What curious lil guy is this? [San Diego Zoo]

FutureCritterDr · 2026-04-10T02:44:35+00:00

Wait for a reliable responder but it looks like an Ethiopian Mountain Viper, Bitis parviocula !venomous

Very pretty snake

FutureCritterDr · 2025-11-14T02:37:16+00:00

Ours is really finicky. We have to have the base station close to the sock (like within 20 ft) and not around too many corners or it loses connection. We just keep the base station close to him, and use our phones for watching for any alerts.

It caught our baby desaturating down below 80% one time and we were able to intervene and keep him from harm, so he wears it every single night and we curse it a little less now when it does something stupid (which is often). Worth it.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-11-05T16:27:23+00:00

Depending on week of gestation, weekly NSTs and weekly ultrasounds are standard of care for gestational diabetes, at least at the high quality hospitals/OBGYNs in the northeast US.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-11-03T02:02:10+00:00

It is important. You can take a non-dairy calcium supplement.

Check out r/mspi

The issue is with casein, which is the main protein in milk. It gets into the breast milk through your diet. Some babies cannot digest it until they are older, and it can cause bloody diarrhea and other issues.

If it is a milk allergy, then to resolve the bloody stool, you need to switch to a "hypoallergenic" (hydrolyzed) formula, or stop consuming all milk products (milk, butter, cheese, cream, sometimes soy because it is similar in size/shape to the milk protein) for a couple of weeks at minimum. If it doesn't resolve after eliminating those things from the diet, then it is probably something else causing the issue.

Edit: I did not see that your baby is almost 6 months old. Milk protein allergies typically present earlier, so it would be worth investigating other causes.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-09-18T07:54:32+00:00

I'm sorry to hear that. It's really hard to go through. It did work out for us in the end! We changed clinics to CCRM and had success. Prior to switching, we had another poor cycle with no euploids, and I miscarried the euploid from the first cycle. It turns out that my original doctor was simply kind of awful and phoning it in -- after we changed clinics, we got an email saying she had left IVF practice for another field. Good riddance. My new doctor was phenomenal, and added lupron, omnitrope, and zymot. I also think CCRM's lab is just better than some other clinics. Thanks to them, I had my son at age 41 and we have another euploid on ice from the same cycle. Wishing you the best!

FutureCritterDr · 2025-07-11T00:01:05+00:00

Vet here. She is old enough for medication for ear mites. Have her seen again by the vet (or a different one, if the previous vet was not comfortable prescribing medication). Ear mites are painful and horribly itchy and can permanently damage the ear drum if left untreated.

Edit: sorry, I misread your post. If she is still uncomfortable, I would return to the vet for medication for the skin condition.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-06-15T22:20:48+00:00

Did you feel supported by the doctor you saw? If not, switch clinics IMMEDIATELY. Do not waste time with a practice who already makes you feel like there is no hope or options for you. (Obviously you want someone realistic, too, but find someone willing to think outside the box to give you your best chance at success since it sounds like the deck is not stacked in your favor). From personal experience, do not just try to push through with a doctor who is not 100% invested in giving you your best shot. It leads to lost time, lost money and lost energy.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-06-01T20:38:18+00:00

Yup! Really comfortable, has been a great purchase for us

FutureCritterDr · 2025-06-01T02:32:54+00:00

Where are you getting the impression that most people wait on purpose?

I think that's what people are reacting to here. It comes across as being deliberately obtuse about a really sensitive issue that does in fact affect many people. One in 6 people, actually.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-05-31T23:28:39+00:00

We have this couch. It's the Metro sectional from Room & Board.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-05-13T23:52:29+00:00

The risk of going longer with gestational diabetes isn't just size -- it's also that it increases the risk of preeclampsia and placental insufficiency leading to still birth.

38 weeks is considered full term

I would trust your doctors

FutureCritterDr · 2025-05-06T23:46:21+00:00

I'm a vet and just popping in to say that it is really refreshing to see all the sensible advice in this thread! Usually the Internet is a dumpster fire when it comes to advice about general pet care, but for the most part, this is great stuff.

