SHBailey":23pif13w said:Glad to hear she seems to be improving, and it's nice that you have a vet that will treat her at no cost. <<< being a native wild reptile , he's obligated to assist any that are brought to him injured or sick , I believe they hit up Parks & Wildlife for the treatment costs.
If WIRES were in the area , and if there was a WIRES carer who was interested in lizards , the vet would give me the choice of either
>> leaving the sick / injured lizard with him (very stressful scary noisy place for wild skink)
>> contacting WIRES and surrendering her to them (no WIRES , and they are not interested in lizards)
>> since I've skills and experience , my keeping the lizard and treating it at home under the vets supervision ( he gets to examine it regularly )
>> or same as above only I treat at home and the vet is on standby should be needed.
Most people don't know vets look after wild native animals gratis.
BSFL sounds like a very good idea for her -- they're small and soft, high in calcium, wiggly enough for her to notice once she gets the gunk cleared out of her eyes, but still easy for her to catch without too much effort.
<<< my thoughts exactly.
<<< if had some mealworm sized silkworms , they'd be a good option too for all the same reasons + the beneficial enzymes in them. I'm waiting for fresh batch of eggs to hatch (any day now) and it'll take a few weeks - a month for them to get big enough for her.
It's amazing how quickly some animals can recover if they get some good care before they're too far gone. Thanks for sharing her story with the rest of us. Still hoping she'll continue to improve.![]()
Short of putting her on brought spectrum antibiotics (injections) and buying some antibiotic eye ointment , she's getting the best care she's likely to get , and I can dedicate a bit more time to her than the vet can too. Big plus is I can monitor her closely and it's quiet and much less stressful for her her in here with us, and she knows my wife and I (hence responding expecially to my wife's voice).
I'm glad to have another water skink in my care, only I wish she'd not been in need of help and on death's door.
Since most forms of conjunctivitis are highly contagious , I'm wiping my hands with F10 Handwipes and change my shirt after handling her to protect the pet bluetongues and my pet beardies and just in case she is carrying something else they have never been exposed to - so doing my best do good infection control and quaranteen protocols.
If she lasts that long - not out of the woods yet by a long shot - she'll be under quaranteen for 3 months.
I'm going to call her Fluffy. I think name just suits her.