Woke up to this :(

[Dogdayz1215]

Puff isn't using his left front leg this morning lighting is good. He's been eating 2 to 3 roaches the past few days (I think he might be getting ready to shed again) daughter had him out last night when friends were over. He wasn't out for long but I fear something happened

I took rads at work......no broken bones. Soft tissue swelling of limb. Any ideas? I have consult with a reptile vet pending. Wasn't able to get blood from him today unfortunately.

Puff is about 3 months old. He currently tly lives in a 4x2x2 cage but I may go buy a smaller cage for him to travel in and put him in while he is hurt.



Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[Dogdayz1215]

Forgot his pic.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[Hdrydr31]

Oh no that isn't good.. hopefully it's just a sprain since no broken bones and just needs some rest..wouldn't hurt having a reptile vet check it out.

 

[Dogdayz1215]

Oh no that isn't good.. hopefully it's just a sprain since no broken bones and just needs some rest..wouldn't hurt having a reptile vet check it out.

I'm having a hard time finding a reptile vet. I tried to pull blood yesterday but he's just too small for my level of experience. Have you ever heard of MBD causing joint issues?

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[PatsyB]

I don't think MBD causes joint issues. I know gout does but I doubt it's that. Those guys are fearless and running and jumping all over everything, I bet he landed the wrong way and just sprained it. Does he usually eat more than that? 2-3 roaches isn't a lot for one that little.

 

[Dogdayz1215]

I don't think MBD causes joint issues. I know gout does but I doubt it's that. Those guys are fearless and running and jumping all over everything, I bet he landed the wrong way and just sprained it. Does he usually eat more than that? 2-3 roaches isn't a lot for one that little.

Normally it's 2-3 big roaches (possibly borderline too big...I'm ordering more smaller ones today.) This morning, he ate 6 small roaches (like 1/4" size)
That's what I thought that maybe he just sprained it.
What your opinion on calcium with and without d3? I have heard and read such mixed things. My understanding is that if you have a good uvb light, you don't need d3?
Second question.....how do they get hypercalcemia? Is it really possible to dust to heavily with calcium?

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[BeardedHippy]

Hi, you have been having a hard time with your little one eh? I thought his appetite would have picked up by now...
I can answer your second question i think. If you are using pure calcium carbonate (without d3) it is not possible to overdose, as they will poop out any excess calcium they dont absorb. They can overdose on the d3 though when using a good high output uv, as the light produces natural d3, so calcium with d3 should be used only once a week to suppliment natural production. I have gotten this information from quite a few seperate sources ,so I can assure you your vet is wrong about giving it every day (unless a crappy uv light is being used, but your light is sound).
Whatever the cause of his problems, its not because of your husbandry practices, you have been doing everything right. On the plus side, it looks like he has grown some since you got him

 

[Dogdayz1215]

Hi, you have been having a hard time with your little one eh? I thought his appetite would have picked up by now...
I can answer your second question i think. If you are using pure calcium carbonate (without d3) it is not possible to overdose, as they will poop out any excess calcium they dont absorb. They can overdose on the d3 though when using a good high output uv, as the light produces natural d3, so calcium with d3 should be used only once a week to suppliment natural production. I have gotten this information from quite a few seperate sources ,so I can assure you your vet is wrong about giving it every day (unless a crappy uv light is being used, but your light is sound).
Whatever the cause of his problems, its not because of your husbandry practices, you have been doing everything right. On the plus side, it looks like he has grown some since you got him

You have no idea how good this makes me feel! Here's a pic of what I use.
I'm keeping a close eye on him right now. Other than the leg, he seems completely normal.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[Dogdayz1215]

You have no idea how good this makes me feel! Here's a pic of what I use.
I'm keeping a close eye on him right now. Other than the leg, he seems completely normal.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

Anyld the whole vet thing.....that vet sees reptiles and has a beardie of his own but once I talked to him I knew I knew more. I'm a vet too but am no reptile expert. I'm learning as much as I can so I can be more of a reptile specialist one day if puff gets worse, I'm going to call a few vets in Atlanta and see if they really are reptile vets or just say that they will see them. Big difference!
I'm moving puff into a small cage tonight to keep him from moving around too much while he heals (hopefully).

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[PatsyB]

That's the brand of calcium I use, well used until I started using Calcium Plus. Just remember you only have to dust one meal a day.

I read this great article about D3 and Calcium and how the reptile body absorbs and where the calcium goes. I think it may have been written by Frances Baine, she's the reptile lighting expert. I'll try to find it and post it. It was really interesting.

