Devastated. What should I do? (RI's)

Honestly that is one of the saddest things I think I’ve heard. And to think you want to leave a community because someone is giving help to someone that is going though a really hard time and the one that is giving the help has years of experience backing their knowledge.

If people can’t get better, then what is the point of trying to gain knowledge? What would be the point of even doctors consulting other doctors for their opinions and experience?

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I will PM you my reasons as it’s not only this issue.

So not post anything that goes against your opinion? A quick google search of DR Travis Wyman will quickly show you Travis has been a pillar of the reptile community for Many years. And is well versed and educated. Listen to the countless hours of interviews and podcasts he has been on will give you an idea of his knowledge level.

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In situations like this it’s really important that veterinary care and course of treatment be an ongoing, engaged discussion between vet, owner and possibly other experienced professionals (who may not be medically licensed). No is infallible and has all the knowledge, which is why forums like this are a great way to gather and disseminate information, even if it’s just to present to your vet to show them other possible courses of treatment or things they may not have considered.

I consider my relationship with the veterinarians who treat my animals to be a working professional relationship in which we discuss treatment and diagnostic options and decide on a course of action together, rather than me blindly taking them at their word. I respect them for their training and expertise and lean heavily on that knowledge, but am also not afraid to challenge it if it seems wrong or contradictory. I will always reccomend that others post on forums, gather information, read the literature and understand diagnostic and testing procedures in order to have informed and productive discussions because in the end, veterinary care treatment of animal needs to be a team approach.

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@chesterhf Thank you and I absolutely agree. I should have pushed harder for the panel to be done regardless & that’s something I can learn and take away from this. I figured making this post could help me collaborate better with my vet aswell incase anyone had treatment advice via a vet I could share with him. :slight_smile:

I also understand why @t_h_wyman suggested to stop Baytril, as I’m educated on the inflamation it can cause when injected and if I can avoid that I will. My vet was hesitant to use it in the first place but said it would be the most foolproof way to go about it, so with Loki passing suddenly I didn’t want to risk her having less time left to fight than I know and went for it. At this point it could certainly being doing more harm then good though if it is indeed progressing so I’ll be calling my vet to discuss whether we should complete treatment before introducing another antibiotic. (& To discuss exactly when we can be certain she is certainly not making any improvements on the current two medications.)

Thank you everyone for your time. This was supposed to be our first upcoming season and it was an investment so it’s pretty crushing. I love these snakes & I hate feeling like I failed them.
I appreciate the “expectations” comment @lumpy because like you said, vets can’t know everything. I’ve been really torn up over this but
it helps me to push through by being reminded there’s always a level of unpredictability when it comes to these things

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Mad,

I have been where you are and I know how crushing it can feel.

Best advice I can give you is to not look at this as “failure” and instead, look at it as a means to grow above and beyond where you currently are now. We all make mistakes. Those of us that learn from our mistakes and use them to find a better way are the ones that carry the hobby forward

Stick with it, you got this.

And we are always here to help as we can :+1:t4: :+1:t4:

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There is a ton of good advice and recommendations in this thread but I would just like to reiterate what a few people have said. Just because your vet is an exotic vet does not mean he is not going in his office and Googling for answers. My vet has helped me with a number of issues and I was under the impression that he was very experienced and knowledgeable but after I had a snake with an impacted musk gland he admittedly told me he was going to have to Google the procedure and basically learn online how to do the operation. I also took an animal in one time for an exam and it was given a clean bill of health only to to have a Mite infestation that the vet did not even notice. There is no universal law that makes a vet more intelligent than any of us other than their schooling but they still don’t necessarily have to be the smartest individuals or have all the experience they claim to possess. I would always recommend second opinions and doing your own research to corroborate the Vets recommendations. Trusting any vet blindly unless you have years of experience and confidence in him is a mistake that a lot of reptile hobbyists make in my opinion. Oftentimes guys on this forum have way better more current information than I hear vets giving people all the time. You have to consider all sources and just because someone has an exotic vet credential or experience does not mean they are always right or that they always know what they’re doing. That is the case in any field.

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