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0:00
[MUSIC]
0:14
Welcome back to another episode of Questions with Crocker with me, Dr. Crocker.
0:17
My husband Shane. >> Who is here and super excited.
0:20
>> Yay! I love that positivity.
0:22
>> Yes, that's me. >> Thank you for bringing it. And then we have Dr. Sydney with us.
0:25
>> Hi. >> Do you want me to do your last name? I'm sorry.
0:28
>> No, that's fine. >> Are you sure? >> Yeah.
0:30
>> Okay. All right. >> Introduce yourself.
0:32
Give us your whole name. Tell us where you're from.
0:34
Give us all the info. >> Okay.
0:37
Hi. I'm Dr. Sydney Poe Guard.
0:40
I am from Orange County, Southern California.
0:43
And I'm an exotic vet.
0:46
You are an exotic vet. You were a very cool exotic vet.
0:50
And we met through social media because your pictures and videos are amazing.
0:54
I love seeing what you're doing.
0:56
I see exotics very infrequently in the ER and it is a lot in overwhelming.
1:01
And you make it look... >> We have a lizard because of somebody being an exotic person.
1:06
>> We have a lizard because your daughter won a one.
1:09
That's... >> Yeah. >> We have a bearded dragon. >> A bearded dragon.
1:11
>> They're actually a little different. >> I love that. >> So, I love that.
1:13
But you do make it seem really fun and you do a lot of educational videos.
1:17
So that's how I first saw you.
1:19
And then I met you in person and realized how delightful and wonderful you were.
1:23
>> Oh my gosh. >> Thank you. >> I was very excited that we are here at Western Veterinary Conference and we get to talk in person.
1:28
>> Yeah. >> And the way this podcast is set up is we get questions from people on social media and then we ask you about them.
1:35
I do want to go a little bit into this.
1:38
We'll probably be out in about three months or so.
1:42
So do you want to talk at all about some of the plans that you have working?
1:46
>> I do. >> Yeah. We're good to talk about those.
1:48
>> Okay. >> Good. >> I didn't want to ask any surprises.
1:52
>> No, we're good. So Shane and I own a small animal general practice and you are venturing into practice ownership.
1:58
>> I am surprised. >> Yay.
2:00
>> And I'll actually be open in about three, four months.
2:05
So I'm in construction right now for my first startup.
2:09
>> Exactly. >> I mean, very stressful.
2:13
Like right before this, I'm like emailing my contractor and my landlord was like,
2:19
we need this from your contractor and anyways.
2:23
>> And it's taken a while to get here. >> It is.
2:25
>> Yes. It's been a long process. >> Yes.
2:27
>> Probably like two years honestly to get to like this point.
2:34
>> Because partially you're in California. >> It's very hard to find real estate.
2:38
>> It's very hard. I mean everything is so much hard.
2:41
>> It's expensive, it's hard. I actually had another lease space that fell through and then I found the one I'm in now,
2:47
which in hindsight was like so meant to be.
2:51
But in the moment it's like, the world is falling apart.
2:55
But yeah, it's just a really long process.
2:58
I think everyone, it takes a lot longer than everyone realizes.
3:02
And I know people say that. But like when you're in it, you're like,
3:04
the permits, this requirement, that requirement, the insurance,
3:10
all of it, it takes so long.
3:12
>> Can you say that one more time that takes a long time is really difficult to do?
3:15
>> So somebody will buy into this?
3:20
>> I know that you were doing your best to get the renovation done as quickly as possible.
3:24
But my job is to be a motivating factor and encouragement.
3:29
So that's all I do. >> You're a very good encourager.
3:32
>> I'm not impatient at all. But really it is hard and it is a huge investment, like emotionally, financially, everything.
3:40
So why do you want to be a practice owner so much?
3:43
Why is this so important you need to go through all this?
3:46
Because I want to change that, Med.
3:50
That's like, and I know I'm not going to change the whole profession or anything like that,
3:54
but maybe one step at a time. I have seen a good amount of things in my career so far as a mixotic set.
4:00
And things that I don't like, things that I maybe don't align with how I want to practice medicine.
4:08
I just want to do something different. I want to do something that it's not necessarily something that's never been seen before.
4:14
You work in a hospital that is similar to what I'm doing in an open concept way,
4:21
working with exotics. But I just want to push the boundaries a little bit,
4:28
not be within this box.
