Crickets attacked and ate my pygmy's eye out (warning graphic pics)
- Thread starter EvilLost
- Start date
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ChameleonsInMyHouse
Guest
OhMyGawd! that is horrible. i'm sooo sorry for your lost, i can only imagine how you're feeling as this thread has totally ruined my day 
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ChameleonsInMyHouse
Guest
i know i sure as hell wouldn't be able to do that
what a tough friggen decision, and i know you love animals pssh (its not at all cruel), but you also have some kahunis to be able to do that again i'm sooo unbelievably sorry!
Sticktongue
Avid Member
First off.. thats terrible. I'm sorry about what happened.
But about putting the animal down. I disagree with it NEEDING to be put down. If the pyg was having trouble walking, eating, drinking. Possibly. But if it is still doing fine (like what was mentioned) i'd say let it live. Think about it, If you got your eye smashed and had to have a glass eye, would you want to be killed? I know its different and we can take pain medication and all the stuff... But I personally think if the animal can still live a somewhat normal life. let it.
But about putting the animal down. I disagree with it NEEDING to be put down. If the pyg was having trouble walking, eating, drinking. Possibly. But if it is still doing fine (like what was mentioned) i'd say let it live. Think about it, If you got your eye smashed and had to have a glass eye, would you want to be killed? I know its different and we can take pain medication and all the stuff... But I personally think if the animal can still live a somewhat normal life. let it.
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ChameleonsInMyHouse
Guest
i somewhat agree with you. i mean nature IS nature, but sometimes, the owners want to put the animal down for THEIR benefit, which there is NOTHING wrong in doing so. and an infection in such a tiny animal, can spread quite fast, be very painful, and just deplete every use the animal has. as an owner, i certainly would not want anything to go through that.
Sticktongue
Avid Member
Youre right. I forgot to mention that about the owner. I have had to put animals (dogs) down for reasons (not getting into it) that people had mixed feelings on. I think the owner always knows what is best because they are right there with it and know that animal and its actions while we just see it on a computer. Good luck with whatever you choose to do..
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ChameleonsInMyHouse
Guest
all we can do is comfort and support the owner with any decision they made, help them get over the rough patch, and help them not lose sight in the awesome hobby.
Olimpia
Biologist & Ecologist
Poor girl! What a hear breaking and infuriating thing it must have been to discover.
When my Charlotte swallowed her tongue and had to have it amputated I had friends and family tell me that I should put her down. And I thought it was so stupid to die because you have no tongue, she was in excellent shape otherwise. It was just a freak accident. Now, something like 8 months later and having dealt with a few infections of the mouth, waves of eating and not eating, and all the patience she requires, I don't know if saving her was the best thing. I hope it has been, but I can't ask her if she's happy being force fed every so often because she hasn't eaten in days or being medicated every so often, or not being able to catch food on her own at all.
This kind of stuff is always a hard call.
When my Charlotte swallowed her tongue and had to have it amputated I had friends and family tell me that I should put her down. And I thought it was so stupid to die because you have no tongue, she was in excellent shape otherwise. It was just a freak accident. Now, something like 8 months later and having dealt with a few infections of the mouth, waves of eating and not eating, and all the patience she requires, I don't know if saving her was the best thing. I hope it has been, but I can't ask her if she's happy being force fed every so often because she hasn't eaten in days or being medicated every so often, or not being able to catch food on her own at all.
This kind of stuff is always a hard call.
