Week Four: Exotic and Laboratory Animal Nursing

Question 1

What amphibians are in the order “gymnophiona”?

Answer 1

Caecilians

Question 2

What amphibians are in the order “caudata”?

Answer 2

Salamanders and newts

Question 3

What amphibians are in the order “anura”?

Answer 3

Frogs and toads

Question 4

What are the two types of ambystomatidae or mole salamanders that we are concerned with?

Answer 4

Axolotl (eat arthropods, crustaceans, and vertebrates)

Tiger salamander/waterdog (eat worms, arthropods, crustaceans, vertebreates)

Question 5

What are some things to know about bombina or fire-bellied toads?

Answer 5

Easy to keep but produce toxins so be sure to wash hands, semiaquatic, eat arthropods and vertebrates

Question 6

What are some things to know about dendrobatidea or poison dart frogs?

Answer 6

Can be difficult to keep and may be toxic, terrestrial, eat arthropods and ants

Question 7

What are some things to know about hylidae or tree frogs?

Answer 7

Docile and sturdy

Question 8

What are the three types of tree frogs we went over in class? (say what they are, what type of environment they live in, and their difficulty level)

Answer 8

Red-eyed treefrog (terrestrial, most difficult)
Green treefrog (arboreal, moderately difficult)
White’s treefrog (arboreal, least difficult)

Question 9

What are some things to know about pipidae or clawed frogs?

Answer 9

Hard to feed (kind of stupid)

Sturdy, docile, and easy to keep

Question 10

What are the two types of clawed frogs we talked about in class? (say what they are, what type of environment they live in)

Answer 10

Dwarf frog-aquatic

Aftican clawed frog-aquatic

Question 11

What is the type of “true frog” we went over? And what type of environment do they live in?

Answer 11

American bullfrog (aggressive but easy to keep), semiaquatic

Question 12

What is ecdysis?

Answer 12

Shedding

Question 13

What is different about amphibians integumentary system?

Answer 13

Has a respiratory function, contains glands where toxins may be excreted

Question 14

What are some ways amphibians obtain their food? (types of prehension)

Answer 14

Suction, ambush/pounce/lure, tongue prehension (bitch slapping prey)

Question 15

What are some ways amphibians breathe?

Answer 15

Branchial (gills), buccopharyngeal (air gulping, buccal pumping), through their cutaneous, pulmonic (lung breathing)

Question 16

Instead of using 0.9% NaCl, for amphibians we use…

Answer 16

0.6%

Question 17

All types of enclosures for amphibians should have…

Answer 17

Hiding spaces, substrate, meet light, temperature, humidity, ventilation and water requirements of the species

Question 18

Describe what is needed in arboreal and terrestrial enclosures for amphibians?

Answer 18

10 gal min, at least 5 cm for plants, water features to maintain humidity, light features not accessible by inhabitants

Question 19

What is red-leg disease?

Answer 19

Bacterial skin infections that can lead to septicemia (can result in hyperemia), use Enrogloxacin and antibiotic baths to treat

Question 20

What is chytrid infection?

Answer 20

AKA Chytridiomycosis
Caused by Batrachochytrium dendobatids
Signs: increased shedding, pale skin and lesions
Treatment: Bath in dilute intraconazole (0.01% by using 0.6% NaCl)

Question 21

What are some treatments for foreign body obstructions in amphibians?

Answer 21

Oral laxatives, psyllium, mineral oil, or surgery

Question 22

What are the two most common endoparasites in amphibians?

Answer 22

Trichomonas and coccidia

Question 23

What are some zoonotic diseases we can obtain from amphibians?

Answer 23

Listeria monocytogenes, salmonella, and Yersinia enterocolitica

Question 24

What drug do we use to anesthetize amphibians?

Answer 24

Tricaine methanesulfonate

Question 25

What do we never use on amphibians when prepping them for surgery?

Answer 25

Alcohol and iodine

Question 26

How do we euthanize amphibians?

Answer 26

Sedate first with Ketamine or Telazol, then administer euthanasia solution intracardiac