4:30
And I think a lot of people in the industry have told about my vision and half of them are supporters,
4:36
like you and half of them have been like, yeah, that might not work or I wouldn't do that.
4:42
I don't really think that'll work for you.
4:44
So those are just people I don't have on my team right now.
4:47
Yeah. And I do think trying to explain something is different than experiencing it.
4:53
Yeah. So a lot of times in my case with the open concept ER, people automatically be like,
4:58
well, that doesn't work. And I'm like, 12, we have 60 plus locations.
5:02
So something is working.
5:04
Something's working. But maybe it doesn't work for you, which is fine.
5:08
Right? Or maybe you don't have the ability to see the differences that we can be doing.
5:14
And then people come in and experience it and they say, oh, now I get it.
5:19
It does work. And so I'm excited to see your journey on social media.
5:23
I'm excited to see like what the practice becomes and how you do it all.
5:28
And I'm sure there's going to be things that you're going to, and we've experienced this where
5:32
I'm like, this is how we're going to do something.
5:34
And then the reality, it doesn't work out.
5:36
Yeah. So I'm sure there's going to be some things along the way.
5:39
They're going to be like, we're going to do this. And then when you get into it, you realize, yeah, maybe you need to adjust.
5:45
Yeah. But the great part is you own it and you can make adjustments.
5:49
I get to. Yes. So as a finance guy, exotics or just can't appreciate or envision exactly.
5:56
But like birds, lizards, snakes,
5:58
birds, so they're like 50 birds forever.
6:01
Yeah, all of them. Like they bring a burden on in a cage.
6:05
You take it out of the cage. Like, no, they just send it by carrying your pigeon.
6:11
Like, we have cats that get loose.
6:14
And like, you know what I mean? Like dogs get loose sometimes.
6:16
Yeah, birdcage. There's legit.
6:19
I know, but you have to take it out of the cage, right? To like do stuff.
6:22
Yeah. What keeps it from flying away? Well, you hold it.
6:25
So it doesn't fly away. What happens with flies away?
6:27
Like a dog with you catch, right?
6:29
I mean, knock on what I've never had a bird fly away.
6:31
So mostly birds are owned.
6:34
And they're used to like getting on a finger or being held.
6:37
So it's not like they're wild birds that are trying to like break free.
6:42
So a lot of them are trained to be messed with or like.
6:46
You'd like to have fans in the like,
6:48
no, I'm serious. Like, I mean,
6:50
I close my mind a little bit. So I do see a lot of birds for hitting ceiling fans at home
6:55
because they're like, we fly that home. It's not true.
6:57
I don't necessarily always recommend that, but,
7:00
yeah, no, they come in a cage.
7:02
I'll go in a like a smaller room and take them out.
7:06
And, you know, put them in a comfortable position,
7:09
wrap them in a little towel. And you have to worry about like, um,
7:12
dance and stuff. Not really.
7:15
I'm just thinking about like a constructive process. Like, non-lust, they're enormous.
7:19
I mean, the, my architect team did a great job
7:24
ensuring that a hamster or a mouse couldn't crawl through
7:27
a little space and a bird can't fly through anywhere.
7:29
So that is important. Yeah, I mean, so we'd have to think about.
7:31
Yeah, that's why I guess what I'm going is like, it has to be like my mind automatically goes to things we have to do
7:36
different than an ordinary practice. Yes, yes.
7:39
The little like cracks behind like a built-in or something
7:43
like that you don't think could ever be there in the corner
7:47
on the, in the, on the floor or something like that.
7:49
Could be a hazard. You know, filled in and, you know, yeah.
7:52
So in that sense, yes, we did have to do a little bit of,
7:55
well, you have, you have different equipment for exotics.
7:59
There's different things that you need and the setup is different.
8:02
But that's why, you know, people that have these pets
8:06
should really go somewhere that actually works on exotics
8:09
and, especially, is in them because you're going to be set up
8:12
the best for them. Absolutely. So, but there are bird cages.
8:17
Right. It's fine. It's got to ask weird questions.
8:19
Carrier, there's cages. They sometimes they come in their cage that they live in at home
8:23
and sometimes they come in a separate carrier.
8:25
Yes. Yeah. So there's lots of options for that.
8:28
So, no one know. All right. Let's see if we can educate Shane even more.
8:31
I'm going to start asking more questions. Don't need questions from him.
8:33
I'm going to shut you down on that one.
8:35
For sure. I've got a lot of questions.
8:38
They're brewing up here now. Okay.
