Giant Komodo Dragon Receives Acupuncture

NW Cable News ^ | 08/19/03 | Associated Press

[bedolido]

SINGAPORE (AP) -- An 8-foot-long Komodo dragon lizard in Singapore's zoo has been receiving traditional Chinese acupuncture treatment for a nerve disorder.

"Tirto is now more relaxed and is beginning to enjoy his treatments," a spokesman for the Singapore Zoological Gardens, Vincent Tan, said Tuesday.

He said the 8-year-old, 94-pound male lizard, has been receiving twice-weekly treatments for a neurological disorder from veterinarian Oh Soon Hock for the past three weeks.

Komodo dragons, the world's largest lizards, are prehistoric-looking reptiles that can grow up to 10 feet long and weigh more than 200 pounds. They have long claws and serrated teeth that help them tear meat from the animals they prey upon.

Acupuncture has been used for thousands of years in many parts of Asia, where it's believed that pricking a patient with stainless steel needles in strategic places helps nerve and circulatory functions.

Tirto had been having problems swallowing and eating. The zoo initially tried steroid treatment, but eventually turned to the ancient traditional treatment still widely used here.

Tirto will receive antibiotics along with the spine-tingling needle treatments.

Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved.

[bedolido]

[bedolido]

Tirto, a Komodo dragon, is treated with acupuncture by Dr. Oh Soon Hock at the Singapore Zoological Gardens for the first time Monday, Aug. 18, 2003 in Singapore. The 8-year-old Komodo dragon, weighing 42 kg (92 pounds) and measuring 2.3 meter (7.5 feet) long from Indonesia, had been experiencing difficulty in swallowing and eating. When initial treaments did not yield much result, the zoo turned to veterinarian Oh Soon Hock, who traced meridian points along Tirto's back, from the skull to the base of the spine. He is attempting to stimulate these vital points to free energy blockages. At the same time, antibiotics are applied to provide a more holistic therapy.(AP Photo/The Straits Times)

[Diamond]

For some reason after reading this story I can only think of an old Bob and Ray routine.

Cordially,

[bedolido]

Hold Muh Dragon! Ping!

[dirtboy]

Giant Komodo Dragon Receives Acupuncture

What did they use, a knitting needle?

[bedolido]

For some reason after reading this story I can only think of an old Bob and Ray routine.

I remember (years ago) a Bob and Ray routine where they played football players on an all gay team. The team they were playing were called the Beavers. You can imagine what they might say when they came face to face (as it were) with one of the Beavers.

Whatever happened to them?

[thoughtomator]

Never lend money to a man named Oh Soon Hock.

[Bacon Man]

What did they use, a knitting needle?

Lawn dart.

[dirtboy]

Lawn dart.

Ooh, they're in double trouble - using a banned device on an endangered species.

[Bikers4Bush]

That's insanity. If that thing decides to take a piece out of him there's nothing he can do to stop it.

The saliva is poisonous as well so that would add a whole other level of danger to this idiocy.

[Bacon Man]

Ooh, they're in double trouble - using a banned device on an endangered species.

They banned lawn darts!? When did that happen? I remember playing chicken with those things when I was a kid. Good wholesome fun.

[dirtboy]

They banned lawn darts!? When did that happen? I remember playing chicken with those things when I was a kid. Good wholesome fun.

Congress banned the manufacture of Jarts back in 1988 - apparently, three kids had been killed before the ban, and the Consumer Product Safety Commission told thrift stores to quit selling them back in 1997.

[PoorMuttly]

Lemme tell you something about Komodo Dragons...

...when those "energy blockages" DO get freed...they'll need a blood blockage for nice Dr. Hock...because his head will not be doing the job for him anymore.

Also...I suppose they're feeding Mister Dragon dead food (yuck), bacause otherwise, the antibiotics would kill the bacteria in his mouth, which they use to infect whatever/whoever they bite...let it run off and fester...then find it by smell...and OH do it smell by that time !

[Bacon Man]

Congress banned the manufacture of Jarts back in 1988 - apparently, three kids had been killed before the ban, and the Consumer Product Safety Commission told thrift stores to quit selling them back in 1997.

Well that's disappointing. I can't help but wonder about the future generations of youngsters that will never know of joy of lobbing gigantic steel tipped darts at one another. :)

[Orangedog]

I can't see a Komodo Dragon without thinking of the movie "The Freshman" where the Komodo they were supposed to deliver got loose in the shopping mall.

[boris]

Be vewy, vewy careful...

[Diamond]

Ray Goulding passed away several years ago. Bob Eliot is still alive as far as I know. He is the father of Chris Eliot, who was on the Letterman show for a while. Bob and Ray were my favorite comedians; dry as a bone, and therefore so much funnier.

Cordially,