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Issue #4 Volume #2

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Coverpage

Protect Pets From Summer Scorchers
tips from the American Animal Hospital Association

Summer is just around the corner and soon temperatures will reach into the 90s and 100s. Such intense heat is not only dangerous for humans but for pets as well. The American Animal Hospital Association offers a few tips to protect pets during summer heat waves.

Cars are potential death traps during the hot summer months because inside temperatures can quickly climb to more than 120° F on even a mild sunny day. It's best to leave your pet at home while running errands during hot weather. If you absolutely must leave your pet in a car, please do the following:

  • Open windows and vents as wide as possible without providing an escape route; or, put your pet in a well-ventilated cage inside the car and open the windows fully
  • Provide fresh water
  • Check the car every ten minutes

If your pet is panting, has a fixed stare or anxious expression, does not obey commands, has warm, dry skin and a high fever, rapid heartbeat, or is vomiting, lower the body temperature quickly with cool water -- either by immersion or by spraying thoroughly with a garden hose. Call your veterinarian immediately.

If your pet lives outdoors, make sure there is adequate shelter for protection from the midday sun and heat. Outdoor kennels should be well-ventilated and in a shaded area. There should always be some shade for the pet to get out of the sun. Also, make sure there is plenty of fresh drinking water available to your pet. The bowl should be placed in a shaded area where it cannot be heated by the sun.

Exercise is important, but overexertion during hot weather commonly causes heat stress. Avoid excessive exercise during hot days. Finally, keep your pet well-groomed. Long hair and hair mats may need to be clipped to help cool the animal.

The American Animal Hospital Association is an international organization of more than 12,000 veterinarians who treat companion animals. Established in 1933, the association is well known among veterinarians for its high standards for hospitals and pet health care.


Undertaking a New Venture


by Michael Mathews, member, Greater Cincinnati Herpetological Society

My experience with herps covers a span of twenty-nine years, mostly with the various species of snakes. Although when I was younger I did keep a few species of turtles and tortoises with some success as well as two spectacled caimens, lizards never seemed to fare too well in captivity for me. Those were the days before Vita Lites, and when someone purchased an iguana in a local pet store the clerk advised to feed them lettuce and meal worms, which serves as a reminder: "We've come a long way, baby!" Thank God for the early pioneers who did the research and set up captive breeding programs that provided us with the knowledge we have access to today.

When I began working at a local pet store five years ago, my intention was to expand my horizons. I was hired as a Kennel Tech, but my job description covered much more than just the care and maintenance of the dogs and cats. The small animal department and the reptiles were also entrusted to my care. When I first began working there the reptile department only consisted of six 20-gallon long aquariums. The usual occupants in those units consisted of the small-to-yearling Iguana-iguana, spiny-tailed iguana (Clenosaura pectinata), agamas, anoles assorted skinks and swifts, box turtles (Terrapene sp.), red-eared sliders (Trachemys scripta elegans), ball pythons (Python regius), colombian red-tail boas (Boa constrictor ssp.), and black and yellow rat snakes (Elaphe obsoleta and Elaphe obsoleta quadrivittata).

My job turned into a real learning experience as I soon developed a new love and passion for lizards, beginning with Iguana-iguana. I purchased two iguanas from the store, one as a birthday present and the other, I convinced my wife, as a gift for her. I named my wife's "gift" Elliot, after the dragon in the Disney movie 'Pete's Dragon.' After a recent inspection by Walt Williams "his" name was changed to Ellie. Regardless, she is now a healthy three-year old, four-foot long iguana, and has proven to be a real sweetheart. A true success story, she has been my inspiration for future ventures.

My most recent success story is the establishment of a breeding colony of inland bearded dragons (Pogona vitticeps). I have a good start on this project with five red-tail boa (Boa constrictor ssp.) for a 14-inch eastern blue-tongued skink (Tiliqua scincoides scinsoides). In the future I hope to be breeding these as well as other species of blue-tongued skinks, and if that isn't enough, at a recent expo in Indianapolis I fell in love with Haplopelma minax. She is a large, aggressive, and lustrous black and blue species of tarantula which is referred to as "lividus," or cobalt blue.

Will wonders ever cease?

-from The Forked Tongue, the monthly newsletter of The Greater Cincinnati Herpetological Society.


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