Bearded Rescue

Nearly 3 weeks ago, we rescued a beardie. I have always wanted one but never got around to doing any research beyond the basic "they need special lights". Fluffy was left to wander an empty apartment for over 8 months after his owner passed away. The family took everything, except for Fluffy. As a result, he's very malnourished. I am currently working on correcting that, as well as a few other of his issues (dehydration, lack of proper shedding, his diet, etc). Adopting Fluffy was not planned in the least bit, so his rescue has found us sorely unprepared. I'm basically running off Google and the extreme patience of a vet until we can get him a well overdue check up. Which brings me to the reason for this post. I've read that beardies get RI's frequently. Today, during his daily bath while I clean his tank, I noticed flakes around his nostrils. He's been rubbing his face for a few days now and I figured it was just him beginning to finally shed properly. The flakes were loose, so when bath time was over, I rubbed a little to see if they would flake off, as he was trying to scratch at them. Lo and behold, boogers came out of his nostrils. Is this shedding, or RI? The vet is currently out of the office and I'm concerned, as I'm not 100% sure he could fight off an infection on his own at this point.

Hi there and welcome!

How awful that he was left alone for 8 months. Poor thing!

Has he been eating for you at all?
How are his activity levels?

Could you go over your setup with us and possibly post a picture of it and him?

As far as the RI issue - how is his breathing? Does he seem to make clicking noises at all?
It would be a good idea to keep his temps at night up, around 80. This will help boost the immune system a bit and keep it more active. If you have a CHE that would be great as you want it to be dark for him at night still.

-Brandon

I'm ashamed to say he's in a 10-gal until this weekend. Since it's so small, there's not much room for him to have a rock or branch, thus the daily ventures and hours of shoulder time. He eats very well, though I have to keep very close watch on how quickly he eats, as he's turned into an opportunistic feeder (it's there, it may not be there later, so gorge now, just in case). I have worked him into a diet fitting his age (near full grown adult as best we can tell so far) since he was mostly eating roaches and spiders for so long. So he's getting veggies over crawlies, so long as it's fed by hand, the picky monster. I do try to get him out of his tiny tank as often as possible, mostly because it's so small, but I can't be sure if it's helping his stress or making it worse. After a few days of lethargy, he perked up and his energy levels have been on the rise since. We do daily outings to get some UV, as I only have a heat bulb and he gets some exercise by climbing all over me in the evenings. My sister in law had a beardie pass away a few months ago, and she is donating her old tank, lamps, and all things needed to make Fluffy a very happy dragon, but we can't go pick it up for a few more days. He appears to breath fine, especially after the "boogers" were removed. As far as his breathing, he blew bubbles in bath time, but he was also splashing and having a bearded blast. I haven't heard any sounds when he breathes, and he cuddles in my ear, so I would have heard it if there was. He has a ceramic night bulb for heat all day and night an overhead light for the daytime hours (I made sure to pick a good spot for him since we were working on a small budget that first week).

