Vet Visits

Gabe got his second shot on Wednesday. I've been told to give it a week and if it doesn't get rid of the lice I will have to return for a topical treatment.

Maxine went in for her surgery and check up on Wednesday. Everything went fine and I picked her back up today. Her ears are really clearing up. The sores have scabbed over and shrunk in size to the point where they are almost gone.

Meet Maxine

I took in a third dog today. Maxine "Max" is an Australian Shepherd / Doberman mix who was born on December 31, 2004. She was purchased from a pet store by some family members who had kept her outside in a country setting. After realizing that they just couldn't care for her any longer, I agreed to give her a home. Maxine has an appointment to see the vet next week to get updated on all of her shots, have a physical exam, and get spayed. Right now I'm working on trying to introduce her to my other two dogs. She also has some very sore ears (see photo) caused by fly bites and excessive scratching that need to be cared for.

Gabe's Vet Trip

Gabe got along just fine at the vet this morning. The doctor confirmed that he has a case of running lice which could have only come from an infected pig at the pet store where I bought him. I got to see the lice under a microscope and it was pretty nasty looking. Actually both doctors and the assistant also had a look since they were so amazed at how fast moving the lice were. I feel terrible that I didn't notice the lice as soon as I brought Gabe home. It's a good thing my nephew has such sharp eyes. For treatment, Gabriel was given a shot of Ivermectin and will have to return in one week for a second shot. The medicine has made him pretty groggy so he's been sleeping most of the afternoon.

EEEEWWWW !

Tonight while I was cleaning out my guinea pig's cage, I asked my nephew to hold onto Gabe for awhile. Just as I snapped this picture my nephew said "Uh Peggy I think there are worms on your pig." I thought he was just joking around or imagining things but I brought in a bright light to examine Gabe's head where Billy was pointing. Sure enough there were these tiny white wiggly things crawling around. I headed to the internet for an identification and it appears that my baby Gabe has acquired running lice. Thankfully this is not something that can be passed to humans or even to other animals. Gabe will be off to the vet tomorrow for a doctor's examination and treatment.

Tortoise Coming

Looks like I've finally found my Russian Tortoise. The little one is scheduled to be shipped from New York (Long Island Turtle Rescue) on Monday and arrive at my house Tuesday morning.

Today I purchased a bag of play sand and a bag of top soil to mix for substrate. Then I headed to a grocery store to pick up some fresh greens (Kale, Collards, Mustard Greens, green beans).

I'm expecting my reptarium and several supplies purchased from Big Apple Herp to arrive tomorrow morning so that everything will be set up for my new arrival on Tuesday. I have a spare plastic bin that can be used for containment in the event of the shipment not arriving on time. Another order was placed with Carolina Pet Supply for some dandelion powder, hibiscus powder, and cactus powder which can be sprinkled on the other food to provide some additional calcium and vitamins. Tomorrow morning I'm going shopping for a uvb/uva light. I'm hoping to find a MegaRay or a Capture the Sun light which will provide heat as well as the uv rays needed. So I think everything is falling in place for my new addition.

The breeder from New York sent me several photos of the tortoise. Here is one shot:

Russian Tortoise

A russian tortoise has been on my animal wantlist for awhile now. Several months ago I did some extensive online research and purchased a book on tortoises to determine if this might be a good pet for me. I decided to go with the russian tortoise over other tortoises because they stay small and are a recommended beginner tort. Using the habitation guidelines as outlined at russiantortoise.org I did some window shopping for supplies and found them to be easy to acquire. The problem I ran into though was in finding a russian tortoise breeder who either lived in Ohio or was willing to ship to Ohio.

Just the other day though I found out that a lady who runs a turtle rescue center in New York http://www.turtlerescues.com/index.htm also breeds russian tortoises and has some youngsters available. I have contacted her to see if I can acquire one of her little ones.

I'm Watching

My beagle, Brandy, always keeps a watchful eye on Yelina, my dwarf hamster, when she is running around in her excercise ball.

The Wild Ones

It's been awhile since I've made blog updates on my glider family so I thought I'd make a few additions. Tent time with the gliders hasn't been quite as successful as I thought it would be but I am making some small gains with bonding. The gliders will crawl all over me inside the tent as long as I don't make any sudden movements. They scare very easily. I do wear a toboggan when I'm inside the tent with them. I know it sounds strange, but after having my hair attacked viciously by Jalynn it is much safer. LOL

Analynn gave me a scare in July. I woke up one morning to find her sleeping in a pouch by herself. When I checked on her she seemed very cold so I held her until she warmed up. This went on for three mornings in a row so I became somewhat concerned even though she was still active and eating. Thinking that this might be the start of some kind of rejection by the other gliders, I sought advice from some other sugar glider owners. Once I heard that gliders will often avoid a sick glider, I made an appointment with my local vet. The vet thought Analynn might have a bit of a cold or a respiratory infection so he had me put her on antibiotics. After a couple of days, she was back to sleeping with the others. She is still a good bit smaller than her sister but seems to be a healthy glider.

Here is a photo of the family when they came out for supper tonight. From left to right is Jalynn, Noah, and Analynn.