Exotic therapy animals

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
L

loconorc

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Sep 11, 2007
1,417
0
0
Virginny
Im sure most of us have seen therapy dogs, cats, horses, parrots, or even dolphins. Im sick today with too much free time so I did some wikipedia-ing and somehow ended up reading about animal therapy. I recalled an old REPTILES magazine 'Living with Reptiles' article (my favorite column) about a patternless Burmese named Oliver who was brought to hospitals and everything... So... Do you think this stuff is legit? A waste of time and money? Do you think therapy such as this has real medical benefits? Even with exotics?

What animals do you think would be good for this type of subject, and would you want to do work like that if you could?

I think you could use:
Beardies
Frilled dragons
Blue-tongue skinks
Uromastyx
Tegus
Carpet pythons
Ball pythons
Anteresia pythons
Boa constrictors
Rainbow boas
Large constrictors
Rat, king, corn, milk snakes
Hognose snakes
Large/medium tortoises

Up for discussion :)
Btw, this new Foo Fighters album is SW33T. :headbang2
 
Hmmm...within reason, I'd bet any reptile that is "tame" enough to allow regular handling and interaction for an extended period of time could be used for this purpose.

As far as it being worthwhile, I think it holds merit. Personally, I do think lizards and turtles would be more effective than snaks simply because they're more engaging to an audience.
 
If I have to say anything that cheer people up?

Boa constrictors, Crested Geckos and Russian Tortoises always seem to make people happy from my experience.

People seem to be afraid of carpet pythons, tegus and monitors (of any size) for some reason though...
 
Fat tail geckos usually cheer people up. Uromastyx might do well. Bearded dragons should work too!

Pretty much any animal that looks or behaves in a comical way. I hate how people are afraid of monitors and tegus. I love them!!!
 
I dont really mean to an audience... It can be, but I meant more along the lines of one-on-one with a patient or elderly person. Im sure youve seen on Animal Planet a dog going room to room and interacting with people.

And a larger animal is probably a better candidate. Most people have no idea how to handle herps. And no matter how tame it is, something like a leo or crested can get easily hurt or lost. For lizards, 1-4 feet is reasonable, and around 2-8 feet for snakes.

I think carpet pythons look 'exotic' to most people, and most have a good amount of black, so might be scary to some. Tegus and monitors, or any large lizard, bring to mind dinosaurs and Komodo dragons, so they might stir up fear. But even a few minutes with a big, lumbering tegu or monitor can be humbling and quite an awesome experience. I myself got to spend some time with Brian Sharps huge sulfur water monitor at an expo last month. That thing was a gnarly old beast, but tame as a kitten (in a healthy way). It came right up to me, and plopped its head in my lap like some dragon-dog hybrid. Imagine a beardie, only way bigger and cooler lol

I was hoping someone would bring up safety and hygiene, I wanted to hear some opinions...
 
I have a certifyed Therapy Collie at the moment and years ago I had the only pure wolf to ever be certifyed by TDI. (therapy dogs international.) I Don't think your aware of what you have go through to certify an animal for therapy work in a hospital. Even once you have that done theres a long list of grooming and training requierments. Just having a happy friendly dog isn't enough. The medical tests and records you have to keep with you at all times amounts to a good chunk of change and must be updated twice a year.

With the possibility of transmitting bacteria to humans with Herps it's unlikely that any facillity will even allow you to operate. Again these are Their standards not mine.

It might be possible for a limited use....for example education work in public schools but nursing homes and hospitals I can't see allowing it.
 
if i was on my death bed,bring in a few kamodo dragons and turn them loose on me.Get it over with.If i was just bad sick,i think a tortoise or turtle.When you dont feel good and dont know herps well any fast or jerky movements may stress you out.I bet you could bring me out of a coma if you brought me a crock or a cobra and said i could keep it:)
 
I know *some* of the requirements. It interested me a while ago and I was aware of the whole proccess, so I know it is pretty strict.

The German Shepherd down the street with a messed up foot is a hospital therapy dog, I would like to learn more about her, I'll talk to her owner next time I see him.

But I have seen it done before in REPTILES magazine. A burmese python no less, if they would accept a herp you wouldnt think it would be a burm...

And the transmission of bacteria in reptiles is VERY small, much less than birds and mammals. There arent many diseases compared to other animals that can be transmitted to us. Salmonella is one, but very very rare. It was the old salmonella scare in the 70s from baby turtles that has us all paranoid. In fact its HSUS and PETAs excuse the shut down the reptile industry, but it just doesnt hold. If youre THAT paranoid, salmonella tests can be done. but they dont always mean they do or dont. You can have false negatives. If its positive, its positive. If its negative, it can still be either. A simple hand-washing and squirt of hand sanitizer should do the job, and NONE OF ITS NEEDED ANYWAY. I handle my herps all the time, they touch their poo, sometimes i dont wash my hands, and I'm fine. My animals are healthy, Im healthy. All of our immune systems are in tip-top shape, so even if something is transmitted, our bodies fight back. But with weakened immune systems of hospital patients, its understandable.
 
Anyway, the thing with monitors and tegus is the same reason why people are afraid of iguanas. Ignorant keepers let them free-roam in the house. Not to mention a lot of varanid species have a bad reputation. So even something small like an Ackie or Kimberly Rock get that cultural stigma attached.

With Carpet Pythons, Carpet Pythons get stuck with the bad reputation that arboreal pythons have. Not to mention a lot of them are way too active for some people.

A well-handled Crested usually sit on a person's hand without jumping and are easily personable. A boa constrictor or a small Burmese are usually laid-back and perch on the person's shoulder or body rather than actively moving.
 
If you want to use a monitor, I'd use a savannah. Very docile, big, and prehistoric looking. Corn snakes are nice snakes, but they a pretty active. Chinchillas are pretty personable too if you want a rodent.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom