What exactly is the point of.....

[ChristinaM]

rescuing an ill herp ( or animal of any sort ) if you do not have the ability to give it the treatment it needs? ( example: being able to pay for vet check, etc )

I understand its the act of kindness, you want to rescue a sick/injured/mistreated animal, but really......if you don't have the means to nurse it back to health, why exactly are you rescuing it?

This is rapidly becoming a big pet peeve of mine. So many posts about rescuing this or that, but when suggested to take it to the vet, the response being I can't afford it. Well then why did you take it in the first place?

anyone else share these thoughts?
what about the other side of it, why do you rescue if you cannot afford the treatment?

[marisa]

Some people think rescueing means "Oohh I get a free pet" because they are too cheap to buy their reptiles like everyone else. Unfortunatly its the pet that suffers. I laugh everytime I see a ad "Will take in ANY rescues" as a real rescue has no need to advertise as they get over run all on their own.

So yes, it annoys me too.

Marisa

[HeatherK]

Some people are worse than the people they 'rescue' from. :(

I know someone who was/is a particularly bad case. Acquired so many animals (most of them 'rescues') that they were all over the house.. EVERYWHERE. Always getting more. You could hardly see the house for the animals. Not only did she 'rescue', but bred her own. It was sickening to walk in there.

[Vengeance]

Well as long as everything was cared for I don't see a problem with having allot of animals. Were they not being cared for?

[C.m.pyrrhus]

That is how most folks buy at pet stores too. "It looked so sad and sick (or lonely etc, etc), that I felt bad and brought it home." But in the end, these folks have no thought of bringing anything to the vet either, nor even getting proper care information before or during the ownership of the animal. I honestly feel that a huge bulk of animal owners fit in this catagory. Pretty sad the number of irresponsible folks out there that could use a brain. (I thought he said train, so I asked for a nice slow one!)

[Rebecca]

Also some people might have ahd the money when they rescued it and then for some unforeseen reason don't now. Are maybe it ended up costing more then they thought. Just a thought.

[drewlowe]

I agree completly, If you have the money, time, and williness to learn then by all means do it. If your doing it just to have animals or if you don't have the money then don't your just making the situation worse. It's really hard walking into some pet stores, you see sick animals and you know you could help, but can you really save them all??? NO


Personally i have my rescue and that's it, It was hard enough with him (learning about that species and having the setup perfect). You have to be willing to do what ever it takes to make life better for this animal, if you can't provide that then you shouldn't take in the animal.

[lostwithin]

Hey, I see no problem with somebody owning lots of animals, if they can care for them, if I could afford the time and money I wouldn’t hesitate too take in as many animals as possible. As for rescuing, I agree completely that people shouldn’t take in animals they aren’t prepared too fork over tons of money too get them back on track, even if it doesn’t look very likely you can help, if your not willing too try then you should never have taken "rescued" it in the first place, and bye no means if rescuing cheaper in any way then purchasing a new healthy animal, the sav I rescued about 3 weeks ago cost me 200 dollars in vet bills, in addition too heat, and trying every type of food possible too finally get him too eat, and when I took him in I was told from the illnesses he had it was a 50/50 chance he survived through it, unfortunately he didn’t, after just over 2 weeks, and all that money he passed away, too me its all about the animal, I enjoyed the fact that I gave the poor guy a fighting chance. But if it were just too have another pet it is MUCH cheaper too just pickup a sav, maybe if more people would be willing too point out just how much it costs too deal with sick animals less people would adopt thinking it would be a cheap pet
Devon

[UpscaleBoas]

Wow…first time I’ve seen this subject here…the problem of having too many pets is a psychological problem…the are called hoarders…the most famous are the old ladies with too many cats…not once after have the animals taken awaken from these people have they ever admitted to abusing the animals…in their opinion they are great caretakers... even though anyone else seeing the conditions these animals are kept in are deplorable.

