Swollen foot?

I noticed yesterday when I was about to clip Olivers back nails that his foot is pink and swollen.
It does seem to be painful.
His setup: Exo terra 36 x 18 x 18 terrarium, exo terra 100w basking bulb, and Zoo med repti sun 10.0 UVB t5

That definitely does not look normal. It could be an infection/abscess. I would definitely take it to the vet. May need to be drained or meds. I would be cautious what vet you go to though and do some homework. Try to find a reputable vet that is experienced with bearded dragons.

Definitely needs to be drained and a course of antibiotics be given by a REPTILE VET.

I already have an appointment. I'm anxious to see what the vet will say

That looks incredibly sore, poor guy. Did that just pop up all of a sudden? Looks like he either injured it and it's starting to bruise and swell, or it's an infection of some kind. I'd be sure the vet does an x-ray to check for fractures, especially if it just suddenly appeared.

He's had it for at least a week (based on the photos I went back and looked at). I noticed it Tuesday night when I was about to clip his nails. It really bugs me that I didn't notice this sooner because I spend so much time with him.

Hello,

What did the vet say about the foot being swollen?
It could possibly be gout, also. Does he stay well hydrated? Let us know how he is doing.

Tracie

Luckily, it wasn't anything to serious. The vet said he was getting too much calcium. He had to cut it open, and he said at first he thought he saw gout. But luckily, it wasn't.

My beardie has been very picky lately and the vet said his diet was no good. When he was eating I was feeding him superworms, dubias, bok choy, and (cooked) sweet potato. He said the dubias were good, but no more of the other stuff. He told me to feed him greens like turnips, mustard,etc. Also, he said I should try giving him crickets (gut loaded). Last, he said to once a week give him a spring mix (which threw me off a little.) I'm having to force feed him at the moment because he's being so weird.

But, I felt bad for the poor little thing when I saw him after they cut his foot open. It was bleeding, and his beard was pitch black. I've never seen his beard get so dark.

Oliver at the vet



Oliver mad because he's eating greens

His foot is sore .... no wonder he's upset and bbing....

No pain relief meds for him ?
..... I'd thought some pain meds to inject would have been prescribed after cutting open his swollen foot.

No pain relief meds for him ?
..... I'd thought some pain meds to inject would have been prescribed after cutting open his swollen foot

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No, they didn’t give him anything for pain. The vet just told me to clean it with one part peroxide and one part water so it doesn’t get infected.

oliver21917":dz14xv30 said:

No pain relief meds for him ?
..... I'd thought some pain meds to inject would have been prescribed after cutting open his swollen foot

Click to expand...

No, they didn’t give him anything for pain. The vet just told me to clean it with one part peroxide and one part water so it doesn’t get infected.

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mmmm .... not very impressed with that .

1:4 mix of betadiene in saline is better.

Hello,

Definitely do not use peroxide on that foot. As suggested, use betadine diluted until it looks
like weak tea on that foot to clean it, instead.
I'm very surprised he didn't give any pain killers for his little foot, I hope it isn't hurting him too
much to walk.
I hope he is feeling better soon!

Tracie

I was also surprised with the peroxide thought too .... not the best and coming from a health professional !?!

if you have spare spirits nip glass or a can get hold a 50ml squat beaker , you don't need to bath /soak the entire dragon in the diluted betadine , just immerse and soak the sore foot , great excuse for a snuggle.

I'd soak it daily in dilute betadine for 10 - 15 mins. Then gently pat dry and no need to remove the betadine and then dress the foot loosely (nothing adhesive in contact with his skin) to keep it clean and pad it somewhat.

Was this a reptile specialist? I've also never heard of being prescribed/told to use hydrogen peroxide for something like this, and he should have at least gotten some metacam for pain. Poor little guy...

I wouldn't use any peroxide at all, but rather Betadine or Hibiclens diluted with water...

Thanks for the recommendations everyone! And yeah this was a reptile vet.