Flame at the Vet

Flame is the only reptile of the 11 Fire Victims that I'm choosing to keep. He did test positive for adenovirus and, in the last three months, he's had problems with head tremors.

I talked to my vet about it last  month and he recommended we test Flame's calcium levels to rule out tremors caused by calcium deficiency. Since I was taking the two chams in today, I brought Flame along for the ride.

While he was at the vet, I was able to take a video of his head tremors. This is moderate for him-- so sometimes it's less noticeable and sometimes it's worse.

The calcium levels are right on track and so the vet tested the phosphorus levels (which can indicate kidney disease which also causes tremors). The phosphorus levels were right on track too. That leaves us with our original guess-- that he has a neurological issue due to inbreeding.

It is VERY common for "Fancy" bearded dragons to end up with genetic problems because of too much inbreeding. When you want a specific trait (like a leatherback or translucence or red coloring), you must use a specific set of genes to get it. There's not as much variation in the gene pool for these traits. With "Normal" colors, there are hundreds of thousands of beardies to chose from and there are far fewer problems that manifest. Silkies (what you get sometimes when you breed two leatherbacks) are, in my opinion, the most genetically messed up beardies. They have the most problems and difficulties.

So Flame is not fixable and, based on my previous experience with translucents with tremors, is not likely to have a long life. He will be loved and cared for while he is here. I won't adopt him out because of how valuable he would be as a breeder. It would be absolutely WRONG to breed him since he's already genetically messed up. To make sure that never happens to him, he's staying with me. Plus, I finally got him to let me pet his head without him biting me. I can't pet anywhere else, but I can give him loves on his head.

Checklist for Head Tremors-- 
1- rule out Metabolic Bone Disease caused by calcium deficiency (blood test)
2- rule out phosphorous deficiency caused by kidney disease (blood test)
3- conduct an overall blood panel test to make sure there are not other underlying issues
4- look at genetics

Benign head tremors are really only a problem when they are unable to control their heads enough to eat. If this happens, the beardie will have to be assisted with its food (like crickets on tongs) or tube fed.

Waiting

Midnight, the Iggy, is at the vet now and I'm still waiting for a phone call from the vet. Kindle, the female Burm fire victim, is also at the vet because her respiratory infection has come back and she has a black sludge coming from her mouth. 

The two chameleons are going in at 3:45. 

Updates later today. 

Some "Before & After" Pics of the Fire Victims

Torch, a Savannah monitor

Kindle, a female Burmese python

Flame, a translucent bearded dragon

Phoenix, a blood python

Scorch, a male Burmese python

Phoenix at the Vet

Phoenix needed another tube feeding today and a check up. 

It was a terrible experience for him. :( 

He fought us and ended up tearing off one of his scabs. He's been shedding, but struggling to slough off all the dead skin. I had skin pieces all over me. 

He peed and then pooped and thrashed some more. 

We're starting him on antibiotics now to help his skin heal quicker and to prevent a respiratory infection. We tube fed him Critical Care and he threw it all back up. 

By the time we got him back in his box, he was exhausted. He wouldn't even move. I worried the stress would kill him. 

His mouth is still swollen and raw. His one eye is completely dead. His other eye seems to be okay. The skin on his neck is burnt and dry, but not ready to shed off. And the fecal test shows he has pinworms. 

At this point, we will watch him for the next week. He's come so far, but still has so far to go. :( I hope he's able to pull through this okay. If not, I think the best option will be to let him be done with his misery. 

I hope it doesn't come to that. 

Sweet Blaze

I'm sad to report that Blaze, the sickly Savannah monitor fire victim, died this afternoon. He laid down on a super soft blankie this afternoon and passed away very peacefully. 

He will be buried in my flower garden with the other sweet lizards that I've lost over the past few years. 

Sorry, Baby, that I couldn't save you. I tried so hard.

