Does he need to go back to a vet asap?

Hello,

I originally posted in Health about my baby beardie's bloating. Long story short, he had a lot of coccidia and the vet prescribed him 15mg/ml Ponazuril at 0.05 ml a day for 14 days. After talking to Tracie, we decided 0.07 ml for three days was much better. At this point, he's had 2 doses and I should give him his third this afternoon. He's also had a little Bene-Bac. I've been sanitizing and cleaning his poop as quickly as I realize it's happened too.

He was acting normal the past couple days but he pooped twice this morning. He struggled to get the second poop out and there was a not fully digested hornworm in it. His appetite isn't as good either. He completely refused his Phoenix worms and would only eat two dubias. I thought his bloating had gotten better too but now I'm not so sure. I think maybe this morning he was pancaking and it made him look a little better. The pic of him laying down was right before bed last night and the second pic is from ten mins ago.

Should I give it more time or should I take him in to a vet? The vet that gave him the medicine didn't know much about beardies but I have identified a better practice to take him to, if need be.

Hi there, what size are the hornworms he's eaten ? Be specific or post pics of them next to a quarter. What exactly has he been eating besides the hornworms ? Be sure that he's spending enough time in a 105 basking spot, or at least the warm parts of the tank.

It just sounds like he has a lot of undigested food lingering. I'd just give him natural laxatives like applesauce, baby food prunes, squash or sweet potato. Any or all of those along with a few drops of veg. oil or raw honey. Then a warmer than usual bath up to his shoulders tomorrow. That will help him poo and he should be fine, no vet needed.

I wanted to only give him worms (Phoenix and horn) cuz I figured they'd digest the easiest. He ate the Phoenix worms for breakfast yesterday but wasn't interested for dinner. He didn't really like them all that much when I first got him so I didn't think that was too unusual, although he has been eating them well the past couple weeks. I gave him 3 hornworms about 1.5-2" long and another 4 or 5 0.5" dubias. I left the worms out overnight and they grew so I wasn't going to give him anymore today so that's why I went for the dubias again this morning after he refused the Phoenix worms. Since I posted this, I offered him pumpkin baby food and he licked a little but then started to run away from me when I tried to drip it on his snout again.

Hello,

How is he doing tonight?
Are you keeping him warm overnight to help with digesting?
I agree, he may just have a good amount of undigested food in his tummy. The high coccidia
count disturbed his digestion so it may take some time. As soon as he can get a couple of good
stools passed through I think he should be greatly improved.
If he wont take much in the way of the slurry mix by dropping it onto the end of his nose, you can
try getting his mouth open gently, with a swab. Or, you can try getting a piece of cardboard folded in half with a hole cut in the center of it. Then, slide it into the corner or side of his mouth & syringe some food into his mouth. Going in from the side is easiest so he has less chances of aspirating.

Tracie

karlys":37ftjlv8 said:

I wanted to only give him worms (Phoenix and horn) cuz I figured they'd digest the easiest. He ate the Phoenix worms for breakfast yesterday but wasn't interested for dinner. He didn't really like them all that much when I first got him so I didn't think that was too unusual, although he has been eating them well the past couple weeks. I gave him 3 hornworms about 1.5-2" long and another 4 or 5 0.5" dubias. I left the worms out overnight and they grew so I wasn't going to give him anymore today so that's why I went for the dubias again this morning after he refused the Phoenix worms. Since I posted this, I offered him pumpkin baby food and he licked a little but then started to run away from me when I tried to drip it on his snout again.

Click to expand...

A fair bit of food in a 2 inch long horn worm .... not hornworms but silkworms (similar volume and shape ) see below for equivs :

A 30mm long silkworm is 0.5g = 2-3 medium crickets (12x MED = 3g)
A 40mm long silkworm is 1.3g = 5-6 medium crickets
a 2 inch long silkworm is 1.8g
a large silkworm about 3in is 2.3g = 8 - 10 medium crickets

I agree, he just needs some time for the medicine to work and for his system to purge the undigested food and the rest of the coccidia. As I recall he had an extremely high coccidia count, so it will take some time for him to recover completely. Reptiles heal/recover very, very slowly compared to people, dogs, cats, etc. and sometimes it's very difficult to be as patient as need be for them to get back to normal. He looks nice and bright colored and healthy, and the fact that he's eating as much as he is after having that high a coccidia count is amazing. Also, you have to remember that the medicine is also making him not feel real great either, so I'd give him his final dose of the Toltrazuril (it's definitely the best coccidia med available) and keep offering him the live insects and as much of the slurries as he'll take, so he's getting hydration and his Calcium/multivitamins. He'll come around to having a normal appetite and activity level in the next week or so after the final dose of Antiprotozoan medication gets through him and the remaining undigested food and Coccidia is expelled.

Another vet visit will most likely just result in another course of a medication he doesn't need and that will no doubt make him sick and set him back another month or longer. Vets seem to always really over-medicate beardies, which makes them more and more sick, ruins any appetite they do have, and can actually cause additional secondary infections like yeast infections that then also must be treated. Plus the added stress of another vet visit. So I'd just finish the medication and keep doing what you're doing. By the way, the BSFL/Phoenix Worms and hornworms are very good feeders for him, as they are easy to digest and the Phoenix Worms are very, very nutritious and provide much needed Calcium.

Hello,

I am happy to hear that he is starting to do a little better now & is getting his appetite back,
also. It just takes time for his system to assimilate everything & move things through. Especially
if it was a heavy load of coccidia it is stressful.
I think he will be just fine but just keep him well hydrated.
If he is more alert, that is a great sign! Keep us posted on him.

Tracie