This is a serious animal abuse issue. One that is often over looked...many of us are able to care of a great number of herps without issue…but it is easy to see how one could try and justify too many and we would let them get away with…I would love to see at the next expo a discount off admission for all those that could supply a vet bill (any time in the last year.) I think it would be surprising how few people could take advantage of the discount…

[marisa]

Well vet care is different for snakes especially though. Even snakes from the worst conditions can usually be brought up to tip top shape without ever seeing a vet. Although of course this doesn't mean no vet care.

As for hoarding another issue I have noticed is new people to the hobby....they go out and buy say 20 snakes within 6 months. That's fine and dandy for the first year since they are all very small, eat little and are easy to house and manage....but few realize what taking care of 20 ADULT snakes will be like. And you can't explain it, you must experience it.

In general unless you have money or substantial income for vet trips, and ANY emeergencies you should only own as many animals as you would be able to take to the vet on the drop of a dime.

Marisa

[drewlowe]

Originally posted by UpscaleBoas
I would love to see at the next expo a discount off admission for all those that could supply a vet bill (any time in the last year.) I think it would be surprising how few people could take advantage of the discount…

I would love that idea, it would promote that herps need vets too, (there are so many people i have met that can't belive i take my herps to a vet)!!! I would have constant discounts at expos as long as yearly fecals and checkups counted.

[Delirium]

This rescue thing is on the forefront of my mind right now. Veng and I have what I would consider a fair number of animals but they're all happy and healthy little buggers. 3 turtles, 3 snakes, 3 hamsters and a fish who thinks he's royalty. Were moving June 1st into an environment that will allow for a dog finally and I can't friggin' wait. Starting the adoption process now which will likely take the full two months. Were going to see a 7 year old beagle tomorrow and I have a really good feeling about him.

Of course in all my research its easy to see why even people with the means/time get frustrated with rescues. Its so damn easy to walk into your local pet store and walk outwith a new animal while going through a rescue requires time, money and usually a huge song and dance of requirements. Also, as you said, not all rescues are created equal. Some of them, in worst cases, aren't in it for the betterment of animals, and some of them, in the not so bad cases, are just down right rude. You just have to persevere and realise that there are good rescues out there that are right for you. Ones where they put the onus of responsibility on the owner and ones where the song and dance routine is a relatively reasonable experience. And to buy from anywhere else is just making you part of really serious problem.

As for money, its not even just vet care but environment, supplies, food and toys where applicable. Animals are a huge expense but if you can afford it and love them, its so worth it :).

I dunno, just something that has been on my mind alot lately.

You're right about the whole reptiles being able to be home cared even when sick. We've only ever had to take one of our turtles to a vet but when we did, I felt that we were educating the vet on alot of subjects....something you're not used to doing with doctors. He helped with the shell rot issue (this turtle was a rescue) but if there was anything wrong with him that was breed specific, I honestly don't think he would have been able to help us much.

Dee

[marisa]

That's soo awesome you are adopting an "older" dog. Two years ago we adopted a 15 year old Jack Russell Terrier named Tug. He had TONS of issues but even aside from those, the insane process of adopting him, the constant and very large vet bills, and the fact he died a short year later didn't change my mind at all. He was one of the best dogs we have had the privledge of knowing. Good luck with the Beagle!

Marisa

[BWSmith]

I just rescued 25 snakes. My vet is having to make a housecall on Sunday LOL

I love having a great herp vet.

[Auskan]

True, herps can be helped at home with proper husbandry, and vets, even those who say they are exotic pet vets, often don't actually know a great deal about them. As an example, I have a corn snake which I could only describe as "spastic". She seems to have little control of the upper third of her body. Her head is constantly tilted about 90 degrees, and when she tries to go anywhere, her head sort of flops around all over the place. I took her to a vet who advertizes expertise in exotic pets, and he didn't even pick her up to look at her - just kind of said "oh yes, I see what you mean. Let's keep an eye on her" (whatever THAT means!) Despite her "disability", she has no difficulty with eating, she poops, she even sheds, though usually with some difficulty and I have to soak her then run her through a damp towel to get leftover bits of skin. She is so active that I would say she is "happy" enough and I'm not overly concerned about her. I'll continue to give her the best possible care but she will never be more than a pet - I'd never try to breed her.