While I will always advocate humane euthanasia in the face of an animal suffering I can empathize completely with the OP and do not judge them for what they did or didn't do. I had a pyg baby hatch out in the adult viv and found it for the first time while its little head was in its mother's jaws. She obviously had tried to eat it but upon realizing it was too big to eat was just sitting there. I pried him out double time but his tiny little head was partially crushed. He was still alive and despite my most optimistic hopes I was pretty positive he wasn't going to make it since he was lying on his side and after a while starting gasping. It would have been the best decision to put him out of his misery and that was my plan, but I wandered around the house deciding to do it, then chickening out, finding a bag to put him to crush him without me seeing what I'd done, then chickening out, getting a brick ready, then chickening out. Poor little thing died before I could muster the courage to do anything myself. Had I had some injectable euthanasia on hand I would have done it in a heartbeat, but having do something brutal yourself is not an easy thing to do. Yes it would have been best for him, but at the same time I didn't want to inflict even more pain in is final moments. The beauty of injection is there isn't final pain. Doing something that brutal isn't as peaceful....for anyone.
For all of you who are criticizing someone in a time of sadness I hope that you are never faced the decision that the OP was, or that anyone judges you for not having the guts to crush an animal you care for while you grieve. Personally I would not have thought that would have killed a pyg. I've seen animals survive much, much worse. We don't jump to criticizing people who don't euthanize their egg bound or severely MBD animals. A belly full of stuck eggs or broken bones that are still used for locomotion are incredibly painful. Had it survived people would probably be offering suggestions on what to do next. Hindsight is 20/20. What's done is done.
For all of you who are criticizing someone in a time of sadness I hope that you are never faced the decision that the OP was, or that anyone judges you for not having the guts to crush an animal you care for while you grieve. Personally I would not have thought that would have killed a pyg. I've seen animals survive much, much worse. We don't jump to criticizing people who don't euthanize their egg bound or severely MBD animals. A belly full of stuck eggs or broken bones that are still used for locomotion are incredibly painful. Had it survived people would probably be offering suggestions on what to do next. Hindsight is 20/20. What's done is done.
MrGonzo123
New Member
Wow
WHOA.. Your Cham got punked by crickets... I hope your taking appropriate action
WHOA.. Your Cham got punked by crickets... I hope your taking appropriate action
Did you read anything beyond the first half page? The Cham passed away already. Read more before replying next time.
sandrachameleon
Chameleon Enthusiast
you are right to disagree with freezing.
You may find this previous thread informative:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/euthanasia-26839/
Pilotman800
New Member
Poor little guy.... Rest in peace.
Well, I certainly didn't expect this much discussion on the matter! I figure I should share my reasoning as to why I did not feel putting her down was appropriate:
1) If you check my post history I immediately made a post asking whether or not chameleons could live with one eye (I made it an hour before I made this post). The responses in that post said indeed she could live.
2) As mentioned before, her other eye was active and she was moving and gripping moderately well. She was clearly not in her prime, but her life signs were "good" based on my prior experiences.
3) After several calls, I managed to get a vet on the phone. He confirmed that she could live with one eye.
4) During this period, I gave her water, which she drank.
5) My personal belief on the matter is that as long as I will live and the pain isn't permanent, then I would want to live. I treat my animals the same way.
@ferret: thanks
In all the references to whether or not I should have put her down...but I think the above summed it up pretty well.
1) If you check my post history I immediately made a post asking whether or not chameleons could live with one eye (I made it an hour before I made this post). The responses in that post said indeed she could live.
2) As mentioned before, her other eye was active and she was moving and gripping moderately well. She was clearly not in her prime, but her life signs were "good" based on my prior experiences.
3) After several calls, I managed to get a vet on the phone. He confirmed that she could live with one eye.
4) During this period, I gave her water, which she drank.
5) My personal belief on the matter is that as long as I will live and the pain isn't permanent, then I would want to live. I treat my animals the same way.
@ferret: thanks
In all the references to whether or not I should have put her down...but I think the above summed it up pretty well.
sandrachameleon
Chameleon Enthusiast
I dont disagree with you
Im sure you made the best possible decision you could and did what you felt was right
The photos were horrible to see, and so the reaction to euthanise is also understandable. Yet people with chameleons with MBD (broken bones must be painful too) are rarely encouraged to immediately euhtanise, rather to try treatments first.
ChameleonNerd
New Member
on a semi positive note, i hope we all have learned a lesson from this, yes?
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