Educational Links

cricket4u

cricket4u

New member
Ethan,

Hope this is ok here, I thought it would be helpful :)

Acute and Chronic Renal Disease in Lizards: Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prognosis
Uroplatus pietschmanni with unusual condition
Isolation of a ranavirus from a gecko (Uroplatus fimbriatus). | Mendeley
Veterinary Research | Full text | Viruses in reptiles
Plants Poisonous to Your Reptile or Amphibian
Retrobulbar abscess in a leopard gecko | Olathe Animal Hospital ALL BETTER:biggrin:
http://www.mendeley.com/research/pa...-phelsuma-guentheri-some-unexpected-findings/
http://www.vet.uga.edu/mis/exotics/reptiles/index.php
http://veterinarylaparoscopy.com/page40.htm
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3035398/figure/fig5/

Reptiles and Amphibians
Cornell Veterinary Medicine

Possible behavioral signs of pain in reptiles and amphibian may include but are not limited to the following:
anorexia
hunched posture
stillness or immobility
aggression in normally passive animals
stinting on palpation or touch
blepharospasm
flight responses or startling easily
aeorphagia
dysphagia
elevated head and/or extended neck position
color changes
constant dull color
avoidance and withdrawal reactions
biting at affected areas
lethargy
isolation
lameness
ataxia
absence of normal behaviors
body less coiled at site of pain
foot or digit flicking
rapid respirations
repetitive pulling head into shell and then extending the neck out and up

http://www.allcreatures24hr.com/content/how-do-i-know-if-my-reptile-sick

Remember, your pet reptile cannot tell you when it is feeling ill and may be hiding it from you until it is too late.
 
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cricket4u

cricket4u

New member
I will continue to add any links I feel might be helpful. I just posted the first link.

Journal of Herpetology (1995)
We tested the hypothesis that thermoregulation increases growth rate in nocturnal lizards. Leopard geckos (Eublepharis macularius) maintained from hatching at 25C grew at a rate of 0.11 g/day, while geckos allowed to thermoregulate at preferred body temperatures (30C for 13.5 h per day) grew 1.5 times as fast (0.16 g/day). Long-term thermal treatment had a significant reverse acclimation effect on preferred body temperature (Tp): Tp was 1.2C lower in thermoregulatory individuals than in those kept at 25. Feeding and time of day also had significant but minor effects on Tp. Despite their nocturnal ecology, leopard geckos seem to be typical among lizards in requiring a diurnal heat source for maximal growth. This result provides a physiological explanation for the observation that some nocturnal lizards thermoregulate in burrows during the day, and may have implications for the biogeography of nocturnal ectotherms.
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THE INFLUENCE OF HABITAT TYPE AND STRUCTURE ON THE
ABUNDANCE OF PHELSUMA MADAGASCARIENSIS GRANDIS
(GEKKONINAE) IN NORTHERN MADAGASCAR
http://www.herpconbio.org/Volume_4/Issue_1/D'Cruze_etal_2009a.pdf
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http://www.zsm.mwn.de/her/pdf/287_Ratsoavina_et_al_2011_Uroplatus_finiavana.pdf
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Herpetologica (1988)
Volume: 44, Issue: 3, Publisher: JSTOR, Pages: 266-273

Tokay geckos (Gekko gecko) acclimatized to 25 1 C and a LD 12:12 photoperiod exhibited significant diel cycles of temperature selection in a thermal gradient with either uniform light over the entire gradient (UL) or a point-source of light over the hot end of the gradient (LH). Both groups selected higher body temperatures at night than during the day. No diel cycle was observed in the geckos exposed to the paradoxical condition of a point-source of light over the cold end of the gradient (LC). The UL and LH groups showed greater precision in thermoregulation during the scotophase than during the photophase. The opposite was found for the LC group. We concluded that light has a definite impact on thermoregulatory behavior that is distinct from the role that heat plays in thermoregulation. We recommend that variance be used as a standardized measure of thermoregulatory precision.
 
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Aimless

Aimless

Super Moderator
I think that's a great post. however, I have a slightly twisted sense of humor and I find it rather funny that one possible symptom of pain is listed as "absence of normal behavior"

....well, duh! lol.
 
cricket4u

cricket4u

New member
Oral Care for Your Reptile

Oral Care for Your Reptile - Preventing & Treating Oral Reptile Infections | Hartz

Metabolic Bone disease
http://www.sidneyanimalhospital.com/downloads/Caresheet_reptile_03_MetabolicBoneDisease.pdf

Reptile Aggressive Behavior
http://www.exoticpetvet.net/reptile/aggression.html

Zoonoses
http://www.exoticpetvet.net/reptile/zoonoses.html
http://www.research.cornell.edu/care/documents/OHS/zoonosis_information_sheet_reptiles.pdf

Parasites
http://www.angelfire.com/al/repticare2/page10.html
Another reason handling should be limited and cleanliness is important.
 
