Mouth Abscess

Hello, about a month ago my bearded dragon started having a swollen area on the right part of his mouth. I took him to the vet who thinks it is an abscess and put him on injectable antibiotics for a month. Once when he was eating it popped and there was blood everywhere. But then after it popped the swelling went down and he seemed to be recovering. Now its come back and he just re-popped it again last night. I've contacted the vet again to see if I should bring him back in but it does seem to be painful for him. Has anyone else had this issue? Also if anyone is experienced in getting a needle into a bearded dragon arm I could use advice, that skin is so hard to get through. Also does anyone know any natural anti-inflammatory or pain relief I could use for now?

If the abscess is returning then there is an underlying problem that will need to be addressed eventually. When it opens it risks becoming infected (or further infected). A month of antibiotics seems like quite a long dose and may wind up causing adverse effects. Which one was prescribed? Ceftazidime? It can be tough to get the injections done with their thick skin as you've noted. I found that it is best to rotate which arm/leg you are using to try and minimize irritation. It's difficult to keep them still so wrapping them burrito style in a towel or blanket can be helpful. You want to try to get under one of the scales with a quick, even force that can take some practice.

Yes it was Ceftazdime 0.03ml doses every 3 days. It's such a bad spot for swelling I can see how it would be easily irritated. I imagine biting a bug wrong and it swelling a little and would just snowball as he uses his mouth. I have an appointment for the vet now Monday so we'll she what she says. Sounds like she wants to get a better look into his mouth and see what is going on. Thanks for the advice with the injection. I think we were probably being too slow and gentle with the needle.

You may want to discuss a topical cleanser with your vet. MaxiGuard Gel applied around the area may be effective at keeping it clean and limiting risk of infection as it heals. You'll still want to get to the root cause of the abscess though so it doesn't keep coming back.

Okay so back to the vet and they put him on 2 different oral antibiotics (Enrofloxcin,Metronidazole) and a pain reliever (Meloxicam). They think the infection must have been resistant to the previous anti-biotic. If he hasn't improved by the next appointment then they will do oral surgery and get a culture and remove as much of the inflammation as they can. Any recommendations on probiotics? I'm sure his gut flora is going to be wiped out.

I hope the meds help. Antibiotics can be rough on them. I use this probiotic when needed https://bug-de-lite.com/Item/Reptophilus

Hello,

Your poor boy, that is too bad. I'm sure that it probably does hurt him. I'm sorry that he has to
be on several medications. The Baytril is a bit hard on him. Is he able to eat very well?
Do you have any pictures of him?
Be sure to keep him a little warmer overnight, around 80 or so to boost his immune system right
now while he isn't feeling well.

Tracie

Dogstar5988":3hs75ucj said:

a pain reliever (Meloxicam).

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Meloxicam is an NSAID, so does double duty as an anti-inflammatory with ancillary pain relief.

Thank you, he hasn't eaten today but it was his first round of meds. One thing is that ever since he came back from the vet he has been bouncing off the walls. Just running around his cage like mad and that isn't normal for him. They gave him a vitamin D and vitamin A shot as well as some fluids. Do you think this could be a reaction to the vitamin shots? I have never seen him so restless. I have a camera over his tank so I can rewind and see that he has been running around most of the day. He did sleep last night but starting at it again as soon as his lights came on this morning. He isn't darkly colored and his beard isn't black or anything, its just unusual.

Dogstar5988":35063m9q said:

They gave him a vitamin D and vitamin A shot as well as some fluids. Do you think this could be a reaction to the vitamin shots?

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Yup. I'd call the vet to report it, but it'll likely go away within a day or 2.

Ok back from another vet visit. He only got worse after the oral anti-biotics. The swelling got larger and he's been rubbing it and making it bleed quite a lot. He has been very weak maybe from blood loss and pain and not eating. The vet is now going to do surgery on his mouth and try to see what is going on. She will send off a culture to see what the infection is and cut away as much of the infected tissue as she can. She isn't super optimistic and made sure to mention what could go wrong and that he might not make it through surgery. I don't really feel like we have a choice at this point so we are going to give it a try. He hasn't been eating and is getting dehyrated. The vet gave me Emeraid Omnivore to force feed him. I did that today and added a little calcium and ground up salad bits. She wants me to force feed because she said he could get fatty liver from not eating. In regards to that how long do you think he can go between meals safely? Should I do this every other day maybe to not overly stress him out?

I'm very sorry to here this; unfortunately it happens. Keeping fingers crossed.

Dogstar5988":1szpen3y said:

She wants me to force feed because she said he could get fatty liver from not eating. In regards to that how long do you think he can go between meals safely? Should I do this every other day maybe to not overly stress him out?

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The vet should have told you that, but sometimes we're in bit of a state of shock, and don't know what to ask on the spot. Call her and ask--it's perfectly reasonable, and you wouldn't be the first by any means.

Best wishes.

Hello,

How is your dragon doing?
Is his weight stable right now? You don't need to feed daily but a few times per week
would be alright to help with his health.
Is his mouth doing better today?
I hope the surgery goes well, when are you planning on scheduling it for him?

Please keep us posted on him.
Tracie

He is doing okay. Surgery is scheduled for tomorrow morning so it will all depend on how that goes. He is back on the original anti-biotic and the swelling has been going down now. He isn't eating at all and I'm currently trying to syringe feed him. He has lost some weight but he was pretty chunky before honestly. I am just hoping the surgery goes well and he can get back to normal soon.

He looks like a gangster dragon talking out of the side of his mouth... :lol:
Hoping he does well. :wink: