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Very sick Beardie..help please

wyldwurm

wyldwurm

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My cousin came over today with a Juvie beardie who is VERY lethargic, severely dehydrated and skinny. He does not attempt to move unless handled but still stays pretty limp. Does not even open his eyes much. She thought I would be able to help but being a snake person, my beardie skills are limited.
She just got him today..he was housed on sand with a heat rock and given large crickets......this is all the info she has on him

I have him on paper towel, 110 degree basking spot (not that he can move), I have soaked him and he did drink some water..he ate 3 small crickets if I put them into his mouth...he is not wheezing that I can tell and seems to be clear of mucous...

Is there anything more I can do? He will be seeing a vet on Friday (we have a snow storm here, otherwise he's already be at the vet). Please help, I feel so helpless and really want to help this little guy :(
Thanks :)
 
I would suggest to continue to make water and a few crickets available to him. what is his(gender?) current weight and how old is he? I feed my bearded dusted cricket and greens, have you put any greens in his cage? How does his vent look? any pictures of him available?
 
chadharper said:
I would suggest to continue to make water and a few crickets available to him. what is his(gender?) current weight and how old is he? I feed my bearded dusted cricket and greens, have you put any greens in his cage? How does his vent look? any pictures of him available?
Click to expand...

Thank you for the reply Chad. I have an appointment shortly (my doc, not the vet) and will get a weight and photos as soon as I return.

He will not eat on his own. I have to open his mouth and place the food in, then he will chew and swallow as normal.
I did notice that when disturbed or touched, he will arch sideways and sort of twitch for a minute or so. Like a seizure of some sort.

I did blend up some dusted crickets and kale into a (nasty) yummy paste :D and he seems a bit more perky this morning.

I am mostly concerned about the seizure type episodes he has when first touched. I'm really hoping with proper care and nutrition, he will snap out of it :(

I'll post photos (cell photos and not great quality, unfortunately) and get a weight on him once I return.
Thanks again :) I appreciate the input!
 
wyldwurm said:
Thank you for the reply Chad. I have an appointment shortly (my doc, not the vet) and will get a weight and photos as soon as I return.

He will not eat on his own. I have to open his mouth and place the food in, then he will chew and swallow as normal.
I did notice that when disturbed or touched, he will arch sideways and sort of twitch for a minute or so. Like a seizure of some sort.

I did blend up some dusted crickets and kale into a (nasty) yummy paste :D and he seems a bit more perky this morning.

I am mostly concerned about the seizure type episodes he has when first touched. I'm really hoping with proper care and nutrition, he will snap out of it :(

I'll post photos (cell photos and not great quality, unfortunately) and get a weight on him once I return.
Thanks again :) I appreciate the input!
Click to expand...



Im on my cell phone but i will say they will twitch when handle so are you sure its not them trying to get a secure hold on something. My beardies like to have all feet onsomething firm. If i scoop them up by their belly they will wiggle until they are holding onto my arm. Just a thought.
 
chadharper said:
Im on my cell phone but i will say they will twitch when handle so are you sure its not them trying to get a secure hold on something. My beardies like to have all feet onsomething firm. If i scoop them up by their belly they will wiggle until they are holding onto my arm. Just a thought.
Click to expand...

Mine do this also & wave their tail around till all 4 feet are touching something.

Also, continue to soak him in water and offer the paste 2 to 3 times a day till you get to the vet.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for the input but this is a different very severe arch, until his nose (always to the right) touches his tail and he remains like that for about a minute.

I am going to get photos now and will also see if I can upload a video of the arching thing as well...may be a little bit...I've never had to do this and not quite sure how :)
 
Let's hope I did this right :D


Above is a VIDEO of the arching thing he does...any ideas?

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Photos (sorry, cell pics) were taken after a couple of hand feedings and he was soaked twice for 20 minutes. He still has not pooped :(
I have moved recently and cannot find my gram scale but as you can see from the pics, he's not very big. The girl who owns him said that the woman told her he was a YEAR old but from the looks of him, I find that very hard to believe.
 
I couldn't tell from the video, does he move his back legs? I have seen something similar to this once before, where the dragon (about the same size) had what appeared to be an injury on his spine (a lump) and his back legs never moved. After soaking him for 20 min, I was rubbing his belly to see if there were any other lumps and he finally pooped... about 5 days worth.

I hope the vet visit goes well.
 
Snake-Queen said:
I couldn't tell from the video, does he move his back legs? I have seen something similar to this once before, where the dragon (about the same size) had what appeared to be an injury on his spine (a lump) and his back legs never moved. After soaking him for 20 min, I was rubbing his belly to see if there were any other lumps and he finally pooped... about 5 days worth.

I hope the vet visit goes well.
Click to expand...

His legs do move, thankfully! He seems to arch like that when disturbed or right when he wakes up.
He is feeling slightly better today...holding his head up on his own now :) I did soak him again and he walked a bit in the water (which he could not do yesterday). He does want to eat, if assisted, so that is a plus.
My professor (I am a veterinary student) will look at him tomorrow. She is a Veterinarian and does well with exotics. I am sure she will be able to give me some insight.
Thank you both for all your help :) I will try to update this thread as he progresses. I really appreciate it!
 
I don't know dragons but I do know with malnutrition and dehydration animals can show neurological problems, which those movements could be...usually with care and time the issues start to diminish if the animal pulls through.
 
