Questions for those that do there own fecal exams

Okay first,are the following microscope specs adequate?

1. 40x, 100x and 400x magnification levels

2. DIN 10x Wide-Field eyepiece 23mm international standard - with pointer

3. System Length: 205mm (45mm+160mm tube) Height: 375mm

4. 45º inclined monocular head rotates 360º for ease of use when seated or sharing instrument

5. Triple nosepiece has DIN 4x, 10x and 40x coated, 185 mm achromatic objectives, 21mm international standard

6. Spring loaded 40x objective

7. Coaxial coarse (adjustment range 22 mm) and fine (adjustment range 1.3 mm) focus

8. In-base 110V 20watt tungsten illumination

9. 1.25 Abbe Condenser with iris diaphragm

10. Oversized 125 mm x 110 mm stage with vertical movement.

11. Rack and pinion stage control movement

12. Spring-loaded stage clamp for exact positioning of the specimen

13. Dust cover and optic head adjustment tool

14. 100% satisfaction guarantee. 3 year limited warranty.

If not what do I need?
And is $185.00 a decent price for a scope with those specs?

I know I need slides,cover slips and flotation solution.
What else?
And what is the best flotation solution?

Can anyone suggest any good publications or online sources for common reptile endoparasites identification?
Or on basic microscopy?

Sorry so many questions,and thanks in advance for any answers.

Ooooh! Thank you so much for asking about this. I'm curious as to the responses too.

BTW, Where do or did you find the floatation solution??

I don't think a 400x scope is enough magnification.

800x is a good minimum.

You might give Seamus a shout and see what he has to say. I know he does his own fecals and he does them properly.

I have totally spaced his last name but look up Seamus in the members section and you'll find him there.

He's a good guy and will help you out quite a bit, more than you want perhaps.

Seamus Haley

there ya go ..

400x is the bare minimum. The microscope you describe will get the job done in most cases. The one I use is a medical grade binocular scope with 4 objectives, the 4th one being a 100x oil immersion lens. I have both 10x and 16x eyepieces, so I have available magnification from 40x up to 1,600x. I rarely use the extremely high magnifications unless I'm looking for Crypto or something very, very small like that. Unless you do a lot of microscopy, that's probably a little overkill...prices for a scope like that can run $2,000.00 or more.

The best thing I've found for floataion media is a product called Fecasol. I use Fecalyzer collection and flotation kits. They come with easy to follow instructions, so that part won't be a problem. I've tried a number of things for staining speciemens, the best thing I've found so far is Lugol's solution. I just add 5 or 6 drops of Lugol's to the Fecalyzer during the agitation stage.

For direct smears, a centrifuge is an extremely handy piece of gear to have. Not entirely necessary, but it makes the job a lot easier.