Kalatoa 100% Pure SD Retic Progression (Pic heavy...)

Does she show any interest in the rat?

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Originally Posted by 67temp

Does she show any interest in the rat?

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None at all. Actively avoided it the last few attempts


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When does the new cage arrive? Hope a change in environment will help he feel better and safer. Just want her relief to happen then go into a new place and associate the relief with new digs that makes her happy again. IDK what to advise at this point. Best wishes.

How did the vet appointment go?

Waiting to hear back about a couple tissue cultures. Found another broken tooth as well


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Calcium deficiency? IDK just hope you can figure it out.

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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Waiting to hear back about a couple tissue cultures. Found another broken tooth as well


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Definite mass/abscess development in her right gum tissue. Vet is out of town for a week. Referred to another vet in Birmingham. 2pm appointment Friday to have abscess removed. This had sure better offer the two of us some relief from this nonsense. Third long commute vet trip in two months. Will be a collective 13+ hours driving to and from
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Wow. Looks so painful. How do they deal with those? Drain with needle and syring?

Hope she gets better soon.

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Originally Posted by Skyrivers

Wow. Looks so painful. How do they deal with those? Drain with needle and syring?

Hope she gets better soon.

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Incision, remove abscess, and clean. Reptile puss is not liquid and as such cannot be drained.


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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Definite mass/abscess development in her right gum tissue. Vet is out of town for a week. Referred to another vet in Birmingham. 2pm appointment Friday to have abscess removed. This had sure better offer the two of us some relief from this nonsense. Third long commute vet trip in two months. Will be a collective 13+ hours driving to and from
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Dude,

Outside of the BS you are dealing with, she looks awesome!

She's still a nice sized animal. Keep us posted.

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Originally Posted by Gio

Dude,

Outside of the BS you are dealing with, she looks awesome!

She's still a nice sized animal. Keep us posted.

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Thanks Gio. Vet made a small incision in her gums yesterday and managed to work a bit of puss out of it. Irrigated the wound with saline solution. He thinks the lost/broken teeth are a symptom of the infection, not the cause of it.
His recommendation for continued treatment was that we use a more concentrated and higher dosage of ceftazidime to fight the infection more aggressively. So essentially we’re administering 4x the medication per injection in 2x the liquid volume that we had been. Three more shots to go, administered in two injection sites per shot due to the volume of liquid (2.4ml).
Also recommended slightly higher temps to increase her metabolic rate and help the medication to fight off the heavy bacterial growth (pseudomonas aeruginosa).
Aside from the obvious infection he said that she looks great otherwise. Clear breathing, alert, good muscle tone, doesn’t appear overweight. Weighed in at 26.5lbs so she hasn’t lost any weight despite not having eaten in 6 weeks. I think once her appetite comes back we’ll see some more improvement.


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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Thanks Gio. Vet made a small incision in her gums yesterday and managed to work a bit of puss out of it. Irrigated the wound with saline solution. He thinks the lost/broken teeth are a symptom of the infection, not the cause of it.
His recommendation for continued treatment was that we use a more concentrated and higher dosage of ceftazidime to fight the infection more aggressively. So essentially we’re administering 4x the medication per injection in 2x the liquid volume that we had been. Three more shots to go, administered in two injection sites per shot due to the volume of liquid (2.4ml).
Also recommended slightly higher temps to increase her metabolic rate and help the medication to fight off the heavy bacterial growth (pseudomonas aeruginosa).
Aside from the obvious infection he said that she looks great otherwise. Clear breathing, alert, good muscle tone, doesn’t appear overweight. Weighed in at 26.5lbs so she hasn’t lost any weight despite not having eaten in 6 weeks. I think once her appetite comes back we’ll see some more improvement.


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Quite overwhelming I'm sure. I think it sucks you have to deal with all of that.

I agree though, she looks great and once the infection is finally gone, I think the new cage will keep her happy.

I doubt she'll grow much more.

How is she doing now? Any progress?

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Originally Posted by 67temp

How is she doing now? Any progress?

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No improvement after yet another course of antibiotics and pulled another two teeth the other day. I seriously think she’s going to need surgery to remove the mass from her gum tissue. Hasn’t eaten in 7 weeks now as well. With the number of teeth she’s lost I’m fearful the infection has spread to her jaw.