This dragon does not appear to be suffering from malnutrition and dehydration.

Has it been kept under a fresh 10.0 UVB bulb?

Is it getting plenty of calcium with its food.there is a good chance that dragon is calcium deficient.if so you can mix up some powdered calcium in water then open its mouth ,then with a dosing syringe squirt in the back of its mouth.

Keep in mind a dragon can go off feed for a few days to a week with a move and cage change.after a cage change you have to limit handling because they stress easy and need time to adjust to that new cage.

Good luck.
 
I took him to my vet and she said that he has something called "rubber jaw" from lack of calcium and vitamin D. He cannot close his mouth properly and one side of his bottom teeth protrude a little. It infuriates me that the person this Dragon came from has several others. While they look in better condition, I'd have to assume they're kept in similar setups and nutrition.

His seizures/arching have stopped since he FINALLY took a poo after giving him a few drops of mineral oil. I did run my fingers through it to check for any solids (Ever try to look professional while gagging..LOL)...it was loaded with SAND. The vet said the impaction MAY have been pressing against some spinal nerves causing that type arch.

He's being kept in a small tank with UVB, temps are about 110 in his hot spot now....i mush up silkworms/small crickets and dandiloin/kale greens with some calcium and feed him with a syringe twice a day since he still will not eat on his own (but he does want to eat).

After eating, he gets a warm soak since he was not pooping. Now that he's pooped, I will soak less often. He does seem to enjoy the water.

He can now hold his head up on his own and he does walk a few steps. He is also awake more than he was. He seems to be getting a little better each day so I am hoping that with better care, he will continue to improve.

I think my cousin will make a very good owner. She's visited him every day and has a new set-up with everything she needs for him. (I call his setup a resort because she really did a great job with it) She has been doing a lot of research to make sure that he remains well once he goes home.

I'm going to have a hard time letting him go ;) It will be worth it, he is such a little sweetheart :)

Thank you all very much for your help. I really do appreciate everything!
 
Glad to hear the news is hopeful! Good luck and I wish him well soon!

(Ed-isn't calcium deficient pretty close to malnutrition? lol)
 
Ive been following this thread and I am very glad to hear he is improving. Thanks so much for helping this little guy!
 
Sick beardie

First I would STOP feeding the kale as it is high in oxalates and goitrogens (sp?).

I have a little recipe I use on my sick guys. Get a tube of Lax'aire laxative for cats and dogs from a pet store and give him a little.

Then mix:
1/2 teas 1st stage chicken & chicken broth
1/4 teas fish flakes with at least 46% protein
A pinch of powder pediatric electrolyte (pedalite)

Enough water for him to eat well; at least 2tbls

When you bath him use a soft bristle toothbrush and gently brush from mid tommy to vent.

If he is impacted you will make it worse feeding more insects. If not this mixture should give him some strength back.

My guess is that the parasites may have gotten really high and needs wormed.
If he is regurgitating or puking is a symptom that would confirm parasites.

Good luck!

Unigirl
 
That's great that he's doing better. You wrote that he had been fed large crickets, so I thought I'd mention that at his size, the large crix are too big for him and can also contribute to impaction. A dragon his size should have crix that are roughly the length of the space between his eyes. Large dragons don't need to follow that rule, but young ones can get in trouble eating too large insects.
 
UNIGIRL said:
First I would STOP feeding the kale as it is high in oxalates and goitrogens (sp?).
Click to expand...
I feel Kale because it is a good source of natural calcium (easier to obsorb than the powder) and throughout my research have read that it is excellent for beardies. He is slowly getting better so I am going to continue to do what I am doing :) Thank you for the recipe, I will do some checking on the pedialite and perhaps give it a try :)

angie.h said:
That's great that he's doing better. You wrote that he had been fed large crickets, so I thought I'd mention that at his size, the large crix are too big for him and can also contribute to impaction. A dragon his size should have crix that are roughly the length of the space between his eyes. Large dragons don't need to follow that rule, but young ones can get in trouble eating too large insects.
Click to expand...
I agree, since he has been with me, he has only gotten small crushed crickets. Although I did not notice any exoskeleton in his poop, just sand :(

Last night, while making putting his crickets,silkworms, kale, a little calcium and dome dandiloin leaves into the blender, my daughter (who is 23 and not a fan of reptiles) asked what I was making. Curious, she opened the top and took a whiff....I think she turned as green as the mixture when I told her what it was :D...I've since been informed that the blender is now off limits for people food..hahaha


I really appreciate all the comments, support and suggestions...I will be sure to post a video of him once he is back to normal (or as normal as he can be in this nuthouse!) :)
 
wyldwurm said:
Last night, while making putting his crickets,silkworms, kale, a little calcium and dome dandiloin leaves into the blender, my daughter (who is 23 and not a fan of reptiles) asked what I was making. Curious, she opened the top and took a whiff....I think she turned as green as the mixture when I told her what it was :D...I've since been informed that the blender is now off limits for people food..hahaha
Click to expand...
:rofl::rofl::rofl:
I have been told the same thing. :)

I am very glad he is doing better! Good job!
 
Hydration is essential in malnuroished and dehydrated reptiles. You should address this first before attempting to feed, as feeding him first will only dehydrate him more, regular soaking, and misting of the cage with increased temps is going to be your best bet until you get him to the vet, sounds like your doing everything right so far so keep it up
 
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