Quick tips for safe and effective neurologic rehabilitation for exotics

Treating exotic animals can be uniquely challenging due to their fragile health and heightened stress levels. According to Leilani Alvarez, DVM, DACVSMR, a collaborative approach with an exotic specialist is essential to ensure safe and effective rehabilitation. In this video, she shares tips on minimizing stress during interventions, the importance of skilled restraint, and why noninvasive therapies like pulsed electromagnetic field therapy (PEMF) loops are ideal for exotic patients.

Transcript

Leilani Alvarez, DVM, DACVSMR: Oh, my goodness, exotics are tough because, a lot of times, they arrive already with a chronic illness. Sometimes, just touching them can worsen their condition—or even cause them to die. So, when treating exotic patients, I recommend working closely with an exotic specialist. It’s important to understand their medical condition and how stable they are for any intervention, especially when performing rehabilitation, which is what I focus on with these patients.

The first tip is to involve an exotic specialist and ensure that someone experienced in handling these animals is on your team. Restraint can be very stressful for exotic species and can push them over the edge.

Finally, I recommend using noninvasive strategies whenever possible. For instance, I really love the PEMF loop because you can place it in the cage with a bird, guinea pig, or reptile, and they’ll sit inside the loop and receive therapy without being handled. These kinds of therapies are much better tolerated by exotic species.