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Originally Posted by jmcrook

No improvement after yet another course of antibiotics and pulled another two teeth the other day. I seriously think she’s going to need surgery to remove the mass from her gum tissue. Hasn’t eaten in 7 weeks now as well. With the number of teeth she’s lost I’m fearful the infection has spread to her jaw.


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Wow,

This is unbelievable!

I was hoping my next view of this post would have been seeing the new cage.

Instead, more bad news which completely sucks for you.

I must have a very cooperative retic, or it'll hit the fan here soon.

Sorry man, keep the updates coming.

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Originally Posted by Gio

Wow,

This is unbelievable!

I was hoping my next view of this post would have been seeing the new cage.

Instead, more bad news which completely sucks for you.

I must have a very cooperative retic, or it'll hit the fan here soon.

Sorry man, keep the updates coming.

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For real dude, completely and totally unbelievable and beyond draining on my part.
Talking with vet #1 right now and she’s discussing with other herp vets the idea of cutting out whatever’s in her face, cleaning it out and placing antibiotic impregnated beads in the resulting cavity. Then maybe leaving Phyllis with her for a bit to do some monitoring and local therapy.


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Originally Posted by jmcrook

For real dude, completely and totally unbelievable and beyond draining on my part.
Talking with vet #1 right now and she’s discussing with other herp vets the idea of cutting out whatever’s in her face, cleaning it out and placing antibiotic impregnated beads in the resulting cavity. Then maybe leaving Phyllis with her for a bit to do some monitoring and local therapy.


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I really feel sorry for you. You are trying SO hard. No-one can ever say you aren't doing all that can be done. I really wish that things would finally look up for you.

I had a Blood Python that developed a lump like this in his mouth, almost exactly in the same location. It can be frustrating and very difficult to treat and fix.
In my case, that lump quickly grew bigger, the infection got into the bone. Even after scraping out the infected tissue and intensive Antibiotic treatment. In the end things got so bad that we were at daily shots.

If I could say anything about it, be as aggressive as you can with treatment. Perhaps leaving her at the Vet isn't such a bad idea. They can monitor her daily and possibly adjust treatment based on how she is progressing.

I sincerely hope for the best, you and her deserve it!

Dang man. That sucks. You just cant win it seems. Eventually it has to turn around. The "S" cant hit the fan forever. Recently Caesar has been a pita too lol. I had to remove the shelf as he was using it too much and re split one eyebrow and scuffed up the other one as well as the top of his neck now. I swear man, i think we have the worlds most pita retics. Yours being on the far left and mine being between that and the middle.

Again, i was told 'buy a retic! they are fun, they are smart, they are active". Someone forgot to mention the part of 'they are a pita, they like to cause trouble, they constantly poop and pee, they eat anything with fur or feathers that they can fit in their mouths".

Anyways good luck man. At least you got a boa to relax with. Now you need to look into GTPs. They are like a BP on a stick. They are visible but quiet lol.

Thats a bummer man, I was really hoping for her to show some signs of improvement.

Thanks y’all. This animal’s condition pretty much hovers over every moment of every day for me at this point. I may drive her to the vet Wednesday after work, which is awesome because that’s the end of an 11hr day for me to be topped with a ~5hr round trip to and from Birmingham. My vet said she wouldn’t charge for boarding which is nice. After this upcoming visit I’ll be about $1k deep in vet costs since July [emoji37]
And no looking into any other animals until Phyllis is back to 100%. I’ve got cage space but no time to deal with acclimating new animals and treating current problem critters. No rest for the wicked here


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I truly wish you both the best. You have had a hard time for sure. When you put as much love into these animals as we do, it is difficult to watch them struggle with health issues. We are all with you man.

Phyllis had her surgery today and Dr. Burke told me she did very well. Removed a very sizeable chunk of pus and necrotic tissue from her top right lip. She’s already awake from the anesthesia and will be staying at the clinic for a few weeks to monitor her recovery progress.
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Hope the healing and recovery goes well!! Keep us up to date!

Looks like she is on her way to recovery now. Good luck man.

Oh wow, poor girl. No wonder she wasn't herself. Abcesses hurt pretty bad, esp. in the mouth.

