Patient Cases


 

A Leg Lighter!


This cool looking guy is Ninja!
He is a hypermelanistic blue tongue lizard. 
Unfortunately Ninja found himself with a severe infection in his right front leg, meaning it needed to be amputated.
Dr Harry did some X-rays and had some pathology sent to the lab before the procedure to determine the extent of the injury and decided that amputation was the only way that Ninja could have a healthy quality of life as unfortunately the infection had spread quite deeply.
Dr Harry performed the surgery and successfully removed Ninja’s right front leg. 
Ninja was sent home with some anti-biotics and pain relief to assist in his healing.


His owners tell us he is recovering very well and we look forward to seeing Ninja at his next visit!

A Cut Above The Rest!


Even som eof our dangerous native species need to see the doctor!

Unfortunately for this Red Belly Black snake he required some veterinary attention after what looks like an altercation with a lawn mower! 


After some TLC from Dr Michelle whom cleaned the wounds and applied some manuka honey to assist healing. We are hoping this beautiful snake recovers well with its carer over the next few weeks! 

 A Leap In The Wrong Direction!


Freckles the Magnificent Tree Frog, not just in breed but in beauty, saw a small opening within his cage and decided that he would use the opportunity to go on an adventure.


Unfortunately, he took an uneducated jump and ended up bruising his abdomen.


After a thorough check over from Dr Michelle, some medication was administered and sent home with him to assist his healing.

An Eggy Entanglement!


This stunning black and white coastal python unfortunately had some issues laying her eggs and had become egg bound (Dystocia), which means she needed our help!
Unable to pass the eggs naturally meant we needed to surgically intervene.
This problem usually occurs for a few reasons:
🐍Poor husbandry: these include a lack of suitable substrate, suboptimal temperature and humidity and overbreeding.
🐍Health: things like dehydration, stress or underlying illness can delay or prevent egg laying as well as poor nutrition.
🐍Physical Issues: these factors include oversized, abnormally shaped or soft shelled eggs, uterine Inertia or any existing masses or tumors blocking the passage of the eggs.
Dr Michelle anesthetised and intubated her and as reptiles do not breathe for themselves under anaesthesia, she was then placed on our exotic ventilator throughout the procedure.
The surgery was successful and Dr Michelle was able to spey (desex) her at the same time to prevent this happening again.
As you can see in the photos attached to this post, due to their elongated bodies, snakes anatomy is far different from that of other animals. All of their organs are therefore elongated also. Snakes have what is called a Salpinx which is like a uterus and ovaries which are those tiny clear bubbles/balls. 
Once the surgery was complete, a lignocaine (local anaesthetic) patch was placed along her wound site to give her some pain relief and she was placed in a pre-warmed brinsea (temperature controlled box) where she was given manual breaths by one of our nurses until she was breathing on her own.
She was back to her sweet and curious self the next morning and was sent home with some antibiotics to assist her healing and to prevent infection.

 Turtle Trouble!


One of the many wildlife species we see and treat at NRVH are turtles! 

On the occasion where they are able to be treated, they either are given to a WIRES carer or kept in hospital where they complete their care/treatment with us until they are able to be released.

This is Holly (we usually always give them a name as they are more often than not with us for a number of weeks).


She was recently given a bill of great health by Dr Michelle after completing her medical treatment for a cracked shell and was able to be released

Angel's Follicle Fiasco!


This is Angel the Pygmy Bearded Dragon!
Her owners noticed she had a decreased appetite and she was also hiding within her enclosure after brumation (a period of reduced activity in the winter months similar to hibernation). 
Being an entire (not desexed) female, Dr Jody conducted an ultrasound of her abdomen with the help of Dr Michelle, which revealed that her ovaries were full of follicular cysts.
Desexing was recommended and Angel underwent surgery with Dr Michelle to remove the follicles, cysts and her uterus.
She has recovered very well and after a few days of care in hospital, she has returned home with some antibiotics to continue her healing

 Myrtle's Backed Up Booty!


Myrtle is a very stunning hypomelanistic translucent leatherback bearded dragon, whom is owned by one of our exotic vet nurses.
Myrtle unfortunately hadn’t passed any faeces in 2 weeks and naturally being a vet nurse, her owner was getting worried, even after doing warm bath soaks .
So after a quick trip to work and a set of X-rays, Myrtle pooped on her own in one of our reptile enclosures! 
She probably heard Dr Harry talk of a warm saline enema and decided she would prefer to just poop much to her owners relief!
As the cold sets in, reptiles metabolisms start to slow down so it is not uncommon for this problem to arise
To help your scaly friend pass their poopy problems, you can offer warm bath soaks, gentle belly massages and increase their veggie intake.

Myrtle is back to her happy and active self! 


A Slithery Situation!


This green tree python unfortunately presented a few weeks ago to Dr Mami with a severe issue. A cloacal prolapse.
The owner had done the right thing by bringing it in straight away as he noticed it this morning and also putting the snake in a tub of sugar water (which helps the tissue not expand and further worsen the prolapse)
Unfortunately this is a reoccurring problem for this snake.
The time before this, it was fixed with external sutures as is done routinely with this issue, however it has now prolapsed again with a large part of the internal organs (cloaca and digestive tract) were exposed.
The only option to correct it this time would be to surgically intervene again however internal fixation would be required.
It is a more invasive way for the patient, however at this point it was the snakes only option other than euthanasia.




Their owners consented to the surgery and it was performed the same day.
The surgery went well and the snake recovered great under the watchful eye of one of our exotic nurses.
They were able to go home that afternoon with some take home antibiotic injections to ensure they are given every possibility to heal well and continue to recover smoothly.
The snake has since been back to see Dr Mami for a recheck and is doing extremely well!

Minx's Moment!


Minx is a 2 year old central bearded dragon whom presented to Dr Michelle when her owners noticed she had been vomiting for a few days.
Upon examination Dr Michelle suggested that Minx should undergo a conscious ultrasound, where some follicles were found.
Dr Michelle decided it was best to perform a spey surgery (desexing) and remove the follicles and her ovaries to help her health start to improve. 
An ET tube was placed after Minx was sedated as reptiles do not breathe for themselves while under anaesthetic and she was hooked up to our new small animal ventilator (which is a machine that mechanically gives the animal breaths) 
The follicles and her ovaries were removed with our ligasure machine, which is a device that cuts and coagulates tissue at a high frequency, limiting the amount of blood lost to the patient quickly. 
After being recovered by one of our exotic nurses, Minx was able to go home the same afternoon and her owners have informed us that she is feeling great!

Here is a little feedback from Minx’s owners:
“The service and support we received at North Richmond Vet Hospital was second to none. Everything about the procedure for desexing the lizard was explained clearly.  The surgery went well and the recovery went even better.
Minx never seemed to miss a beat and seemed to take everything in her stride even the medication. 
All the staff at the hospital were extremely polite, caring and supporting through pre and post operation, again a big thank you to all the staff at the hospital.”

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