Baby Bearded dragons not using front legs

Lieyze · Feb 14, 2018

Hey guys, my girlfriend and I just got a baby bearded dragon from petco ( I know bad idea) but the front two legs of the bearded dragon, acts like he doesn’t want to use them. I’ll tell you everything we know about him.
We went to petco on 2/11/18 and purchased him/her and he was active and very friendly, we walked out and inspected him in the car and noticed that his tail has been bitten from another one in the cage, so we took him back in and told them about the situation and they said they will take him to the vet and we will be able to pick him up once he is all better. 3 days later (today) we picked him up and he was look all good, we noticed how ever was not using his front two legs when we put him in his new home, so as soon as we saw that I took this video of him to let you guys know if we should have concern. He is also in shed so could that be a factor? https://youtu.be/fOHMh_tTbwE

CooperDragon · Feb 14, 2018

He looks active which is good. I don't like how at least the front right arm is flopping around though. It could be a muscular problem or perhaps early MBD. He's so young that if that's the case I think a high powered UVB light combined with proper calcium supplementation on his bugs will fix that. It could be a neurological issue which could be tougher to determine. It might be worth having an atadenovirus test done, especially since you have another dragon and that is contagious. Just wash your hands well before and after handling and that should minimize risk of transmission though.

AHBD · Feb 14, 2018

Poor little sweetie. That's 99.9% calcium deficiency. Like Cooper said, get him a good uvb ASAP, order one tonight even. You'll need a strong one like Reptisun 10 t5 or Arcadia D3 12%. If it's warm + sunny where you live you can take him out + set him in the sun [ in the grass ] Be sure to use a good calcium powder on his food, too.

Drache613 · Feb 14, 2018

Hello,

Oh I agree, that is definitely a calcium issue. As suggested, he will need a stronger UVB light
to help him out in this case. It will need to be at a distance of 10 or so inches from him if you
do get a T5 high output tube.
Which calcium are you using right now?
If he can't climb well you may want to consider lowering his basking spot for awhile until he
can get around better.
Let us know how he is doing.

Tracie

kingofnobbys · Feb 15, 2018

You say he'd been bitten by another dragon in the pet store..... I really think this is more likely a serious injury resulting from the bite , either dislocated shoulders (this is fixable) , broken arms ( humorus maybe (one of BTs had a broken humorus as a juvenile - very rambunctious and broke it in his rearing tub one day and I found him not wanting to use the left arm , dragging it like your hatchling is) - is fixable (but is delicate surgery (inserted a tiny pin and set it) , or nerve damage (not sure).

The little hatchling cant be old enough to have MBD at all in my opinion , got to be under 2 months old (if that).

Exactly what did the pet shop's vet say issue was ? (did they even tell you ?)

Were xrays taken ? (were these shown to you ?)

If I were you I'd find a good local reptile vet and ask them to examine this poor little hatchling and perhaps take xrays to determine the true extent of the injuries. It may not like using the arms because it's hurts !! ( dislocation or breaks perhaps ).

Wont hurt to get it onto calcium rich insects ( BSFL or silkworms , being slow moving it should be able to catch them ok and eat them ) , and to get a really good T5HO tube , I recommend a T5HO 12%UVB tube in a reflector hood.

Until he recovers more normal us of the arms , reduce climbing opportunities in the viv , I'd only have a hide and make sure he can't fall off it by building up some gentle ramps around it.

Keep him warm 24/7 , NOT HOTTER THAN 100 degF (basking spot) and between 24 and 28 degC overnight.

Consider getting him onto daily oral doses of CALCIVET liquid calcium by measured eyedropper or needless syringe - you'll need to monitor his body weight , is a good idea anyway (weekly weighins) and Calcivet is dosed by bodyweight.

Make sure he can't ever see your big beardie and THEY ARE NEVER ALLOWED TO MEET - big beardie apt to see hatchling as a snack .

Let us know how he comes on.

