Possible gout. Advice needed urgently :(

[olga.loves.bearded.dragon]

Hello.
My bearded dragon Gena has not been feeling well lately . I am crying everyday and so heartbroken. He is my baby and I love him so much. He is 4 years old, he is still so young .
We took him to vet already and vet said that it could be a possible infection. Gena has been taking antibiotics for two weeks to treat it however without any success.
What made me bring him to vet was the finger swelling. At first Gena had one finger swollen, and then another finger got swollen on the same hand. It doesn’t seem like he is in pain. He lets us touch it and can step on his hand. I thought it could be a gout but vet doesn’t think so.
Yesterday, Gena started to limp. His left leg seems weak. When he tries to walk he limps and doesn’t walk a lot. He does two steps and stops. I called the vet again and they don’t have spots until July 17. I asked them to do an emergency appointment so I’m taking him tomorrow for blood work and x ray.
I am unsure what is happening to Gena and it’s really frightening .
Last year he had parasites which were treated. We also did x ray and blood work for him last year which came back clear.
Gena seems sad for the past two days. He is not himself. His diet is Dubias roaches once a week and salad daily . He doesn’t really want salad for the past two days. He pooped today and the poop was good.
I am posting this to see if someone has advice or might have experience with what’s happening to him.
We started to give him tart cherry juice yesterday. I do suspect it is gout…
I just want him to be fine I love him so much .
Thank you very much in advance !

 

[Sadie]

Hello.
My bearded dragon Gena has not been feeling well lately . I am crying everyday and so heartbroken. He is my baby and I love him so much. He is 4 years old, he is still so young .
We took him to vet already and vet said that it could be a possible infection. Gena has been taking antibiotics for two weeks to treat it however without any success.
What made me bring him to vet was the finger swelling. At first Gena had one finger swollen, and then another finger got swollen on the same hand. It doesn’t seem like he is in pain. He lets us touch it and can step on his hand. I thought it could be a gout but vet doesn’t think so.
Yesterday, Gena started to limp. His left leg seems weak. When he tries to walk he limps and doesn’t walk a lot. He does two steps and stops. I called the vet again and they don’t have spots until July 17. I asked them to do an emergency appointment so I’m taking him tomorrow for blood work and x ray.
I am unsure what is happening to Gena and it’s really frightening .
Last year he had parasites which were treated. We also did x ray and blood work for him last year which came back clear.
Gena seems sad for the past two days. He is not himself. His diet is Dubias roaches once a week and salad daily . He doesn’t really want salad for the past two days. He pooped today and the poop was good.
I am posting this to see if someone has advice or might have experience with what’s happening to him.
We started to give him tart cherry juice yesterday. I do suspect it is gout…
I just want him to be fine I love him so much .
Thank you very much in advance !

please go over the UVB your using how old is the bulb and surface basking temps- how are you getting the surface basking temps? Are you using a hammock in the tank? The blood work will give uric acid levels-- if the foot is not sensitive to touch its not gout - I am diabetic and prone to gout and it is very painful -- allopurinol would be given to control the gout levels and you would need to pull him off the dubias they are high in uric acid- since hes only getting them once a week are you feeding another staple feeder ? they need protein at least 2 or 3 times per week-- BSFL crickets or silk worms are good staples -- PLEASE NO ENEMAS at the vet ---- if they are requesting stool sample please take one in -- 24 hr sample --

 

[olga.loves.bearded.dragon]

please go over the UVB your using how old is the bulb and surface basking temps- how are you getting the surface basking temps? Are you using a hammock in the tank? The blood work will give uric acid levels-- if the foot is not sensitive to touch its not gout - I am diabetic and prone to gout and it is very painful -- allopurinol would be given to control the gout levels and you would need to pull him off the dubias they are high in uric acid- since hes only getting them once a week are you feeding another staple feeder ? they need protein at least 2 or 3 times per week-- BSFL crickets or silk worms are good staples -- PLEASE NO ENEMAS at the vet ---- if they are requesting stool sample please take one in -- 24 hr sample --

Hello, Sadie !
I will attach a picture of his tank set up. We have changed his UVB yesterday, we change his light bulbs regularly .
After he had parasites , he refuses to eat any other protein. I am only able to feed him dubia roaches and salad . I have to hand feed him otherwise he doesn’t eat.
For his surface temps we have a thermometer in his tank. It should be visible in the picture .
His foot is kinda sluggish. He limps when we walks and he never had this issue . Usually he runs around happy, and right now it looks like he’s avoiding stepping on it

