Fecal Exams at Vet

[gmaier19]

I've read on geckoforums that some people get fecal exams done on their healthy geckos (especially new geckos) to make sure their parasite load is low.

I've been slowly adding to my collection (I have 6 now) and thought it may be a good idea to get fecal exams done on all of my geckos, just for peace of mind.

I stopped by a local vet and they said that the fecal exam is $18 and the physical examination is $41. I said that my geckos are healthy so that I would only be interested in the fecal exam and they said that they can't do that. They said that if you want a fecal exam done you must get the physical as well.

My question for all of you guys is if this practice is normal. Do all vets require you to bring in every one of your geckos for a physical exam if you want a fecal exam done? I'm not going to pay $60 dollars per gecko to make sure none of my geckos have parasites when none of them even show any signs. But I would pay $20 per gecko to make sure they don't have parasites.

Maybe I'm just being paranoid and should only get things like this done if they start to look sick?

Thanks in advance!

 

[JordanAng420]

Yes, the practice I work at requires the exam if you are a first time patient.

The reason for this is, you need to establish a "relationship" with a veterinarian for this veterinarian to provide you with medications if need be.

It's not just about money, belive me. It's all about laws and regulations and stuff. The doc actually needs to see the patient for him or her to be filling a prescription for any medication. Even if its just a dewormer or what not.

 

[Enigmatic_Reptiles]

+1, We always have people who just want treatment without an examination. As Maia said...its about laws and regulations involved with prescriptions and treatment. The only way around this is to know how to do it yourself and get results on your own. I check all of my own animals...but I still have to be able to show my doctor what parasites are present and the severity of an infection before he will give me any treatments.

If you want to know then I would suggest paying the fees and getting it done.

 

[gmaier19]

I certainly do not have a problem bringing in one of my geckos if the Vet needs to prescribe a medicine. But why should I bring in 6 geckos that look perfectly healthy for $40 each?

Why couldn't the Vet check for parasites, and if there are any, I could bring in the gecko that produced those feces and then he could provide the medicine. If there is nothing that comes up in the fecal test then I don't bring in any geckos and don't waste anyones time or money.

 

[gmaier19]

I'm not going to do anything like this by myself, for my purposes it sounds like a lot of trouble for something that in all likelihood doesnt even exist.

Thanks for the quick replies so far by the way!

 

[scm133]

There are short cuts. All the breeders of any animals know that. I bred Dachshunds. I gave them all shots except Rabies. I did my own fecal exam. But any medications were prescribed by my vet. You just have to find one that will work with you as a breeder. My vet was awesome. He still got a bucketful of money from me, because with breeding there are always complications...expensive complications.

 

[Enigmatic_Reptiles]

Thats the biggest thing...they "look perfectly healthy". That has doesn't mean that they are or are not. You may not have anything wrong at all or you can have some serious case and not know it. We very rarely will do fecals without the actual animal being present....and often times it is a simple recheck to see how well they are recovering. The thing with reptiles is they often show no signs of illness or very subtle ones until they are pretty bad. I am not trying to convince you to go I just want you to understand that their appearance of being healthy doesn't always mean that they are. I have purchased geckos from some of the "big" breeders that were heavily infested with pinworms. You never know what you will get and who you will get them from.

 

[JordanAng420]

A lot of clinics offer multiple pet discounts, also...some veterinary pet insurance companies do cover reptiles and exotic species. VPI is one to look in to.

 

[gmaier19]

maybe I don't fully understand what happens in a physical exam... what do Vets generally do for a physical exam other than look at the reptile?

(because looks aren't a good indication if a reptile is healthy)

I guess I'm wondering why the presence of the animal is so important if looks aren't a reliable indicator of its health, which is kind of the reason I don't get the point of bringing them in unless something shows up in the fecal exam.

lol, im seriously not trying to be a pain here. i have a lot of respect for people who choose to go into veterinary medicine. i think it's very admirable. i just see the bringing in of the animal inefficient, unless something shows up in the fecal exam, and in that case i wouldn't think twice about bringing it in.

really, after i pout about it, i will probably go in and spend the $400 dollars on fecals anyway. but ouch!

 

[sunshinegeckos]

My vet only charges me one vet visit no matter how many I bring in. I have to pay for every fecal and any other tests and meds if needed but I at least save on the visit fees. Maybe see if you can find a vet that will work with you.

 

[gmaier19]

My vet only charges me one vet visit no matter how many I bring in. I have to pay for every fecal and any other tests and meds if needed but I at least save on the visit fees. Maybe see if you can find a vet that will work with you.

awesome yes, that sounds completely reasonable, thanks i'll check my local vets for something like that

 

[Pinky81]

I just ended up taking a fecal into my local herp vet, no exam needed. I had never seen this vet before either, just let them know i received a new animal and the poop didn't look right wanted to get a fecal done. They didn't require me to make a exam appt. I think every vet office is different, to me a herp vet should understand the hesitation to bring a herp into the office to poke and prode it for no reason putting undo stress on the animal if all you want to do is routine fecal survalience. I actually think higher of my vets office to agree to just doing the fecal without requiring I bring in my reptile unless its absolutely needed. JMO