Poor Baby Blaze

My heart is very sad this morning. I found Blaze, the sickest Savannah monitor, on his side with his eyes unfocused and his neck turned in a weird way. I honestly thought he was already dead. He moved when I picked him up but not much. His eyes wouldn't focus. 

Poor buddy has never been healthy; he was severely malnourished and underweight (no obvious trauma from the fire). We've tube-fed him and force fed him since we got him-- he's never eaten or drank on his own. He's been to the vet twice with another vet visit scheduled tomorrow. I'm not sure if he'll make it through the day. 

I held him and loved on him for awhile before putting him into a special "Sick" tank that is filled with super soft blankies. He'll stay there for now. If he makes it through the day, I expect tomorrow morning my vet will recommend we let him be out of his misery. :( 

Poor Blaze. I know I can't save every critter, but I sure tried hard to save you. I really didn't want to lose any of the fire victims. I'm sorry I couldn't save you. :`(

Fire Victims Update: a Letter of Conditions to be Met

A letter of conditions to be met for the return of the fire victims was sent via Certified US mail yesterday. We've tried to be fair and focus only on the things that will insure these reptiles remain in great health. At this point, I have no idea how it will be received.

Here is a copy of the letter with some identifying information removed (see original post HERE)

May 9, 2016

Dear Mr. ----------

Following a house fire at your place of residence on April 6, 2016, you dropped off 11 reptiles (7 snakes & 4 lizards) on April 7, 2016 to [my partner's house] with a verbal agreement that Marybeth & I would take over their care and vet treatment. The first vet appointment was on Saturday, April 9, 2016. Four more visits were made on 4/9/16, 4/11/16, 4/14/16, and 4/27/16. To date we have spent a total of approximately $1,690: $1,043.19 in vet expenses (including several discounts) and $650 in additional expenses for enclosures, supplies, food, etc. We anticipate an additional $200 in vet care for 3 of the snakes and 2 of the lizards.

The goal from the beginning has been to return the reptiles to their owner when they are healthy and finished with vet treatment. However, we believe it is essential to ensure that the reptiles will then be cared for properly in accordance with the wishes of the 50+ donors who have generously donated over $1,200 to their care. Consequently, we feel it necessary to add a few conditions for the return of the reptiles.

1. Each of the reptiles must complete their vet care before being returned.

2. Since last Thursday, we have had FOUR separate, non-related adults demand the return of these reptiles and are no longer confident who the owner actually is. We need proof of ownership in the form of adoption contracts, receipts, purchase forms, or other similar documents.

3. We need the address of a stable residence where the reptiles will be kept. The residence will need to have the utilities necessary to provide the appropriate climate for the reptiles, including heat and electricity. Our rescue committee will conduct a brief home visit to make sure everything is ready (including the setups described below) before we return the reptiles.

4. Permanent enclosures for five of the reptiles will need to be provided:
− 2 large enclosures for the albino Burmese pythons (bigger than a 75 gallon each)
− 1 large enclosure for the Nile monitor (bigger than a 55 gallon)
− 1 large enclosure for the adult red tail (bigger than a 55 gallon)
The other reptiles will be returned in setups that were donated or purchased for them with donated funds.

5. We have received multiple reports from people who prefer to remain anonymous regarding conditions of severe neglect and abuse occurring in the house in West Valley prior to the fire. Additional reports of outstanding warrants and drug abuse have also come to us from reliable sources and have been verified through state websites. The legal owner of the reptiles must not have any outstanding warrants or other issues that might result in the animals being unexpectedly abandoned due to the owner’s arrest.

If you feel that these conditions are unfair, we will consider returning the reptiles as is without any further care and without any setups included if you demonstrate ownership and reimburse all expenses so we can refund our donors and our rescue members. An exact spreadsheet of expenses will be provided upon request, but it will take up to 10 business days to get a complete and accurate expense record (along with copies receipts & statements) to you.

