vets knowledge questionable?

[lewboo2]

ok so i popped into a vets that has been recommended to me by another reptile keeper today to arrange a check up for my cham as he hasnt had one while being in my care yet.
the thing that got me thinking abit was when i asked the girl on the desk, what the vet thought could be making my cham to make a popping noise every so often. im pretty sure its respritory, thats why i arranged a check up but the vets response was " have you tried misting your cham for a while to see if that helps.....", to which i repied that i have to mist my cham 3 times a day for at least 3 mins as it is. i mean the way she told me that it was as if i didnt have to mist my cham already and my thoughts were that anyone with a decent knowledge of chams should really know that already right?
what do people think?
thanks

 

[Chamero]

Honestly, my whole thing about the vets is that it is to hard for them to diagnose solely based on seeing a cham. I mean on here, we supply pictures of setups and that very helpful questionare.
Most cham problems originate because of insufficient husbandry. Therefore, I think its nearly impossible for a vet to properly diagnose the initial problem without seeing your setup.
To everyone seeing a vet, try bringing in a pic of your setup and the filled out questionare we use. I just know when my cham was sick, the vet said he looked fine, which he did. I too felt that the vet played me wrong, but after realizing that he couldn't see my setup, he was just going of the cham, which was correct. Anyway, the problem was with my UVB placement and was only noticed by an experienced keeper who actually visited me to check out the setup. (much appreciated, you know who you are )
Bottom line, the vets know more and have seen more, but just need to be given more info when you visit. Pics of cage, live cham, and filled out questionare...ect...

 

[sandrachameleon]

My initial vet visits always included her asking lengthy questions about my husbandry. She doesnt ask anymore, since she now understands how mine are housed, fed, watered etc. But any vet who doesnt ask lots of husbandry questions at the first visits is probably not going to do a good job of helping you solve problems. A vet should not assume that someone knows about ways to provide water and humidity, because unfortunately many people do NOT know how to properly care for their chameleon.

 

[lewboo2]

thanks for the responses. I never really thought of it that way to be honest but now i can understand why i got the response i did.
just to add to the topic, say i'm right in thinking that my chams popping noise is respritory, what are the causes of a cham getting respritory problems? as i thought my husbandry was ok. are high humidity and low ventilation causes?
thanks again

 

[dodolah]

thanks for the responses. I never really thought of it that way to be honest but now i can understand why i got the response i did.
just to add to the topic, say i'm right in thinking that my chams popping noise is respritory, what are the causes of a cham getting respritory problems? as i thought my husbandry was ok. are high humidity and low ventilation causes?
thanks again

as far as i know there are 2 main causes (among others):
not enough humidity and too much stagnant humidity (low ventilation).

Off course, you will need to go to the vet to determine what kind of infection (fungal, bacterial, etc) he got.
Then, specific antibiotic can be prescribed.

 

[lewboo2]

hmm shouldnt be a problem there, the appointments tomorrow anyway so i shall know for sure whats up
thanks

 

[lewboo2]

the thread titles abit misleading to this subject now but this is just an update
took him to the vets tonight for his first checkup in my care and she was a great help, apart from looking very healthy she too noticed the very definite popping noise and very slight mucus and gave him a dose of Convenia (Cephalospoein antibiotic) that lasts for 14 days.
also had worm treatment which is what she does with all her patients apparently this was due to his pale colouration which i explained his base colour is supposed to be almost pure white due to his locale but at least i know hes up to date now!
also need to drop a fecal sample in to her, guessing thats just for a parasitic test?

Lew

 

[kinyonga]

RI's can be caused by cool drafts...especially when the chameleon is still wet too.

 

[Dave Weldon]

Honestly, my whole thing about the vets is that it is to hard for them to diagnose solely based on seeing a cham. I mean on here, we supply pictures of setups and that very helpful questionare.

Most cham problems originate because of insufficient husbandry. Therefore, I think its nearly impossible for a vet to properly diagnose the initial problem without seeing your setup.

To everyone seeing a vet, try bringing in a pic of your setup and the filled out questionare we use...

Bottom line, the vets know more and have seen more, but just need to be given more info when you visit. Pics of cage, live cham, and filled out questionare...ect...

Howdy Seth,

Well said . With a little bit of tuning, the original "How To Ask For Help" link could be made into a 2nd "Sticky" called the "Vet Pre-Visit Worksheet". Any volunteers for a little bit of wordsmithing?

 

[lewboo2]

kinyonga, the bit you said about the cool drafts and cham still being wet, i let my enclosure fully dry out between each misting could the fact that im having a dripper system running all day be letting this part of my husbandry down?