My blue tongued skink, Wheezy, died.

[eyespy]

I spoke to some vet friends of mine who say keep rubbing alcohol VERY far away from herps!!!

It's called rubbing alcohol because in the days before aspirin, Tylenol or ibuprofen were used against fevers, they would rub down a patient with alcohol to lower a dangerously high body temperature. It lowers the body temperature far more quickly than a cool bath and was used to try and stiop seizures from high fevers.

So rubbing a cold-blooded animal with a substance that instantly lowers the temperature of the skin is a very bad idea indeed. Not to mention that most herps do not have much of a mucous membrane in their respiratory tracts and are therefore extremely sensitive to vapors, fumes, and airborne chemicals.

Rubbing alcohol packs a double whammy right there, even before you consider that many herps absorb fluids through their skin at a much higher rate than mammals, and so the blood alcohol content of that poor skink might have reached fatal levels, and of an alcohol type not meant for internal use.

Lord only knows how the dish soap might have contributed to the problem. Please, please, please, feel free to print out my reply and give it to the store owner, animal control and anyone else who will listen to try and stop this "experienced" person from ever using alcohol near a herp again. Here in PA that would be considered animal abuse and be subject to a criminal investigation.