Valley veterinarian helps x-ray Reptiland Komodo dragon

Jun. 17—ALLENWOOD — One of the Komodo dragons at Clyde Peeling's Reptiland has been showing signs of arthritis.

To verify the problem, zoo veterinarian Dr. Steve Winton and specialist Dr. Marlo Egleston, Egleston Equine & Farm Animal Clinic/Veterinary Service, of Lewisburg, x-rayed the giant lizard on Thursday afternoon at the zoo, located at 18628 Route 15, Allenwood. The scans will be sent to Dr. Rob Coke, the director of veterinary care at the San Antonio Zoo in Texas, for examination and possible treatment recommendations.

"Some people hypothesize that these animals have grown larger being stranded on the island of Indonesia," said owner Clyde Peeling. "All these lizards have a splayed-out way of walking, which is fine if you're not real heavy. Because komodos get heavy, they're prone to joint problems. We've noticed this animal limping a little bit."

Thurber, the 14-year-old male Komodo dragon, is nearly 90 pounds and just over 7-1/2 feet long. He hatched at the Sedgwick County Zoo in Kansas on Jan. 31, 2007, but it wasn't until 2016 that he came to Reptiland as part of the Komodo Dragon Species Survival Plan (SSP).

If it is arthritis, there are various treatment options, including acupuncture treatments that Coke has had success with in San Antonio. The last resort would be euthanasia, which needs approval by SSP, said Winton.

"The challenge is whether he will sit still and cooperate. We may have to hold him down," said Peeling just moments before the procedure. "We'll see. It's kind of up in the air right now how well the animal will take this. This particular dragon is fairly placid."

Thurber did cooperate without the need for restraining him. Anesthesia was also out of the question because of the risks to cold-blooded animals, said Winton.

A team consisting of Egleton, her assistant Cassandra McLaughlin, a pre-vet biology student out of Ganon University in Erie, Reptiland zoological manager Cathryn Allen and Reptiland Senior Keeper Katelyn Lenhart, were able to control Thurber and keep him still long enough for Egleton to get the x-rays.

Egleston has performed x-rays on large animals in the past — mostly horses, livestock, dogs and one of Reptiland's giant tortoises — but she has never before x-rayed a non-domesticated carnivore. She said she put her trust in Peeling and his team when they told her that Thurber was "docile and good-natured."

"I personally was a little nervous about them," said Egleston. "Our familiarity and comfort level is primarily with cows, horses and other farm animals. This was definitely outside our comfort zone, but it was still a neat experience to be able to help and to be a tool to help them figure out what's going on with him (Thurber)."

The Komodo dragon was "super cooperative," she said.

"We do horses all the time," she said. "He held still as well or better than most of them do. We are used to doing large animals or animals that aren't holding still. He was an awesome, cooperative patient. The handlers made it super easy."

Egleston used a portable digital x-ray machine. The pictures transmit wirelessly to the plate and it shows up on the computer, she said.

The Komodo dragon, the largest of all lizards, is an endangered species native to five of the Lessor Sunda Islands of Indonesia. These predators are renowned for bold hunting techniques and are capable of killing pigs, deer, and even water buffalo.

Komodo dragons are part of an SSP overseen by zoo professionals. This program works to maintain a sustainable captive population that is genetically diverse, ultimately protecting against extinction in both zoos and the wild.

Reptiland's other Komodo dragon, 8-year-old Saphira, is smaller at nearly 50 pounds and under 7 feet in length. She came to the zoo in October.

Clyde Peeling's Reptiland, a zoo accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and dedicated to education and conservation, opened in 1964. The 3,000-square-foot Island Giants exhibit for the Komodo dragons opened in June 2013.