 

[Dogdayz1215]

Update on Puff........
He is eating good still and acting normal. I got him some waxworms so he doesn't have to move around as much......I think he is now spoiled. Won't even consider the roaches.
Left front leg is still swollen but he seemed to be using it more last night and this morning. Still haven't found a good reptile vet so I'm being my own. Wasn't able to get blood on him since he is so little but I did get so awesome rads and sent those out for a reptile radiology consult. Puff has soft tissue swelling most concentrated around his elbow. Considerations include soft tissue trauma, swelling, edema, inflammation. Ie. Inflammation vs infection. Since there are no wounds noticeable and he seems to be doing better today, I'm going to closely monitor before putting him on any meds
Just in case anyone wants to see some cool rads......the first one is his left where you can see it is swollen vs the right.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[BeardedHippy]

I think you are going to end up being your towns resident beardie vet, you can add them to your resume'. Being a vet, with your level of understanding there must be some more technical literature out there that you can absorb too. Gawd!, if I had my own xray machine I would be xraying everything and everyone (for a long time I have wanted to check some of my friends heads to see if there were actually brains in there), I would probably increase the areas ambient radiation levels. But my wall's would look AWESOME! those pics are cool!

 

[BeardedHippy]

Oh, and if his poop goes a bit wierd and slimy, dont worry, its the wax worms. Those things are like crack to beardies, mine go manic for them, but I only allow them once every week or 2. The day after is stinky poo day, so that timeframe is fine for me

 

[Dogdayz1215]

I think you are going to end up being your towns resident beardie vet, you can add them to your resume'. Being a vet, with your level of understanding there must be some more technical literature out there that you can absorb too. Gawd!, if I had my own xray machine I would be xraying everything and everyone (for a long time I have wanted to check some of my friends heads to see if there were actually brains in there), I would probably increase the areas ambient radiation levels. But my wall's would look AWESOME! those pics are cool!

Haha....lol. my job does have its perks. It's actually suprising the limited research and understanding we have of these reptiles. I will continue to research and learn and help where I can.
I often want to take rads of some of my friends too

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[PatsyB]

@Dogdayz1215 You sent the X-rays off, did you hear back yet? Looks like maybe a dislocation. I'm going to show you Dexter's X-ray for comparison. This is her most recent one, you can see she has a mass in her belly on her left side. We are monitoring it. It's not getting bigger or affecting her eating or bathroom habits. It looks huge on the X-ray but when you feel it, it's not that big. I also added her X-ray from last year too.

 

[Dogdayz1215]

@Dogdayz1215 You sent the X-rays off, did you hear back yet? Looks like maybe a dislocation. I'm going to show you Dexter's X-ray for comparison. This is her most recent one, you can see she has a mass in her belly on her left side. We are monitoring it. It's not getting bigger or affecting her eating or bathroom habits. It looks huge on the X-ray but when you feel it, it's not that big. I also added her X-ray from last year too.

View attachment 17416

View attachment 17417

How old is Dexter? The difference in elbows may be age. At a young age, when they are still growing the joints always look a bit wide. Same is true for dogs, cats, humans, etc.

I got the consult back......soft tissue swelling from likely trauma although can't rule out infectious cause. Puff is doing better. He started using his leg more monday nighy and has continued to do so.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[PatsyB]

How old is Dexter? The difference in elbows may be age. At a young age, when they are still growing the joints always look a bit wide. Same is true for dogs, cats, humans, etc.

I got the consult back......soft tissue swelling from likely trauma although can't rule out infectious cause. Puff is doing better. He started using his leg more monday nighy and has continued to do so.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

I didn't know that about younger animals, learn something new every day! Dexter is 4 1/2. Glad that Puff is doing better, hopefully it is just trauma. These guys really know how to make us worry about them.

 

[Dogdayz1215]

I didn't know that about younger animals, learn something new every day! Dexter is 4 1/2. Glad that Puff is doing better, hopefully it is just trauma. These guys really know how to make us worry about them.

Man do they. I got into this thinking it would be cool to have a dragon but dang! I am attatched to the little guy (or girl). His appetite is still lack luster. Has been since day 1 with us. He has only eaten 2 wax worms today and refuses his roaches. Hoping his appetite will be back tomorrow. I'm monitoring his weight and length now so as long as he gains weight, he should be ok?

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[PatsyB]

If he's gaining weight he's probably okay. My two girls will starve themselves before they eat dubia's. My boy will eat them if he's real hungry but he's not crazy about them. We do a lot of super worms and hornworms and silk worms when we have them. One of my girls also loves salad if it is dusted with bee pollen.