no matter what I do...

[paintedlizards]

he looks like carp. My vet said his fecal was clean 2 weeks ago. I cant afford another one right now. He's gained NO weight since I got him. Did the Slurry. Did the commercial stimulant. I think it might be something really bad, like the big C. he poops fine. just wont eat. when I get him to eat he regurgitates it. id say 80% of the time. Slurry goes in fine. but isnt adding weight. he's just wasting away.


I hate to be cruel but at what point do I make the decision to freeze him and slowly let him pass away in a ziplock.

 

[Stitchex]

Goodness:bigcry:, that sounds awful:main_thumbsdown:. I haven't had this happen before, but have you've tried waxies? Just don't give him too much...there IS the possibility of force feeding him..but you said he regurgitates it most of the time....and that would add stress. One of my Leos have been on a feeding strike for about a week and a half now, not worried though, because he's a fatty. BUT! If it does turn out that he should be enthunized, I would humanly do it at the vet's, not let him freeze. Good luck!

 

[paintedlizards]

we've tried waxies. no go.

we've tried everything- supers on tongs , crickets, small crickets, wax worms, meal worms and slurry.

 

[Stitchex]

What did the previous owner give him as a food source?

 

[paintedlizards]

I have no idea. he said crickets but believe it or not he was skinnier- the slurrys helping some but i've never had one NOT grow at least 2 grams in three weeks on it. its so sad.

 

[n0use4aname237]

im having a similar problem, waiting for fecal results. heres a (rubbish) pic of mine, with a lego man for scale. hes even tinier that ur one, weighs 2.5 grams.im feeding him baby food through a dropper and critical care solution.

http://i702.photobucket.com/albums/ww28/n0use4aname237/SN850825.jpg

im really sorry to see that ur having similar problems, hope u find a solution soon

 

[n0use4aname237]

hey paintedlizards, any progress or update?

 

[rubym]

One of our rescues had to be fed the slurry for 5 weeks. She had an issue with gastroenteritis and a major case of pin worms. It took almost 3 months before we started having consistant weight gains. I wouldn't give up unless the vet told me it had crypto or I knew it didn't have any hope at all. My girl is 62 grams today ( she was 18 gramswhen I got her and by her length she was an adult). I hope your little one pulls through. Best wishes.

 

[Pepper]

Oh my gosh, don't freeze him!!!!

Just keep feeding him, feed him as much as he will eat, if he regurgitates, try it again later.

 

[n0use4aname237]

freezing is actually an approved method of putting them down. They just fall asleep and pass away, with no stress. Obviously exhaust all other options first, but I think that sometimes its the fairest thing to do to the animal, why let them suffer if there is clearly an unfixable problem? I suppose this is something that will always be debated and it depends on what the individual thinks the best course of action is, but I think that when everything else has been tried you have to do the best and fairest thing for you're animal.

 

[paintedlizards]

the vet is thinking crypto .... i'm to keep doing the slurry and add baby food to it ( so he's not rejecting it as much as he is now) ...

he said to keep trying for a few days. if he loses any more weigh they will euth him for free.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

freezing is actually an approved method of putting them down.

No!!! Freezing is not a humane method of euthanizing a reptile. They should be put in a zip-lock bag with little air, and put in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight. They will go into a 'cold coma' and eventually suffocate while unconcious. Then they should be put in the freezer.

This little gecko could very well have crypto, but without the correct fecal test you will never know. It could also have a bacterial infection, which does not show up on a routine fecal test. Most of these infections will clear up with the antibiotic Baytril if caught early enough.

 

[paintedlizards]

thank you mOGL... my vet said they would run the crypto tests for me in a week ( they know my financial situation). They ran a fecal when we got him and he only had worms- some pancur (spelling?) cleared that up. . . they will re-run the appropriate tests before we euth...if it comes to that in a week- thats how my vet works- they are not reptile specialists but they do see quite a few and do a decent job doing all they can do. I had to put my cat down there a few months ago and they did a sonagram( or whatever the scan is called for animals) and x-rays plus the euth for free- they dont EVER want to assume the worst and accidentally 'kill' a pet that has a chance.

