Melissa Kaplan's
Herp Care Collection
Last updated January 1, 2014

Published Works

Melissa Kaplan

My reptile articles have been published in wildlife rehab and pet magazines around the country, these markets being ignored by 'serious' herp authors for some reason. I presented a paper on herp rehab to the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council conference in 1993; the peer- reviewed paper was published in the conference proceedings and has now been published as a stand-alone document due to the number of requests they received for it. An article I wrote on stomatitis was also published in their peer-reviewed Journal of Wildlife Rehabilitation (in fact, the review board deemed it so technical that they required me to have a vet as co-author...!). In the past couple of years, there have been more wildlife rehabbers working with and writing about reptile rehab for wildlife rehab publications, which is very good news for all involved.

Published herp-related works of mine include:

Iguanas for Dummies. IDG Books Worldwide (now HungryMinds, Inc.). 2000. 354 pages.

A Cold-Blooded Business. ASPCA Animal Watch, Spring 2000, pp. 22-29.

Day of the Iguana. 2000. WE Magazine. March-April 2000. Volume IV, No. 2, pp. 102-103.

Up for Discussion: Ethics & Resources. 1998. Journal of Wildlife Rehabilitation, 21(3-4):31-33.

Reptile Rehabilitation. 1997. The Biology Husbandry, and Health Care of Reptiles. Lowell Ackerman, DVM, ed. Vol. III, pp. 898-941. TFH Publishing, Neptune City, NJ.

The Use of Reptiles in Public Education. 1997. The Biology Husbandry, and Health Care of Reptiles. Lowell Ackerman, DVM, ed. Vol. II, pp. 272-288. TFH Publishing, Neptune City, NJ.

So, your child wants a reptile? Part I and Part II. Exotic Market Review. 4(3), 4(4).

Book review: "Green Iguanas: The Ultimate Iguana Owner's Manual", by Jim Hatfield III. Reptile & Amphibian, Jan/Feb 1997.

African Spurred Tortoises. Reptile and Amphibian, Sept/Oct 1996, 32-45.

Psychosocialization of the Green Iguana: How to better handle your pet. Iguana Times 5(1):3-9. (Journal of the International Iguana Society.)

Chaco Tortoises, with Tony Burke. Reptile and Amphibian, Mar/Apr 1996, 118-122.

Iguana Care and Socialization. The Reptilian. 3(9)11-29

Aggression in Iguanas. The Reptilian. 3(9)43-48

Salmonella Update. The California Herper, 1(8) (Newsletter of the California Herpetoculture Industry Advisory Council (CHIAC).)

Dragons Down Under: Inland Bearded Dragons. Household Pet Digest, 5(3):23-25 (Part 1); 5(5):24 (Part 2); 5(6): (Part 3).

Ulcerative Stomatitis (Mouth Rot) in Reptiles. Journal of Wildlife Rehabilitation, 18(2):13-15, 18

Reptiles: This may be the pet you are looking for! Household Pet Digest, May 1995, 5(1):9-10.

Garter Snakes: Natural History and Captive Care. Wildlife Rehabilitation Today, Winter 1995, 6(3):8-16.

Protect yourself from rattlesnakes. North Bay Pets V(3):18

Pets with scales are not "things". North Bay Pets V(2):20.

Sssnakesss will sssurprissse you. (1994) North Bay Pets V(1):12-13.

So, you think you want an iguana? (1994) North Bay Pets IV(6):15

Ninja Turtles and Heavy Metal Snakes: The Effects of Popular Culture on Reptile and Amphibian Rehabilitation. Proceedings, 1993 International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council, "Wildlife Rehabilitation: A Perpetual Learning Process". International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (IWRC), Suisun, CA. Pp. 129-163.

Snakes and lizards and... Pets 'n People, June 1993.

The tortoise. Pets 'n People July 1993.

Video: Captive Care of the Green Iguana. Adam Britton and Melissa Kaplan, with Stephen Divers. Scimitar Productions, Somerset. A review of the video was published in the Iguana Times, the journal of the International Iguana Society.

Many of these articles can be found in full or in part in my website.