Having said that, vets are indispensible when fecals need to be run, unless you own a high powered microscope and know what to look for. They also can dispense medications (such as as parasite medicine) that are unavailable "over-the-counter", so I would hesitate to say that good husbandry alone can eliminate the need for vet care, even for herps.

[Delirium]

Ya, I promised myself many a moon ago that at my first opportunity, i'd haul *** down to the pound and take home the ugliest little mutt I could find, take him home and hug him and love him and call him...er...George.

Well realistically, after doing some research, I realise that there are requirements to think about like size, temperment, needs etc. I've had zero experience with large dogs so need to limit myself to a small-medium breed. Also, i've read that for a first time adopter, a rescue dog as opposed to a shelter animal is better because they've had time to work out "some" of their issues and there is more info to be had about them as they have been observed closely for a period of time. Finally, even getting a dog out of foster is helping the system because it opens a door for a shelter dog to take his place with that family. All part of a cycle. I've got a short list of people i'm working with as well as the THS, EHS and MHS so we'll see what happens. Nothing is for sure. This beagle, Oliver, sort of found me so maybe its destined :).

He's a great boy it seems. He's had a tough time of it, including a period of time locked in a garage, sitting in his own filfth so he's got some confinement issues. He's survived Kennel Cough, a suspected case of Cushings (he's recently been cleared) and there are two lumps on his chest that we need to watch. I have a good house to bring him to so i'm hoping we can make him as comfortable as possible.

Dee

[Jeff Hathaway]

I'll take a different tack- it bugs me to hear about people 'rescuing' sick animals (often paying a pet shop which encourages them to get more) and spending lots of money and resources trying to rehabilitate these individual animals. Might it not be better to euthanize the animal in question, spend a fraction of the cost of vet bills on a healthy CB specimen (assuming that you want one) that will likely not need to see a vet in its lifetime if kept appropriately, and put the balance of the money towards something useful like conserving wild populations, saving habitat, educating keepers, etc.?

What's the point of 'saving' dozens of iguanas (or savs, burms, etc., pick your throwaway herp of the month)?

Jeff Hathaway
Sciensational Sssnakes!!

[claycoke11]

Yah its true that some rescues do that type of thing, and don't take care of the aminals they rescue thats one of the reasons I opened mine, that and there isn't one around here. Every animal that gets brought in we do probably 4 hrs research on just to make sure we make it the perfect home.

[Lisa]

I have no problem with taking in free animals but I have to take into consideration the other animals I have first... Last thing I need is a sick boa passing something on to my other boas, sure there's quarintine proceedures, but some animals can be carriers and never show a symptom of an illness and while I try to keep things seperate, there's always a chance of cross contamination.

As for taking care of 20 adult snakes or even sub adult, it definetly is an experience, and the time involved can be surprising. record keeping, cage cleaning, feeding. never mind treating for mites, bad sheds, etc.

[HeatherK]

Originally posted by Vengeance
Well as long as everything was cared for I don't see a problem with having allot of animals. Were they not being cared for?

Absolutely not, there were way too many of them. I have a lot of animals myself, and am not discouraging it, however it's no where even close to this. I've never seen a house like that in my life, there wasn't an inch uncovered. Picturing an overcrowded pet store is still better. A lot of the time it was an "I felt sorry for it" case, and bringing the animal home, without care to resources. It was like an obsessive behaviour, animal after animal. She would say that she needs to sell some off (no kidding!) but wouldn't, yet would still keep acquiring more. She brought home an aquatic turtle without knowing how to care for it, but when informed, still didn't improve it's living conditions. Then bought another one.

What can you do :mad: