New "Dr K Exotic Vet" show

[wolfy-hound]

It's playing on NatGeo channel, usually after the Dr Pol vet show.

So far I think I've seen about 3 episodes, at least partly each. And I think on every episode she says how she basically doesn't approve of exotic pets at least once. I mean, I'm sure she's a decent vet(although I'll mention some stuff on that), but if you don't approve of people owning the animals, don't freaking go into the specialty in my opinion.

As far as "good vet", she treated a ball python who had simply belly rot, well on the way to being healed from the look of it. I believe she gave an injected antibiotic, with more to follow. Then she put on ointment and bandaged it. Yes, she wrapped the poor snake in bandaging. Probably half to 2/3s of the length. And then promptly began to say how it was a burn from it's heat source. Instead of mentioning a thermostat, she started explaining how ball pythons don't have heat sensors on their belly so belly heat was bad for them.

Eye twitch.

After things like that, it makes me wonder how accurate any of it is, and when I see her losing patients I start going "Well, why?" All vets lose patients, that's normal. Animals die. Reality shows make simple things look dangerous and dramatic, I understand. But it just seems like little things here and there just are Wrong and that makes me wonder. With the attitude that people just shouldn't own these animals in the first place, I don't think I'd really want to use her as my vet honestly. Maybe she's great in real life. Maybe she's the best ever. I'm only judging on the show.

I hoped it would be pretty cool, but I can't stomach it.

[bcr229]

Ugh, more disinformation spoon-fed to the uneducated public. Lovely. Makes me happier than ever that I ditched both DISH and CATV.

[GoingPostal]

I haven't seen this one yet although I know someone who takes ferrets to her and seems to think she is a good vet for them. I know my ferret vet is no snake expert and it definitely pays to get a vet experienced in your particular species. My local vet will see/treat ferrets and snakes, but they are utterly clueless in their care or common illness which is downright scary but probably common in the industry. If owners would educate themselves first it would help a lot but most just trust whatever a vet tells them. Some of the stuff on that Dr. Pol show is nuts too, he seems good with farm animals but if I had a cat or dog, I wouldn't use that place.

[Bluebonnet Herp]

Dr. K is an avid supporter of the Humane Society of the United States, for what it's worth. Keep that in mind.

Melissa Smith, probably one of the best online authors in regards to the subject of exotic pets IMHO, wrote about Dr. K three weeks ago. Despite the fact she profits from treating exotic pets, Dr. Kelleher is very much against keeping them, and the show is filled with B.S. messages as such. What a hypocrite.

[Spoons]

I'd like to put in my two cents regarding her being against owning exotic animals and it making her a hypocrite. A friend of mine is a parrot lady. She's not just into parrots, parrots are her entire life, her whole being revolves around them and I don't exaggerate even a tiny bit. She pretty much lives at a parrot rescue, has several of her own, she does talks and educates, she brings her parrots out for pulic viewing (again, education). Her entire being is dedicated to parrots. And she is 100%, completely against owning parrots and thinks they shouldn't be captive ever, at all.

It seems hypocritical, yes, but hear the reasoning. Her view is that people often do not and can not give a parrot what they need to live happy, healthy lives. They don't have the time for a bird with a knife for a mouth that will act like a very destructive 2 year old for its 80 year lifespan. They don't have the patience to deal with a screaming bird. They aren't home enough to give it enough out of cage time. They don't have the money to give it a big enough cage or the diet or specialized vet care it needs. And so they suffer, because of poor husbandry, and they start to have a whole slew of problems and pluck and become aggressive and all that, they get released to die, they get abandon, they get shut into cages alone in empty spare rooms.

But, parrots are always going to be a thing. They're always going to be popular. So instead, she takes in the ones she can rescue and give a wonderful, full life to, and she dedicates the rest of her time to educating and helping where she can to give the already captive birds the best life they can have, and speaking out about people adopting pet birds on a whim and urging people to reconsider, because parrot mills are the ones who profit, etcetc. I think in a way it's similar to Dr. K, that she feels against having exotics as pets, but as long as someone's already owning them it's not like they can be released, so you might as well do the best you can by them. It doesn't make it okay for her to tell her clients that to their face, as obviously if they're taking it to the vet they're trying to take good care of it, but just a possible thought behind the mentality.

I do agree that some of her knowledge has me raising an eyebrow. I won't argue there!

Anyways... Sorry for the novel. How's that for a first post introduction? lol!

[Bluebonnet Herp]

I'd like to put in my two cents regarding her being against owning exotic animals and it making her a hypocrite. A friend of mine is a parrot lady. She's not just into parrots, parrots are her entire life, her whole being revolves around them and I don't exaggerate even a tiny bit. She pretty much lives at a parrot rescue, has several of her own, she does talks and educates, she brings her parrots out for pulic viewing (again, education). Her entire being is dedicated to parrots. And she is 100%, completely against owning parrots and thinks they shouldn't be captive ever, at all.

It seems hypocritical, yes, but hear the reasoning. Her view is that people often do not and can not give a parrot what they need to live happy, healthy lives. They don't have the time for a bird with a knife for a mouth that will act like a very destructive 2 year old for its 80 year lifespan. They don't have the patience to deal with a screaming bird. They aren't home enough to give it enough out of cage time. They don't have the money to give it a big enough cage or the diet or specialized vet care it needs. And so they suffer, because of poor husbandry, and they start to have a whole slew of problems and pluck and become aggressive and all that, they get released to die, they get abandon, they get shut into cages alone in empty spare rooms.