If there is so much as a TINY piece of infectious tissue left behind, there will never be 100% healing. It will always blow right back up after antibiotics. This is the best thing you could have done for her. Have her "out" so that a vet can go deep, take out every bit of diseased tissue and matter, irrigate and rinse very well and then insert antibiotic wash into the wound. That plus some antibiotic shots should finally allow true healing to happen.

I bet she already feels so much better. The pressure and pain of an abscess can be excruciating and who knows, it might have been part of why she kept smashing her face. I've had other animals mutilate themselves because they messed with a painful part of their body. They do not comprehend that it only makes it worse.

I hope she will turn the corner for you now and you will pick up a healthy and happy Retic girl, to enjoy her new and large enclosure. You sure have been through the wringer with this girl, you both deserve a break!

Wishing her a speedy recovery and you a well deserved break. Best wishes.

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Originally Posted by zina10

Oh wow, poor girl. No wonder she wasn't herself. Abcesses hurt pretty bad, esp. in the mouth.

If there is so much as a TINY piece of infectious tissue left behind, there will never be 100% healing. It will always blow right back up after antibiotics. This is the best thing you could have done for her. Have her "out" so that a vet can go deep, take out every bit of diseased tissue and matter, irrigate and rinse very well and then insert antibiotic wash into the wound. That plus some antibiotic shots should finally allow true healing to happen.

I bet she already feels so much better. The pressure and pain of an abscess can be excruciating and who knows, it might have been part of why she kept smashing her face. I've had other animals mutilate themselves because they messed with a painful part of their body. They do not comprehend that it only makes it worse.

I hope she will turn the corner for you now and you will pick up a healthy and happy Retic girl, to enjoy her new and large enclosure. You sure have been through the wringer with this girl, you both deserve a break!

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Thank you, zina. Dr. Burke said they removed the piece pictured (still from video she sent me) and a tiny bit from the other side of her mouth. Then irrigated, rinsed, and antibiotic impregnated beads implanted directly into the site of the infection then closed up. They’re going to monitor and care for her until they are sure she is on the upswing. And boarding her for free to make sure they can guarantee quick access to Phyllis should any complications arise.


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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Thank you, zina. Dr. Burke said they removed the piece pictured (still from video she sent me) and a tiny bit from the other side of her mouth. Then irrigated, rinsed, and antibiotic impregnated beads implanted directly into the site of the infection then closed up. They’re going to monitor and care for her until they are sure she is on the upswing. And boarding her for free to make sure they can guarantee quick access to Phyllis should any complications arise.


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Sounds like you have an awesome vet there. Would love to see the video. Wishing her a speedy recovery.

Wishing Phyllis a full and speedy recovery JMC. Hope it's all smooth sailing for y'all going forward.

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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Thank you, zina. Dr. Burke said they removed the piece pictured (still from video she sent me) and a tiny bit from the other side of her mouth. Then irrigated, rinsed, and antibiotic impregnated beads implanted directly into the site of the infection then closed up. They’re going to monitor and care for her until they are sure she is on the upswing. And boarding her for free to make sure they can guarantee quick access to Phyllis should any complications arise.


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That is so interesting, I didn't realize they had those beads now. Since they should have a time released effect, that is even better then just leaving antibiotic wash in the wound. Sounds like you have a wonderful and caring Vet. That is so important, that can really make all the difference. I also think its wonderful that they board her for free. This way they can be right on top of any little issue popping up post surgery. Time is often of the essence in these cases.

I hope you give yourself a lot of credit as well. Following your story, it is amazing how committed you are to this animal.

Dear jmcrook,

Thank you for taking such good care for me the past couple of years. I know it has been a rough ride but I appreciate all you have done.

Sincerely,

Kalatoa

PS... looking forward to a nice meal once I get over this pain in my mouth. :D

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Originally Posted by jmcrook

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Originally Posted by jmcrook

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Originally Posted by
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Originally Posted by jmcrook

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So awesome!! I absolutely love those bad boys. Definitely on the bucket list for later.

Dr. Burke tells me that Phyllis’s post op swelling has gone down considerably since Wednesday. She wants to keep her at the clinic at least through next week just to have a close eye on her.
Also just about finished with the new cage. Need to order a big handrail for a perch and then we’re good to go.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...c0e2ee9972.jpg
Never thought I’d own a cage that makes an Animal Plastics T25 look small...


