Reptile & Amphibian Forums

well im thinking about bringing my dragons to the vet for a full check up along with some fecals, but i always feel bad when i bring them because my vet handles them so roughly! hes one of the most recommended herp vet around, but he like squeezes my drags, and i feel so bad for the dragons, i just look away. And then it makes me wonder if Ralphie and them (the dragons) get mad at me, thinking it was me that was squeezing them or something. And the vet like grabs the beard and puulllls it down to see in the mouth, and Ralph gets pissed (bit the vet once, ooh i just started cracking up laughing, damn guy deserved it!) but like, he turns him upside down and aaahhhhh! i feel so bad! does any one elses vet do this? or should i look around for another vet? (im not sure if there IS another herp vet around me...) Ive only brought Ralph in for a full body checkup, but i have 2 others i want to bring in (one of them i tihnk might be eggbound with infertile eggs,..,..uh oh ) but yea....thanks for the input
-----
~David - KDRKreatures
My Main Herps-
1.2 Bearded dragons (Ralph, Artemis, Cheech)
1.0 Veiled Chameleon (Chiquito)
1.0 Ringneck Snake (Striker)
1.1 Eastern Box Turtles (Athena and Mercury)

KDRKreatures-Home Page
My Email

Hmm, toughie. You could ask the vet to be gentler with your dragons or hold them yourself, moving and tipping it as required so the vet can examine the areas he wants to check ou.

Yeah Dave, I think vets have a nack at pissin off the dragons. Mine talked to me for about 10 min. holding my dragon upside down. I said buddy how about turning that dragon the right way, can't you see he's buggin out.lol. The looking in the mouth is a needed exam though, and greatly out weighs the uncomfort of the dragon. Just checking for mouth rot, and any abnormal absecces (sp?)and any abnormal coloring. If you just want a fecal sample just bring in a sample and not the dragon, but if you want an overall exam then the dragon has to go. Good luck. And any problems found early can be treated much faster, so somtimes a little discomfort is needed for a healthy dragon.

My vet is very gentle, and he lets me hold the dragons for most things. He is a little rough about opening their mouths, but they haven't been injured so far. A egg-bound female is not something you should wait on, I lost a chinese water dragon that way.
-----

np
-----
~David - KDRKreatures
My Main Herps-
1.2 Bearded dragons (Ralph, Artemis, Cheech)
1.0 Veiled Chameleon (Chiquito)
1.0 Ringneck Snake (Striker)
1.1 Eastern Box Turtles (Athena and Mercury)

KDRKreatures-Home Page
My Email

i know mine dont like it, but everything they do is really quite necessary, none of my animals like the vet, my poor horse gets an arm stuck in his bottom up to the shoulder, so ya know why he turns and runs when he sees the vets car coming up the driveway, gets a big metal thing that looks like its from the movie hellraiser in his mouth when we float his teeth and gets red hot shoes pressed onto his feet every 6 weeks (this doesnt hurt him), all these things either make him crazy nervous or cause some discomfort but hes better for it in the long run. Now i know hes not a dragon but it still applies, Vet visits tend not to be the most pleasant of things for any animal, given, there isnt a need for undue roughness. Your animals will be much healthier and happier in the long run for those few mins of discomfort =) remember also , we tend to coddle our animals quite a bit, they are a lot tougher then we give them credit for.

np
-----
~David - KDRKreatures
My Main Herps-
1.2 Bearded dragons (Ralph, Artemis, Cheech)
1.0 Veiled Chameleon (Chiquito)
1.0 Ringneck Snake (Striker)
1.1 Eastern Box Turtles (Athena and Mercury)

KDRKreatures-Home Page
My Email