But, parrots are always going to be a thing. They're always going to be popular. So instead, she takes in the ones she can rescue and give a wonderful, full life to, and she dedicates the rest of her time to educating and helping where she can to give the already captive birds the best life they can have, and speaking out about people adopting pet birds on a whim and urging people to reconsider, because parrot mills are the ones who profit, etcetc. I think in a way it's similar to Dr. K, that she feels against having exotics as pets, but as long as someone's already owning them it's not like they can be released, so you might as well do the best you can by them. It doesn't make it okay for her to tell her clients that to their face, as obviously if they're taking it to the vet they're trying to take good care of it, but just a possible thought behind the mentality.

I do agree that some of her knowledge has me raising an eyebrow. I won't argue there!

Anyways... Sorry for the novel. How's that for a first post introduction? lol!

I'm sure someone could say similar thing about cats or dogs, or even the myriad of reptiles out there, beginner or advanced. There are numerous cats, dogs, ball pythons, bearded dragons, etc that improperly cared for, that are neglected, that have health issues because of improper husbandry, and there are numerous people out there who are dumb and should not own such animals. But does that mean they don't belong in captivity at all, whatsoever? No. It just means that neglect and bad care is inevitable. Why? Our world isn't perfect, and it never will be. There is plenty of grim and negative things that happen on this planet, and there always will be until the world's end.
But there are things that us dedicated animal lovers could do to reduce such bad cases, through responsible moderation, reasonable regulation, and animal education, and there are plenty of animals that can be helped by running or supporting rescues. There will always be bad in this world, but there's also plenty we can do to counter it with good. It's just the way this world works.
So should the keeping of exotic pets be condemned just because of all the irresponsible keepers out there? No. Should we just allow people to irresponsible keepers? No. What we can do is continue to be the good guys, and to continue to educate people and advocate responsible animal keeping practices, and have our impact by saving animals without taking people's rights away.

[Spoons]

I'd guess because dogs, cats, horses, etc are domesticated, where most large birds are not and are either wild caught or have wild caught in their immediate history and thus are not at all adapted or suited for home living the way most people provide it. (I suppose the 'non domesticated' part is the same for reptiles, but the needs of birds and reptiles differ SO much it's like two ends of a scale!) I am not saying I agree or disagree with the mindset, just offering a possible explanation for it and giving an example from my personal knowledge.

[Bluebonnet Herp]

I'd guess because dogs, cats, horses, etc are domesticated, where most large birds are not and are either wild caught or have wild caught in their immediate history and thus are not at all adapted or suited for home living the way most people provide it. (I suppose the 'non domesticated' part is the same for reptiles, but the needs of birds and reptiles differ SO much it's like two ends of a scale!) I am not saying I agree or disagree with the mindset, just offering a possible explanation for it and giving an example from my personal knowledge.

I know there's reptile rescuers who end up saying the same thing. There's just so many animals in bad shape out there, and they constantly have to deal with that - albeit many of the rescuers signed up for it - but because of the fact they just see so much of the neglected animals and hardly ever any of the responsibly kept animals, that it's all they ever think about and they come to the conclusion that hardly any animals ever receive proper care, which isn't entirely true. I hear some people just call it "Rescuer Syndrome."
Domestication isn't entirely meaningful to the whole equation, and many birds in addition to some reptiles are often captive bred these days. Domestication doesn't have anything to do with how well they do in a home environment or not either. That varies from species to species - regardless of social status - and varies from individual to individual, in addition to who's keeping it, and what environment they provide it with. I would go so far as to say the term 'domestication' is scientifically meaningless when it comes to providing insight and understanding an animal. (A 'domestic' dog has more in common with an undomesticated wolf than it does with a 'domestic' cat. You also wouldn't keep a 'domestic' cat like you would a 'domestic' dog. A captive bred, "puppy-dog" tame pet Boa constrictor will most likely be a better pet than wild-born, aggressive feral "domestic" cat as well. People have also been keeping and breeding many 'undomesticated' animals longer than you'd think too. The list goes on...) I'd say that if an individual wanted to keep an animal, they should learn about the specific species (and possibly subspecies) and it's requirements before considering keeping them, all while ignoring the social status (but not laws!) associated with them.

[Spoons]

I disagree, I absolutely believe domestication has a big part in how well an animal does in a home setting. That was the whole purpose of domestication. We can keep a dog much easier and happier with us than a wolf, because they are a domesticated species. Horses are easier to keep than zebras. Cats are easier than cougars. I used to know all the "points" or factors that make animals a good domestication candidate, as not all animals fit, but I sadly don't remember - but the whole purpose of domesticating anything is to make it a good household animal, make it easier to keep around. captive bred does not necessarily mean domesticated, not at all. A captive bred lion in the zoo may be tame, but they are by no means domesticated.

I 100% agree that regardless of animal, regardless of 'domestication' status or not, people should look into the needs and care of an animal before buying. Sadly, many people don't, and with the exotic species it's harder for a clueless idiot to keep them happy and healthy than a more traditional pet. Many people can get a dog with no prior knowledge and keep it just fine, but lots of the exotics have more refined and special needs that don't get met.

I sure do wish, though, that people would stop buying animals on impusle. It kills me to look at animals on Craigslist. Take the time to research, don't just go snap up an animal. There should be a test you have to take and pass before buying animals, I think.

[bcr229]

There should be a test you have to take and pass before buying animals, I think.

The same can be said for having kids...