What would you do, if anything at all?

littlevillage

littlevillage

New Member
I have recently started working at a pet store. For most of their animals (rabbits, mice, hamster )they go through local breeder, but not their reptiles. Sometimes they take in some animals that are given to them because the owners no longer want them & resell them. Anyway, they have this female, adult veiled that has a pretty serious case of MBD. Obviously, they don't have her in the window for sale because of her condition, but she's also not getting any better. It's extremely sad to see! I don't think she has been to the vet for any professional care which she desperately needs. I feel so sorry for her & I want to help her but I'm not sure how or what I should do. So, I turn to you all....What would you do if anything at all?
 
I understand your problem. I work at a pet store and a woman dumped a 6 month old cham with the same problem. I adopted him and have been caring for him at home. Personally I would either talk to them about getting her to a vet or taking her, but thats me.
 
Offer to adopt her. Just tell them they didn't pay anything for her and you can get her healthy. Otherwise it's animal cruelty.
 
I don't know the owner very well yet, but I don't think he'll let me have her for free. They normally sell the adults for atleast $100 in my area. I thought about offering him a little bit of money for her, how much do you think I should offer?
 
krug1313 said:
Offer to adopt her. Just tell them they didn't pay anything for her and you can get her healthy. Otherwise it's animal cruelty.
Click to expand...

I agree, it is animal cruelty. When they took her in it became their responsability to care for her. I feel so bad for her...she's stuck in a 10 gallon tank sitting on the floor.:(
 
I would talk to him politely and ask him how much he would be willing to sell her for and if its more than you want to pay try to talk him down. Since he will never get full price for her and he will have vet costs on her, etc.
 
If the animal obviously has MBD and it is not getting better, the bills that you will incur bringing it back to health will be substantial. Which im sure the owner knows, and is probably part of the reason the animal hasn't gotten help. He didn't pay for it, he would be out nothing if it died. Even if it lives, it will be deformed and unable to be sold for $100. I can't see any reason to offer money for it, atleast no more than the price of the crickets hes fed it. Your looking at prolly $150+ for your first visit to the vet, explain that to him, and the fact that it NEEDS help.
 
I hate to say this but i would not take it for a couple of reasons but the main one being is if they make any money at all they will just do it again and again and again. I work with a couple of large pet stores near me and if someone tells them that the animal is very ill, and i have, they have been really good at listening and taking care of it. They also usually bring it to the vet as well. Maybe u should start with that approach. Tell them that you are pretty familiar with chams and that you know it has MBD, tell them how much it will probably cost to fix if it is fixable at all, also tell them that it should NEVER be kept in a glass cage or on the floor. I'm not suggesting you take a chance on losing your job, just tell them matter-of-factly. This is the situation and this is the solution. You are willing to take them of their hands if they will let you ADOPT him. You will save them alot of money in vet bills and alot of bad press once the public sees how bad he looks. People might not know what MBD is but they know when an animal looks ill and it doesn't put the store in a very good light for having it there and not taking the proper care of it. Of course if they are the type that just doesn't give a sh..... then i would say don't take it. I would hate to see the poor thing suffer but by letting them make any money off of it only encourages them to continue doing it. I'm sorry if people don't agree with this but it is only my opinion and as long as they continue to make money there is no reason for them to stop doing it.

Debby
 
I haven't really decided yet. I didn't have to work today but had to stop down there to get some supplies. While I was there I casually said something to the owner about what they were going to do with her. He just said to me as he was walking away that he just put a stronger uvb bulb on her. That was the extent of the conversation. I have no idea if they dust the crickets or not.
It's sad because she needs more than that. She needs a vet, a proper cage, a varied diet, and a lot of TLC. Not to mention that she is a female, what if she needs to lay eggs? Where is she going to bury them? That's if she even can in her poor condition.
I'm totally torn about the whole thing. I know that she'll never be right & that's not one of the things that is stopping me. What I do have a problem with is all the money it's going to cost me. It would be a big chunk of change out of my pocket with the vet bills. Especially when I just spent money on my jackson & his cage & lights.
We'll see what tomorrow brings when I go back to work.
 
You don't think there is any way that they will bring her to the vets? It's a tough decision and i apologize if i sounded kinda tiffy yesterday, but like i said if they do make money off of her, they will only do it again. But i can certainly see how torn up you are about the whole situation. I read an article a long time ago about the exact same thing. I will try to find it for you and post if before you go to work. No promises it is already late but i will try my best.

Debby
 
If you can't take her & dish out the money for the vet bills what I would do is try to see if there are any reptile rescue's that takes chams in your area.

Since the manager or whoever will give her to you for free, I would take it from the manager & give it to the rescue center.
 
Ooops, sorry. I didn't see the part where you said he WONT give it to you for free.

See if you can contact a reptile rescue center since they deal with these things all the time & see what they say...
 
Oh, and if her MBD is pretty serious, then time is of the essence.

Call PETA.. :D j/k
 
Last edited:
Well, it's been a while & they still haven't done anything with this poor cham. I finally got up the nerve to ask about it & I'll find out tomorrow if they're going to give him to me. Hopefully they will. I can't stand to see it suffer any longer.
Now the question is....what do I do with him if I do get him? Obviously the first thing would be a vet visit. But after that, what would be the best way to care for him. As of right now, he can not climb, so should I put the cage on it's side so he'll have more room? Any other suggestions on the matter of getting him back to the best possible condition? I know that probably one of the best things for him is natural sunshine, but I live in upstate NY, where the weather is unpredictable, but I'll do what I can. He is a good eater & surprisingly not dehydrated. I think he has learned to drink from a water bowl. In his cage right now he has a dripper that drips straight down into a bowl. It does not drip on any leaves. He has one fake plant in the corner, but I don't think he gets misted that often. Plus, as you probably all know, fake plants don't hold water on the leaves like real ones do.
I believe I posted before as it being a female because that's what I was told, it's a male. I looked closer & seen the spurs. You would never know it was a male by it's casque because it's so deformed. Poor thing!:(
 
Well a vet is number one. The vet may or may not give a calcium injection (i fortunately have never had to deal with MBD). A good UVB light is essential. I know about sporadic weather, I am from MI, but get him in the sun as much as possible. If the poor guy can't even walk then I think a cage on it's side should work fine. I hope your boss hands him over to you, and if so I hope it's not too late for the little guy. Keep us updated and good luck!!
 
Glad to hear you may be getting him. Start him with low plants with lots of vines. Charlies are good for this and are easier to climb while he builds his strength up. Mine was put on pure calcium every day. If you can take him outside on good days for as long as you can, mine will sit on my shoulder for this, he has an easier time climbing tee shirts. Just get him on a good diet with the right conditions and be patient. Let us know what happens.
 
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