Dr. Karen Emerson and technician Anna Beth are joined by the bearded dragon, Elduin.
He was recently admitted due to intestinal issues.
Find out how Dr. Emerson helped Elduin and what you can do for your pets facing the same issues.
Dr. karen emerson: good morning, sunrisers.
I'm dr. karen emerson and today i have with me, my technician, anna beth.
Dr. karen emerson: this is actually a bearded dragon named elduin.
Elduin actually presented a few weeks ago, having some diarrhea so they came in.
We actually did a thorough exam.
We went from head to toe.
We actually got more fecal material by doing a very non- stressful animal.
He actually did great doing it, and we were actually able to look at his fecal material under the microscope.
I actually have footage on the microscope that i saved to show you an intestinal parasite egg, and what it can look like in reptiles.
Dr. karen emerson: reptiles can get intestinal parasites, just like dogs, just like cats, and sometimes their intestinal parasites or bacteria can be very harmful to humans.
I know a lot of you know about e.
Coli.
That's a lot of things that people associate with reptiles, so it is very important when you're messing or cleaning with your reptile's cage to wear gloves.
But it's also important due to the fact that they can carry something called giardia, which is zoonotic to humans, and we can also get intestinal parasites from our pets.
So it's very important just because you have a snake, just because you have a lizard, they also need to be checked out by your veterinarian.
Dr. karen emerson: one of the most important things to check is their fecal material, because we can learn a lot about what your pet's eating, if your pet has disease.
We do a lot of this through gram staining the fecal material.
When we discovered that he had intestinal parasites, we actually have flavored medication to make it easy for you to give your reptile medications.
Because the last thing i want is for you to go home and feel stressed out and not able to give your meds to your reptile.
We actually put elduin on something called metronidazole.
It was strawberry- banana flavored so it was very, very easy for the owner to give, actually showed them how to do the first dose.
Dr. karen emerson: it's also very important to yearly get your reptile's fecal material check.
A lot of times i'll tell owners if they haven't had in a while and they had a big bowel movement, just get it, put it in a bag, put it in the fridge, bring it by, and we'll do those tests because it is so important because we really don't have a monthly preventative to keep them on.
I actually do my bearded dragon godzilla every year.
Dr. karen emerson: if you have any questions, if you have a reptile, you have a snake, lizard, even any other pet that you think needs a fecal checkup, call and make that appointment.
I promise your pets will thank you, and i hope you have a good rest of your week.
Announcer: wcbi animal health with dr. emerson was brought to you by emerson animal hospital in
Dr. Karen Emerson of the Emerson Animal Hospital in West Point introduces us to a bearded dragon who suffered from intestinal..