8:41
So, like poisonous snakes? venomous.
8:44
venomous. You don't say poisonous.
8:46
But yeah, I worked with rattlesnakes.
8:49
She's worked with like, okay, let's,
8:53
what is lion's tigers, bears, literally, all of them?
8:56
Yeah. I mean, I've worked with like a four gram frog species
9:01
all the way up to, I think my largest species.
9:05
So far has been like a tiger lion, African lion.
9:11
Like, that was independently owned.
9:15
Or is that like, those like zoo type stuff? Depends.
9:17
Yeah. So I've worked with zoos before. And I do have some, being in California,
9:22
I do have some clients that work in like the entertainment industry.
9:25
They do have private collections.
9:27
So, yeah, they still need beds too.
9:30
So, I mean, so she has a vast array.
9:33
That's really cool. It's very cool. My first case ever, sorry to interrupt.
9:37
No, you're good. Was a status epilepticus African lion.
9:42
Ston, and I gave him three bottles of diasopium
9:46
to get him to stop seagruring. Yeah. Wow.
9:48
So that was my first case ever.
9:50
And then, we like, we like, I'm a badass.
9:54
No, I was like, I'm so glad I didn't die.
9:57
I'm so glad I didn't like, by my arm, I'm not knowing what was going on.
10:04
He stopped seagruring and ripped your arm off.
10:06
Yeah. That would be a little traumatic. Yeah. So I do think that your job is very cool.
10:11
And we got a ton of questions about it.
10:13
Because people really wanted to know.
10:17
So, at Dom, any que wanted to know,
10:21
how often should a bearded dragon be seen by a vet?
10:24
And I would say like, can you kind of just categorize like reptiles,
10:29
pocket pets, like how frequently should they probably come in
10:33
and see a veterinarian? It's very similar to dog and cat in the sense that
10:38
the at minimum once a year for a yearly exam,
10:42
blood work, fecal test.
10:44
And sometimes every six months, if they're older,
10:46
or for some species, I'll recommend every six months,
10:50
like a hamster, for example. Because their lifespan is like two to three years.
10:54
So sometimes I'm like, hey, let's schedule like
10:57
every six months, every four months, something like that.
11:01
But yeah, so really similarly to other species,
11:04
I still want to see them annually for checkups.
11:07
Yes. And I didn't realize because we feed our bearded dragon worms
11:13
that they still can get parasites and things like that.
11:16
And we also, she goes on the trampoline sometimes for natural light.
11:20
And they're like, they're outside. They can pick up things.
11:22
So doing fecal is a thing in exotics.
11:26
And absolutely. They draw blood, like you do draw blood and
11:30
they do have veins. Yeah, no,
11:33
in the tail like for bearded dragon. For bearded dragon.
11:36
Yeah, from their tail. Yeah, typical spots like the underside of their tail
11:39
or the sides of their tail. But yeah, absolutely recommend fecal every six months.
11:44
And blood work annually, or sometimes more often.
11:49
It kind of depends because it's, there's certain dogs or cats maybe that get stressed
11:56
when they come into the clinic right for a blood draw.
11:58
But most of the time they can recover from that.
12:01
There are some exotic species that can't recover from the stress
12:04
that a blood draw takes.
12:07
Because maybe they're not used to being handled.
12:10
Maybe that bird, that little 30 gram perit ket has never been to a vet before.
12:15
And so we always have to be really careful with how we're drawing blood,
12:19
where, how much things like that.
12:22
And just weighing like, is the risk of worth that worth it in this moment?
12:27
Like, yeah, if the birds completely healthy, I use a lot of sedation for my exotic species.
12:34
So that way, I'm not stressing them out unnecessarily
12:37
and then reverse it and they're fine.
12:39
And they're like, oh, it was an easy visit.
12:41
I love that. Easy, happy visit. Just like we, you know, do for cats come in and stressed.
12:46
Yeah. But it is true. Those iddbd birds will die in two seconds.
12:50
Yeah, they can be able to stress and die.
12:52
And it's terrifying if you're not used to dealing with them.
12:56
So I would rather deal with that than like your dog emergencies.
13:00
Oh, it's so funny.
13:02
Like, well, you become comfortable with it. Oh, yeah.
13:04
Like what you're able, what you're able to do.
13:06
Okay, someone wanted to know, um, at Sophie Shild wanted to know,
13:11
what do you recommend feeding to ferrets?
