I haven't been here in a while. Some time ago I had posted about
finding hookworms in my breeding colony. I got so much useful
information that helped my vet and I come to a conclusion. I ended
up loosing one male and a very old female (my very first beardie)
in the end. The results of the last two fecals showed no more, so
hopefully we have it beat.
1 -Here is my question though... I manage a pet store that is inside
a 7 doctor vet clinic...and have gotten the stores bulk crickets
from Flukers for years. Well since my episode, my
herp vet has seen 4 more herps with hookworms, the first in his four
years at the hospital. Two of these herps had never been fed any
animal prey such as pinkies. I have read that hooks can come in
on unwashed greens, but became very wary of our crickets. The
vet seems to think crickets can not carry hooks. I on the other
hand disagree and swear I read somewhere that they can. Since
he won't test a cricket, I took precautionary measures and began
ordering our crickets from elsewhere. Does anyone have any info
on crickets as hook vectors??
2 - I had a baby take a dive off his low branch into his water
dish while in hot pursuit of a cricket. He didn't right himself
immediately, and sorta struggled, so I reached in to pick him up
and his back legs are paralyzed. I immediately think calcium
problem, seperate him out in a hospital tank and give him some
calcium and a bright UV lamp right on him. He quickly ate a dusted
cricket for me as well. I know he hasn't ingested a large food
item. I am very careful about what size crickets my babes get. So
after being in the hospital tank for about 30 minutes, which he isn't
liking one bit I might add, he seems to be using his back legs a
little more now. But, now I can see a knot on his back above his
back legs. Probably from the fall. If it is an injury, if I keep
him "hospitalized" is there hope that after the swelling and
initial shock of the fall subsides, he will straighten out??
I am having a very bad dragon year!!!! ):
