TJ
New member
- Joined
- Oct 26, 2002
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- Location
- Tokyo
- Country
- United States
- Display Name
- Tim Johnson
I confess I should have realized from the start that any question about means of euthanasia was bound to spark a debate on ethics and petcare in general. And considering there may be kids and quick-fix junkies out there listening, I'll concede I should have addressed my question to Ed by private e-mail in order to have avoided "collateral damage".
I should say though that the overall standard of veterinary care out here falls well short of those in the States, for instance, and so rushing a sick newt to the vet isn't usually the first thing that comes to mind. Or the second even...
I've little reverence for the average vet here (Asia), having dealt with some fine ones but also my share of "quacks" -- not only vets but medical practitioners in general. I had a hard enough getting competent veterinary help when I kept ferrets. Having said that, I haven't given up finding one who knows a thing or two about amphibians.
As for DIY treatment, I really don't see the problem as long as it's "informed" treatment. Given the options of 1) doing nothing, 2) taking the ill newt to an incompetent vet, and 3) attempting to treat it myself with knowledge gleaned from more experienced newtkeepers, I choose the latter.
Without recourse to a competent vet, I see no difference in attempting to treat the occasional ailments of my tropical fish than those of my newts (and I don't necessarily view newts as a "superior" or more deserving form of life). Sure, for my dogs, which are clearly a superior life form
I take them to the vet as that's a typical vet's area of competency.
Take bloat, for instance. I've heard of a case or two in which a mildly bloated newt pulled through -- but not a badly bloated one. I can easily imagine taking it to a vet here, having him poke it with needles, informing me it's "probably just a case of fluid buildup".
On slicing and dicing, I've "had to" (gasp!) very reluctantly amputate newt tails on two occasions -- once with a P.waltl juvie, which in good health now (its tail having regenerated), and once with a Cynops whose injured tail had already "died"...but it didn't survive as I'd waited too long to act and the rot/fungus had spread beyond the tail prior to amputation. In both cases, I followed the advice of more experienced newtkeepers -- and in the first case I actually sought the advice of my friendly neighborhood vet, who suggested I consult a tropical fish shop!
So the mantra "take it to the vet, take it to the vet" doesn't quite cut it for me (no pun intended) when I need urgent help.
On euthanasia, it's certainly not a vet's decision to make as I recall somebody said. Given the choice of having my previous dog "put to sleep", I chose to have it "treated" even though the chances of success were dim, which meant 3 torturous operations and two years of untold suffering for the poor thing before I eventually chose the option I had initially ruled out owing to my own selfishness and lack of courage.
Finally (and this is getting long...) inquiring about humane methods of euthanasia is not the same as advocating ghoulish experimentation. Do a Yahoo search on "euthanasia fish" and you'll see any number of related discussions. Discussion boards are, after all, for...discussion. But like I said, I do kinda see the potential problem here so let me concede that point. On other things, "agree to disagree" is fine by me!
I should say though that the overall standard of veterinary care out here falls well short of those in the States, for instance, and so rushing a sick newt to the vet isn't usually the first thing that comes to mind. Or the second even...
I've little reverence for the average vet here (Asia), having dealt with some fine ones but also my share of "quacks" -- not only vets but medical practitioners in general. I had a hard enough getting competent veterinary help when I kept ferrets. Having said that, I haven't given up finding one who knows a thing or two about amphibians.
As for DIY treatment, I really don't see the problem as long as it's "informed" treatment. Given the options of 1) doing nothing, 2) taking the ill newt to an incompetent vet, and 3) attempting to treat it myself with knowledge gleaned from more experienced newtkeepers, I choose the latter.
Without recourse to a competent vet, I see no difference in attempting to treat the occasional ailments of my tropical fish than those of my newts (and I don't necessarily view newts as a "superior" or more deserving form of life). Sure, for my dogs, which are clearly a superior life form
Take bloat, for instance. I've heard of a case or two in which a mildly bloated newt pulled through -- but not a badly bloated one. I can easily imagine taking it to a vet here, having him poke it with needles, informing me it's "probably just a case of fluid buildup".
On slicing and dicing, I've "had to" (gasp!) very reluctantly amputate newt tails on two occasions -- once with a P.waltl juvie, which in good health now (its tail having regenerated), and once with a Cynops whose injured tail had already "died"...but it didn't survive as I'd waited too long to act and the rot/fungus had spread beyond the tail prior to amputation. In both cases, I followed the advice of more experienced newtkeepers -- and in the first case I actually sought the advice of my friendly neighborhood vet, who suggested I consult a tropical fish shop!
So the mantra "take it to the vet, take it to the vet" doesn't quite cut it for me (no pun intended) when I need urgent help.
On euthanasia, it's certainly not a vet's decision to make as I recall somebody said. Given the choice of having my previous dog "put to sleep", I chose to have it "treated" even though the chances of success were dim, which meant 3 torturous operations and two years of untold suffering for the poor thing before I eventually chose the option I had initially ruled out owing to my own selfishness and lack of courage.
Finally (and this is getting long...) inquiring about humane methods of euthanasia is not the same as advocating ghoulish experimentation. Do a Yahoo search on "euthanasia fish" and you'll see any number of related discussions. Discussion boards are, after all, for...discussion. But like I said, I do kinda see the potential problem here so let me concede that point. On other things, "agree to disagree" is fine by me!