# Pet Decisions..



## EchoTheLeoTort (Jun 29, 2013)

So after losing my little man Echo this week, I have been thinking things through and trying to figure things out. As everyone probably knows, I was trying to decide on either getting another tortoise, or get something new, and after a long debate in my head I've given in and gotten on a waiting list for a blue tegu this august. (I'll post a photo just to show an example of what one looks like). It was a hard choice because of how much I loved Echo, but somehow it feels... wrong to get another tortoise and fill his place. Echo was one of a kind and i'd like to keep it that way. BUT the good news is, for a little summer job I've decided to try and get a pet associate position at PetSmart, where I can properly teach petsmart and customers how to properly care for reptiles, Especially tortoises, and keep them away from the naughty stuff (coil bulbs, red bulbs, bad water dishes, store bought food, etc). Although I may lose a job for telling them to go to walmart and get a plant saucer for a water dish, at least it's saving one little tort from a possible drowning. I still plan on checking in daily and helping everyone on the forum who needs it. Hopefully if I get the job, I'll be around tortoises still, and I can help people give proper care, and hey, if they are teetering on choosing an animal, I'll know where to lead them  Those are my plans for now, but I have to say I am a die hard animal lover, and I am sure that somewhere in the future lies another little tortoise waiting to cross my path.


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## wellington (Jun 29, 2013)

I'm not sure I seen your thread about Echo, I am so very sorry. 
Good luck on your new adventures, sound like a really good plan. Don't forget pics of your tegu when you get him/her.


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## Millerlite (Jun 29, 2013)

What type of enclosure are you planing? They can be aggressive but they sure are cool. Taming them is the key so I hear


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## EchoTheLeoTort (Jun 29, 2013)

Millerlite said:


> What type of enclosure are you planing? They can be aggressive but they sure are cool. Taming them is the key so I hear



I am definitely going to have to build a custom enclosure. I'm pretty positive I'm getting a female (the breeder says he's usually very good at sexing hatchlings but of course there is no guarantee). Females usually get between the 3-4 foot range, but to be safe I'm going to do an 8ft x 4ft x4ft. I do have to say though that I'm going to be letting her roam my room a lot when she is bigger to stretch her legs. I have heard of aggressive tegu's but mainly from Columbian black and whites/golds. The key is really spending time daily with it and i've heard so many people say tegus are super intelligent and can be very attached to their owners. I got a ball python about a week and a half ago and the first day she never struck or hissed or anything, our problem was that I'd never been around snakes and I was freaked out if her head was pointed at me, and she was freaked out by my fast movements. But here we are now and she lets me get her out of the cage very easily without hissing or trying to bite, and she's only 2 months old. She ate the first time I tried so she is settling in very nicely. I'm very happy with her for sure. I plan to keep handling her each day, even just 5 minutes if its a busy day, and I plan on doing that for the tegu as well. I've had a lot of pets and the only "mean" pet I've ever had is actually a hedgehog. She wasn't totally mean, but man I couldn't pick her up or do anything with her, although she let me hand feed. I'm not going to get any more pets after the tegu though, I really will be content with my Ball python, my tegu, and my puppy. 




wellington said:


> I'm not sure I seen your thread about Echo, I am so very sorry.
> Good luck on your new adventures, sound like a really good plan. Don't forget pics of your tegu when you get him/her.



Thanks. The story was that I P.M'd Tom with a thread I posted, and he was leaning towards it being a case of hatchling failure syndrome. After hearing from a few others they all thought the same. I switched to Tom's care sheet instructions very fast after I got Echo, so it wasn't anything I was doing wrong. I did find it strange ever since I got echo that he never seemed to grow. He stayed a solid 2.25 inches. I think he was very dehydrated when he hatched and that ruined his kidneys and liver and he wasn't meant to thrive after. When he first started going downhill when I noticed his softer shell and made the thread, I started doing baby soaks, loading him up on calcium to try and get the shell hard again but after a week his shell only got softer and he quit eating and he stayed in one spot most the day, so I made a tough decision and decided to euthanize him so he no longer suffered for another week or however long it would take him to pass. I love Echo a lot, and it was an agonizing choice to make, especially the "what if" question on whether or not he would of pulled through, but I think in the end I knew that he wouldn't, and so I made the choice to make him go as peacefully as I could.


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## Millerlite (Jun 29, 2013)

I use to have a bunch of liZards never snakes but they are neat. I've had geckos chameleons bearded dragons, iguanas, uromasryx. My favorite was a rescued green iguana he was about 5 foot but a lot was tail, he was An older guy and just hung out all day. I had a 10x10x8 foot enclosure it was outdoor and indoor, he also would walk around the yard a little. He ended up dying of old age but he was a good loaded. Def share pictures of your tugu when you get her


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## lindseyjordan10 (Jun 29, 2013)

I think that is an amazing idea. Whenever I go to petsmart and ask questions no one seems to know anything. It's great that you want to be able to help out and you will help save a lot of tortoises!!


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## thatrebecca (Jun 29, 2013)

Very cool idea about the pet shop! The reptile crews can use some good, smart associates.


