7-year-old dragon found dead this morning... I'm so upset, any ideas what might have happened?

[Rachelsns]

I have a 7-year-old bearded dragon that I've had since he/she was just a few weeks old. It's the only pet my kids have ever had and we were very attached to him (her?). We were told he was a male, and I vaguely remember looking up pics online and confirming years ago, but last night I noticed he was laying in a strange position and wiggling his back legs and tail. Looked like he was constipated so I put him in a warm bath, and he continued to wiggle and squirm. I felt his belly and felt what seemed to be eggs (round, hard, but only 2-3 of them). Prior to last night, he was acting completely normal. After his bath last night, I dried him off and set him under his basking lamp for an extra couple hours, then turned the lights out. When I got up this morning, he was laying on his back, dead. I'm very confused because I'm doing the same things I've always done with him, and if he is a she and those were eggs, why would it not have laid eggs before now? I feel so guilty, maybe I wasn't feeding enough for her to have the energy to lay the eggs? Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated, I'm pretty devastated.

 

[BeardedDragonDude]

If she/he was 7 years old, it might have just been from old age. Most of the time they can live longer than that.

Quote: TheSprucePets.
Problems With Bearded Dragons Laying Eggs
Bearded dragons that retain eggs for over 45 days may be egg bound. If it has been over a month since you first saw eggs inside your bearded dragon, she hasn't laid any, and she's lethargic and sleeping a lot, you need to get her to a veterinarian as soon as possible. The eggs may need to be removed, sometimes surgically, and your bearded dragon may have low calcium levels that need to be addressed. Egg binding is life-threatening and should not be ignored.3


I just found this on the the website TheSprucePets. Link here - https://www.thesprucepets.com/bearded-dragon-eggs-4171698#:~:text=Yes, even a female bearded,having been with a male

It also might have been she was egg-bound, as said above. If it is a female they can lay eggs without a male in the tank. That may not be your problem but this website will tell you if she was egg-bound or not. I'm praying for you and your children, death of even a pet is terrible. Feel free to ask anymore questions.

Edit: In my quote up above, it will send you to a link about birds if you click on the yellow egg binding portion. To get to the site, just click the link under the quote.

 

[Rachelsns]

Thank you, I appreciate the info. I'm so confused as to whether or not she really had eggs. Does look like a female after doing some research, but I don't understand how things could go downhill like this in just 24 hours. I had a water dragon when I was a kid that died from this, but it was a long process. It started acting funny and we knew she was trying to lay eggs two months before she died. That gave us time to take her to the vet and get medications etc and at least try to save her. I feel awful that I didn't know and didn't do anything to try to solve the issue. I'm tempted to cut her open before we bury her just so I can know for sure that's what happened, but I don't think I can stomach that. I'm worried that it's not eggs and she's just constipated. I've always kept her (and previous bearded dragons) in sand even though I know it's not the best thing for them, but we've NEVER had any issues with it and make sure food doesn't get in the sand. I'm feeling very guilty wondering if I caused this.

 

[BeardedDragonDude]

Thank you, I appreciate the info. I'm so confused as to whether or not she really had eggs. Does look like a female after doing some research, but I don't understand how things could go downhill like this in just 24 hours. I had a water dragon when I was a kid that died from this, but it was a long process. It started acting funny and we knew she was trying to lay eggs two months before she died. That gave us time to take her to the vet and get medications etc and at least try to save her. I feel awful that I didn't know and didn't do anything to try to solve the issue. I'm tempted to cut her open before we bury her just so I can know for sure that's what happened, but I don't think I can stomach that. I'm worried that it's not eggs and she's just constipated. I've always kept her (and previous bearded dragons) in sand even though I know it's not the best thing for them, but we've NEVER had any issues with it and make sure food doesn't get in the sand. I'm feeling very guilty wondering if I caused this.

It might have been constipation. If I were you, I wouldn't use sand anymore. I'm very sorry this happened to you and your children. I'm keeping you in my prayers.