When to assist feed?

[Jolecerve]

Just a quick update I set an appointment for Lucy to see the vet tomorrow. She is still not eating and has become less active
I Hope all goes well, I will let you know what the vet says tomorrow...

[Diamond Serpents]

Just a quick update I set an appointment for Lucy to see the vet tomorrow. She is still not eating and has become less active
I Hope all goes well, I will let you know what the vet says tomorrow...

Well I hope the vet can figure out what is wrong with Lucy and not try and rip you off. My first Albino boy died from starving himself to death, Vet told me nothing was wrong with him.

So I guess he died from stress/starvation, ever since this even after having BPS for over 2 years I get freaked out when they don't wanna eat.


Also you said this is a class room pet? Are you a biology or science teacher? Either way its really cool that you are teaching the young how reptiles deserve to be pets to!

[Jolecerve]

Well I hope the vet can figure out what is wrong with Lucy and not try and rip you off. My first Albino boy died from starving himself to death, Vet told me nothing was wrong with him.

So I guess he died from stress/starvation, ever since this even after having BPS for over 2 years I get freaked out when they don't wanna eat.


Also you said this is a class room pet? Are you a biology or science teacher? Either way its really cool that you are teaching the young how reptiles deserve to be pets to!

Sorry to hear about your albino you should be able to rely on your vets to help your babies unfortunately things like that happen more often than they should...

I hope so too, I was told that the vet I am going to see actually keeps BP's as pets and is very Knowledgeable.

I wish I was the teacher unfortunately not, I purchased her from teachers. I do however have 3 children who are reptile lovers and if I ever start breeding BP's would love to see one or more of my babies as a classroom pet in the local schools.
Lucy and about 8 other babies were purchased by the teachers who are chameleon breeders, they keep them for a very short period of time to allow the children to interact and hold them then sell them at the reptile shows with there chameleon's.

Unfortunately they are not very Knowlegeable about BP's and told me such when I purchased her. They were feeding them 1 fuzzy mouse a week which is what led to her
being underweight when I got her. I don't want to overstep but have thought about contacting them again to let them know that they need to be feeding them at least a hopper mouse once a week. I would have thought being teachers they would have done there research before keeping that many babies and then selling them.
I probably should have not purchased her Knowing that they didn't know how to properly care for her but for only $25 I couldn't pass her by she is such a pretty little thing and I fell in love with her as soon as I saw her.
I just hope the trip to the vet tomorrow will be enough to help her...

[Jolecerve]

Just got home from the vet, as I feared Lucy is to weak to eat on her own.
Her Dr Gave me Carnivore Care, an antibiotic, and showed me how to tube feed her.

She only weighs 54 grams and has almost no muscle tone.
She will be getting 2.5ml of her antibiotic and 2.5ml of Carnivore care once a day for
the next 7 days and if she is responding well I can then up the amount of Carnivore care gradually.
Once she passes a stool I will be taking it in to have it tested for parasites.

He fears she has not eaten in several months if ever and wants to get her GI track used to food.
if all goes well in about a month I can start offering her FT pinkies and eventually bigger pray.
I Just hope she has not contracted fatty liver disease from her previous neglect.

Just on a side note for anyone in the KC area is looking for a knowledgeable reptile vet
I highly recommend Lucy's new Dr, Dr Corey Entriken at Kansas City Veterinary Care
7240 Wornall Road Kansas City, MO 64114
816-333-4330

Not once did he ever say she was a lost cause, and you can tell he genuinely cares for his patients and
there well being. Hopefully Lucy will be going to him for many years to come.

Now to make contact with her previous owners, any advice on what to say or how to approach them?
I don't want to come off as rude or accusing but they need to know what is going on with her so they can
take the steps necessary to prevent this from happening to another defenseless baby BP in the future...

[MootWorm]

I can only recommend that you be as polite/gentle as possible, but don't sugar coat it. Let them know you're glad you got your little baby, but she's extremely weak and malnourished and will require specialized care if she's expected to make a full recovery. I would definitely express concern for any other balls that remain in their care, and advise them to critically look at their husbandry practices. If need be, get those other little ones medical attention ASAP. Just my .02

[Jolecerve]

My bad not 2ml 0.25ml of antibiotic and 0.25ml of Carnivore Care
I thought that sounded like a bit much then I looked at the dosage and was correct
so my little baby wont even be getting a full ml into her little body but at this point something
is so much better than nothing...

[Jolecerve]

I can only recommend that you be as polite/gentle as possible, but don't sugar coat it. Let them know you're glad you got your little baby, but she's extremely weak and malnourished and will require specialized care if she's expected to make a full recovery. I would definitely express concern for any other balls that remain in their care, and advise them to critically look at their husbandry practices. If need be, get those other little ones medical attention ASAP. Just my .02

Thank you for your advice.
I agree I'm just so upset that she is in this state and it could have been prevented and didn't want to just blow up on them.
With any luck Lucy's misfortune can prevent other animals from suffering this way.

[MootWorm]

Well you seem to be handling it fairly well. I know that many wouldn't even bother taking a $25 snake to the vet, which is a shame. I'll be rooting for the little guy!

[Jolecerve]

Well you seem to be handling it fairly well. I know that many wouldn't even bother taking a $25 snake to the vet, which is a shame. I'll be rooting for the little guy!

Thank you again.

It is defiantly a shame, I don't feel that the "Value" of an animal should determine the Value of it's life. By purchasing an animal we take the responsibility to ensure
that it is properly cared for no matter what the cost!
So I had to spend another 85 dollars on her to get her what she needs, if she survives I am going to be getting 30+ years of affection and enjoyment out of her, if for some reason she
does not make it then at least I know I did all I could do to help her

I can report she took her first feeding/med's well, with little fuss and she kept it down, so I am very hopeful that
she will continue to do well and get a little stronger every day. I will keep you guys posted as to how she is doing

[Jolecerve]

A quick Update for those of you following Lucy's progress. Today is day 8 her first day on 0.50ml of Carnivore Care she is keeping it all down
She is not gaining any weight by any means but she is still hanging in there. Hopefully after this week we can thicken it up and she can start getting some weight back on her,
I can't wait! Still a long way to go until then. I will update every other week or so as we go along...