Need help getting my beardie better please

[SRiley]

There seems to be a lot going on with our little guy and I don’t know what to do. He is almost a year old and everything had been going great until about a weak and a half ago. His apatite was off. He has always been a very very big eater. Worms and greens and carafes. Then I noticed almost over night a bump on his head. Left side towards the back of his head. He also became very lethargic. He used to run around our living room for 3 or 4 hours a day and jump off our couch chasing our two huskies. Now he moves from time to time and becomes a bit more alert here and there but he won’t eat and doesn’t drink unless we force him to. To make matters worse we took him to a vet that says they care for reptiles. They had no idea what was wrong and wanted to do a bunch of tests. Unfortunately it cost more then we could afford to do all the tests.

We opted to test what was in the bump. They told us they could not hear blood swirling through it so that was a good sign so they took a sample to be tested. Almost two weeks and still no results. I have called them multiple times.

We left the vet with a prescription for Enroflexcin (antibiotic) and Tramadal (pain killer) and a food Supplement. They had also given him his first dose. We got home and he seemed worse but we thought maybe it’s just the pain meds. The following day my wife gave him the antibiotic and some food but no pain meds. Each day he seemed to get worse. On the 3rd day and after lots of reading and researching on the internet I realized she had been giving him the wrong dosage of the antibiotics. Prescribed .05 and was giving the poor little guy .5.

We stopped the meds and have not given him any antibiotics since, so 5-6 days I believe but he doesn’t seem to be getting better. He has more moments where he perks up but he is loosing a lot of weight and just doesn't look good

I am afraid of doing the wrong thing but have tried to improve on his care.

Any advice would be great.

Also should we give him Probiotics?

How long does the antibiotics take to get out of his system? I tried the vet they said they won’t give medical advice over the phone

I am attaching pics of him and his enclosure.

 

[SRiley]

There seems to be a lot going on with our little guy and I don’t know what to do. He is almost a year old and everything had been going great until about a weak and a half ago. His apatite was off. He has always been a very very big eater. Worms and greens and carafes. Then I noticed almost over night a bump on his head. Left side towards the back of his head. He also became very lethargic. He used to run around our living room for 3 or 4 hours a day and jump off our couch chasing our two huskies. Now he moves from time to time and becomes a bit more alert here and there but he won’t eat and doesn’t drink unless we force him to. To make matters worse we took him to a vet that says they care for reptiles. They had no idea what was wrong and wanted to do a bunch of tests. Unfortunately it cost more then we could afford to do all the tests.

We opted to test what was in the bump. They told us they could not hear blood swirling through it so that was a good sign so they took a sample to be tested. Almost two weeks and still no results. I have called them multiple times.

We left the vet with a prescription for Enroflexcin (antibiotic) and Tramadal (pain killer) and a food Supplement. They had also given him his first dose. We got home and he seemed worse but we thought maybe it’s just the pain meds. The following day my wife gave him the antibiotic and some food but no pain meds. Each day he seemed to get worse. On the 3rd day and after lots of reading and researching on the internet I realized she had been giving him the wrong dosage of the antibiotics. Prescribed .05 and was giving the poor little guy .5.

We stopped the meds and have not given him any antibiotics since, so 5-6 days I believe but he doesn’t seem to be getting better. He has more moments where he perks up but he is loosing a lot of weight and just doesn't look good

I am afraid of doing the wrong thing but have tried to improve on his care.

Any advice would be great.

Also should we give him Probiotics?

How long does the antibiotics take to get out of his system? I tried the vet they said they won’t give medical advice over the phone

I am attaching pics of him and his enclosure.

Oh I should of included this info

Food sup from the vet Emeraid

Tank is 48” across x 15” deep and 17” tall

Brand new Reptisun 10.0 UVB ( the previous UVB light probably had stopped working for a few months

Eco terra 60 W ceramic heat emitter for at night. We had been using a red light but found it it was not good for him. Usually by morning the tank is still at 80 degrees but it had dropped to low 70’s a few times

Zoo med basking bulb. We try to keep his basking rock between 100-105

Substrate is Thrive reversible habitat carpet

Humidity is usually between 25-35

Digital temp gauge that sits on his basking bulb and a temp and humidity gauge all in one in the middle of the tank

He was eating between 5-10 good sized worms every day plus some greens and carrots.