AHBD · Feb 15, 2018

The O.P said the tail was bitten [ very slight ] but legs were still functioning when they brought it home at first. The dragon is definitely old enough to develop MBD, it can bring on symptoms like this very quickly because they need lots of proper uvb and calcium as they're growing and MBD can set in while they are babies. If you Google " baby beardie with MBD" you'll see lots of pics + videos and it can actually do much worse than this, including twisting of the spine while they are still very young.

EllenD · Feb 15, 2018

If I'm not mistaken you posted about this once before, and I think everyone agreed it is a UVB issue causing a calcium deficiency. Did you happen to already get him a better UVB light? If not, that's definitely your answer, as he's not going to get any better without one. I just want to reinforce this, I recognize the photo in your signature and remember the prior post, and he really does need a strong T5 UVB tube and fixture with a reflector ASAP.

AHBD · Feb 15, 2018

Are you sure Ellen ? I only see 6 posts from Liezye that aren't related to the beardies condition, just posts on other people's threads.

kingofnobbys · Feb 15, 2018

AHBD":3lmvu74i said:
The O.P said the tail was bitten [ very slight ] but legs were still functioning when they brought it home at first. The dragon is definitely old enough to develop MBD, it can bring on symptoms like this very quickly because they need lots of proper uvb and calcium as they're growing and MBD can set in while they are babies. If you Google " baby beardie with MBD" you'll see lots of pics + videos and it can actually do much worse than this, including twisting of the spine while they are still very young.

I saw the comment about a tail bite .... if it's been bitten there , it's a pretty chance it's also been bitten elsewhere if attacked (by a larger dragon ( a bigger hatchling) perhaps) , hence my comments.
Was in a pet shop we all know pet shop staff wont be paying much if any attention to the animals in stock unless a customer asks about it, so no one knows the real extent of it's injuries.

Still think it's worth getting some xrays .

EllenD · Feb 15, 2018

AHBD":1tr607hq said:
Are you sure Ellen ? I only see 6 posts from Liezye that aren't related to the beardies condition, just posts on other people's threads.

Yep, I'm 100% sure, but it may have been the significant other who first posted, probably a week or so ago...The photo in the OP's signature was the exact photo that they posted in their original post. I realized that this OP had never posted before, but I'm 100% sure that someone else posted the same Dragon with the same problems. If I can find the post I'll link it...

To the OP, i'm pretty certain that someone already posted on here about your dragon, in the last week or so, and they posted the exact same photo that is in your signature. I wouldn't say this if I wasn't sure, the only reason I'm bringing it up is because it's the same issue that was going on then, inadequate UVB light causing a severe Calcium Deficiency, and we advised that the Dragon needed to get under an adequate UVB light ASAP, so I hope that is happening soon...

Lieyze · Feb 15, 2018

kingofnobbys":2z138zld said:
You say he'd been bitten by another dragon in the pet store..... I really think this is more likely a serious injury resulting from the bite , either dislocated shoulders (this is fixable) , broken arms ( humorus maybe (one of BTs had a broken humorus as a juvenile - very rambunctious and broke it in his rearing tub one day and I found him not wanting to use the left arm , dragging it like your hatchling is) - is fixable (but is delicate surgery (inserted a tiny pin and set it) , or nerve damage (not sure).

The little hatchling cant be old enough to have MBD at all in my opinion , got to be under 2 months old (if that).

Exactly what did the pet shop's vet say issue was ? (did they even tell you ?)

Were xrays taken ? (were these shown to you ?)

If I were you I'd find a good local reptile vet and ask them to examine this poor little hatchling and perhaps take xrays to determine the true extent of the injuries. It may not like using the arms because it's hurts !! ( dislocation or breaks perhaps ).

Wont hurt to get it onto calcium rich insects ( BSFL or silkworms , being slow moving it should be able to catch them ok and eat them ) , and to get a really good T5HO tube , I recommend a T5HO 12%UVB tube in a reflector hood.