You are welcome to communicate with me through the email address or post office box listed above. If either of these methods are used for harassment or abuse, I will feel justified in cutting off all contact. In addition, if you continue to harass Marybeth (at her home OR at her work), I will assist her in obtaining a restraining order. I sincerely hope this is not necessary.

If you do not accept these conditions, please feel free to consult with a lawyer. In return, I am prepared to retain an animal rights lawyer if necessary to make sure these reptiles get the necessary care. Again, if you choose to take this route, please have your lawyer contact me through the above email and address.

Sincerely,

Sarah --------

Update on Flame

Flame has been SO grumpy lately. His eyes have been half closed and he's been lethargic. I did a fecal test on him yesterday and am treating him now for coccidia. 

I took him to the vet today for a blood test to make sure nothing else was going on. 

Guess what?!

It came back totally perfect. 

The entire staff commented that they've never had such an aggressive, angry bearded dragon before. Nice, huh? 

So I'll let him finish shedding and leave him alone for awhile to see if he'll calm down. At least I know he's okay inside. 

Big Snakes

I've never been a fan of BIG snakes. Fine for others, not my idea of a snake. 

Kindle & Scorch, the 2 albino Burmese python fire victims, have changed that. 

I love these guys! They are so fun and have such distinctive personalities. 

We had to unexpectedly move them last week even though they were shedding. The stress of that brought back both of their respiratory infections. :( We discovered them bubbling at the mouth again tonight. 3 more weeks of antibiotics start tomorrow. 

Scorch has taken up residence in his water dish. 

But we bathed Kindle tonight. She was not a fan. 

After bathing, she let us cuddle her for awhile. 

We put her back so she didn't get too cold. 

It's easy to hold them now because they are both grossly underweight. Kindle is 16 pounds, Scorch is 19 pounds. They should be at least double that. Then it won't be as easy to snuggle after bath time. 

An Update on the Fire Victims

I posted this long update tonight on the GoFundMe campaign raising money for the 11 reptiles pulled out of a burning house fire. I'm going to post it here too.

------------------------------------------------------------------
Again, I apologize for being so long between updates. 

Quickly, let me say all of the reptiles continue to progress. Even poor Phoenix is doing okay. We fully expect them to all recover. 

But let me address a more serious issue. Since we took in these reptiles, there have been a lot of rumors, questions, and accusations made regarding the owners and the conditions the reptiles lived in before the house burned down. The more we heard, the harder we worked to help the reptiles to become healthy. 

The only concerns we paid attention to were from both of our reptile vets. After examining several of the fire victims, they are convinced the reptiles are suffering more because of poor husbandry and neglect from *before* the fire. 

Our goal has been and always will be the reptiles. The state, city, police, and insurance companies can determine who/what/when/where about the fire. They can figure all that out and it has (thankfully) nothing to do with us. We do keep track of what's going on so we can have a better picture of where these guys came from. But that's about it. 

We have spent every single penny (and hundreds of our own) getting these 11 reptiles healthy again. We will NOT let them be returned to or put into a position where they will starve again. I don't expect to have a battle concerning their future, but I wanted to make it clear right here that the 7 snakes and 4 lizards will stay in environments where they are cared for, fed, and housed appropriately. For now and the next few months, that environment is with us. Until they are released from active vet care this summer, they have to stay where they are. 

Our goal has been and will continue to be to keep the reptiles in the BEST possible care. I hope you will trust us to do what is right by them now and in the next year. 

Again, you are welcome to contact me and I'm happy to share with you copies of the vet bills & receipts for all of our purchases. When I get a moment this week, I'll post pics of the new set ups for the albino Burmese and monitors. They are SOOO cool! :) 

Thank you again for all you do.

Flame is Shedding

I hadn't realized how smoke-stained he is until I saw his fresh skin. 

He's going to look amazing when he's done shedding! 

GoFundMe Fundraiser for the Fire Victims Reptiles

Please SHARE this LINK!

https://www.gofundme.com/kby4fq98

Scorch at the Vet

Scorch is the other albino Burmese python rescued from the fire. He started showing signs of a respiratory infection so he went to the vet today. 

