We finally have Rocky...! I am so excited and relieved to have this little guy in my home for some TLC and rehab time. Here is a back story for those of you who don't know:
Six months ago we took in a little blue rescue bearded dragon and named him Papa Smurf for his blueness, small size and grey beard. He was surrendered to the owner of our local reptile shop by two pre-teen girls in a cookie tin, unable to walk due to severe MBD, neglect and starvation. They tried to surrender both of their beardies, but one of them ran off into the woods and escaped. This was the first week of December 2011. The second beardie was found in a shed unexpectedly, 5 months after he disappeared and the girls surrendered him to the same shop. We got the call that Papa Smurf's long lost brother was found, and we were in disbelief, to be honest. Just blows my mind that a dragon can be lost outdoors all winter and survive. I know this is Florida but we have a wet and cold winter here, as we live in the Northern part.
We picked Rocky up today from the store, brought him home, and showed him to Sleepy Smurf. Smurf opened his eye, narrowed it and gave a tired, calculated stare as if to say, "When my nap's over ima get you." :lol: I whisked Rocky off to the bath, scrubbed him up, and let him explore the couch and living room floor.
He is alert and curious, but has severe mobility issues in his front legs, neck, shoulder and head. It will be interesting to watch him recover and gain strength. He walks with a very stiff, jerky movement, and looks to have some spasm or intermittent contracture of the right arm. I'm going to treat it as a vitamin B deficiency, because it's the easiest thing to rule out. Normal gut flora plays a key role in the synthesis of B vitamins, so I will be giving him liquid B vitamins and AcidolphiLiz, a probiotic that will increase the numbers of good gut flora, allowing the B vitamins to be synthesized and absorbed, and hopefully the spasms and contracture will stop. Wish me (and Rocky) luck!
The reptile shop has had him for the last month or so, and they have been doing a good job of putting weight on him, so he looks pretty good. He needs to gain muscle mass, and since he isn't malnourished, I will be giving him plenty of silkworms, since they are high in protein. They also have natural serrapeptase, an enzyme found in the silkworm, which they excrete to break down their cocoon when they become a moth. The serrapeptase breaks down inflamed tissue and helps with stiffness and pain. It is a natural anti-inflammatory that has been used in human medicine in Europe for the last 25+ years. It really helped Papa Smurf, so I am sure it will help Rocky.
Well, enough talking. Here is our newest boy, Rocky:
Here he is right when we got him home. Notice how his front legs are held close and almost underneath him. He has limited range of motion.
Here is a close up of his sweet face. The reptile shop really worked to get him to a healthy weight and he looks pretty good.
" I close my eyes and pretend I am not sitting in water...me no likey."
He finally did relax and begin to enjoy the warm water and my attention. I keep saying his name over and over so he can learn it.
He almost looks like Papa Smurf in this picture. :shock:
King of the couch! It's uncanny how they settle in when they look around and see they are in a home and not the reptile shop. Papa did the same thing, but it took longer because Papa was so critical and sickly. Papa lived in a daze for several days before he seemed to notice his surroundings. At least Rocky is able to move a bit and explore.
I feels really good to have them both now, as I have felt like a piece of the story was left out, and we constantly talked about "the one that got away." I'm so glad to share the good news with all my friends here.
Six months ago we took in a little blue rescue bearded dragon and named him Papa Smurf for his blueness, small size and grey beard. He was surrendered to the owner of our local reptile shop by two pre-teen girls in a cookie tin, unable to walk due to severe MBD, neglect and starvation. They tried to surrender both of their beardies, but one of them ran off into the woods and escaped. This was the first week of December 2011. The second beardie was found in a shed unexpectedly, 5 months after he disappeared and the girls surrendered him to the same shop. We got the call that Papa Smurf's long lost brother was found, and we were in disbelief, to be honest. Just blows my mind that a dragon can be lost outdoors all winter and survive. I know this is Florida but we have a wet and cold winter here, as we live in the Northern part.
We picked Rocky up today from the store, brought him home, and showed him to Sleepy Smurf. Smurf opened his eye, narrowed it and gave a tired, calculated stare as if to say, "When my nap's over ima get you." :lol: I whisked Rocky off to the bath, scrubbed him up, and let him explore the couch and living room floor.
He is alert and curious, but has severe mobility issues in his front legs, neck, shoulder and head. It will be interesting to watch him recover and gain strength. He walks with a very stiff, jerky movement, and looks to have some spasm or intermittent contracture of the right arm. I'm going to treat it as a vitamin B deficiency, because it's the easiest thing to rule out. Normal gut flora plays a key role in the synthesis of B vitamins, so I will be giving him liquid B vitamins and AcidolphiLiz, a probiotic that will increase the numbers of good gut flora, allowing the B vitamins to be synthesized and absorbed, and hopefully the spasms and contracture will stop. Wish me (and Rocky) luck!
The reptile shop has had him for the last month or so, and they have been doing a good job of putting weight on him, so he looks pretty good. He needs to gain muscle mass, and since he isn't malnourished, I will be giving him plenty of silkworms, since they are high in protein. They also have natural serrapeptase, an enzyme found in the silkworm, which they excrete to break down their cocoon when they become a moth. The serrapeptase breaks down inflamed tissue and helps with stiffness and pain. It is a natural anti-inflammatory that has been used in human medicine in Europe for the last 25+ years. It really helped Papa Smurf, so I am sure it will help Rocky.
Well, enough talking. Here is our newest boy, Rocky:
Here he is right when we got him home. Notice how his front legs are held close and almost underneath him. He has limited range of motion.
Here is a close up of his sweet face. The reptile shop really worked to get him to a healthy weight and he looks pretty good.
" I close my eyes and pretend I am not sitting in water...me no likey."
He finally did relax and begin to enjoy the warm water and my attention. I keep saying his name over and over so he can learn it.
He almost looks like Papa Smurf in this picture. :shock:
King of the couch! It's uncanny how they settle in when they look around and see they are in a home and not the reptile shop. Papa did the same thing, but it took longer because Papa was so critical and sickly. Papa lived in a daze for several days before he seemed to notice his surroundings. At least Rocky is able to move a bit and explore.
I feels really good to have them both now, as I have felt like a piece of the story was left out, and we constantly talked about "the one that got away." I'm so glad to share the good news with all my friends here.
He is going to have so much floor space and I am going to make him a very low hide - he will be so happy. Papa has a tendency to sleep a lot if allowed, so I have to make a hide that he can hide his head in but not his whole body. With his MBD history, I want him to be able to get UVB while sleeping, so I will have to get my pen and paper out and see what ideas I have. 