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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Dr. Burke tells me that Phyllis’s post op swelling has gone down considerably since Wednesday. She wants to keep her at the clinic at least through next week just to have a close eye on her.
Also just about finished with the new cage. Need to order a big handrail for a perch and then we’re good to go.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...c0e2ee9972.jpg
Never thought I’d own a cage that makes an Animal Plastics T25 look small...


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Wow!

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That thing is huge. Grats.

Great job, Phyllis will love it!

That is massive :O

Fingers crossed for you.

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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Dr. Burke tells me that Phyllis’s post op swelling has gone down considerably since Wednesday. She wants to keep her at the clinic at least through next week just to have a close eye on her.
Also just about finished with the new cage. Need to order a big handrail for a perch and then we’re good to go.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...c0e2ee9972.jpg
Never thought I’d own a cage that makes an Animal Plastics T25 look small...


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Looks amazing !!


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Can’t wait to see her in it, very cool man!

Handrail for a perch. :D

Very nice new enclosure. It will be an awesome welcome home for her!

I could live in there quite comfortably! [emoji38]

Looks great and good news from the Vet too. Here is to better times ahead [emoji5]


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Brought Phyllis home today. Deep in shed and her lips are still swollen from surgery but much better than they were previously. We’re going to wait another week or two and see how things progress. If the swelling completely goes away then we’ll leave the beads in her face. If it looks only swollen from the placement of the beads then we’ll discuss removing them.
Welcome home, baby girl!
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...6a5dadeb28.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...6f27115e56.jpg


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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Brought Phyllis home today. Deep in shed and her lips are still swollen from surgery but much better than they were previously. We’re going to wait another week or two and see how things progress. If the swelling completely goes away then we’ll leave the beads in her face. If it looks only swollen from the placement of the beads then we’ll discuss removing them.
Welcome home, baby girl!
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...6a5dadeb28.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...6f27115e56.jpg


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welcome home, bby girl! we're rooting for you both!!!

Grats. So how does she like it?

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Originally Posted by Sauzo

Grats. So how does she like it?

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Very curious about it. Been sniffing each and every corner and surface in there. The shelf is a little deeper than AP so I think that is making it more accessible to her. I also think the 6” extra height is nice for her. She’s got a ton of space now hah


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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Very curious about it. Been sniffing each and every corner and surface in there. The shelf is a little deeper than AP so I think that is making it more accessible to her. I also think the 6” extra height is nice for her. She’s got a ton of space now hah


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I had to remove Caesar's shelf as he scraped both eyebrows and his neck from thumping it all the time since i guess the door became not fun to play with anymore...../sigh

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Originally Posted by Sauzo

I had to remove Caesar's shelf as he scraped both eyebrows and his neck from thumping it all the time since i guess the door became not fun to play with anymore...../sigh

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Good god man... that’s nuts. Retics, the reason we can’t have nice things lol


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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Good god man... that’s nuts. Retics, the reason we can’t have nice things lol


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Well between him and Harley my beardie, i am always broke lol. I just spent $400 at the vet for Harley because she quit using one of her back legs. My vet did xrays and a blood panel and is consulting with an xray specialist as she cant see anything wrong with the back leg except possibly a little arthritis. But at only 5 years old, she is kind of surprised and not at the same time as Harley is 718 grams.....a beardie her size should be around 400 grams. Harley is spoiled with bugs. The vet said no more 'candy bugs' for her. She gets dubias and hornworms and silkworms and thats it except for veggies.

She also checked for impaction, possibly eggs, spine, and stuff and said it all looks normal except for the huge amount of fat on her from years of beardie bon-bons aka butterworms lol. She loves those things and will jump off her hammock and run across the cage to greet me for them when she sees the tub. And me being the softie, i cave for her all the time lol.

Also i just ordered Alex his AP A8 and Pro Products heat panel. Made a joke with Ali saying 'so i will get this cage in 3 weeks'. She laughed and said "i wish. One day we might be able to say that but for now, it is going to be 3 months'.

Glad she’s back! And MAN she’s impressive.