Tater's Tail

Tater shared a tank with Mater for 5 years. They both were surrendered with chomped off tails. :(

Since the vet wanted to immediately amputate Mater's tail, I knew that we should have Tater checked out. 

Sadly, my vet left for a national bird bet conference two hours after amputating Mater's tail. But I have an appointment for Tater on Monday when he's back. 

Last night, Mater's owner picked him up and brought me Tater who will stay with me until Monday. To be safe, I sent pics of her tail to my vet so he can tell me if I should bring her in Monday morning (before the surgery block) or if waiting until 4:30 pm is okay. 

Her tail is not as bad as Mater's, but it's still gross. 

Supposedly she was taken to a vet, but I cannot fathom why it was not amputated. That's why I only trust my reptile vet. 

Special Need Tristan needs a Home

 


This is the cutest and sweetest little beardie ever! He has severe muscular dystrophy and cannot coordinate his limbs at all. He still manages to get around though and he eats on his own. He needs someone who is willing to adopt him and give him a forever home. We are willing to ship him overnight within the US.

He has a little nub on his arm-- we think another beardie chomped them off or he ate them (because he can't feel them well). It is healed and healthy.

I can't accurately say how long he will live. I expect his life span will be shorter than a fully healthy beardie, but that's not even a given.

He has not been tested for Adenovirus but has no other obvious illnesses or problems.  He's listed as "Special Needs" because of his lack of motor coordination and movement.

Please let me know if you are interested in adopting him. He's currently living in Utah near Salt Lake City so we can ship him overnight directly from the SLC International airport overnight to any other place in the US via FedEx. 

Sending Prayers to the US East Coast

Two of my adopted beardies are in the path of Hurricane Matthew on the East Coast.

Squiggy near northeastern Florida:

Ginny in southeastern Florida:

My husband's parents and a couple of his siblings and their families live in northeastern Florida too right off the St John's River.

Needless to say that my nerves are a bit frazzled and my prayers are going full force-- especially as Hurricane Matthew gets bigger and slower.

Mater at the Vet

Mater is a recent rescue by one of my friends. He and his "girlfriend" lived together in the same tank since they were little. Both were surrendered with nasty bites on their tails. Yes, they bit each other's tails off. :( 

Mater's tail is the worst off. 

I've been coaching my friend how to do wound care for the past week, but when I saw the tails in person yesterday, I knew Mater needed immediate vet attention. 

In order for the tail to heal, Dr Folland decided to amputate about an inch to an inch & a half of it. That meant putting Mater all the way under and doing surgery. The other option was to do nothing and let the rot spread and slowly kill him. :( Luckily, there was room on the surgery schedule for Mater. 

He's in recovery now and I'll go pick him up at 4 pm. His owner will take him home tonight. He'll get pain meds for a week and stitches out in a month. I think he will feel SO much better now. There were nerve endings and tendons sticking out of his tail end! Ow! 

Here's a close up of his tail. It's gross. I apologize if it's too much. 

This is why adult beardies should NEVER EVER cohabitate!!!!!  

Star & Elliott

I'm helping a rescuer friend by rehoming Star, a baby ball python she had taken in, and by fattening up her rescued baby Elliott. 

I just love babies! 

Don't you just want to boop that little nose?! It's so cute! 

The Girls made it!

Check out the stink eye they are giving! 

They got to their new home quickly and were put on their new free roaming areas. 

Lotus-- 

Akime has a "handicapped" one while she builds up strength. 

Akime immediately ate. She's never turned down food. Ever. 

I can't tell how amazing their new home is. They will live in Chameleon Paradise for the rest of their lives. 

Special Shipping

Akime & Lotus are headed to a chameleon sanctuary in California tonight. I made specialized travel cups for them. 

House of Chameleons took Newt last year and adopted my two baby tortoises this past summer. I trust them completely and these two girls will be so happy there. 

Midnight at the Vet

This iguana is a *darling* in public. Anytime someone looked at him, he was sweet and snuggly. 

See? 

When we were left alone? 

I did have cute hair-- until he messed it up. 

He rearranged the counter top. 

He tried climbing the blinds. 

The amputation site on his foot looks good. The tip of his tail that got caught in a cage looks okay. His mouth is a mess but we can't change the fact that he won't stop rubbing it against everything and making it bleed. 

I'll just keep treating it with Silvadene cream and hope he leaves it alone. 

I had to run in to the pet store to by crickets after the vet and I took him with me. Again, he was a sweetheart. Silly boy. The employees loved him! I love him too, but if he keeps chomping my family then I can't keep him. Plus he's hormonal right now and there's nothing we can do to fix that. 

Drake!

Drake's tank is in our room and his poop tonight smelled SO bad that it set off off the smoke detector!! 

Ha ha ha ha!! 

I guess there's a first time for everything. 

Time for a fecal test. 

You can see he's shedding off all the nasty orange-stained scales and is normal looking over most his body. You can tell the difference if you look at his hand. 

Remember Flame?

Flame was the only Beardie pulled out of the house fire in April. I honestly wasn't sure he'd ever make it. 

He was very skinny and very lethargic. 

Despite a neurological problem that leaves his head shaking frequently, Flame has done great. 

He went from 185 grams to 467 grams! 

He's not much of a snuggler, but he *loves* sunny Windows. 

He will stay here with me until the day he dies. Flame or "Flamey" or "Flame Mingnon" is our Beardie. My whole family adores him.