|
Information
Clusters
Search
This Site
Species:
Amphibians
Chelonians
Crocodilians
Cyclura
Green
Iguanas
Invertebrates
Lizards
Snakes
Herp Care
& Keeping:
Behavior
Captivity Issues
Clean/Disinfect
Conservation
Education
Emergency Preparedness
Food/Feeding
General Herpetology
Health
Humor
Pet Trade
Plants
Prey
Resources
For Kids
Parents & Teachers
Societies/Rescues
Using the Internet
Veterinarians
Zoonoses
Help
Support This Site
About
Melissa Kaplan
by Melissa Kaplan
Advance
Care Directives
Chronic
Neuroimmune Diseases
Lyme Disease & Coinfections
Blogs:
Lizards-in-Scarves
|
The
following statement may appear obvious, but given the number of people who post
questions on email lists, message boards and by personal email, it bears repeating:
If your herp is bleeding from a wound or internally (bloody
vomit, or blood in the feces or urates), paralyzed, or has abnormal swellings
on any part of its body, or may have a broken bone or shell, or has ingested a
potentially toxic substance, do not post a message or send an email: get
your pet to a herp vet right away. While
many of the following articles appear, at first glance, to be about green iguanas,
the fact is that other types of lizards - and other reptiles - may experience
the same or similar health problems. If you are looking for information for your
reptile, don't skip a title here, or close an article without reading, just because
it has the word "iguana" in it. One
last word before I leave you to browse the rest of this page...
One of
the most upsetting category of email and posts I read are from people whose pets
clearly need veterinary care--often urgently so--but the people won't go because
they can't afford it. Frankly, people who can't afford to pay a vet shouldn't
get a pet. That being said, I do understand that for many people, life changes
can result in the loss of income for someone who used to be able to afford whatever
came their way. But when it comes to our children or our pets, when they require
medical intervention--and no matter how well we care for them, at some point a
medical situation will arise that requires urgent or emergency medical or veterinary
intervention--we have to prepare for that eventuality before it happens.
For many of us, that means doing without even more than we usually do without
when money is tight. It also means socking away money when we have a little extra.
It might be "extra" because we didn't go out to eat or to movies for
several months, or we didn't indulge in the same amount or brand of legal recreational
substances, or we skipped a year of season tickets to our favorite theater group
or sports team, or upgrading to the latest version of whatever device we're inordinately
attached to. I'm not speaking from a theoretical standpoint here: I am disabled
and know all too well what it is like having a bare, spare budget. But I still
make sure that I can provide veterinary care for my reptiles. If you'd like to
start building a fund for your veterinary needs, a good place to start is by reading
Motley Fool's
60-Second Guide to Short-Term Savings, part of the Fool Savings
Center. Okay, soapbox over. Now go read about all the things you hope you
never have to see a vet about. |