13:13
And I would say in general, the hardest thing I have with dealing with
13:17
exotics is the variety.
13:19
Yes. Like the husbandry, what to feed, what their habitats need to be.
13:24
It is way more information than anyone should have to have memorized.
13:29
Yes. And you guys are way better at it than we are, um,
13:33
that just deal with mainly two species.
13:35
Yeah. So is there a place that people can go to get really great information
13:40
for feeding their exotics? And then do you have a recommendation, kind of a blanket one
13:44
for ferrets? Obviously, people should check with their vets.
13:47
Yeah, absolutely. Uh, coming soon to my website or by the time this comes out,
13:51
um, it'll already be live. But I'm gonna have care guides for every species.
13:56
Nice. That just puts together, uh,
13:58
because there's not really like one place to necessarily have as the go to,
14:03
like a website. Um, there are stuff for veterinary professionals,
14:08
obviously, but not for just the general public. So it does become really challenging to figure out where to go.
14:13
But I'm gonna have free care guides on my website
14:15
that anyone can access for, I, I will plan on for every species.
14:20
Um, for ferrets specifically,
14:23
I do recommend some commercially made diets.
14:25
Missouri is one really good brand because, uh, they,
14:29
the problem with just feeding them maybe,
14:31
uh, one type of food or a lot of people feed them, uh,
14:38
feline diet, like a wet food.
14:40
And it's still really important to make sure that they're getting everything
14:43
that they need nutritionally. So incorporating a commercially made diet is generally best for them as well.
14:49
We see a ton of issues in the ER with people,
14:52
not feeding properly formulated diets, um, in exotics.
14:57
And so we'll see them have major issues with their calcium balance
15:00
and having bone issues and fractures that have occurred.
15:04
And, uh, it's really sad because it is preventable.
15:07
So if you want an exotic, you need to be taken care of them properly
15:11
and have the proper husbandry, for sure. And we need to set up our bearded dragon for their yearly.
15:21
For, there was a couple other things I did think it was funny.
15:24
Someone wanted to know how do you examine a hedgehog?
15:26
I see people have the same questions as that.
15:28
This is on cool stuff.
15:32
So it depends because if it's a well handled hedgehog,
15:37
I can examine them no problem. If it is a hedgehog that is not used to being handled,
15:41
then it needs to be sedation because they will just curl up into a ball
15:45
and you can't like open them out of the ball.
15:48
But otherwise if they're well trained and handled, then then you're good.
15:53
You're good. I was taught the water trick where you do like a little bit of water
15:58
and then you set them in it and they mowl and a ball
16:00
because they don't really want to put their head in the water.
16:02
And so occasionally, especially if it's sick
16:05
and I don't want to sedate it, then I can sometimes like do that
16:08
and then I can still like feel their belly or if they had a mass like that they're, you know,
16:12
rolled up and I can't see, I can absolutely.
16:14
So that's kind of a fun little trick that does work with hedgehogs.
16:18
Yeah. But I don't, I don't see a ton of them.
16:21
So definitely, definitely I'm not the expert here.
16:24
Okay, someone wanted to know at Nathalie,
16:28
Eva wanted to know what is the most common talent you
16:31
do have in dealing with exotic owners?
16:33
Ooh. I would say that a vast majority of my exotic pet owners
16:44
do not want to leave their exotic pets.
16:48
Like they do not want to go back to the treatment area
16:51
without them. Mm-hmm. And so they will just decline everything
16:55
because they want to be with them. Yeah. Yeah. For fear of, hey, I had a bad experience because I had a bad...
16:59
Get loose and fly away. I'm telling you.
17:02
I'm telling you, I know this. You know, I had another bird
17:06
and it went back for a blood drawn and it died.
17:08
And so, I mean, that's exactly why I made my hospital open concept
17:15
and reduced fear and all of that because that's probably the biggest challenge.
17:21
I mean, I think that with dog and cat owners,
17:25
if they've been dog and cat owners for a long time,
17:28
they kind of like have seen the how their vet has handled things like over the years.
17:35
And they're kind of used to like, okay, yeah, it goes in the back
17:38
and then I wait and that kind of a thing. Exotic pet owners just won't come in.
17:43
They generally will just not come in or they'll just say,
17:46
no, we're not doing anything. And like you said, some of these species live
17:49
for a really long time and some of them we don't see problems until
17:54
it's been going on for like 10 years. Yeah.
17:56
And so, that's even another reason that, you know, they're not coming in.