He has pooped 2 times since all this started. The last time it was not runny it looked healthy brown with some white and some pee at the end

We were probably not very consistent with his lighting and temp/humidity levels but he was always fine until literally over night things went bad.

Oh last thing. His name is Mushu.

 

[Sadie]

Oh I should of included this info

Food sup from the vet Emeraid

Tank is 48” across x 15” deep and 17” tall

Brand new Reptisun 10.0 UVB ( the previous UVB light probably had stopped working for a few months

Eco terra 60 W ceramic heat emitter for at night. We had been using a red light but found it it was not good for him. Usually by morning the tank is still at 80 degrees but it had dropped to low 70’s a few times

Zoo med basking bulb. We try to keep his basking rock between 100-105

Substrate is Thrive reversible habitat carpet

Humidity is usually between 25-35

Digital temp gauge that sits on his basking bulb and a temp and humidity gauge all in one in the middle of the tank

He was eating between 5-10 good sized worms every day plus some greens and carrots.

He has pooped 2 times since all this started. The last time it was not runny it looked healthy brown with some white and some pee at the end

We were probably not very consistent with his lighting and temp/humidity levels but he was always fine until literally over night things went bad.

Oh last thing. His name is Mushu.

Poor Mushu I am going to have a vet tech look at your post in the mean time I want you to change out that UVB bulb to a better one -- UVB bulbs should never burn out --- they need to be changed out every 6 months or every year depending on what your using --- a T 5 or a T 8 --- placement and distance is crucial - between the 2 --- does the fixture have a reflector in it? Most Thrive fixtures I have seen do not --- if it doesnt you need to get a fixture w/ one ---
did the vet say the bump was a abscess???? I am going to get some help w/ this but please change out the UVB to a Reptisun bulb 10.0 -- I dont know what size fixture your using

 

[SRiley]

Thank you so much for your response. You have no idea how happy it made me to log on and see the little red dot that I had a new notification.

The Vet did not know what it could be and took a sample of the fluid to be tested but it’s been 2 weeks with no results and I call every other day.

My UVB bulb is a brand new Reptisun 10.0 when I said the previous one had probably stopped working months ago I meant the UVB rays had probably stopped working. That is something we recently learned about. Sorry for the confusion. Luckily, during the time that it had probably stopped working and really for the past 5 months or so my wife would take him outside and also let him sit On the ledge of a window that was open everyday for a few hours.

The item I mentioned that is made by Thrive is the substrate carpet but I need to check the light fixture because I do t remember who made it and I dont remember seeing a reflector.

you said placement is crucial on the light? What is the best placement for it?

Thank you so much again for your response and any help and advise you are able to provide.

 

[Sadie]

Thank you so much for your response. You have no idea how happy it made me to log on and see the little red dot that I had a new notification.

The Vet did not know what it could be and took a sample of the fluid to be tested but it’s been 2 weeks with no results and I call every other day.

My UVB bulb is a brand new Reptisun 10.0 when I said the previous one had probably stopped working months ago I meant the UVB rays had probably stopped working. That is something we recently learned about. Sorry for the confusion. Luckily, during the time that it had probably stopped working and really for the past 5 months or so my wife would take him outside and also let him sit On the ledge of a window that was open everyday for a few hours.

The item I mentioned that is made by Thrive is the substrate carpet but I need to check the light fixture because I do t remember who made it and I dont remember seeing a reflector.

you said placement is crucial on the light? What is the best placement for it?

Thank you so much again for your response and any help and advise you are able to provide.

I need the T 5 or T 8 off bulb for correct distance--

 

[Sadie]

Thank you so much for your response. You have no idea how happy it made me to log on and see the little red dot that I had a new notification.

The Vet did not know what it could be and took a sample of the fluid to be tested but it’s been 2 weeks with no results and I call every other day.

My UVB bulb is a brand new Reptisun 10.0 when I said the previous one had probably stopped working months ago I meant the UVB rays had probably stopped working. That is something we recently learned about. Sorry for the confusion. Luckily, during the time that it had probably stopped working and really for the past 5 months or so my wife would take him outside and also let him sit On the ledge of a window that was open everyday for a few hours.

