me how in the world did I get her urtes so white so fast...so after I told him he was like, ok, you know what you are doing. hehe

what I did find funny was how Laurie would puff up and get real mad at him each time he touched her, yet calmed down and her colors turned real nice once she was back in my hands.
it's like she already knows who daddy is and she was happy to be back in daddy's hands.

when everything was ready he told me she is in perfect health.
he even looked at her poop for over 20 mins and could not even find an egg of a parasite.
she is clean as a whistle.

so, what about her strange behavior?
well he thinks that since she was so dehydrated, the heat from the basking light, and the stress from shipping, must have gotten her over active to the point of acting crazy.
she has been fine since and it's like it never happened so what ever.

she is home now and is even active as I'm typing this so let's all hope for the best and you'll get more photos of her soon.

again, thanks all for the advice and well wishes.
bless you all.

Harry

 

[jannb]

Great news Harry!

 

[laurie]

Trust me Harry, with a name like Laurie she was destined to be tough. I an very happy for you that she is perfect just like Daddy wanted his little girl to be.

 

[Lovereps]

Harry, that's great news!
I've been following Laurie's story each day.
Keeping a vet appt in NYC during the height of rush hour--now that's what I call love
How did you keep her warm for the ride in?
Today was rather chilly.
Your devotion really paid-off.
Congrats!
I'm looking forward to your baby's next pics!

 

[warpdrive]

Harry, that's great news!
I've been following Laurie's story each day.
Keeping a vet appt in NYC during the height of rush hour--now that's what I call love

...and I just sold my car, so I took public trasportation for the first time in years.
a 15 min bus ride to the subway, then the B train to 88th and columbus ave.

How did you keep her warm for the ride in?
Today was rather chilly.

sadly, I was totaly unprepared as I couldn't find any heatpacks near me.
(and it seems that it's too early for my local 7-11 to have hand warmers yet)
no kmarts or walmarts near me in Sheepshead bay, so this is what I did...

I used the insulated box that Laurie came in, wedged a twig inside it for her to rest on, then soaked two hand towels with ultra hot water-wringed them out-then put them in a plastic bag-folded up the bag so the heat stays in longer-added the home made heat pack to Laurie's box, then after closing the box I covered it with a sweatshirt so the outside of the box stays warm while I wait for the bus and train.

Your devotion really paid-off.
Congrats!
I'm looking forward to your baby's next pics!

my worst fear was that she had coccidia and/or pinworms.
if the parasites don't hurt her badly, the meds might do almost as much harm as good.
breeding plans for her in the future might even have to be put off forever, and care could cost me a fortune.

I also worried about her kidney and liver for the same reasons.
thankfully, the vet worked his butt off and cleared her of thoes issues.
I was also told that if I didn't do such a good job with hydrating her that she would have clearly died from kidney failer within two weeks...not sure how true this is, but it sounds about right.

he also told me to keep feeding her silkies at about 50% of her diet and add the smallest butters I can get my hands on if I can as they both have a ton of moisture in them. thankfully, she loves silkies so much that half the time she shoots them before I even place them slowly on a leaf in front of her...and I got tons of silkies for just her size.
sadly even my smallest butters are too big for her.

now for the hard part, regaining her trust...I'm sure a silkie or two might help with that.

--------------------------

...and yes Laurie, she is tough just like you.
I thought she was going to bite the vets fingers at least twice for sticking her with a needle and checking her heartrate. the hissing she gave him was so funny.
I never saw her so angry before...I know she wanted to kill him, it was in her eyes!

---------------------------

Jannb,

what can I say but thank you for keeping a close eye on Laurie's condition.
you are a kind soul that deserves all the best life has to offer.

bless you and yours...Luie and his girlfreind too (forgot her name...I'm so bad. )

Harry

 

[whitespyder]

im very happy for you that everything is ok with laurie! what a scary experience, im glad she pulled through all that and you did the right things to get her better.

 

[CleaTheChameleon]

Harry, you are a true caring chameleon owner I am really happy to see the final outcome of the ups and downs that Laurie had. I wish you and her best of luck and keep us updated with pictures as she grows

 

[Miss Lily]

Oh, Harry! That is SUCH good news! Yay for Laurie (and you too)! The only time Lily ever got mad and gaped at anyone was at the vets, lol! That is so cute the way Laurie got her happy colours when the vet handed her back! They really do know who loves them, don't they?! She sounds like such a l'il sweetie! Thank goodness she came to live with you - a first time keeper may not have realised the seriousness of her condition. Now she can look forward to a long and happy life with you and Splat! Congrats to all of you! Tiff x

 

[hallenhe]

What a relief! It's a shame you had to go through all that last week, but very good to know you've been able to turn her around.
(I don't know what they're looking for when they look in the chameleon's mouth either, but they always do. The way Thaxter opens his mouth sometimes, you could probably see the whole digestive tract and out the other end!)

 

[Pure]

That's great news Harry.

I also worried about her kidney and liver for the same reasons.
thankfully, the vet worked his butt off and cleared her of those issues.
I was also told that if I didn't do such a good job with hydrating her that she would have clearly died from kidney failer within two weeks...not sure how true this is, but it sounds about right.

So the tests results from the blood work came back already? damn that's fast. It takes them at least a day to get the results back from my personal creatinine (kidney function) tests, and that's with a "stat" status on the tests. Usually it's 2-3 days.

Or do you know if he is testing liver and kidney function via the blood tests? In humans, blood is the easiest way to tell kidney function. The other way involves urinating in a container for 24 hours. Don't think that would work the same way with a cham (the container method), not to mention even those test results take 2-3 days to come back.

He does sound like a very good chameleon vet, but the information you gave around these (IMO one of the most important issues at hand) possible issues is a little vague.

Still really glad to hear he is giving her a clean bill of health. Make sure you get a second fecal in a couple of weeks to confirm the first "clean" reading.

 

[hallenhe]

So the tests results from the blood work came back already? damn that's fast. It takes them at least a day to get the results back from my personal creatinine (kidney function) tests, and that's with a "stat" status on the tests. Usually it's 2-3 days.

My vet has a lab on-site, and generally comes back about 20 minutes after returning the lizard to me with the results; also commonly checks kidney and liver function somehow in those labs.
And, yes, my own physician draws blood and I get results two days (rarely one day) later - but I know they send off-site to a centralized lab.
It often seems vets can provide better, quicker care than physicians.

 

[warpdrive]

Pure,

hmmmm, he did take almost a half hour before speaking to me about the fecal and the bloodwork.
sorry, I wasn't in the back with him and anyone else who might have been there to be watching to see what is going on.

Harry

 

[Pure]

I'm very impressed that they have their own lab to do said tests. Yeah my tests I'm talking about are sent out to a centralized lab.

Harry, I would at the very least double check his source for finding out if the functions are ok. Specifically ask about creatinine (cree-at-nin) levels in the blood. Just a phone call would get you what you are looking for.

I'm not meaning to sound as if I'm doubting this vet, because I'm not. But there are certain things I would ask with the issues this young lady has shown, and these are primarily those questions.

Does he have an on-site lab, and did he check her creatinine? The second is more just to make sure his lab has this ability.