Hi folks, nice job on your video. I am a (now-retired) veterinarian who did housecalls exclusively for herptiles the past 10 years and saw them in-hospital as much as possible in the years prior to that. As such, I taught countless clients how to give various injections of medications and fluids at home and it was always a ton of fun and rewarding to see a nervous first-timer quickly become a pro. I would usually have them practice with a small amount of saline while I was present. The one tip that I would suggest reinforcing (you did mention it briefly)-since punctured scales do not seal up nearly as quickly as mammalian skin and often times we were using minuscule amounts of liquids for the injection (less than 0.1mls was common), obviously any leakage from the injection site could be an issue. Therefore I stressed very hard that the client needed to twirl the syringe in a single direction as it was being removed which causes a plug of the subcutaneous tissue to help block the hole so the medication would not leak out. Additionally placing pressure on the injection site for 10-15 seconds or so also helps against leakage. Granted, not a huge deal when giving a large bolus of SQ fluids to a large python or crocodilian (although I still always twirled), but could be a very big deal when giving a 0.03ml IM injection into the bicep of a leopard gecko. Those are tiny amounts of fluid and what may look like just a little drop that leaked out might have been the entire dose in some cases. I know it seem like a lot of steps to remember but if all of my wonderful 80-something year old Floridian clients can do it, anyone can! Twirl twirl twirl!!!
Today I watched the vet put one straight into my beardies back. Like straight up and down. Omg it sounded and looked so painful. It looked so wrong. Idk about this. 😢