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## AustinASU (Jun 29, 2013)

Just make sure if you get bit your wearing leather gloves, these guys will leave some gnarly bite wounds.


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## EchoTheLeoTort (Jun 30, 2013)

We will just see if they want to hire me first. I call it one tattoo... but i have a word tattooed on each wrist (they go together) And I have the inside of my right upper arm tattooed, and this fall i'm getting the left inner upper arm done. I know they have a policy of no visible tattoos. So looks like i'll be wearing long sleeves


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## jaizei (Jun 30, 2013)

EchoTheLeoTort said:


> We will just see if they want to hire me first. I call it one tattoo... but i have a word tattooed on each wrist (they go together) And I have the inside of my right upper arm tattooed, and this fall i'm getting the left inner upper arm done. I know they have a policy of no visible tattoos. So looks like i'll be wearing long sleeves



A lot of places with those policies will exercise discretion based on the tattoo, it's location, the person it's on. I've seen a ton of tattoos on Petsmart/Petco employees.


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## EchoTheLeoTort (Jun 30, 2013)

jaizei said:


> EchoTheLeoTort said:
> 
> 
> > We will just see if they want to hire me first. I call it one tattoo... but i have a word tattooed on each wrist (they go together) And I have the inside of my right upper arm tattooed, and this fall i'm getting the left inner upper arm done. I know they have a policy of no visible tattoos. So looks like i'll be wearing long sleeves
> ...



I hope so. I really hate places that discriminate on people with tattoos. I could understand if someone had a visible lets say, naked woman tattoo, or a swear word. I wouldn't want them representing my business.. But if they are okay tattoos that are something that isn't disrespectful I say let them work. Tattoos make people interesting in my opinion, and they definitely don't define a person at all.


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## theelectraco (Jun 30, 2013)

99% chance you won't be able to have your tattoos showing. If they are on your wrists you can wear a watch or some bracelets. I'm a manager for PetSmart, and I have to have mine covered. Unless you have a really lenient store manager, then you will probably be wearing long sleeves. And even then, when the district manager comes in, you will have to have them covered. I have tattoos on both arms, wear long sleeves, usually in the day have them pulled up with them showing ( cus the other managers don't care, but when the DM comes in my sleeves are down for sure. I worked as a Pet Care Associate and was Lead for 5 years before being promoted, and it is by far the hardest position in the core of the store that isn't management. Don't pass up a cashier position if that's all they have cus if you show enough interest you can easily get cross trained. 


0.1.0 Dachshund
0.0.1 Redfoot
1.0.0 Greek


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## Millerlite (Jun 30, 2013)

Sweat bands too for those hot days, usually associates/retail/customer service jobs require them to be hidden. Tattoos however are becoming more and more excepted unless its gang related, curse words or anything on that line


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## EchoTheLeoTort (Jun 30, 2013)

My problem is that i've been out of highschool a full school year now, but I have bad blood problems. I have bleeding uclers in my stomach, and therefore my hemoglobin levels are down to 8-10 where the normal person has a hemoglobin level of at least 12. That being said, I am super weak all the time, I get dizzy, I blackout when I stand up, and I can't stand for long periods, and I get tired and shaky very fast, I can only mow 2 sides of my house before I can't go anymore and my dad has to mow the other 2. It's really hard finding a job that will have small maybe 3 hr shifts, but sadly thats all I can really handle. I do cleaning for my grandma and a few of her friends for money every week which gives me a small income and I still live with my grandma and my dad so I don't have major bills yet, but I definitely need to find a solid job. I am planning on heading to college this fall to get a degree so I have a better paying job. But for now every company really wants you working 6-8 hr shifts for part time, so I'm not sure what I'm gonna do.


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## jjsull33 (Jun 30, 2013)

Hotels sometimes do "split shifts" whereyou work the whole 8 hour shift but it is broken into 2 half shifts each day, and you're there to help with the busiest times. Maybe something like that would fit you better. My friend used to work 7-10 then 3-8 or similar hour breakdowns


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## Millerlite (Jun 30, 2013)

Few retail jobs that will work you 15-20 hrs a week which is not to much at all. With a fall schedule tho they can work around it. Work and school is tough and a lot of work in itself


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## Yvonne G (Jun 30, 2013)

I don't know if they're hiring, but the Phone company has split shifts too. I started out as an operator many, many years ago, and worked 8a to 12p then went back again at 4p to 8p.

Everything's automatic now-a-days...don't know if they even have operators anymore.


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## theelectraco (Jun 30, 2013)

Most of the associates I work with have 3-5 hour shifts. They usually only get more if they are really good workers or have full availability.


0.1.0 Dachshund
0.0.1 Redfoot
1.0.0 Greek


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## Jd3 (Jun 30, 2013)

Not to be off topic but why haven't you had your bleeding ulcers treated? There are a lot of very effective treatments and it is exceptionally rare to have to love with them long term now. 

Employers are going to be reluctant to hire someone who they will have to make accommodations for. This type of job is going to be standing for the entire shift. Make sure it is right for you. Much better than letting an employer down later because it is too much for your current condition. 

