Vet Q&A-Reptile

My dog was bitten by a tiger snake 48 hours ago we live a very long way from any vet and couldn't get her there. She is still alive and is eating and drinking and walking around she is woddly and not as energetic as normal. What is the chances of her surviving? She is a very fit healthy young

Hi, thanks for using Boop by Petco! Poor Bluey! I am glad that Bluey is doing ok at 2 days post snake bite. The prognosis is fair to good with early intervention (antivenom, hospitalization). I think he prognosis is guarded with out Veterinary care. In one study, 8/11 affected dogs survived to discharge, with a median hospital stay of 4.5 days. Clinical signs can last for 1-1.5 weeks, and full recovery may take months as neurologic receptors regenerate. Even if she doesn't receive the antivenom, administration of appropriate supportive care is very important. Clip and clean the wound. Broad spectrum antibiotics may be indicated for 7-10 days if infection and localized tissue damage/necrosis are present at the bite location. Although the mouths of snakes contain a multitude of bacteria, prophylactic antibiotics are not warranted for most bites. Clinical signs can be delayed, with American snakes it can be 10-18 hours. Clinical signs are primary neurologic, respiratory, and cardiovascular in nature. They may include hypersalivation, vomiting, diarrhea, ataxia, depression/decreased mentation, ascending flaccid quadriplegia (curare-like syndrome, decreased spinal reflexes), muscle fasciculations, reduced nociception, hypothermia, anisocoria, dyspnea, tachypnea, tachycardia, cardiac ventricular arrhythmias, cranial nerve deficits (e.g. decreased pupillary light, gag and swallow reflexes), weakness, and respiratory depression. Evidence of coagulopathy (e.g. hematuria, hematochezia) can also occur. Aspiration pneumonia is a potential complicating factor. Death is possible and is usually secondary to respiratory paralysis. My best recommendation is to seek Veterinary Care, but I understand your situation. The best thing to do is watch her closely and hope for the best! I hope this helps and I wish Bluey the best!

I have an adult female bearded dragon, yesterday we noticed her head feet and tail are turning white, her eyes are sunken in, she hasnt been moving around like usual, she hasnt eaten in a week and 2 days, and the last stool she had was diarrhea. We are worried about her and dont want her to die on us. We bougt her when she was an adult from a pet store, we have had her about a year and she has never been like this.

It sounds like Sahara is dehydrated and these are very concerning signs for a bearded dragon. They could be due to disease or problems with her diet or housing. Either way, I recommend you take Sahara to a reptile veterinarian as soon as possible. You can find one in your area on http://arav.org/. If there is not a reptile specific vet close by, you can call your local veterinarians and ask if they see reptiles. The veterinarian will be able to give Sahara some fluids under her skin to rehydrate her as well some antibiotics to treat the diarrhea. Good luck! I hope Sahara is feeling better soon.

Hi a few months ago my snake started to develop a lump in got her checked and was told there was nothing to worry about however over the last few days when I put her in the bath she rools over onto her back and does not move should I be worried

This is not normal behavior for a snake and may be neurological in nature. Have Checkers examined by your veterinarian or an experienced herp veterinarian. Bathing or soaking would not be recommended until the condition is diagnosed and/or treated as turning over in the water increases the risk of drowning or aspirating water.

I have an adult female bearded dragon, yesterday we noticed her head feet and tail are turning white, her eyes are sunken in, she hasnt been moving around like usual, she hasnt eaten in a week and 2 days, and the last stool she had was diarrhea. We are worried about her and dont want her to die on us. We bougt her when she was an adult from a pet store, we have had her about a year and she has never been like this.

It sounds like Sahara is dehydrated. These clinical signs are very concerning for a bearded dragon and could be due to disease or because of a problem with her diet or housing. Either way, you should take Sahara to see the veterinarian first thing in the morning. You can find a reptile specific veterinarian on http://arav.org/. If there is not a reptile veterinarian close by, call your local veterinarians to see if they will see a bearded dragon. The veterinarian will likely give Sahara some fluids underneath her skin and prescribe a course of antibiotics to treat the diarrhea. Good luck! I hope Sahara is feeling better soon.

My African side neck turtle has a little white dot on her left die I'm trying to figure out if I should take it any further please help thank you.

It is difficult to advise you without a visual of what the dot looks like and without more details. If you like you can request a consultation where you can post photographs and an expert can give you more information.

What are the legal requirements neccesary to keep birds, reptiles in a domestic situation? In new zealand

I would check with MPI for these legal requirements. There are certain animals that cannot be imported into the country due to biosecurity, and depending on which bird or reptile you want to keep, there will be different legal requirements.

My leopard gecko might be biting her own tail. I have not seen her doing it, but today I noticed a wound on the side of her tail. What might cause her to do this? Is there anything I can do?

It's possible Basil may be a little stressed, or may even have some irritation on the skin such as an infection or parasite. Checking to make sure her environment is the right temperature and humidity as well as enriching is a good first step. If everything looks OK but the behavior continues, having your local exotics vet take a look is best to rule out any skin infections.

Hi my name is Brenda Gremler from merrill Wisconsin i don't know if you will be able to help me but i have a leopard gecko that likes to be held but i just found out a couple days ago that i have influenza but it was to late to be treated if i hold him can i pass it to him

Hello Brenda. You do not have to worry about passing your influenza to your gecko, as it only affects mammals (and of the mammals, mostly humans, and ferrets, in rare cases other mammals and birds) but it will not affect reptiles. So all is well.

My leopard gecko tail got cut off will it grow back

Yes, it will eventually regenerate. It may not look the same though. Evaluate the wound. Keep it clean and dry. House Liza alone until the area has healed. Feed her a bit more since she just lost a supply of fat reserves. See a vet if necessary if the wound becomes infected.