18:00
I remember my grandma had these huge, huge parrots
18:05
and they were, they lived forever and they were like her children
18:08
and they would attack us all the time, the grandkids.
18:12
So I have like a healthy fear of like birds.
18:15
But she loved them.
18:18
And I experienced that a lot with especially these birds that live a long time
18:22
because these owners have just had them or they belonged to their parents
18:26
and their parents passed away and they got them.
18:28
And so, there's a, sometimes it's interesting to me,
18:32
a deeper connection with some of these animals
18:34
and pets than I even see with dogs and cats.
18:37
And I probably see more cats that also live a really long time.
18:40
Yes. But I do think that can add a component to your job of really having
18:47
to understand that part of it and really be empathetic
18:50
and understand the emotional component.
18:53
Absolutely. And the ER, a lot of them come in and there may be the ones that aren't as well taken care of
18:58
and they don't have a veterinarian and, you know,
19:02
don't have financial resources. But you're seeing them because they do and they are really trying to help.
19:08
And so, I think it's great that you were doing what you're doing,
19:12
but it is a hard job for sure.
19:14
Thanks. Okay, let me see what my next question was.
19:17
Okay, someone wanted to know,
19:20
what is the worst bite or injury you've ever had from an eggs?
19:24
You know, again, knock on one.
19:28
I have not too many injuries from exotics because I think it's,
19:34
you also have to learn how to read them.
19:37
I think it's hard for some people to know how to read their body language.
19:41
I feel confident in reading their body language.
19:44
And you have a good team.
19:46
Absolutely. Like you have a good team that knows how to restrain properly
19:52
and is comfortable and is not fearful about it.
19:54
So, I really haven't had many injuries or almost anything.
20:02
I mean, I've had occasional bird bites here and there.
20:04
So, I would say if like a bird were to get me like right at my nail bed,
20:08
that's probably the worst. But I've never had to go to a human ER for stitches or anything like that.
20:14
That's impressive. So, did you grow up with a lot of exotic animals
20:17
or was this just kind of something you fell in love with in that school?
20:20
Both. No, but I did grow up with a lot of exotics.
20:23
I had dogs, cats, hamsters, frogs,
20:27
bird.
20:29
What else did I have?
20:33
A snake. I tried to bring everything home and I was like one of those kids that would like go outside
20:39
and like catch all the frogs and things like that.
20:41
And then I still have a 26 year old cockatiel and a rabbit and a frog.
20:50
Wow. And they're real cute too.
20:52
Yeah, they're cute. You put up pictures of them and I'm like, this is awesome.
20:55
So, I did have a couple questions about people wanting to know
21:01
and this is maybe also like a shantime question, but
21:04
I'm very good question.
21:06
Very well thought out.
21:08
Well thought out question. No, but things that I think we just know and they wanted to know
21:13
like how did you become an exotic vet? So, a lot of people assume you have to do like additional
21:18
extensive training and get an additional degree.
21:22
And you can specialize in exotics.
21:25
Right. And you even can be more amphibian or reptile or bird.
21:30
You can get really specific with it. Yeah, but did you do additional training or what did that look like for you?
21:36
Yeah, so my path was I was a zookeeper actually before vet school.
21:40
And I worked with exotics and wildlife and zoo animals in that capacity.
21:45
And then I went to vet school and then I came back and worked for that same zoo as a veterinarian
21:50
as well as a practice that saw small animals, exotics and wildlife.
21:55
And so, but I went straight into practice.
21:59
I didn't do an internship. I didn't do a residency.
22:01
Well, part of the reason was because I lived in Southern California
22:06
and I couldn't afford to do an internship or residency.
22:10
And I didn't have anyone else's financial support.
22:13
It was just me and I was like, my rent is like $2,500.
22:17
I can't afford to do this.
22:19
So, I had a great mentor.
22:22
I went into practice, worked there for five and a half years
22:26
and got almost all of my training there as well as on rotations and
22:32
vet school and prior in terms of like husbandry handling, things like that.
22:35
And now, on top of starting a practice, I'm also in the process of my small mammal
22:43
board certification through ABVP.
22:47
So, you can after being in practice for five years ago and kind of go back into a
22:53
nontraditional residency and get specialized that way.
22:56
So, that's been my path.
22:59
How many questions of the navely are specific to exotic type pets?
23:05
I forget the percentage. It's a pretty small percentage.