Best of luck


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## EchoTheLeoTort (Jul 1, 2013)

Jd3 said:


> Not to be off topic but why haven't you had your bleeding ulcers treated? There are a lot of very effective treatments and it is exceptionally rare to have to love with them long term now.
> 
> Employers are going to be reluctant to hire someone who they will have to make accommodations for. This type of job is going to be standing for the entire shift. Make sure it is right for you. Much better than letting an employer down later because it is too much for your current condition.
> 
> Best of luck



It is a complicated question to answer. When I first got very ill and went in and they found I had ulcers, and I'd become severely anemic and iron deficient, they wanted to give me a blood transfusion because of the blood I had lost, but I opted out of that, and a month later had my check up again and my body was producing more hemoglobin which brought my hemoglobin levels back up to about an 11. The doctor had me on meds that coated my stomach and stopped the bleeding and I was on prilosec to knock out any extra acid. Everything stopped for a while, but now with my last doctor visit she took my blood, and my hemoglobin is very low, which means my ulcers are bleeding again. Now going on why I got ulcers in the first place. I was diagnosed in second grade with migraines, which is very young to be getting migraines. I had very severe migraines twice a week, they were so bad that i'd start throwing up because of the pain. I am on medication for my migraines. But fast forward it to 11 years later, and being almost 19 years old, I still get at least 2 migraines a week. If you think of ALL that time that I have gotten migraines, which I took aspirin for every time, plus the other days where I started to get a headache and had to take aspirin, that is A LOT of aspirin. The aspirin has worn down my stomach and caused bleeding ulcers. The meds he gave me the first time, were kind of a quick fix. Yes it worked, and yes i stopped throwing up blood and bleeding inside, but I still get migraines about 2-3 times a week, I still take aspirin every single time, and here we are 3 years since the first bleeding ulcers, and I am going through it all over. Basically this will be a never ending cycle. I get migraines, I take lots of aspirin, over time this makes my ulcers bleed, i go to the dr for my ulcers, they give me the meds i had before, they stop bleeding, then i'm back to taking more aspirin for my migraines. I won't ever really receive a proper treatment for ulcers because of all the aspirin i have to take for migraines, they will just keep coming back.


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## jaizei (Jul 1, 2013)

EchoTheLeoTort said:


> I am planning on heading to college this fall to get a degree so I have a better paying job.



Do you know what you want to study/what type of career you'd like to end up with?


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## jjsull33 (Jul 1, 2013)

I don't know what the cause of the migraines is for you, but my mother used to get bad migraines a lot and she started going to the chiropractor and having him work on her back and neck, she gets them a lot less frequently now, maybe this could work or you.


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## EchoTheLeoTort (Jul 1, 2013)

jaizei said:


> EchoTheLeoTort said:
> 
> 
> > I am planning on heading to college this fall to get a degree so I have a better paying job.
> ...



I took a year off of college after highschool because i was suffering a lot of depression and health issues and just needed a year off. Unfortunately i missed registration for the fall semester coming up, so I'm starting school in spring. The first school I am going to allows me to stay in my city and get a degree from a state university, I am going to get my bachelors degree in psychology. From there I am transferring to another college to get my masters degree in counseling and psychology. I want to be some type of counselor and help people who need it, not sure if i will help families, marriages, mental health patients, etc yet but some sort of work there. So luckily it is more of a job where i talk and interact with people by sitting down and talking with them. I'm really looking forward to it. 


p.s. thanks everyone for concerns, suggestions, help, and good advice


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## Jd3 (Jul 1, 2013)

EchoTheLeoTort said:


> Jd3 said:
> 
> 
> > Not to be off topic but why haven't you had your bleeding ulcers treated? There are a lot of very effective treatments and it is exceptionally rare to have to love with them long term now.
> ...



Why not take something other than aspirin. There are plenty of prescription migraine medicines. 

Someone with bleeding problems should be forbid from taking blood thinners.


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## RosieRedfoot (Jul 1, 2013)

Ditto what jd3 said. My friend had migraines and couldn't be on blood thinners and there were a variety of other migraine meds. 

I work retail and rarely work less than 6 hour shifts... I'm part time but they have me working 4:30-10 or 2-10 pretty much 5 days a week. 

Good luck with your job quest but don't neglect your own health first!


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## EchoTheLeoTort (Jul 1, 2013)

Jd3 said:


> EchoTheLeoTort said:
> 
> 
> > Jd3 said:
> ...



My doctor has me taking amatryptaline (sp?) Every night to help prevent migraines, but the main medicine given for migraines immatrex (Sp?) is something you take when you feel a headache coming on, it is meant to prevent further progress of a headache. It is not a pain killer. The way my doctor described it there isn't anything she can prescribe that takes the pain away, everything is something to help prevent migraines, or slow down the symptoms. Most meds are very expensive, not all of us are rich. I tried the generic version of imatrex and it didn't help me at all. I take excederin migraine for my migraines when i get them. If my doctor knew of something to prescribe for the pain she would of given it to me.


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