New dragon and I think hes quite ill

[stepollard1]

Hi, thanks for taking time to read this.

We have reptiles but this is our first time owning a beardy.

We have just taken a bearded from a lady, that to be honest has no idea and he has been mistreated.
She says that he is 4 years old. He is so lame with every thing he does. For all of his life he has eaten just mealworm, so I know he has severe calcium deficiency (is it to late, to revive him?) I have not had chance to get him to the vets as the nearest reputable reptile vet from me is around 40 mins from me, and the fact that I have just forked out over £100 for him, viv and extra bits.
His tail is crooked and he appears to have a hump in his spine, no strength in his legs at all, he kind of drags himself around, and from time to time shakes his head vigorously. He also seems to spend a lot of his time with his eyes closed.
The lady gave us some calcium powder that expired in 2009!!! With hardly any missing out of it, so my guess is he’s never had any. She says that he has just shed but he still has a few strips of skin around his eyes, in his ears, on top of his head and a clump on his tail.
There were no thermometers in the viv at all. She had a standard 60w household bulb that she left on at night.

So here is where we are up to………..

We got him Sunday evening, he came with a homemade viv 4x2x2 (in which we found out crickets can escape from)
The hot side of the tank is around 37 degree and the cool side 22-24 degree. We have sand in the bottom and a piece of slate at the hot end with a rock and logs etc in the cool end, the water dish and food bowl is currently in the middle of the viv.
I got him home and I hand fed him 4 mealworms.

Monday:- I swapped the UV bulb and installed a 24inch 20W 10%. And he managed to take 4 crickets (sprinkled with NEW calcium powder) this was about 10AM after the heat lamp had been switched on for roughly an hour and half.
We offered him a food bowl with mixed leaves, carrots, red pepper and left that in there all day. On top of that we offered him crickets every couple of hours up until 11pm (in which he rejected).
I gave him a bath for about 5 mins around lunchtime.
Monday evening he taken one piece of salad leaf that was hand fed to him.

Last night we didn’t leave the household bulb on, we just switched everything off and this morning the temp read around 24degree.
I have offered him crickets, meal work and salad this morning but he has eaten anything.

I hope the pictures show a little of what I have described and hope that we can nurse him back to health.

Thanks in advance for any input

 

[Pat B]

God love you for taking this little creature home and into your life. I don't know too much about MBD but sounds like he might have it. Until you get him to the vet, I would set his temps for 12 hrs on and 12 hrs off. Soaking him his good. It will take time for him to adjust to his new home and the loving care you are giving him. Even if he is eating a little bit....it is better than nothing. It saddens me that he was so mistreated. We, as owners, are responsible to provide for our little beardies with correct husbandry, food, and proper care. Good luck with the little man and keep us posted on how he is doing.....

 

[WatfordOleary17]

I rescued a beardie last year who was looking in a bad way . We all thought mbd might be one of her problems but couldnt work out why she loked so toxic green. Well a yr on and weve had our ups n downs still to this day. But alot of tlc seems to help. Well done on ur rescue and I hope it all works out !

 

[skippersdad]

Myself and my fiance thought we'd adopted a beardie baby at a local petstore about 7 weeks ago. It turned out to be a rescue, as he was in the early stages of MBD. He had actually had gas and seemed to be gasping for breath so we took him to a local reptile veterinarian in fear that he had a respiratory disease. As it turned out, he was just bloated but she found that his jaw was a little soft. She offered to have him x-rayed for $150 cdn to which we couldn't say no. Our worst fears were realized, it was MBD. Poor Skipper had very weak bones and you couldn't even see the bones in his back feet. We decided to give him calcium shots twice per week. The vial cost about $150 and she would administer his medicine for free until it was gone. He is due for two more needles. His ones are strengthening and he is very lively and happy. We use repti-glo 10.0 and 2.0 for his UVB and UVA. His basking temperature is between 100 and 110°f and his ambient is 75° on the cool side 85° warm during the day, 70°-80° at night. We dust his crickets and greens with calcium d3. Looks like he'd going to grow to be big and healthy. He's grown on average about an 1/8" per day. I think with proper care you can definitely give him a happier life. I'm not certain as to how far the MBD has progressed but from the looks of your pictures it seems you definitely need a trip to the vet. The calcium shots definitely help and he needs to be looked over, in my opinion. You seem to be someone who genuinely cares for your pet's welfare. I'm sure you'll do the right things. I'm by no means an expert, just a concerned fellow beardie owner. I can only speak from experience and extensive hours of research.. I wish you the best.

 

[skippersdad]

I'm still trying to get my beardie to eat his greens. I've found that blending them up with a small amount of water helps. I feed the liquified veggies through an eye dropper. He doesn't want to drink it particularly but he does lick it off his chops lol. I've now started tricking him by chopping greens into small pieces and burying his crickets underneath. He eats them accidentally. As far as not eating his proteins goes, I'm not certain of what the solution is. I do know that proper lighting does help many dragons regain their appetite and energy. Most people recommend using repti-sun 10.0 for optimal UVB. I'm making the switch myself actually. Dependent on your climate and temperatures, you may be able to take him outside for an hour or two, under close supervision. I hope this helps.

 

[stepollard1]

Hi guys,

Thnaks for the comments.

I know a visit to the vets is needed ASAP, but at the moment money is a little tiht and the closest reptile vets is 50 mins away, and we have a baby due in 6 days!!! so I cant really stray to far just incase those waters decide to go. I know some people will say the usual "dont get one if you cant afford one" but I was assured that he was in good heatlh and didnt need anything etc. Its not until I had him and sat with him I realised how ill he was, so none of this was planned (except the baby of course

)

 

[Pat B]

Do whatever you can now for your beardie. You know he needs to eat, be hydrated, good husbandry, proper lighting and lots of calcium. You can only do so much. Anything is better than what he was getting. If it were me I wouldn't be straying to far either! Good luck and come back for any questions or concerns. There are lots of people that will help you.

