An Upcoming Costume

When I ask my mom (who works with me  and has the embroidery machine) if we can do a pirate costume..... 

SO excited about this one!! Hope to list it soon and in time for Halloween. 

Dragon Moving On

I will never forget how Dragon looked when he came to me last year-- 

I didn't think he'd make it.

He did!!!

Tonight he's headed to his new Forever home in California. 

He still hates my guts. :) That's okay. I saved his life. That's enough of a "Thank you!" 

Big Trip to the Vet

Yesterday I took 5 reptiles to the vet. 5! 

And I didn't take a *single* picture. 

Elvira, a very sick Dumerils boa, got added in last minute. She's been on antibiotics for almost two months with no improvement. Sunday night, she regurgitated her meal from Tuesday. Monday morning, she started writhing around. We took blood and let the vet examine her. This morning, she is dying. 

I'm so sad. I'm sad that we couldn't save her. I'm sad that she's been sick so long. I'm sad because she may have a IBD (a horrible, contagious snake disease). I'm sad that her previous owner let her be sick for 8 months and thought her "crackling" lung noises were "cute," like she was talking to them. Ugh. 

So sorry, sweet girl. 

< Deep Breath> 

Hermy, my desert tortoise, was seen because her eyes are swollen. She got anti-inflammatory and antibiotic drops for her eyes. 

Tiger, my daughter's bearded dragon, checked out okay, but is still breathing noisy. I'll continue antibiotics on him for a week. 

Lotus, the chameleon, got her stitches removed from being spayed last month. 

Akime, the chameleon, got a new arm wrap to protect the wound on her arm which is healing nicely. She should have the bandage off totally in two weeks. 

The whole bill came to just under $500. Ay yi yi. Gratefully, I have a good credit card to use for vet bills. I'm hopeful that this holiday season will help me make enough money on Etsy that I can pay it all off. 

Today I'm feeling like Eeyore and can't generate much enthusiasm or energy. I hope to be back up to speed tomorrow. 

Terrible Toddler Stage

Midnight is like a two year old going through a difficult stage! He's starting to drive me crazy!! 

He keeps knocking over things and harassing Smaug and throwing his food on the ground and pooping on the newly cleaned floor. 

He's all over too!!! Upstairs then down then up. He's exhausting! 

Iguanas are NOT a good starter pet. I've felt for a long time that they shouldn't be sold in stores. Today's behavior just reminds me that iguanas are a handful! 

My Life as a Cartoon

I've seen this cartoon several times on Facebook, but this version must have been made for me! LOL!! ;) 

Nail Trimming

I found this pic online awhile ago and keep forgetting to post it. 

Here's where you cut Beardie nails: 

I use a pair of baby fingernail clippers to make my trims. Once you get over feeling nervous and once you are able to hold the beardie still enough, trimming nails is quick and easy. 

I also recommend putting a clean brick or piece of rock in your tank that will work to 

help file down the nails. 

Drinking from a Water Bowl

I have successfully trained all my beardies to drink from the water bowl in their tanks using a trick I learned having chameleons. 

The key? Moving water. 

A friend told me that chameleons will only drink moving water. That makes sense. In the wild, stagnant water is more likely to be bacteria or predator filled. Most bearded dragons will drink in the bath because the water around them moves as they move. 

When I get a new Beardie, I fill up their water dish, set them near it, and then flick my fingers in the water to make it move. The movement catches their eyes and, almost always, they will lick their lips. For some of my stubborn beardies, I will drip water on their lips to help them. 95% of the time, they will start to drink on their own from the bowl. 

It took me almost two years to train Ziggy to drink water from his dish. He was my most stubborn guy. He wouldn't ever drink-- not even in the bath. I finally trained him to drink from a syringe and then transitioned him to his water bowl. Now he drinks on his own whenever I refill his dish. 

A drinking Beardie will flatten himself like a pancake, close his eyes, and slowly drink. In a bath, they will puff up and then flatten. It's all instinct for them. They can drink for a minute to 7 minutes. After they are done, you will often see them breathing heavily with their mouths open. They may even spit up extra water. This is all totally normal. Try not to handle a Beardie that has just drank a lot because they will easily spit out the water. 

I make sure to fill up all my beardies' water bowls once a week with them watching me. That is almost always enough to trigger a drinking reflex. 

Oh, and after drinking water, the next few poops will be very wet and squishy. Totally normal. 

Any other questions? 

Lotus' Last Shot

Lotus had her last antibiotic shot today and, as an extra bonus, I forcefed her some Critical Care. Her stitches come out on Monday. 

She didn't seem to hate me as badly today as she has in the past. Weird, huh?

 

I'm not sure if she'll ever get any bigger, but at least we won't ever worry about her being egg bound. 

For the Sports Fan at your House...

We get SO many requests for team jerseys in our Etsy shop that we finally just made it a standard listing!

My mom makes these, and, I must say, she does a FANTASTIC job! Once she even made a little matching baseball cap to go with the jersey for a classroom pet whose teacher LOVED the Cardinals. It was awesome.

CLICK HERE TO ORDER!!!

Snuggling with Flame

My daughter found Flame trying to escape today and picked him up. She brought him to me and was able to pet him for over 5 minutes!! He has never ever snuggled that long! 

He was so adorable! After his snuggling moment passed, he woke up and shook her hand off. Back to his normal self. 

Flame's head tremors are so bad everyday. It makes my heart hurt. :( They don't seem to bother him at all, but it makes him look so sad. 

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