23:07
I was going to say, I want to say like 10, 15,
23:10
something around there. So, but there's also, it's weird because dog and cat is, you know, a decent person,
23:17
but then you have like equine, you have large animals, pigs,
23:20
yeah, it's a huge variety.
23:23
So, honestly, if you look at like the percentage, it's not dogs and cats,
23:27
it's huge, but it is, exotic is definitely still like a smaller.
23:33
Yeah, I think it's probably less than 10%. And I think most of the questions are about actually birds and fish.
23:38
That was like most of, because there's some zoonotic diseases with birds and then there's
23:44
just some crazy things with the fish ones.
23:46
How many like GP practices do you call this?
23:49
Hey, I've got a snake. Do you see it? How many GP practices are seeing exotics?
23:53
In my area, probably five.
23:57
I mean, they call all the list of what we say.
24:00
In our area, there's probably about three to five that are like GP type practices.
24:08
But not all of them even see reptiles.
24:12
So, it's almost like small mammals, and then not like birds or reptiles.
24:17
Some people, or they'll see, a lot of people might see like rabbits.
24:20
I know some people that will do rabbits and dogs and cats.
24:23
But it's interesting because the term exotics does not mean everything.
24:28
Right. So, people definitely need to be aware of like who in their area does see the certain
24:33
type of animal they have and not assume that if someone says they see exotics, it actually means
24:38
like snakes specifically are a whole nother thing outside of I feel like even like bitter dragons
24:44
and whatnot. So, for me.
24:46
Yeah, specifically. Not for you, maybe.
24:50
Not for me, but I do think, but yeah, there's the more common ones that people are more comfortable
24:55
with and then there's ones that I think you have to especially have a team that is comfortable with.
25:00
Absolutely. And that's the biggest mistake I see is someone saying like,
25:04
"I'll do exotics, but not having the proper equipment, the proper training to restrain them,
25:09
and really understanding what they're getting into." And then it's just a disservice to
25:15
the pet, because you're not doing what you should be doing.
25:18
Yeah, absolutely. I do have, so from the practice on our side of things, do people pay a decent amount
25:28
for their exotics or do you get the same variety that we get of the people who say,
25:34
like, do everything? And money's not an issue and then the people who are like,
25:40
do treat for the treatable or put them to sleep because this guinea pig costs 30 bucks and I'll
25:47
go get another one. Yes. So, what is the variety?
25:50
Boat. Yeah. Kind of the same thing. I have a lot of amazing clients that are very dedicated to their
25:57
birds and reptiles and rabbits and they will do anything and everything and they have pet insurance
26:02
and cost is no.
26:04
So, you get pet insurance for exotics? You can.
26:07
Wow. Yeah. I don't think I even realize that.
26:09
Yeah, you can. I'd hate to be those underwriters that are trying to figure out
26:12
that. We'll tell any rates. One company right now offers it.
26:16
So, that's why it's like not very well known, I think. But yeah, I definitely have that side and I absolutely have the side of,
26:23
well, it's my kids' parakeet or hamster or guinea pig and they don't know it's sick or
26:30
I just go buy a new one that looks the same and replace it or yeah, it costs $20.
26:36
I'm not going to spend $200 on treatment.
26:39
The one I hate in the ER and I will be honest is people will come in with their kid and they'll
26:44
be like, well, the hamster hasn't eaten for three days and the hamster is trying to die.
26:51
Yeah. It's like gasping because it's probably got some respiratory something and it's been sick
26:56
for a lot longer, right? But they just realized.
26:58
Yeah. And the parents will be standing behind the kids and the kids will be like, so worried and
27:06
they brought them to the vet and so they're saved by hamster and the parents behind the kid like,
27:12
don't do it. Like we're not doing anything.
27:15
Yeah. But basically they want me to put on a show for the children because they don't want to tell
27:22
their kid like, we're not actually going to do anything for the hamster.
27:26
We're here so you think we're doing something and then I have to examine it and say,
27:30
well, sometimes animals don't make it despite what we want.
27:34
And you know, use an asia would be best and I get put in a position from the parent where
27:40
I have to be to make them cry big times.
27:42
That's a generational problem. Those people that raise those gen Xers.
27:46
Yeah, your parents would not have sugar coated.
27:49
Yeah, much more straightforward conversation.
27:51
Much more straightforward. Yeah.
27:53
Like I get the same thing. Like I don't want to be responsible for telling your child that this is what's going on.
