Unresponsive Dragon; What could have caused this?

I went to feed my beardie this morning and found him borderline unresponsive. He's at my local vet right now; I spoke to the nearest specialist (over 3 hours away and triple booked for today) and and they said they could offer my local vet advice over the phone. I'll know more at 4 o'clock, but what could have caused this?

He's two years old, gets the right diet/light/heat/ect., and literally the only sign anything was wrong was that he only ate most of his food yesterday, not all of it. Then this morning, I can barely get him to open his eyes.
Has anyone else seen a sudden decline like this before?

Not sure came on all of a sudden- please post pics of tank and lighting so we can see what may have caused the issue --- what are your basking temps and how are you taking them?
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Karrie

Is there any chance he got into something toxic? A plant? Maybe a bug from outside that might have been either bad for him or that had been exposed to insecticides, pesticides, etc.? Other than non-response, are there signs of distress like black bearding, throwing up, eyes looking glazed or otherwise off?

Hi there,

Do you have any update for us?

Could you go over your setup with us so we can rule that out?

Did it get too cold for him last night possibly?

Hope to hear some good news from you. Let us know.

-Brandon

So, good news (setup description at the end). The vet was able to get him an appointment with a specialist first thing in the morning. Also, I got suspicious that maybe my UVB bulb was not working properly even though it's not that old, so I put my tegu's bulb on him. He's now holding his head up, opening his eyes and feeling good enough to tail whip at me when I annoy him. Still obviously something off, but WAY better than this morning. His eyes are way less puffy too.

Could this be hypocalcemia? No tremors or weakness before this, but if he's had a bum bulb for a couple months could that be it?

The setup currently is a 30-long; this is temporary. I'm going on vacation, and my parents can't handle my juvenile tegu in her 6'x4' enclosure, so she's in my 75 breeder tank. He's going in there once I get back and move her. Basking temp is 95, ambient 75. No equipment failures, so he didn't get cold.

Hi there,

Thanks for the update. I'm glad to hear that he is a bit more lively.

What uvb bulb were you using then? Could you possible post a picture of him and your setup for us?

Do you use supplemental heat at night? If so what is it?

Did he eat for you today?
Any black beard?

How old is he?

Sorry for so many questions! Just trying to get as much useful info as possible to try to help

-Brandon

Can't get a pic right now (I work nights) but, he has been black bearding for a couple weeks. But only when I was doing something that ticked him off, then back to normal. I just figured he was finally hitting maturity and getting territorial since he's a little under two years old. His beard has been normal since all this started.

I honestly forget the exact UVB bulb I'm using. I know it's not repti-glo though. Maybe repti-sun? I'm about to buy some new ones though since he's going to the new setup soon, so any brand recommendations are appreciated.

I use a red bulb at night. I have a room dedicated to the reptiles, so the ambient room temp stays reptile-friendly, and I can adjust heat by where in the room the tanks are.

Please get rid of the red bulb--- it hurts their eyes and disturbs their sleep-- they need darkness to sleep-- I recommend the Reptisun 10.0 T 5 bulb--- or an Arcadia bulb depending on tank size either a 12% or a 14%
Karrie

I'll look into which of those would be best for his new enclosure. What do you use for night heat? Are CHE's powerful enough? I don't have a lot of experience with those.
But I'm still trying to figure out what caused this sudden problem... That doesn't seem like something that would cause this.

Another update; I have been told he just pooped and has moved to a different spot in his tank, and has climbed partially onto one of his trees. So that's a huge improvement from 'is he dead'.

I agree- when replacing fixture for your 75 gallon please do not get the full length of tank--- they say 2/3 of tank--- I use a 100 watt che for my 120 gallon tank--- it keeps tank around 70 in winter and it is on 24/7 during winter- I live in MN so it is cold here
Karrie

Thanks for the advice. Hopefully he makes it and gets to enjoy the big space. I'll update tomorrow after I talk to the specialist.
I'm more hopeful now than I was this morning, but still worried about him.

Hello,

That is very odd it came on that fast!
Did they do a blood test on him or not?
I am glad he seems to be doing better at the moment. I would definitely recommend upgrading
the UVB light as suggested, that should help correct any UVB deficiencies. Can he support his
bodyweight & walk//climb without any trouble?
Let us know how he is doing & what the vet says after the appointment.

Tracie

He can at least support himself enough to keep his head and chest raised up for an extended period. Still wobbly when he tries to do a lot though. But this is all sudden, he was perfectly normal up until yesterday morning.

They didn't really do anything at the vet other than get me the appointment with the specialist. So hopefully I'll know more in a couple hours.