The item I mentioned that is made by Thrive is the substrate carpet but I need to check the light fixture because I do t remember who made it and I dont remember seeing a reflector.

you said placement is crucial on the light? What is the best placement for it?

Thank you so much again for your response and any help and advise you are able to provide.

Bearded Dragon Aneurysms - Reptiles Magazine

Veterinarian Dr. Douglas Mader removes an aneuryism from a bearded dragon

reptilesmagazine.com

I am still getting more info the vet tech I am hoping will respond tonight

 

[SRiley]

I need the T 5 or T 8 off bulb for correct distance--

I will get you the info for distance when I get home from work tonight. Thank you

 

[SRiley]

Bearded Dragon Aneurysms - Reptiles Magazine

Veterinarian Dr. Douglas Mader removes an aneuryism from a bearded dragon

reptilesmagazine.com

I am still getting more info the vet tech I am hoping will respond tonight

I appreciate your help. I had read a similar article about aneurisms and was really hoping it was not that. The size of the lump has gone down from its original size but it is still there and his left eye stays closed most of the time. He does open it some times. The other eye opens like normal. The vet that we took him to did take a sample of the fluid that is in the lump and said it wasn’t blood but I don’t know yet what they found when testing it.

I hope he isn’t in a lot of pain.

Do you think it is safe and enough time has gone by to start giving him the antibiotics and pain meds originally prescribed. Like I said in the original post we stopped because of my wife accidentally over dosing him on the antibiotics.

Thank you again

 

[Sadie]

I appreciate your help. I had read a similar article about aneurisms and was really hoping it was not that. The size of the lump has gone down from its original size but it is still there and his left eye stays closed most of the time. He does open it some times. The other eye opens like normal. The vet that we took him to did take a sample of the fluid that is in the lump and said it wasn’t blood but I don’t know yet what they found when testing it.

I hope he isn’t in a lot of pain.

Do you think it is safe and enough time has gone by to start giving him the antibiotics and pain meds originally prescribed. Like I said in the original post we stopped because of my wife accidentally over dosing him on the antibiotics.

Thank you again

I am going to send this to the vet tech and see what she has to say about this -- I am hoping she replies back to me tonite about this -- she can answer your medical questions better than I -- I need the bulb your using for distance on the UVB please

 

[Sadie]

I had one person get back w/ me that is experienced w/ dragons - I am still waiting for the vet tech to respond in the mean time you can do what she has asked

I don't know about starting back on the antibiotics, call the vet and ask. If he's eating his supplement, that's good. Be sure to offer extra water with it, help to flush the extra meds. out of his system. The lump may not cause pain but the meds. usually make them feel nauseous.

 

[SRiley]

Ok. Thank you. I did try calling and asking the vet yesterday but they told me they couldn’t give any medical advice over the phone but if we wanted to bring him in they could make time in a few days. We have had a very bad experience with this vet. When I explained about the antibiotics and asked if there was even anything we could do to help him through getting the meds out of his system they Just said we would have to bring him in. I am currently looking for a vet that is more experienced with Berrdies. Yesterday we were able to get him to eat about half of his food supliment but we had to force him and he fought us the entire time.

 

[Sadie]

Ok. Thank you. I did try calling and asking the vet yesterday but they told me they couldn’t give any medical advice over the phone but if we wanted to bring him in they could make time in a few days. We have had a very bad experience with this vet. When I explained about the antibiotics and asked if there was even anything we could do to help him through getting the meds out of his system they Just said we would have to bring him in. I am currently looking for a vet that is more experienced with Berrdies. Yesterday we were able to get him to eat about half of his food supliment but we had to force him and he fought us the entire time.

activated charcoal you will need his weight and follow directions on the box
Or, make a paste/slurry out of parsley, mint, basil & oregano to help
detox the body.'
Use this and use this website to find a reptile vet in your area
www.arav.org if you live in a small town use a bigger city close to you zip code

 

[SRiley]

I will get you the info for distance when I get home from work tonight. Thank you

 

[Sadie]

That's is a T 8-- this must be inside the tank no clear plastic cover over the bulb w/ a distance of 6-8 inches directly above the basking decor

 

[SRiley]

That's is a T 8-- this must be inside the tank no clear plastic cover over the bulb w/ a distance of 6-8 inches directly above the basking decor

I will make sure that it is set up that way. Thank you.