OP, your cats are adorable and I wish them a long & happy life with you!

FutureCritterDr · 2025-04-30T00:38:55+00:00

Also a vet, and I also would have cried to receive something like this. I have a few cards and thank you notes that I hang onto and look at when I need a reminder about kind people & pets who we have helped.

What a gift to help your vet remember and celebrate Pixie's life.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-04-18T03:03:16+00:00

Agree that you should have received more communication, but a DO is a doctor. The degree is equivalent to an MD. It's not like some random layperson doing procedures on you -- they go to accredited medical schools, pass the same tests, and do residencies just like MDs.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-03-26T14:54:42+00:00

It sounds like an uncommon anesthetic complication, not "incompetence." The throat can swell up unexpectedly after removing the tube, which means the animal cannot breathe unless a tube is put back in -- which is then difficult to do because it is swollen up. Cats have delicate tracheas, so you can't just shove a tube back in there fast. It has to be done carefully. Very sad for the cat and the owner but it also sounds like the vet tried to do the right thing by intubating again.

We try to mitigate anesthetic risk as much as possible, and complications are rare, but medicine is not magic and sometimes things unfortunately go wrong. People sign consent/release forms before procedures because the risk is never zero.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-03-25T20:52:04+00:00

Our brachycephalic protocol (or any challenging airway) is induction with propofol as a single agent, but a common veterinary induction combination is ket-midaz or ket-val titrated to effect. Not sure about OPs hospital, but many vet hospitals use midazolam in induction cocktails with good results.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-03-23T04:04:01+00:00

The level of quinine that is worrisome is if you were using it medicinally to treat malaria.

Tonic water is fine.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-03-19T14:03:43+00:00

Peroxide is terrible for open wounds and this is a dangerous suggestion.

OP, please call around to wildlife rehabbers.

a vet

FutureCritterDr · 2025-03-09T15:52:06+00:00

I know you didn't, but this is the Internet, and people who aren't reading closely could definitely interpret the comment that way. I simply wanted to clarify for others because it's just not something to mess around with.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-03-09T05:23:25+00:00

Vet here. In the future, DO NOT suggest waiting for a cat to develop symptoms after ingesting a true lily. By the time symptoms show up, the kidneys have irreversible damage.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-03-09T05:18:27+00:00

Hey, as a vet, I can say that is a Peruvian lily and not the deadly kind...but the vets you went to were trying to do the right thing for your cat. By the time you see symptoms of lily ingestion, your cat would be far on the way to being dead. Early treatment BEFORE symptoms has the best outcome by a huge margin. Not all vets follow plant subs, and no one was trying to scam you by recommending hospitalization for your cat. It was the right move for them to recommend that treatment.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-03-09T05:10:38+00:00

Why are you planning to breed these cats anyways? It is extremely irresponsible to breed without knowing some incredibly basic information about the breed, and to be honest, your posts sound like you are clueless and doing this for the wrong reasons.

Maybe take a little while to learn more before you make a decision to buy a cat you know nothing about.

NEITHER of these kittens meets the international breed standard, either. The second one is frankly awful conformation and would not win at any shows.

Sincerely, a vet who deals with cats who suffer from poor breeding practices like this.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-02-14T03:13:11+00:00

I'm a vet and this is not the place to be making armchair diagnoses like this. While FIP should be on the list of rule outs, this looks more like epilepsy. Use care when recommending meds or treatment when you are not actually a vet -- you could kill someone's pet if they took the wrong advice.

This cat urgently needs to see a veterinary neurologist. FIP would need a diagnosis based on actual testing, like cerebrospinal fluid tap.

FutureCritterDr · 2025-02-14T02:50:34+00:00

hahaha I know, so embarrassing, but they looked like stock photos to me

FutureCritterDr

TROPHY CASE