Posted on 05/15/2016 4:21:22 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Hannah the Komodo Dragon has been in pain. To relieve it, her doctors and keepers are taking an approach that has not yet been tried on an animal at the Palm Beach Zoo: acupuncture. Additionally, Hannah recently had a CT scan
(Excerpt) Read more at sun-sentinel.com ...
Have you seen the size of the acupuncture needles? Very Teeennnnyyy tiny
There isn’t any pain. You’re projecting your somatic delusion.
I have osteoporosis and L1,L2 and L4 have collapsed; they are only about half the height of a normal vertebra. If one opts for surgery they can pump in some kind of cement to stabilize the vertebra, but there is always a danger of the ‘gunk’ getting on the spinal cord, so I just try to protect my back as much as possible.
The acupuncture therapist worked wonders when my husband developed sciatica, so I started going for my back pain, and it really helped me too. So, it couldn’t hurt, might help.
LSAggie (posting on hubby’s account)
How do they know it is in pain?
Freegards
Do Bob and Ray know?
That was fun, thank you.
As I have already said, we are not talking about a human being in which the placebo effect can be strong enough to drown out the sensation of pain upon needle insertion. We are talking about an animal that has absolutely no comprehension of what is being done to it. That means that it will NOT have the placebo effect to mask the pain. Between restraining the animal and shoving needles into its flesh, its "caregivers" are subjecting it to needless pain and stress. I am surprised (and disappointed) that a veterinarian, who had to go through years of science-based training, would agree to subject an animal to this. Most veterinarians I know are highly compassionate towards animals.
The part I bolded is key. Distraction can truly take one's mind off pain, and with a mild pain such as having needles inserted, the distraction may be enough for your pet to not even notice the pain caused by the needles.
If you are aware of the Lamaze method of childbirth, the principle is the same. The pain of childbirth is severe, but concentrating on the breathing patterns helps to focus the mind on something other than the pain, making the pain more tolerable.
A giant lizard, however, is not a pet and cannot be distracted in the same way. All I can think of is that the poor animal is being subjected to a lot of stress and pain for no real medical benefit whatsoever. That is cruel.
Wonder how that “conversation” took place?
Had I believed that the treatments caused him pain I would not have kept bringing him back. I was there, and skeptical in the beginning. So, I observed closely. As long as he didn’t see anything, he was completely unaware. The sensation had to be minuscule.
If you need to believe that it’s painful because you oppose acupuncture, I’m certainly not going to change your mind. But, I know what I saw, he was not in any discomfort whatsoever and the treatments did benefit him as far as mobility and pain.
I have a hard time seeing a Komodo Dragon as helpless.
Veterinarians are taught to render any animal incapacitated. Animals of any size or temperament are truly helpless when put face to face with a vastly intellectually superior human.
Humanity did not survive because of its physical superiority. Compared to our nearest relatives, chimpanzees, we are utter weaklings.
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