 

[stepollard1]

Thanks for the encouragement Pat B.
I hope he pulls though ok. Its a shame for him to be in this state and a shame for us that we are not going to have the full experience of owning a healthy happy beardy.
Does the picture of his ear look ok?

 

[Pat B]

I don't know what to look for in a beardies ear! How is the little guy doing today?? There is no shame on you because you don't have 'experience' in housing a beardie. That is what this forum is all about. Asking questions and getting answers. There is no such thing as a 'stupid' question. Shame on you for NOT asking!! Hope the other baby is doing ok as well!!

 

[WatfordOleary17]

To me it looks like old skin. My rescue beardie had this in both ears. Im not sure of the correct way of doing this but I gently pulled on it with tweezers the first come out with no resistance the next seemed to be attached so left it for awhile , once she had a shed it came out like the first. I must stress this proberly not the thing to try with an overactive dragon as one slip and the ear could be damaged. Again I hope all works out for you and your beardie

 

[Germ]

Does the picture of his ear look ok?

Looks to be normal shed to me that will come off, fall out when it is ready to. A warm soak will likely take care of it.

 

[stepollard1]

Hey guys,
Just an update for all concerned.

I came home last night about 10:30pm, got rid of all the sand and replaced it with slate and newspaper. i then offered him some food (salad and crickets) to which he rejected.
I them gave him a 15min bath and sponged water over him throughout.

This morning the lights came on around 9am.I took him out of his viv and offered him some crickets (coated in calcium) via feeding tongs at around 11am, in which he took 15 with no hesitation and a couple of bits of salad. he still hasn't taken a drink (to my knowledge).

Hopefully this is the start of good things

 

[Pat B]

That is very good....eating all those crickets should hopefully give him a good poop!! I wouldn't worry too much about drinking water. Remember, they are desert creatures. As long as you keep him hydrated and continue with the warm baths, he should be ok. Be careful about 'tong' feeding him. He might get used to it and then that is the only way he will eat!! But for right now that is probably the best way just to get him to eat.
Sounds like he is doing wonderful with your diligence and care. I hope you will be able to get him to the vet soon. If you can....you might want to take a poop sample for a fecal count. Keep up the good work!

 

[manzeez]

well done you just do what your doing . he knows when he,s being look,t after

 

[skippersdad]

Sounds like he's starting to come around. I've never visually seen mine drink aside from off my finger. A couple of warm baths per week is sufficient. I understand your situation and I'm not one to bark at people on whether they should or shouldn't be a reptile owner. Many times, I think that pet stores are the culprit. Their employees are trained to sell but aren't trained properly in housekeeping, feeding...I've been to a few petstores in my area and find that every one of them is guilty of one or more things. My beardie was supposedly vet-checked, however, I was told I could return him within two weeks if he didn't seem right. They would take him to a vet but if I took him myself, the contract would be void. I found this suspect and took him myself. Thank God I did. I think they would have sold him to someone else. We brought the vet bill to the petstore, not for reimbursement, but to make them aware. They gave our money back for our beardie. It helped a little with our vet bill. Since then, myself and my fiance have still witnessed bad practice, tiny BD's that shouldn't even be up for sale yet, food that's way two big and even a paralyzed beardie that I would guess to be maybe 3 Weeks old. My point here is that many people buy on impulse and a little information from people who they assume to be experts. They are not in most cases.I'm guilty myself. We had an old terrarium and lighting from my leopard gecko who's grown to big for it. Cute beardie became an impulse buy. We have everything we need from the Leo! Boy was I wrong! Thank God we had enough money and the care to research. A week later he had everything he needed. $1200 plus a vet bill. Anyhow, my point in this story is that just because someone is misinformed, doesn't make them an unfit owner. I know that your case is quite different and that you have good intentions. It seems that you are doing what you can right now and that's what matters. Keep doing what you're doing and try not to stress too much. I'm certain that you will be a great parent to both your Beardie and your expected child. Congratulations btw! PS. My beardie luvs organic squash and sweet potato baby food as a treat. 2 for 1?

 

[manzeez]

what kind of baby food do you give your dragon as a treat . Spike likes cranberry and apple he only gets it once every 2 weeks

 

[stepollard1]

Hey guys, Just a little update for all concerned.

We have had in two weeks now with constant car and hand feeding (the correct diet).

Yesterday he chased and eaten his own food and as you can see by the pics, he is using his back legs a hell of alot more.

Hes settled in with the dogs and they all run around together, its so heart warming when you see a change like this.

A big thanks to all that has helped and encouraged

 

[Pat B]

I think he is looking terrific! He sure has come a long way since your first posting. It is so important the beardie owner provide the proper husbandry, food, general care...etc etc etc to have a healthy dragon. Please come back often and keep posting updates on your little rescue!! You are doing a great job!!

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

..... and a shame for us that we are not going to have the full experience of owning a healthy happy beardy....

First I would like to applaud you for taking on this fella and getting him out of the situation he was previously in. That is truly a beautiful thing which will reward you many times over

As to the statement I quoted I wouldn't however be so quick to say that the full dragon experience is something you are missing out on. True he may have come to you with issues but from what I have seen thus far under your care he is showing great signs of just how resilient these dragons are and taking a look at that last pic you posted I would say that looks like a pretty happy dragon to me without a doubt!

Keep up the good work...look forward to more updates and I will lay bet on the fact that the experience you have with your dragon will be for the both of you...healthy, happy and full,indeed

Enjoy!!

 

[manzeez]

spot on job you have done good he is feeding for him self