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cricket4u

cricket4u

New member
Yes, the reptile mentioned is Chams, however it plays the same role in all reptiles. Understand that larger reptiles are taken to the vets more frequently than small ones. The smaller reptiles are looked upon as too fragile and people hesitate to take them to the vet or some people simply claim they can't afford it. Since day one, I have asked everyone whose gecko died," Did you get a necropsy?" and every single person told me NO. Most of the geckos who have been necropsied, (unrelated to this forum) have all had some damage to the liver and kidneys.

Information on Vitamin D3, Parathyroid Hormone, Calcitonin and Calcium.

I commonly have chams brought in with obstipation, decreased appetites, wasting away, and severe dehydration despite vigilant misting or watering. A common finding in the husbandry goes as follows: " I take great care of her. I water her frequently. I dust her crickets every-other day with Calcium Powder with Vit D3 alternated on off days with a multivitamin powder. When she started becoming depressed I started giving her Neocalglucon and later my vet gave me Baytril". If you only knew how common this scenario is from my perspective it would frighten you.

I get way too many consults and patients with signs I feel are suggestive of chronic over-supplementation.

Vitamin D3 is stored for a long time in the liver.
 
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cricket4u

cricket4u

New member
When posting questions here please remember that if you fear that your leopard gecko is sick,
the best step to take is to get them to a vet who can visually and physically examine and diagnose your problem(s).

There is a wide variety of experience level of members on a forum like this and not all of the advice that you get is valid.

Please do not make the mistake of using this forum as an alternative to seeking proper medical treatment for your pet.

When asking questions about your leopard geckos health, it's best to include as much information as possible in order to help us best determine what might be wrong with your animal.
So, it is in everyone's best interest to please try to include as much of the information below as possible (high quality pictures are also very helpful):


General Information
Species of lizard:
Gecko's name:
Morph:
Gender:
Age:
Weight:
Total length:
Length of your reptile when you first acquired it:
Source (pet store, breeder, previous owner):
Captive bred or wild caught:

Vivarium
Enclosure dimensions (length x width x heighth):
Cage (type, size):
Substrate provided:
Types of hiding places provided:
Is there a humidity hide? location?
Please describe any other furnishings:
List recent changes in the environment, if any:

Lighting
Artificial lighting
Incandescent (“screw-in” bulbs): wattage(s):
Fluorescent (tube bulbs):
Access to ambient daylight from a distant window:

Heating
Do you have a thermometer(s) in the cage?
What type and brand of thermometer (digital with probe, temperature gun, LCD strip, analog (circle), combo digital thermometer/hygrometer, stainless steel aquarim type, other):
What is the ground temperature right on the substrate under the warm dry hide:
What is the air temperature on the warm end about 4 inches up from the ground:
What is the air temperature on the cool end about 4 inches up from the ground:
What device(s) are used to maintain the temperature (Under Tank Heater, heat light, ceramic heat emitter, Flexwatt heat tape, hot rock, other):
Ventilation space for your UTH by elevating the tank above the shelf (some UTHs come with sticky feet for the tank corners):
Are you using a thermostat(s)?
Which hide does she/he spend most of her time?
Is the temperature decreased at night? by how much?

Humidity
Is the humidity measured?
Humidity range:

Diet
Insects and worms, list type:
Regular diet fed to the insects and worms:
Are the insects and worms formally “gutloaded” 1-2 days prior to feeding off to your gecko? If so with?
How often do you feed your gecko?
Please list any supplements (with brand names) used. How are they given and how often?
What calcium brand are you using? with D3, without or both?
Is the calcium in the tank with D3 or without?
Multivitamins (include brand name)?
Please list any recent additions/changes in the diet:

General Health
If your gecko is sick, please describe the signs and how long your gecko has been showing these signs:
Is your gecko’s general activity level normal, decreased, or increased?
Is your gecko’s appetite normal, decreased, or increased?
Have you noticed any of the following?
Weight (loss or gain):
Discharge from the eyes or nose:
Increased breathing rate or effort:
Change in the droppings:
Urates
---white or yellowish:
---size of urates as compared to size of feces:
Abnormal skin color or shedding:
Parasites on the skin or in the feces:
Weakness:

Previous problems and/or illnesses:

Other Critters in Same Cage or in Household
List other animals that are kept in the same cage:
Recent acquisitions (new pets within the past 6 months):
Are any of your other pets ill?
 
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LubomirVWS

LubomirVWS

New member
Adding The Merck Veterinary Manual - Reptiles part.
It is more like web version - not to long or too complicated :) nice pictures and descriptions.
From content:

Overview of Reptiles
Management of Reptiles
Bacterial Diseases of Reptiles
Mycotic Diseases of Reptiles
Viral Diseases of Reptiles
Parasitic Diseases of Reptiles
Environmental Diseases and Traumatic Injuries of Reptiles
Metabolic and Endocrine Diseases of Reptiles
Neoplastic Diseases of Reptiles
 
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