Exotic pet medicine
Exotic Pet Medicine
Care that goes beyond traditional practice, tailored to rabbits, rodents, reptiles and birds. Exotic and avian exams are part of the regular service list.
Chapter 01
Which animals the practice sees beyond dogs and cats
Bethany's own service list names exotic pet and avian exams as part of its regular primary care, not as a separate specialty offered only on request. Exotic Pet Medicine also has its own page on the practice's site, described there as care that goes beyond traditional practice and is tailored to the animal actually in the room.
The record here does not name a longer list of species than birds and small mammals like the guinea pig pictured above, so none is added beyond that. What each of those appointments has in common is that the normal behavior, handling and reference points for a bird or a small mammal are not the same as for a dog or a cat, before anything is even wrong.
A guinea pig wrapped in a towel being held at Bethany Animal Hospital
Chapter 02
Why an exotic exam is a different appointment
A small animal that is prey by instinct tends to hide illness rather than show it, so an exotic appointment often starts with watching how the animal is held and how it moves, before anything else happens. The guinea pig above is wrapped in a towel for exactly that reason, to keep the visit calm rather than to restrain against a struggle.
Bethany includes exotic and avian exams in its regular, published service list rather than treating them as an occasional add-on, which is also why the practice's own photography includes patients like this one, rather than stock images of species it does not actually see.
Bethany — AAHA accredited. Cat Friendly Practice, Silver. Fear Free certified staff. Call (815) 239-6938.
Beyond this building
When Bethany refers out, and where.
When a bird or small mammal needs care beyond what Bethany offers, or needs it outside the hours listed above, the practice refers to specialists rather than handling everything in the building. Two clinics on Bethany's own emergency referral list are set up specifically for exotic patients.
1287 East Higgins Rd., Schaumburg, IL 60173
(847) 430-49387510 W North Ave., Elmwood Park, IL 60707
(708) 453-8181The full referral list, covering dogs and cats as well, is kept on the Patient Center page below.
Getting started
Booking an exotic pet exam.
Call the office at (815) 239-6938 to ask about a first exotic pet appointment, or text (815) 991-4556, the only number here that takes messages, if the question is not urgent.
Hablamos espanol, y mensaje de texto es preferido para preguntas no urgentes, o para agendar citas.
Call the office on (815) 239-6938 to ask about an exotic pet visit, or text (815) 991-4556 if it can wait until we are between appointments.