Category Archives: Reptile

21: Dystopic Dystocia in Reptiles

Reproduction, Reptile, Surgery, , , ,

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Mark is looking resplendent in his Lacoste Polo shirt this week – trying to convince us he wears it for a good cause. In other news dogs are in the bad books – threatening wildlife and wreaking havoc on beaches, whilst Brendan ponders the choice of colour in a newly discovered giant slug.

Mark’s book review is 1Q84, a dystopian novel. You can find more information here. He rates it a 7 out of 10.

Brendan’s Melbourne Veterinary School Class 30th Reunion  – can you see him?
The main topic this week is dealing with dystocia in reptiles: What works? Medical or surgical or a combination of both? Oxytocin use, incubation of eggs, and an alternative use of the Toothpaste Technique is discussed.

Links:

Domestic dogs threaten endangered species worldwide

Dogs and leashes, birds and beaches

Lacoste swaps out iconic croc logo for endangered species

The giant pink slugs of Mount Kaputar

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Episode 20: Wildlife Worries – 2 March 2018

Avian, Reptile, Veterinary,

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Mark is angry about dogs licking their faces, yet happy about horses roaming free. Brendan flexes his muscles with talk about a squirrel glider gym and is pleased that the 1st International Snail Grand National has been cancelled – ready, set, escargot for this and more from the VetGurus!

Wildlife care is our main topic this week. A discussion on triage of wildlife brought into veterinary clinics, including decisions on when to euthanase, analgesia options, and the debate about who pays for wildlife care.

Links:

Przewalski’s horse: 10 things you didn’t know

Squirrel Glider rehabilitation

What do dogs licking lips tell us?

Snail race cancelled

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Episode 16: Reptile SSSSurgery Feb 2 2018

Reptile, Surgery,

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In news Mark talks about his sighting of the Regent Honeyeater, a critically endangered bird. Brendan reviews the Fujifilm Instax SP-1 Smartphone printer, a great promotional tool for clinics.

The main topic for this week is something we are frequently asked about: the basics of reptile surgery. The discussion includes fluid therapy, suture selection and patterns, and heat retention and loss.

Links:

Regent Honeyeater

Regent Honeyeater tank by Mark with a very heavy, long lens...

For more information on the use of vascular clips for surgery: Hemoclips and Ligaclips

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Episode 15: There be Dragons! Jan 26 2018

Reptile, Veterinary, , ,

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It’s the Australia Day holiday down under and Brendan and Mark are in a festive and feisty mood.

News

Mark jumps in the deep end to ponder on the meaning of Australia day – and what exactly should we be celebrating? Another load of news stories this week: Songbirds struggling with noise; banning of circus animals; and animal welfare campaigners protest a proposed dog breeding facility. in lighter news we jump on the treadmill with baby sea turtles and discuss a fishy story about tapeworm infections in humans.

Book Review

Brendan is good at sniffing out obscure titles and this week is no exception. Following on from the discussion in Episode 5, he reviews the educational, lighthearted, and fun book ‘Does it Fart?’. He scores it an aromatic 8.0 out of 10.

Bearded Dragon Care

The main topic is the iconic Australian reptile commonly kept as a pet world-wide, the Bearded Dragon (Pogona spp.). We outline the basics for keeping these as pets, and the common problems encountered when unwell bearded dragons are taken to veterinary clinics.

Links

Does it Fart? The definitive field guide to animal flatulence.

Songbirds are struggling with noise pollution

New Jersey (USA) plan to ban exotic circus animals suffers setback

Animal welfare campaigners against proposed dog breeding facility in Australia

Baby sea turtles on treadmills for science

Tapeworm acquired from eating raw fish

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Episode 13: Lucky for some

Rabbit, Reptile, Rodent, , , , , ,

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Here we are already half way through January. Brendan and Mark are both back at work fighting the good fight against pesky parasites, belligerent bacteria, vexatious virus, and cranky clients.

In news, snake eggs are found in a school sandpit in Australia, pumas (or wild mountain lions) are picky when choosing their sleeping sites, and the Mekong region reveals over 100 new species. Mark fires Brendan up with a story about the animal inspirations behind the newest Star Wars creatures, then brings us back to earth with an article about the mental health of animal shelter workers.

Since this is our 13th episode – lucky for some – we decided to make our main topic a chat about the lifespan of pets. How old can we expect our small mammals, birds and reptiles to live for? No spoilers – subscribe and listen to learn the answers.

Links:

Snake eggs found in Australian school sandpit

Pumas sleeping habits revealed

Mekong region reveals 115 new species

Greater Mekong region

Animal inspiration behind the Last Jedi creatures

Why do animal shelter workers burn out?

Contact us: VetGurus@gmail.com      Twitter: @VetGurus

Support us on Patreon: Patreon.com/vetgurus

Outro music courtesy of Canadian Lee Rosevere from happypuppyrecords.ca

Episode 9: Turtle Soup

Reptile, ,

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This pre-Christmas special of the Vet Podcast is for the week ending December 22, 2017.

In news, the genome of the Tasmanian Tiger has been sequenced and we discuss the consequences. Mark reveals that an extinct marsupial has been ‘rediscovered’, and we list 8 things about Guinea Pigs that you may or may not know. Spotted recently in Tibet has been Snow Leopards.

The Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD) syndrome in Turtles is the main discussion this week. Brendan and Mark chat about calcium and Vitamin D metabolism, the diagnosis of, and treatment options, of MBD in chelonians. Included is a discussion of turtle diets – and the poor prognosis of turtles presented to clinics as ‘turtle soup’.

Links

Tasmanian Tiger genome sequenced

Crest-tailed Mulgara rediscovered

Snow Leopards spotted in Eastern Tibet for the first time. Also see these stunning photos of snow leopards.

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Twitter: @VetGurus

Outro music courtesy of Canadian Lee Rosevere from happypuppyrecords.ca