Common clinical techniques Flashcards
Where do you want to place the thumb when giving avian patients oral medications?
Commissure of the mouth
What is an important anatomical part that you want to avoid in avian patients when giving oral medications?
Avoid the glottis
What do you want to restrain in a reptile (except snapping turtle) while giving medications?
Their forelimbs
(T/F) Mammals muscle fatigue faster and more easily than reptiles
False - reptiles muscle fatigue faster
What is the rule of thumb for tube/gavage feeding when it comes to birds? How about turtles?
Birds: Tube should go halfway down the keel
Turtles: Cranial quarter of the plastron
In avian patients, when do we want to feed them and give oral treatments?
Should always feed and give oral treatments last and put back into cage ASAP - to reduce risk of regurgitation
Where do we give SQ fluids to birds?
Lateral inguinal region (have very thin skin and potential space)
Were do we give SQ fluids to turtles and snakes?
Turtles: Room in inguinal and axillary regions
Snakes: lateral body wall
(T/F) Reptiles will absorb medications slower than mammals because of their poor blood supply
True
Where do we inject avian IM medications?
Pectoral muscles
What can happen with IM injections in avian patients?
Pinpoint muscle necrosis and subsequent scar tissue
Where do we want to give IM medications to turtles?
Forelimbs (except snapping turtles - tail)
Where do we collect blood in birds?
- Ulnar vein
- Jugular vein
- Medial metatarsal (waterfowl)
Where do we collect blood in chelonians?
- Jugular
- Subcarapacial sinus
- Coccygeal
What is the risk in taking blood from subcarapacial sinus?
There could be lymph contamination
Where do we collect blood in snakes?
Caudal vein
Cardiocentesis
What is the risk with cardiocentesis blood draw in snakes?
Cardiac tamponade
Where can we take swab collections from in birds?
Crop swab
Chonanal swab
Cloacal swab
What do we use wet mounts for the most?
Trichomonas
What can we do to collect a fecal sample in box turtles?
Scheduled in soak day
Connect the correct animals to IV catheter placement:
a) Birds
b) Chelonians
- Jugular vein
- Medial metatarsal vein
Birds - medial metatarsal vein
Chelonians - Jugular vein
What views do we want to get for radiographs in birds?
Full body: VD and lateral
Wings: lateral and skyline
What views do we want to get for radiographs in reptiles?
DV
Lateral
Craniocaudal
How long should the sessions of passive range of motion PT should last?
5 min sessions and 10 second intervals twice weekly to every other day
How do we want to perform passive range of motion PT?
Push up on elbow and down on carpus to extend wing and massage propatagial tendon in between each extension
What is the difference between passive vs active range of motion PT?
Active - patient is encouraged to use the limb on its own
With what fractures do we use a wing to body wrap?
Coracoid, clavicle, scapula, humerus
Wing droop of unknown origin
Where should we place the wing to body wrap?
Wrap the material around middle 1/3 of the keel
What is the figure of 8 used for?
Temporary radius/ulna and distal metacarpal bone stabilization
When do we place interdigitating bandage in a foot?
Wound needs to be protected on the bottom of the foot but still desire for them to perch
When should we use interdigitating bandages?
Pad injury: laceration, cracks in the pad, wounds needing a little extra support or coverage
When do we use ball bandages in birds?
Great for pododermatitis or other more severe open wounds on the pads, toe fractures
What do you want to keep in mind if you are going to place a ball bandage?
Must provide food in a manner so that the bird can eat
When do we place tibiotarsus splints?
Fractures that are in the middle of the bone if close to the knee
What are the two different tibiotarsus splints?
Tape splints
Shin guard splints
When doing a shin guard splint, the (concave/convex) semicircle will be at the top and the (concave/convex) semicircle will be at the bottom
Convex
Concave
What things you should consider when leaving splints on?
Depends on patients and the fracture
Young birds heal very quickly
Smaller birds heal faster than larger birds
What is the range of changing splints on a young and growing quickly?
Every 3-5 days
What does it mean to have too warm and too cool extremities during splint care?
Too warm - inflammation
Too cool - lack of circulation
Which instances can a fracture heal with cage rest if the patient does not tolerate a bandage?
- Clavicle, coracoid, scapula
- Femurs in young patients
- Partial fractures/ green stick fractures