28:00
Like I don't mind having them part of the discussion, but you just completely put it on us
28:06
right so that they don't have, I don't know.
28:08
Well, and sometimes they want me to say like there's nothing that can be done and I'm like,
28:11
well, actually, there's probably some things like me done, but yeah, I'm actually like,
28:15
no, we're not doing anything. Yeah. Okay.
28:18
So it's a position to be in for sure.
28:20
It is. And when you look into your questions, I got another question.
28:22
So in the in the remodel that you are doing today, are you doing like a typical exam
28:28
tables and stuff like fold down tables or what?
28:32
Not exactly. So I do have some exam rooms or kind of like procedure rooms off of the treatment area
28:39
that will that does have a full down table.
28:43
And there's structured a little bit differently.
28:45
There's kind of like a couch in it and you know, it's just a little bit more like homey in
28:50
the treatment area though. I have like a big, it's almost like a community table where clients can sit and we can,
28:57
I can also examine a pet on there or it almost looks like you're living room.
29:02
So yes, I do have a couple of fold down tables, but in a way that it looks like someone just
29:08
walked into their house and not necessarily a hospital or a clinic or that kind of thing.
29:14
It's a little more homey. Yeah.
29:16
Yeah. Well, and so your architects you worked with are amazing and I've seen the renderings and
29:22
the animal. Yes, it looks incredible.
29:25
So I'm assuming you'll eventually have a social media account and people will be able to
29:29
follow you on that. Absolutely.
29:31
It will be. It is coming shortly.
29:35
I get it. It's a lot of work to get all that started and to do that.
29:38
But I do think that you do such a good job of showing the things that happen and we actually
29:43
have a question at savvy 0567 wanted to know what does a day look like in your life when
29:49
you were working as an exotic vet?
29:51
You actually put up a ton of cute pictures and videos and things you're doing in patients
29:56
and procedures. Yeah.
29:58
But for people who don't follow you, what would you say your typical day is like typical day.
30:03
It's so different every day, like truly.
30:05
I will walk in and see a rabbit and then a bird next and then a bearded dragon and then
30:11
like right now as I'm doing relief work right now.
30:15
So I'm still seeing a dog dogs cats, pigs, sometimes small ruminants as well.
30:21
It's kind of all over the place.
30:24
Are you doing surgery or are you doing? I am doing my surgery as well.
30:28
But so I guess I'll go back to when I was just like in one practice.
30:35
That's a little bit easier. I'd have like a surgery morning where I do space and neuters on rabbits, guinea pigs, dogs,
30:41
cats, whatever it was. And then appointments all afternoon that were wellness or sick appointments, that kind
30:49
of thing. But pretty much every day was just a different species, every appointment.
30:54
And I love that. So I was going to say the variety would be really fun and challenging though.
30:59
Also, like, yeah, I mean, it is certainly and I think in the beginning, it was more so.
31:07
I guess it's like though when you're like really into exotics, it like doesn't feel like
31:13
a challenge necessarily.
31:15
I almost feel like sometimes exotic medicine is easier.
31:20
I hate to say it like that way, but so much of it is about husbandry, so much.
31:25
So if you, it's like 90% is husbandry related issues that I see in the clinic.
31:31
So if you have that down, then everything else, everything else kind of falls into place.
31:37
So and that side of things like for a long time, I've been, I've known that known how
31:45
to take care of these species. So it's just that's maybe why it doesn't, doesn't always feel like as overwhelmed.
31:51
So yeah, so overwhelming, but it just feels exciting.
31:54
And I think if I did it, if I wasn't doing exotics, I'd be really bored, honestly.
32:00
Yeah. Yeah.
32:02
That makes perfect sense. Yeah.
32:04
Do you, for people who are not aware and probably for Shane, can you explain what you mean
32:06
by husbandry? I also do that takes care of everything.
32:10
And it was definitely now it has to do.
32:13
And also like what are your maybe top like three husbandry mistakes that people make that
32:18
they need to make sure they are aware of? Yes, husbandry is just the general care of the animal, including diet, proper diet, proper
32:27
environment at home.
32:29
And top three, while do like different species.
32:34
So inappropriate lighting for reptiles, most of them have a UV requirement.
32:40
And a lot of people don't know that because there's a lot of reptiles sold in pet stores and
32:44
they don't tell you anything. You need this UV light and you have to change it every six months.
32:50
They'll just buy one and I actually bring my lights to appointments.
32:55
Oh, good. And they check the light.