I was nervous with him because he was said to be more aggressive than the female (who I adored!), but I didn't want to appear wimpy to the vet staff. I took him out and ended up having SO much fun with him! 

He doesn't have a respiratory infection, but he does have multiple mouth hemorrhages (like canker sores) all over his mouth. He'll get on antibiotic shots and on antibiotic mouth drops. 

Here's only half of the pics I took: 

Dr Folland looking in his mouth. 

Waiting for his meds- 

I never ever thought I'd like big snakes, but I love these two! I had so much fun with them. :) 

Fire Victims' Names

I totally should have pointed this out before-- Sorry!! 

We picked all the names for the survivors. They had names, but in the chaos of getting them, we didn't actually learn them. 

So we picked "Fire" related names (thanks to a Thesaurus app!) 

Female burm- Kindle

Male burm- Scorch

Nile monitor- Demon Lava Spitfire

Small red tail- Ember

Big red tail- Inferno 

Healthy Savannah- Torch

Beardie- Flame

Sick Sav- Blaze 

Lil Noodle- Coal

Big Noodle- Charcoal 

Blood- Phoenix 

Phoenix, rescue 136

Phoenix is a male blood python that was in a wood box with two other snakes. When the box caught fire, the two other snakes died. Somehow Phoenix crawled through the flames and was rescued. That's why we named him "Phoenix." 

His eyes are singed; his mouth is burnt; his heat vents are burnt; his nostrils had blood in them; and he has scrapes on his back from getting out of the box. But he was drinking on his own. So even though he was in bad shape, he was still showing us that he had the will to live. 

Considering what he's been through, it's amazing that he's alive. 

He's in a moist warm crate where he can be calm and quiet. I will treat him face and head with antibiotic cream to help the burns heal. Because it had been months since he ate, my vet had him tube fed today. He, like the others, are very underweight too. 

I have a couple of blood python "experts" who are giving me frequent guidance with his set up. I switched the heat pad for an under tank heater with a thermostat regulator. 

If he doesn't eat next week, then we'll tube feed again. Hopefully, he'll be able to heal enough to want to eat by the end of the month. 

Fire Victims at the Vet

Today we took four fire reptile victims to the vet:

-Kindle, female Burmese python

-Flame, bearded dragon

-Blaze, Savannah monitor

-Phoenix, blood python 

Kindle is staying at my rescue sister's house and today was the first day I got to meet her. I had so much fun holding her that I forgot to take pics of anyone else! 

She crawled into my shirt. 

And I took a selfie with her! 

She held on to my leg tightly. 

And then she pushed her head near my neck and took a nap. 

Kindle has burns on her mouth and eyes. She also has a respiratory infection. She has antibiotic eye cream and antibiotic shots. Then then techs tube fed her because this sweet girl is only 15 pounds! She should be over 60. 

The blood python and Savannah monitor got tube fed too. 

Flame the beardie has slightly dry eyes (from the smoke) and got antibiotic eye cream too. I just need to fatten him up and give him extra care. He's super underweight too (180 grams instead of 240+ grams). 

The antibiotic eye cream and antibiotic skin cream will be used to treat the other snakes too. If they show signs of a Respiratory Infection, we'll put them on antibiotics too. But we should now be able to focus on giving the reptiles nutritional care and wound treatment without any further vet visits. 

Snuggly Time

Flame discovered the joy of snuggling in blankies tonight. 

He wasn't too sure at first, but once he wiggled his head and shoulders up, he was great. 

What's with the pictures, he asks. 

Flame Update

Flame was more active today even though his beard is still black. I let him spend some time in the open window to catch some UVB rays. 

Yesterday, he ate a few roaches too. 

He decided to be a Spider Beard and climbed the screen a couple times. 

He'll still go to the vet in the morning to make sure he's okay. But I'm happy that he's more active and alert.