PLEASE HELP ANEMIC DRAGON

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EmilyMiela90

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I didnt see it happen, but 9pm on January 4th, there was a very large poop, next to a pile of vomited undigested superworms in my 3 year old, male, Louies enclosure. I kept checking on him through out the night. At 5 am, there was a brown bloody massacre. A large goopy pile and it looked like it was projected onto the front and back of his enclosure. I took him to the first available appointment at 11am.

He had xrays, a fecal and blood test. They said he had a stomach infection and was HIGHLY anemic. He was put on Sucralfate, 3 times a day, for 7 days. And Metronidazole , every other day, for five days.

His fecal came back on the 9th with protozoan cysts, Entamoeba hartmanni-like cysts and blastocystis sp. Which the dr classified as*rare*The doctor then added Enroflaxcin, everyday for 2 weeks, as well as repta boost. ( Doctor said it was okay to give metro and enro back to back on the days he took both)
He was irritated by all the syringes administered every day, and it was obvious he didn’t feel good, but he remained pretty active and alert, with an on and off blackbeard. The first day of reptaboost he vomited about 5 hours later. Good news: no blood present. After that, I gave him less and there was no more vomiting. ( I didn’t see it, I think it was vomit)

His follow up appointment was on the 15th and they changed the Metronidazole to everyday for 2 weeks. I continued giving him the reptiboost everyday. Salads and even his previous favorite horn worm was offered to him and he wouldn’t eat on his own. He continued being active and alert with a black beard. 2 days ago, he began to slow down and had a constant black beard. I started researching more and asked his doctor if he should be taking a probiotic. Yesterday he had his first dose of Bene-bac mixed with his reptiboost. He was very lethargic all day and stayed pretty much in one spot. I am really scared and just want some feedback. I am not entirely sure what is even wrong with him. He has only consumed medicine and reptiboost , so he lost a lot of weight. He has only had little droplets of either poop or uriate. its soft, white. surrounded by a clear liquid. Sometimes, yellow in it.


Background : About a year ago, his blood tests showed high uric acid. They said they were keeping an eye out for gout.

Food Previous of January 4th: I offer him salad everyday, sometimes he would eat them, sometimes not. I always got worried and ended up giving him superworms. The amount was inconsistent. Some days none, some just a couple. But, typically about 6 or 7 every other day.They are pretty big. Now, I am wondering if they were too big and I gave him too many, too often. And I just read something saying don’t give BD old superworms? I didn’t know they could get old?

Please give me your thoughts and advice on all of it.
 

Drache613

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hello,

So sorry to hear of your dragon's issues. It is very stressful when this happens, for both of
you.
Would you happen to have a copy of any blood test you could post or send to me? If his uric
acid levels have been high then that should have been addressed more aggressively before.
As far as giving a bearded dragon an "old superworm" that really isn't accurate as far as I know.
If that were the case, you would end up having to throw half of them out. As long as they are fed
properly the superworms should be nutritious.
What other insects other than superworms will he or has he eaten in the last year? As an adult,
he really only needs 30-40 estimated, insects weekly. There are no set in stone numbers, since
they all have different structures but essentially as an adult he wont need a lot of protein but more
vegetation.
You could try getting him on an iron supplement or give some kelp several times per week.
What is your tank setup like?
So now, he is on Metronidazole, daily for another couple of weeks?
Since he isn't feeling well, try to keep him a little warmer overnight in his tank, around 80 or so
to help boost his immune system.

Let us know how he is doing. If you have pictures of him, along with his tank setup that would be
great.

Tracie
 

EmilyMiela90

New member
Original Poster
Thank you for responding! I do not have a copy of the blood test, ill email his doctor to see if she will send it to me. The only other thing she mentioned and was worried about was glucose being 3.9. She said it could be signs of that tumor. That really freaked me out. Maybe, its wishful thinking, but in my heart i really do not think thats it. He only threw up blood that one time. It was alot and really bad, but no blood has been present after that. I will look into the iron and kelp. Have you heard of those parasites? Some websites say they do not cause problems, others say they do. I cant find much on either though. How do i post pictures on here?

I read in your articles to feed a parasite infected dragon on antibiotics a cocktail of vitamins, Gerber chicken and a little pedialyte. I looked everywhere for and all i could find in stores (as well as website) was chicken and gravy. Is that fine?

I also read on a different post to puree collard, turnip, butternut squash and any other dark greens.

He has only had reptiboost for about 2 weeks. Which should i start him on? I read to give his antibiotics in the morning. Wait six hours, give probiotics and then wait a half hour to feed. Is this order correct? I didnt today, but should i start giving him a little food before the antibiotics as well?

The bene bac is a really thick gel, so should i mix it with a little squash or reptiboost?

also, depending on which concoction you recommend, can i put a little reptiboost in them? or should i still give him a syringe of it seperate? I am trying to see what is okay to mix because he is so sick of having a syringe in his mouth.
 

EmilyMiela90

New member
Original Poster
Also, what is the best way to wash towels/ blankets when ur bearded drsgin has a parasite? Ive been using f10 in his enclosure
 

Drache613

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hello,

You are very welcome!
Definitely try to get a copy of the blood tests, I would love to see the values.
So, no more blood at all?
Yes, recently I spoke with someone with that same diagnosis, & they are essentially a
protozoan/flagellete so being on the Metronidazole is the correct medication. Keep giving
the antibiotic/medication in the morning & wait 4-6 hours as you are doing, before giving the
probiotic.
A high glucose reading can be caused by stress, diet, infection, trauma & stomach cancer or
a tumor, yes. If his white cell counts are normal then hopefully it isn't cancer.
Using F10 in his enclosure is perfectly fine & it's non toxic, too. Just be sure to rinse it well so
there isn't any residual. You can use a diluted bleach solution when washing the bedding for
him.
That is fine, the chicken with the gravy. Is it organic too? Giving a nice nutritional slurry with
the squash, greens, etc is healthy for him. I hope he likes it!
You can mix the benebac gel with the reptiboost if you would like, or the squash. You could
even try putting some on your finger to see if he actually will lick some of it off. He might like the
flavor of it.

To post pictures, just click on the XIMG function button here in the message box. Simply upload
your pictures to the Image Gallery next, then copy/paste the IMG url to download & post onto
here.

Let us know how he is doing.
Tracie
 
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