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Where do you find a reptile veterinarian? It's not as easy as you might think!
The best time to find a vet for your tortoise (or any exotic pet) is before you actually need one. Then if your pet becomes ill, you don't waste time trying to find an appropriately-skilled veterinarian who is familiar with the biology and biochemistry of reptiles (what we call a "reptile-competent veterinarian").
You should be aware that most regular veterinarians (i.e., "dog and cat vets") do not possess the specialized knowledge of reptile physiology and pharmacology to properly and safely diagnose and treat sick reptiles. Treatment of exotics and reptiles is not part of the standard curriculum at most veterinary schools, so most exotics or reptile vets acquire their knowledge on their own, typically as a result of keeping these types of pets themselves.
You should also understand that the costs incurred in treating exotic pets will be equally exotic. Veterinary care for a sick reptile can cost 20 to 60 percent more than the average vet bill for a sick dog or cat. However, this added cost is not a good excuse to avoid taking a sick reptile to the vet. Our point of view, simply put, is that if you cannot afford the vet bills, you should not have the pet in the first place.
Also, you shouldn't necessarily trust a vet or clinic advertising "We treat exotics/reptiles!". We once made the mistake of looking through the Albuquerque Yellow Pages for a veterinary clinic that mentioned "reptiles" in its advertising. We quickly found one that was centrally located and easy to get to, and took a sick box turtle in to be treated. BIG mistake! The box turtle eventually died because -- despite their advertising -- the clinic's vet had no real knowledge of how to treat reptiles in general and turtles in particular. We hope you will learn from our sad experience and avoid making a similar mistake with your own turtles and tortoises.
The best way to find a good reptile vet is by word of mouth.
Ask other reptile keepers who they've had good results with. Find your local herpetological or turtle and tortoise club and ask the club officers or members which vet they use. If you need help finding your local herpetological society, or a good reptile vet near you, try the following websites:
The Association of Amphibian and Reptilian Veterinarians
Melissa Kaplan's Herp Veterinarians page
HerpVet Connection
Herpo.com's Listing of Herp Societies
The Vets_for_Herps group at Yahoo Groups:
This is another good place to get recommendations about reptile vets in your area. Be aware that you must have a Yahoo ID to join this Group before you can access the recommendations.
If you already have a Yahoo email account, you can use it as your Yahoo ID. Go to the Yahoo Groups homepage at http://groups.yahoo.com/, and log in with your Yahoo email name and email password. Then go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/vets_for_herps/ and join the group by clicking on the "Join This Group" link. Then click on the link for the "Files" area.
If you don't already have a Yahoo email account, then you can set up a Yahoo ID at the Yahoo Groups homepage, then join the "Vets_for_Herps" group as described above.
Vet certificates for shipping sulcata tortoises:
By federal law, if you are going to ship or move a sulcata tortoise across state lines within the USA, you must have a vet examine the tortoise BEFORE you cross any state lines! The vet must then sign a certificate that the tortoise is healthy and tick-free. This federal law was passed to prevent the spread of an imported tick that carries an illness called Heartwater Disease. See our Shipping page for more information on this issue.
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