Thank god you got him out of his predicament he was in --- I cant believe people --- so for starters your going to need a good UVB bulb this is what is recommended on the forum for that
Which UVB light should I use?
The best UVB light is a ReptiSun 10.0 fluorescent tube HO (Or Arcardia 12% in the UK). Compact or coil bulbs do not emit the proper amount of UVB light for a bearded dragon, and should not be used. Other brands, such as the Zilla Desert Series and ReptiGlo have been known to cause eye problems and other health issues with bearded dragons, and should be avoided. The reason that some UVB lights (Zilla, ReptiGlo, coils/compacts, ect.) are considered dangerous is because the wavelength of UVB that they emit is shorter and more intense than the wavelength of the "safe" lights (ReptiSun, Arcadia). UVB lights should be replaced every 6 months. The T5’s are a strong bulb and only need to be replaced once a year – the T 8 every 6 months--- where as the T 8 are not as strong—they need to be placed inside the tank the T 5 10.0 bulb approx 10-11 inches from basking spot – the T 8 approx 8-10 inches from basking spot—the cover needs to be off the bulb for full effect of the UVB rays-- you will need this right away as well as a good bright white basking bulb --- that will be trial and error w/ that - when getting it placed on tank and where he sits for basking spot you will need to take the temp w/ either a digital probe or and a infrared heat gun- the digital probe can be bought at Petsmart etc for around $5-- the infrared heat gun at Home Depot or Lowes for around $10-12 - just make sure you have it on hand so you can get accurate temps and they should be around 95-105 for basking-- its good your getting him out in the sun for direct sunlight 15 minutes = to 4 hrs of UVB-- heat bulb? what is this ? a basking bulb? a colored bulb???? No colored bulbs they hurt their eyes and can cause long term eye damage-- make sure the tank is sanitized from your sister in law--- you can clean it good w/ bleach / water or a sanitizer from Petsmart / Petco- or purchase some F 10 which is a vet sanitizer that kills everything -- why did the bearded dragon pass away ? Please ask if you have more questions but I have given you info for you to get your dragon off to a good start and recovery
Karrie

My SIL's dragon passed from age. Sanitizer is included in the stuff we're inheriting as they had just recieved a shipment of new bulbs, carpets, etc. just before she passed away. I did get in touch with the vet and they laughed at the booger description and said it was probably him shedding his inner nostrils since there's no other signs of infection but to keep an eye on him until we get him in for an appointment as well as to keep doing what I'm doing, except to cut back on the Calcium powder. Now that he's had it for a week, he should be back to a non-critical amount and he should be getting the rest mostly from his food.

I'm sorry, but this kind of things really gets my aging hackles up.

It's entirely up to you, but it's not too late to look into having those responsible cited for animal neglect/cruelty. A subsequent successful small-claims suit (granted--another hassle) could get you compensation for vet bills.

If you decide you want to pursue that (no pressure--I understand the conflicts), contact your local ASPCA/Humane Society, and/or Animal Control (depending on locale).

'Nuff said.

Best Wishes

It's good that he's eating on his own. That tells me it's much more likely that you can get him healthy again with good lighting and proper diet. Can you post some photos of him? You can upload photos here https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ and post them to your thread using the XIMG button when you reply. I have experience rehabilitating a dragon who was left alone in a very similar situation as yours and will be happy to help you in any way that I can.

MrSpectrum":ymkbk9y9 said:

I'm sorry, but this kind of things really gets my aging hackles up.

It's entirely up to you, but it's not too late to look into having those responsible cited for animal neglect/cruelty. A subsequent successful small-claims suit (granted--another hassle) could get you compensation for vet bills.

If you decide you want to pursue that (no pressure--I understand the conflicts), contact your local ASPCA/Humane Society, and/or Animal Control (depending on locale).

'Nuff said.

Best Wishes

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I live in a busy town with no local SPCA so the case would just get shuffled around for an insane amount of time before it gets picked up. Fluffy is safe now and in a home with people who value him and is getting the care he needs. That's all that matters to me. It'll take a bit of work, but that makes his progress all the more rewarding. Just in the last few weeks, he's added mass to his legs, his hip bones aren't as prominent, and he's shedding months of old skin. He shows his gratitude by snuggling and shoulder sitting in the super bask position. I'll just be grateful and awed by the incredible resilience of these amazing creatures.

He looks pretty good overall! Looks like a pretty good weight and has good muscle tone. Eyes look alert. I think he will make a good recovery under your care =)

I completely agree!
Looking forward to the progress and pics

-Brandon

AlyT90":20fmu4nj said:

Just in the last few weeks, he's added mass to his legs, his hip bones aren't as prominent, and he's shedding months of old skin. He shows his gratitude by snuggling and shoulder sitting in the super bask position.

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All good signs, and kudos. He's looking good, and you done a good thing.