Exotic Pets?

Over the last 20 years it has been quite trendy to own some of the more unusual pets like birds and reptiles. Even though many of them make great pets, they are not as domesticated as dogs and cats. This leads to a significant amount of frustrating problems for their owners and us veterinarians. You have a responsibility to educate yourself on the needs of these animals 

before you purchaseone of them. To think that you can take an animal from the wild and recreate a proper habitat for it in your house with little effort is sheer folly.

Many of these animals are exquisitely adapted to their particular niche and don't 

do well when taken out of this environment.

If you are not going to make their care a highpriority in you life then you don't

belong owning one of them. In many cases the nutritional requirements are not 

known. We have an idea of what they need to eat, and try to replicate the foods 

they eat in the wild, but it is only an educated guess. Nature is verycomplicated, 

and these nutritional needs are very specific. This is particularly important in reptiles 

since they are dependent on their environment to a much greater degree than 

most any other animal. Iguana's are probably the most common reptile presented to us, due mostly to their popularity and the medical problems that affect them. By the time an owner brings them in for medical care the disease process is well entrenched and difficult to correct. You can learn more about this Iguana disease by following this link on our web site: http://www.lbah.com/reptile/nshp.htm From the doctors at the Long Beach Animal Hospital WWW.LBAH.COM

3816 E. Anaheim St. Long Beach, CA 90804 USA