NEW UPDATE: GRAPHIC PHOTO but positive outcome

I have a 10 year old beardie that I rescued from a bad environment last year. He's been thriving given the circumstances but his health has declined last few weeks. It started with periodic diarrhea, some lethargy, lack of appetite. He is normally a great eater, has MBD so not super active but will always scratch on glass to come out to do his business. First red flag was he was pooping in his viv and sat in it before I noticed and could clean. Tried some critical care, Pedialytle baths and he seemed a bit better couple days ago. I tried to give him a few superworms, his favourite and he devoured them so I figured maybe he was on the mend. Then yesterday, I noticed dark stains in his tank and saw he had pooped, then I was horrified to discover he had passed an organ of some kind. I believe it could be his colon and it was full of undigested superworms. After some panic, deep breaths, I got everything cleaned up and made him as comfortable as I could. I called a few vets that were open and after hours emerg vet that was on call was not experienced with reptiles. I thought about bringing him anyway because they could do a humane euthanization. I struggled with the decision and at the time he was peacefully(ish) sleeping, wrapped in his baby blanket. I wondered if it was worth stressing him out and moving him. I had some Metacam on hand and gave it to him for the pain. I sent a message to my vet and she ended up replying to bring him in first thing tomorrow morning. He hasn't had any more bowel movements. He's alert but lethargic and still blackbearding. He seems comforted when I pet his head or hold him wrapped in his blanket. I had my cry yesterday and have resigned myself to the fact that he will likely pass away and if he doesn't do it naturally I may have to have him euthanized at the vet tomorrow. I actually prayed it would have happened overnight but he was awake and ready to bask this morning. I've Googled and researched to death and can only find info about a prolapse, nothing on actually passing the prolapsed organ which I believe in this case is his colon. I'm not certain but doubt he could live without this organ. Does anyone have any advice/info?? I contemplated posting on here a few times but didn't in fear that people would be harsh. I honestly feel I've done everything I can for him at this point but would appreciate any positive words/wisdom anyone could provide. I have photos of the organ he passed, should I upload and what's best way to do that? Thank you.

If he has passed his colon out of his body completely then he will not survive much longer, and euthanasia would probably be the most humane option. That being said, the colon is connected to the rest of the digestive tract and it would be pretty unusual for it to detach and come out completely, I think. I'd say having him assessed by a vet, ASAP is definitely the best way to go.

First, thank you for replying. I've been upset since yesterday, cuddling him wrapped in a baby blanket as we speak, but no one else replied. I have a photo of what he passed but not sure if appropriate to post. I'm guessing colon but of course have no confirmation. Part of me holding out hope and also thinking this is it. Messing with my mind, emotions!

I think the mods would probably be fine with you posting it for medical concerns. Full disclosure, however, I'm not a vet myself, and I doubt I would be able to identify whatever the object is, definitively.

Could he have just pooped undigested food? A pic would make it more clear

Hello,

Yes as bad as it may be, I do agree, maybe it isn't his colon. A picture would most definitely
help out in giving us an overall idea. That is extremely severe & I'm
not sure I've ever heard of them completely passing & prolapsing an entire organ out without
it still being attached in some form or fashion.
How is he doing tonight, is he still black bearding?
Keep him as comfortable as possible until you can get him to the vets. I am sorry he is having
some trouble but hope it isn't as severe as it seems.
Let us know how the vet visit goes.

Tracie

Here's the pic. Now I'm wondering if it is just a portion of his colon, intestines or another part of his digestive system. Surprisingly he's doing much better. I'm communicating with the vet about course of treatment and will give an update when I have more info.
He was up basking this morning, colour returned to normal, no black beard. He asked to come out and pooped without straining. It was darker than usual, almost black with a yellow urate. I saved it to bring for fecal testing. I then gave him a bath with some dissolved honey and some Pedialyte and he drank quite a bit. I'm scared to give him anything else until the vet decides best course of action. I do have some Critical Care but will wait to see what vet says. Given his age and fact that he was severely neglected before I rescued him last year, we won't put him through any invasive procedures but will try special diet, meds if vet thinks that will help and as long as he seems comfortable. Thoughts?

