"real" ig vets

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Iguana & Water Dragon Forum ] [ FAQ ]

Posted by Katherine on April 22, 2000 at 15:17:35:

In Reply to: why we rant on about getting a *REAL IG-VET* .... posted by iZ's mom on April 22, 2000 at 00:13:04:

: iZ is about 4yo, i got him when he was about 1yo ... i fall head over heels for him the instant i held him and he pressed his cold little head into my neck + whispered "take me home!" ... he'd had a pretty rough start in life as far as husbandry goes but he was never fed animal protein at all ...

: his kidney problems are due to an undetected, low-grade, long-term bacterial infection ... since it was undectected, it went untreated for who knows how long (possibly a year!)until it caused kidney damage ... he showed no symtoms until about a month before he ended up critically ill + in emergency surgery ...

: preventable??? yeah, i think this could have been prevented ... i believe that if i had had a *real ig-vet* from the start, the infection wouldn't have been undetected for so long and/or the renal problems would have been diagnosed sooner before that were so critical as to be life-threatening ...

: in 3 yrs, we had been to *7* vets, 6 of whom claimed to "know iguanas" ... the 7th was up-front about not being very knowledgeable about igs *but* he was also the only one up to that point that knew how to handle iZ and was *good* with him ... in his office, iZ didn't turn white as a ghost, he stayed his happy/dark color ... Dr. C saved iZ's tail from being amputated when he broke it ... which also could be when the infection started, tho we put iZ on Baytril, it possibly wasn't for a long enough time ... )

: it was the *8th* vet that saved iZ and is the one true ig-vet i've met (+ iZ likes him too!) ... have discovered the key question in looking for a vet is "have you done any ig surgeries?? + what is your success rate???" someone who can successfully do surgery on an ig is, in my book, a *real* ig-vet ... any fool can spout off about husbandry issues ... (hey, i do it all the time ...) ... it's not an indication that they know anything at all about ig health/illnesses ...

: another biggie as far as i'm concerned is blood draws ... a *real* ig-vet will get down on their knees to draw blood from the tail, get it the first poke and be done in 10 seconds flat ... oh geesh ... i gotta stop or i'm gonna go off on a tirade about the asinine so-called vets i've seen over the years ... *sigh*

: my whole point is ... proper housing and food isn't enough ... you *HAVE* to find a good ig-vet *BEFORE* you find you need one ... it's really hard to do in some areas + some of us give up too soon ... *DON'T!*

My boss, a vet who claims to "know" igs, couldn't answer me when I asked how long iguanas live (I knew the answer, was just testing him). However, he does ig surgeries, and all but one that I know about lived (this was an egg-bound female, was in terrible shape, was probably dying when she was brought to us). So ig surgery success rate, while important, may hide the vet's true ignorance if he/she is lucky.

And yes, I take my ig to a real ig vet. Just don't tell my boss. ;)

Follow Ups:

excellent point! .... (more) iZ's mom 04/22/00 (1)
- Re: excellent point! .... (more) Katherine 04/23/00 (0)

Post a Followup

Name:
E-Mail:

Subject:

Comments:
: : iZ is about 4yo, i got him when he was about 1yo ... i fall head over heels for him the instant i held him and he pressed his cold little head into my neck + whispered "take me home!" ... he'd had a pretty rough start in life as far as husbandry goes but he was never fed animal protein at all ... : : his kidney problems are due to an undetected, low-grade, long-term bacterial infection ... since it was undectected, it went untreated for who knows how long (possibly a year!)until it caused kidney damage ... he showed no symtoms until about a month before he ended up critically ill + in emergency surgery ... : : preventable??? yeah, i think this could have been prevented ... i believe that if i had had a *real ig-vet* from the start, the infection wouldn't have been undetected for so long and/or the renal problems would have been diagnosed sooner before that were so critical as to be life-threatening ... : : in 3 yrs, we had been to *7* vets, 6 of whom claimed to "know iguanas" ... the 7th was up-front about not being very knowledgeable about igs *but* he was also the only one up to that point that knew how to handle iZ and was *good* with him ... in his office, iZ didn't turn white as a ghost, he stayed his happy/dark color ... Dr. C saved iZ's tail from being amputated when he broke it ... which also could be when the infection started, tho we put iZ on Baytril, it possibly wasn't for a long enough time ... ) : : it was the *8th* vet that saved iZ and is the one true ig-vet i've met (+ iZ likes him too!) ... have discovered the key question in looking for a vet is "have you done any ig surgeries?? + what is your success rate???" someone who can successfully do surgery on an ig is, in my book, a *real* ig-vet ... any fool can spout off about husbandry issues ... (hey, i do it all the time ...) ... it's not an indication that they know anything at all about ig health/illnesses ... : : another biggie as far as i'm concerned is blood draws ... a *real* ig-vet will get down on their knees to draw blood from the tail, get it the first poke and be done in 10 seconds flat ... oh geesh ... i gotta stop or i'm gonna go off on a tirade about the asinine so-called vets i've seen over the years ... *sigh* : : my whole point is ... proper housing and food isn't enough ... you *HAVE* to find a good ig-vet *BEFORE* you find you need one ... it's really hard to do in some areas + some of us give up too soon ... *DON'T!* : My boss, a vet who claims to "know" igs, couldn't answer me when I asked how long iguanas live (I knew the answer, was just testing him). However, he does ig surgeries, and all but one that I know about lived (this was an egg-bound female, was in terrible shape, was probably dying when she was brought to us). So ig surgery success rate, while important, may hide the vet's true ignorance if he/she is lucky. : And yes, I take my ig to a real ig vet. Just don't tell my boss. ;)

Optional Link URL:
Link Title:
Optional Image URL:

[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ The Iguana & Water Dragon Forum ] [ FAQ ]