 

[Sadie]

Hello, Sadie !
I will attach a picture of his tank set up. We have changed his UVB yesterday, we change his light bulbs regularly .
After he had parasites , he refuses to eat any other protein. I am only able to feed him dubia roaches and salad . I have to hand feed him otherwise he doesn’t eat.
For his surface temps we have a thermometer in his tank. It should be visible in the picture .
His foot is kinda sluggish. He limps when we walks and he never had this issue . Usually he runs around happy, and right now it looks like he’s avoiding stepping on it

What is the distance from the uvb to where he sits? This is a 10.0 T 5 correct ? Is he directly under it? He's hurt it some how- I see one gauge and it's giving ambient temps not surface basking temps- those temps should be 95-100-

 

[olga.loves.bearded.dragon]

What is the distance from the uvb to where he sits? This is a 10.0 T 5 correct ? Is he directly under it? He's hurt it some how- I see one gauge and it's giving ambient temps not surface basking temps- those temps should be 95-100-

His lights are around 14 inches away, temps are 95-100 also!

 

[Sadie]

His lights are around 14 inches away, temps are 95-100 also!

Ok so it can stay on the screen but your basking decor needs to be closer up 8-10 inches for top of screen- you have it set up for unobstructed UVB - screens block approx 30% of the rays so if you want take the screen off-- I sent a message to Tracie our vet tech on the board

 

[olga.loves.bearded.dragon]

Ok so it can stay on the screen but your basking decor needs to be closer up 8-10 inches for top of screen- you have it set up for unobstructed UVB - screens block approx 30% of the rays so if you want take the screen off-- I sent a message to Tracie our vet tech on the board

Will do ! Thank you so much for your help and advices !!! Really appropriate it !

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Sorry your boy is having some trouble. Are you still giving the antibiotics? Which one did the vet
prescribe for him?
If you suspect gout, & he isn't improving with the antibiotic use, I would stop giving the antibiotics
because that can cause more renal damage & swelling. I would recommend getting some black
or tart cherry juice extract to give to him, daily to start helping flush out his system if he has started
developing gout.
You have a great UVB light, so as suggested, try to get it mounted without any obstruction from the
screen will help a lot for him to get more direct UVB exposure.
The dubias as naturally high in uric acid so for now, I would keep those to a minimum to help reduce
stress on his kidneys. You can look at getting some superworms, or silkworms for some variety that
are lower in uric acid levels.
Be sure to keep him well hydrated daily, to help flush out his system.
Did the vet mention the possibility of gout, or not?

Tracie

 

[olga.loves.bearded.dragon]

Hello,

Sorry your boy is having some trouble. Are you still giving the antibiotics? Which one did the vet
prescribe for him?
If you suspect gout, & he isn't improving with the antibiotic use, I would stop giving the antibiotics
because that can cause more renal damage & swelling. I would recommend getting some black
or tart cherry juice extract to give to him, daily to start helping flush out his system if he has started
developing gout.
You have a great UVB light, so as suggested, try to get it mounted without any obstruction from the
screen will help a lot for him to get more direct UVB exposure.
The dubias as naturally high in uric acid so for now, I would keep those to a minimum to help reduce
stress on his kidneys. You can look at getting some superworms, or silkworms for some variety that
are lower in uric acid levels.
Be sure to keep him well hydrated daily, to help flush out his system.
Did the vet mention the possibility of gout, or not?

Tracie

Hello, Tracie !
We have stopped giving the antibiotics . He was on a 14 day course of metronidazole 0.4 mg .
We are giving him tart cherry juice daily and he seems to like it as well.
We are feeding him salads for now. Would you suggest to take a break from protein for a bit ?
We give him water as well he seems to want it he starts to open his mouth.
The vet doesn’t think it’s gout . He suspected infection …we want to go for a second opinion and will do blood work and x ray . We are extremely worried because it’s weird he is limping now and his fingers still swollen

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Great, the antibiotics may be making the situation worse. Getting another opinion would be a
good idea. I am glad to hear you are already giving the black or tart cherry juice extract right now.
Hopefully it is helping if he does have the start or symptoms of gout.
The swelling of more than one finger is suspicious for gout but if they can get a blood test done
that would help with diagnosis. Or has a blood test already been done currently?
As far as protein, you can give a minimal amount, just for weight & nutritional management along
with the vegetation & fluids.
Let us know how he is doing.

Tracie