Hi there, it's definitely not part of his G.I. tract, just a dark stool with blood . It is impossible for an animal to prolapse an organ outside + detached from their body and survive. The fact that he has already passed a stool today shows that he is intact. There was/is something irritating him but he is not on deaths door, something else IS going on but if he starts acting normal + eating again he should be O.K. Cut out the superworms and offer medium crickets and dubias . Hornworms are a good option as well. If you only have superworms at the moment, use just the freshly shed , soft ones.

You might opt for xrays but then even if you discovered something like a mass [ possible cancer ] you really couldn't do much for a 10 year old aside from surgery which would be painful, risky and very expensive. He may have had a cyst that burst or may just have passed blood along with the large mass of almost undigested superworms. If he's doing well maybe just see how it goes. It's up to you. Best wishes to your little old buddy !

Good news, it was part of his intestinal lining that he sloughed off due to a parasite. Just not sure what type of parasite until we get fecal results back which could take a few days but vet thought likely Coccidia. I'm very relieved. So for anyone that ever witnesses anything like this, don't panic, easier said than done since, no joke, this looked like an organ, quite large compared to him but grateful it was nothing fatal. I'm supposed to keep up with the Pedialyte/honey baths for hydration, or syringe if he doesn't drink anything along with Critical Care, no solids for now. I'm picking up a prescription for a med that will coat his stomach lining and help him regenerate the lining without too much discomfort. Vet thought it would take several weeks to regenerate and this med (name unknown until I pick up tomo) would help ease his internal discomfort. She was reluctant to prescribe Metacam or another pain med since they can increase intestinal issues, I agree so this other one sounds like a good option. Thank god I didn't do anything drastic like bring him to the Emerg vet who wasn't familiar with reptiles for euthanization, food for thought and another lesson in the crazy world of being a reptile parent!
My only other issue at the moment since I have 2 other dragons and several varieties of geckos is that I'm now a bit fearful of superworms! I can't get the image of those undigested worms mixed in with his tissue out of my head! I do only crickets for the geckos and my juvie dragon but both my adult dragons adore their superworms. I hadn't had any issues until now, they are super easy to keep, don't smell but sigh.... think I need to revisit. Unfortunately I'm in Canada where Dubias are illegal (although working on a few rogue sources lol) so our options are limited and crickets honestly kind of suck after the baby stage. I do feed a mixed variety of greens, some fruit sprinkled with bee pollen to my beardies but they LOVE their bugs! Yes I do buy hornworms regularly as well and my guys also like soldierfly larvae but there is only 1 place locally to buy it and not always convenient. May have to work on starting my own colony of some kind, wake up call.
My apologies in advance for the super long winded posts (drives my hubby nuts!) lol but if I can ever help anyone in this situation it was worth it, what a crazy last few days. Thanks for listening. Here's pic of my senior guy wrapped in his blanket ready for bed, not 100% but not on death's door like I thought!

He looks cozy enough there, hopefully this is a one time thing and he'll be feeling better. Do you use raw unpasteurized honey ? If so, offer him a little bit every day via syringe, it will help his G.I. tract. If it ends up that he has coccidia, be sure to ask for Ponazuril aka Toltrazuril to treat it. Some vets are still using Albon which is very harsh.

BTW, what types of fruit has he been eating ?

Hello,

That was definitely an alarming looking stool, but not his colon. He would not be alive if it had
of been. It's great to hear he is doing better. I'm glad the vet didn't overprescribe medications
for him.
It looks like he is feeling pretty good & does look comfy in his blankie.
I agree, a soft diet only right now would be the best for his system until his GI tract heals up.

Let us know what the fecal results are when you get them in.

Tracie