Until he recovers more normal us of the arms , reduce climbing opportunities in the viv , I'd only have a hide and make sure he can't fall off it by building up some gentle ramps around it.

Keep him warm 24/7 , NOT HOTTER THAN 100 degF (basking spot) and between 24 and 28 degC overnight.

Consider getting him onto daily oral doses of CALCIVET liquid calcium by measured eyedropper or needless syringe - you'll need to monitor his body weight , is a good idea anyway (weekly weighins) and Calcivet is dosed by bodyweight.

Make sure he can't ever see your big beardie and THEY ARE NEVER ALLOWED TO MEET - big beardie apt to see hatchling as a snack .

Let us know how he comes on.

Exactly what did the pet shop's vet say issue was ? (did they even tell you ?)
They did not inform us of any information, the Pet stores "Vet" was just an employee.

Were xrays taken ? (were these shown to you ?)
To our knowledge no, I'm going back and asking about them tonight.

And i will get him a scale and a CALCIVET liquid calcium, ( should i order that online? ) and i do understand not to let My bearded dragon and the baby meet. Thank you.

Lieyze · Feb 15, 2018

AHBD":9v2gper2 said:
The O.P said the tail was bitten [ very slight ] but legs were still functioning when they brought it home at first. The dragon is definitely old enough to develop MBD, it can bring on symptoms like this very quickly because they need lots of proper uvb and calcium as they're growing and MBD can set in while they are babies. If you Google " baby beardie with MBD" you'll see lots of pics + videos and it can actually do much worse than this, including twisting of the spine while they are still very young.

MBD is scary looking for the beardie, we have bought the t5 uvb bulb everyone has recommended aswell as fed him with calcium and he seems to be doing better i will keep everyone updated. thank you for your recommendations

Lieyze · Feb 15, 2018

EllenD":1dxy1vhs said:
If I'm not mistaken you posted about this once before, and I think everyone agreed it is a UVB issue causing a calcium deficiency. Did you happen to already get him a better UVB light? If not, that's definitely your answer, as he's not going to get any better without one. I just want to reinforce this, I recognize the photo in your signature and remember the prior post, and he really does need a strong T5 UVB tube and fixture with a reflector ASAP.

Thats kind of crazy that you've seen someone post the same thing about their beardie with a similar signature because, I'm not sure if i stated it in the video, but we just got the beardie last night when i posted this and had not a clue that this mbd problem is happening. And i do have a brand new zoo med t5 that he is under currently, he seems to be doing better and will post an update video.

Lieyze · Feb 15, 2018

[/quote]Still think it's worth getting some xrays .[/quote]
I am going to my local exotic pet vet, and hopefully they can x'ray the fella and tell me if he has been injured by the alpha that was in the cage with him.

Lieyze · Feb 15, 2018

EllenD":2jagiavz said:
AHBD":2jagiavz said:

Are you sure Ellen ? I only see 6 posts from Liezye that aren't related to the beardies condition, just posts on other people's threads.

Click to expand...

Yep, I'm 100% sure, but it may have been the significant other who first posted, probably a week or so ago...The photo in the OP's signature was the exact photo that they posted in their original post. I realized that this OP had never posted before, but I'm 100% sure that someone else posted the same Dragon with the same problems. If I can find the post I'll link it...

To the OP, i'm pretty certain that someone already posted on here about your dragon, in the last week or so, and they posted the exact same photo that is in your signature. I wouldn't say this if I wasn't sure, the only reason I'm bringing it up is because it's the same issue that was going on then, inadequate UVB light causing a severe Calcium Deficiency, and we advised that the Dragon needed to get under an adequate UVB light ASAP, so I hope that is happening soon...

I had got him in adequate uvb light as soon as i got done recording the video, just because i wanted to get everybody's opinion and do the best i can to make him feel better, Thanks everyone again. but however my girlfriend did not post about this so if you can find the link and i can get ideas from everyone else's response on that forum that'd be great, thanks everyone again.

Baby Bearded dragons not using front legs

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