 

[mystikal222]

thank you mOGL... my vet said they would run the crypto tests for me in a week ( they know my financial situation). They ran a fecal when we got him and he only had worms- some pancur (spelling?) cleared that up. . . they will re-run the appropriate tests before we euth...if it comes to that in a week- thats how my vet works- they are not reptile specialists but they do see quite a few and do a decent job doing all they can do. I had to put my cat down there a few months ago and they did a sonagram( or whatever the scan is called for animals) and x-rays plus the euth for free- they dont EVER want to assume the worst and accidentally 'kill' a pet that has a chance.

Too bad there arent more vets and animal specialists out there like that.It seems like some ppl who work with animals really dont care about them,its all about the money.Your vet doesnt happen to be in Illinois is it?

 

[Pepper]

I'm sorry..I don't think I could put any animal in the fridge, or freezer.

Cold blooded or not. That doesn't seem right.

 

[OSUgecko]

The following quote is from the American Veterinary Medical Association's Guidelines on Euthanasia. The link will take you to the full report, which lists all methods of euthanasia currently used and whether or not the methods are humane (based on scientific studies). http://www.avma.org/issues/animal_welfare/euthanasia.pdf

"...It has been suggested that, when using physical methods of euthanasia in ectothermic species, cooling to 4 C will decrease metabolism and facilitate handling, but there is no evidence that whole body cooling reduces pain or is clinically efficacious. Local cooling in frogs does reduce nociception, and this may be partly opioid mediated. Immobilization of reptiles by cooling is considered inappropriate and inhumane even if combined with other physical or chemical methods of euthanasia. Snakes and turtles, immobilized by cooling, have been killed by subsequent freezing. This method is not recommended. Formation of ice crystals on the skin and in tissues of an animal may cause pain or distress. Quick freezing of deeply anesthetized animals is acceptable."

I heard a story in one of my vet lectures about 12 terrapins that were euthanized with barbiturate anesthetics, then frozen, for educational purposes (dissection labs at college). Six months later, the turtles were thawed for dissection, and as they thawed, they started waking up! Turtle metabolism is already extremely slow, and being frozen after the barbiturate injection had slowed their metabolism down even more. The anesthetic didn't have time to kill them before they basically went into deep hibernation. After they started waking up, their metabolisms started functioning again and several turtles died "again," due to the anesthetic. However, after emergency medical care was performed on the other turtles, six survived!

That story illustrated to me how truly difficult it can be to kill reptiles... much less kill them humanely! I know several reptile practitioners that recommend anesthetic euthanasia, followed by decapitation/freezing.

The easiest/most humane way to euthanize most reptile without chemicals or physical trauma, in my opinion, is in a CO2 chamber. These are fairly easy to build and induce painless death. If this is an option you would like to consider, I would discuss the procedure with your vet first, taking the species and condition of the individual animal into consideration.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

WOW, ALicia, this is contrary to what my vet told me. Perhaps the report means freezing as opposed to inducing a cold coma prior to freezing?

I agree that CO2 or blunt-force trauma to the brain are probably the most humane methods of euthanasia other than lethal injection.

 

[n0use4aname237]

ok, i absolutely stand corrected. Again, this is contrary to what I have been told by a breeder friend and my vet, but nevertheless, you can't argue with the facts. Its not something I would ever undertake by myself, if I needed to euth, I would definately take it to a vet, or someone else who knew what they were doing.

 

[Haligren]

No!!! Freezing is not a humane method of euthanizing a reptile. They should be put in a zip-lock bag with little air, and put in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight. They will go into a 'cold coma' and eventually suffocate while unconcious. Then they should be put in the freezer.

Jeez. I couldn't open the fridge if I knew that my lizard was in there - dying. I know it might possibly be more humane than letting them get sick and die but that would be really hard too. :bigcry:

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

It is VERY hard to put an animal down. Sometimes it is necessary in order to prevent it from suffering, but it is the HARDEST thing I have ever had to do. Unfortunately, it is one of the dark sides of breeding animals. It literally rips my guts out to the point of being physically sick.