I have the sweetest beardie boy named Khuda. He has always loved taking jaunts to the river, and taking the occasional swim, and though I know they are not near water in their natural habitat, he sure behaves as though he couldn't live without it.
On Sunday, March 4th, I was giving him a bath in the sink, as per usual, and he began drinking as though he was dehydrated. I was unaware that bearded dragons could drown from drinking too much, and after he black bearded, and stopped breathing, I quickly administered mouth to mouth. He choked up quite a lot of water, as well as some jelly like saliva. I was terrified! I googled drowning dragons, and came upon this sight....which was very helpful! I kept him tilted downward, and choked up a lap full of water, as well as some food particles.
He quickly regained his strength, color returned to normal, and he seemed to recover. I increased the heat in his house, and checked on him every 1/2 hour during the night. The next morning I offered him some meal worms, which he ate eagerly, as well as a homeopathic Kali Phos to help prevent infection in the lungs, and promote cellular function after trauma. He ate that right up, which really surprised me. Later that evening I brought him out for another dose, and some fresh greens...this time, he wanted to to eat, but began open mouth breathing with a bit of wheezing, it was as though he was trying to eat, but couldn't catch his breath. He turned VERY pale around his head, and beard, and his teeth were a tainted yellow as opposed to their usual vibrant white.....I was WORRIED!
We took a trip to an ER vet where he was given an x-ray revealing fluid in the lungs. She confirmed that he had pneumonia, and gave me a 7 day antibiotic regimen. It is a liquid that can be given directly, or injected into their food. He took it with some reluctance, and then curled up for night in his favorite spot.
This morning he was still cozy and deep in sleep, I decided not to disturb him, and that the best thing is to let him rest. The vet said that the fluid was only in a corner of the lung, which was good, but that the prognosis was not good, and she didn't sound confident that the medicine would work.
I am hopeful!!! In reading other peoples experiences with water aspiration, antibiotics have done the trick, and I hope Khuda can bounce back as well.
If you happen to have any input, additional suggestions, or have a beardie that has recovered or not from a similar situation, I would love to hear about it! Signs, symptoms, cues I should be looking for in regards to improvement or regression would be most appreciated. Also, please send your warmth, and healing prayers to my beardie boy Khuda....THANK YOU!
On Sunday, March 4th, I was giving him a bath in the sink, as per usual, and he began drinking as though he was dehydrated. I was unaware that bearded dragons could drown from drinking too much, and after he black bearded, and stopped breathing, I quickly administered mouth to mouth. He choked up quite a lot of water, as well as some jelly like saliva. I was terrified! I googled drowning dragons, and came upon this sight....which was very helpful! I kept him tilted downward, and choked up a lap full of water, as well as some food particles.
He quickly regained his strength, color returned to normal, and he seemed to recover. I increased the heat in his house, and checked on him every 1/2 hour during the night. The next morning I offered him some meal worms, which he ate eagerly, as well as a homeopathic Kali Phos to help prevent infection in the lungs, and promote cellular function after trauma. He ate that right up, which really surprised me. Later that evening I brought him out for another dose, and some fresh greens...this time, he wanted to to eat, but began open mouth breathing with a bit of wheezing, it was as though he was trying to eat, but couldn't catch his breath. He turned VERY pale around his head, and beard, and his teeth were a tainted yellow as opposed to their usual vibrant white.....I was WORRIED!
We took a trip to an ER vet where he was given an x-ray revealing fluid in the lungs. She confirmed that he had pneumonia, and gave me a 7 day antibiotic regimen. It is a liquid that can be given directly, or injected into their food. He took it with some reluctance, and then curled up for night in his favorite spot.
This morning he was still cozy and deep in sleep, I decided not to disturb him, and that the best thing is to let him rest. The vet said that the fluid was only in a corner of the lung, which was good, but that the prognosis was not good, and she didn't sound confident that the medicine would work.
I am hopeful!!! In reading other peoples experiences with water aspiration, antibiotics have done the trick, and I hope Khuda can bounce back as well.
If you happen to have any input, additional suggestions, or have a beardie that has recovered or not from a similar situation, I would love to hear about it! Signs, symptoms, cues I should be looking for in regards to improvement or regression would be most appreciated. Also, please send your warmth, and healing prayers to my beardie boy Khuda....THANK YOU!