I thought it would be interesting to inventory items I keep on hand. It would seem that I have A LOT of stuff. Also, Just because it’s easy to link to Drs Foster Smith doesn’t necessarily mean that I got it from them.
Teeth Scaler
Please be careful when using this item. It’s meant for a steady hand and a patient pet and not to be used in place of a good cleaning under sedation at the veterinarian’s office.
FURminator
These have gotten ridiculous in pricing, but have proven invaluable with the number of pets I have at any given time. I recommend looking for clearance items, used on Craigslist (sanitize well) or my favorite: Amazon. Get a really old model on Amazon still brand new- in package. It may not have the fur-ejector (who cares) and it’s roughly $20. I have an original that I picked up before their pricing jumped and a dual bladed one that I picked up on amazon. It works well on larger cats because it keeps the skin smooth between the two blades; think like the multi-bladed razors vs a single blade disposable.
KwikStop Styptic
This is used for nail clipping or anytime an injury occurs where you need to stop the bleeding. The bird forums recommend AGAINST Kwik Stop because of a burning sensation (even though it contains a numbing agent Benzocaine) and recommend using cayenne pepper instead. I’ve used it for birds, guinea pigs, my dog and even my rat when he was injured and pulled the nail away from the nail bed.
Nail clippers:
Kitten style
These could be in almost every section of the store as specialty items and I swear it is the SAME THING. I understand the link refers to them in use for reptiles. These are excellent for guinea pigs, cats or even ferrets. When the nail reaches a certain size in petiteness, I will simply use a human style nail clipper. I don’t think these are very safe for birds under 100 grams because the bird will move and the clipping area of these is roughly 1.5mm. That can snip a significant area of the nail away on a green cheek conures that suddenly jerks.
Speaking of jerky pets:
My dog is a nut job
Guarded nail clipper
Even if you’re going to cut into the quick of the nail, with these you can only clip so much off ‘accidentally’
Hair removal:
Rubber hair wand
This one is kind of fancy. The one I use is entirely rubber. I don’t recommend this one for removing hair from furniture like it touts. I use this to brush down the guinea pig bedding before tossing it in the wash. VERY EFFECTIVE. Why wash guinea pig bedding? Does this sound foreign to you? I use rewashable fleece and towel/zorb mats from Jen’s Custom Crafts
Pledge Fabric Sweeper
Love love love love love love LOVE these! The original ones were disposable and would not open up for cleaning. This gets hair off anything, even hair you didn’t see there. Use it on the bedding, couches, cat tree
Ears:
Epi Otic
Dogs, cats, guinea pigs
This is typically not for sale in your retail Big Box Petstores. Can be found online or in many cases at your local veterinarian’s office and many will sell it at reception without a prescription. Don’t overuse this product. It helps with waxy build up and itching as well as funky smells.
Hemostats
Clamps, really. Use these when your bird breaks a blood feather and the rest has to be removed
Scissors
vet wrap
tweezers
Scale
Can be used in smaller animals to monitor weight if you are suspicious about illness or would like to keep your records updated. I have a simple 3 lb limit kitchen scale from OXO in my kitchen. It’s less than $30 and nothing fancy and I am able to weigh my guinea pigs (within a bowl) and nicely place my birds on it. I can also use it for my cooking. Win, win.
I’m not actually going through my items right now so I might be leaving something out. I’ll leave a few words:
DO NOT CUT THE WHISKERS OFF YOUR ANIMALS
Whiskers are useful in determining spacial constraints. Stop it.
Inspect your animals weekly, if not daily. My guinea pig never complained but I found some fur-impacted wounds from bites that could have easily gotten infected. Your pets can always lose weight very quickly. Their metabolism is so much better than yours.