Hi Cindy, yes that drunk fella was right, listen to the animal.
And congrats for your accomplishments you are a strong person. I think they recovered because if they didn't you would do something bad to them. hahahahahahahaha
Just kidding.
Heres the point. Under the conditions your working in, your method works for what your doing. To a point. Your saving an animal under X conditions in X conditions.
If you change the conditions, that what your doing is now obsolete. Wouldn't it be better to keep them in conditions that totally prevented what your treating them for? of course the answer is yes. Under those conditions the method of recovery is also different. Get it?
Monitors perish for reasons, what damange is beyond repair? Normally its kidney function, followed by liver function. Neglect causes failure in those two areas, normally.
So its these two areas that need attention.
In most cases, its the kidneys that are in trouble. Dehydration is the cause. The question is, is there damage to the kidneys or not.
What is critical for these animals is hydration. They need to be hydrated, then it needs to be determined if there is organ damage.Individuals with organ damage are pretty much history, no ones going to do a transplant. hahahahahahaha
The ones without kidney damage, can be hydrated using any one of several methods. They will recover.
These animals are the ones that LOOK like they were neglecked, as they are emaciated, skinny, etc.
Heres where theres confusion, individuals with organ damage that is repairable(can heal) do not require food, that only stresses the organs more. They require fluids until the damage has healed. Electolytes etc a vet can determine the proper oourse here.
Liver damage, well this one is tuff, as these individuals do not look neglecked and die fat and happy(looking) So they normally are not rescued.
THis is normally caused by lack of heat, the individual never reaches full operating temps, therefore the it cannot process energy well. Its a really dumb comflict as many say OVERFEEDING, but its not overfeeding on all but very old individuals, Its lack of metabolism. WHich is directly controlled by HEAT.
In humans the thyroid is the cause of a slow metabolism. We have a constant body temp. In reptiles, you cannot determine if the animal is not at full operating temps. This always cracks me up, sorry Cindy, it does, You feed a reptile and big meal and it goes to heat. WHY????????????? What happens if it cannot get to that heat??????????????? Cindy, I am laughing but its true. What happens. And not A or Z what happens in the middle?
Liver damage can also be caused by drugs and trama(kidney too)
If there is liver damage, then feeding only further stresses that damage. AGain brief, but close
The point is, if kept is normal successful conditions, these rescues only need hydration, then they take off LIKE A ROCKET.
I am now going to offend someone, I don't know who, but I hope its not you. hahahahahahaha
But if kept in average conditions, these animals need to be nursed back to health. I am not sure if folks like that or feel needed when doing that. But there is something that some folks need. You know, to feel like you worked at something and accomplished something with that nursing. Which is great.
The problem is, with varanids, they are FAST, at everything they do, if kept in optimal captive conditions or what is normal for them in nature. They recover QUICKLY and do not require nursing, that is their design.
I know i am a bit naive, but I do have my experiences, and all are not good. Which most do not realize. hahahahahaha
A couple years back, I reduced my collection, or it reduced itself. A flood occurred. Well I hope thats when this happened.
Well, a year later, I was walking up to my building and heard something scratching in an old breeder cage I had taken outside. It had been outside in the sun for a summer, temps up the the hundred and teens. And all winter, temps down to the teens. No food or water, the top was intact. Well there was a pair of ackies in there. They were alive and dehydrated. Short story, they were back to full function in days. My good friend Nate was a witness we cannot believe they survived that.
I wish that was the end, but I also found two male gouldi types that had been in a indoor cage for a year, without food or water. They too were back in full function within HOURS.
The point of all this crapola is, its a whole different animal, if they are allowed to be in conditions they are designed for. That is a WIDE heat range. When in that heat range, they recover faster then they grow, which is like a rocket.
Once hydrated, they can consume and assimlate rodent and all normal foods, immediately, unless there is SERIOUS organ damage, and if thats the case, all the dogfood in the world is not going to help.
I could go on and on, you know I could, hahahahahaha. The point is, your do what you do in a realistic way, only you are doing it, with both hands tied behind your back. You have handicapped yourself. Then found the best way to go from there.
Get rid of that handicap and allow the full force and evolution of the animal to help you. If you did, you would find your rescues to be much easier and different.
Monitors in nature, are neglected, tortured, dehydrated, etc, by the millions, yearly, Nature is a cruel keeper, but they are designed to return to health QUICKLY as soon as conditions return to normal. All without our help or assistance. Sorry for going so long. Cheers