32:57
That's awesome. I was like when they first said like bring your light bulbs, I'm like, huh?
33:01
And then they're like, yeah, we're going to make sure you don't need to change it.
33:04
Yeah. And so that's something I didn't know about exotics.
33:08
I love that. Second thing, seeds are not an appropriate diet, Furbert.
33:15
Almost no species should be on a solely seed based diet.
33:19
So that's a huge dietary issue.
33:22
And let's see, I'll go rabbit.
33:28
Rabbits need to be constantly eating.
33:31
They also should eat predominantly hay and they don't eat carrots.
33:35
They shouldn't be eating carrots, even though bugs, bunny, did.
33:37
So even for snack, even for a tree.
33:40
Yeah. Maybe like a tiny piece once a week as a treat or break it up and use it as like a little
33:47
training treat, right?
33:50
But no, but like that's it. Like maybe maybe at most one baby carrot a week.
33:54
Okay. I get my bearded dragon blueberries occasionally.
33:58
That's after she gets like a little, yeah, little soak.
34:01
Yes. She gets a blueberry too.
34:03
A bearded dragon can eat a small amount of fruit and that's totally fine.
34:06
Okay. Okay.
34:08
I wanted to make sure I was getting like the check in the class.
34:10
And actually we've had her forever and how often have you held her?
34:14
I don't look at it. I don't look at it.
34:16
I don't look at it. I don't like.
34:18
He is not. It brings like she brings some out.
34:22
She so it's so funny because it's so different.
34:26
But we love our Lucy. We love our bread and dragon.
34:28
It is especially so. Okay.
34:30
Any other take home things that you want people to know about being an exotic Fed?
34:34
Why do you love it so much? The variety, obviously.
34:36
The variety. I love the species.
34:39
I love that I get to work with such unique species every day.
34:44
Like, sometimes things that people have never heard of.
34:47
I love coming home and telling my fiancee like, oh, I saw this animal today.
34:50
He's like, I've literally never heard of that in my life.
34:53
Yeah. I'll probably I should call Shane and tell him.
34:55
Yes. Send him my daily.
34:57
That's true. And he'll be like, I have no idea what that is.
35:01
No, but I love that. I love.
35:03
Yeah. Yeah, the the I love being able to make bonds with these animals that like you said earlier,
35:11
you don't always think that you can bond with them the same way as dogs and cats.
35:16
But you can and I love that aspect of it.
35:18
And also just in general, like, don't be I don't want people to be so afraid of exotic animal
35:24
medicine. It's like, it's developed this like taboo scary thing because it's like this bird.
35:30
It's it's tail bobbing.
35:32
I can't touch it. It's going to die.
35:35
It is can be scary at first, but it doesn't have to be like there's definitely things that
35:42
are very similar in dog and cat medicine.
35:45
Like, they're not that they're still an animal like it's still you can still use some of
35:49
the same foundation to concepts tools to treat them as you do dog and cat.
35:54
Well, and there's a lot of really great like resources out there and training and you can
35:58
get better at it. Absolutely.
36:00
Just like everything else in our profession. Absolutely.
36:03
There is exotics con there's tracks at every conference.
36:06
Absolutely. There's a webinar or so or you can message me.
36:09
Yeah. There you go.
36:11
I'm always happy to help. So that's a great point.
36:13
How can people reach out to you and how can they follow along on your journey?
36:16
Yeah. Absolutely.
36:18
They can find me at doctor Sydney undersword DVM on Instagram, TikTok, any platform and
36:25
they can follow my clinic as well.
36:29
I love the veterinary collective love it at fauna vet.
36:32
Sounds very, very fancy. Very California.
36:34
I like it. I like it.
36:36
Very California. No, the clinic is going to be amazing.
36:39
You're going to be an amazing practice owner. I'm so excited for you and y'all should definitely follow along on her journey.
36:45
Shane, you have any other questions? I've got a lot of questions, but I feel like I'm getting chest outs from my great questions
36:50
over there. No, it's been great.
36:52
I love the engaged bit. So we will we'll shut it down and then we can let you ask more questions because it's
36:59
getting to be late. But we do appreciate everyone listening.
37:02
If you want to leave a review on Apple or Spotify, that'd be great.
37:05
We love your feedback. We love your questions at questions with Crocker.
37:08
Sydney, thanks for being here. I really appreciate you.
37:10
Thanks for having me. And you guys have a wonderful day. [MUSIC]
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