Beardie I rescued from pet supply plus

this is Joe! I'm pretty sure I saved his life.... I got him from a pet supply store here in town after buying my first beardie I seen him and had to have him because the other ones was bullying him I am almost certain Joe has mbd I've given him baths to make sure hes not compacted dust all of his food with calcium d3 powder got him proper uvb 10.0 bulb and just have been providing him with all the love and care that we can... He has a hard time walking to get food so he is hand fed worms because he can't chase crickets... He's our special beardie.. I'm trying to start a local reptile rescue

Aw, that's nice that you're giving Joe a good home. Be sure to offer dusted crickets by hand [ you can even smash the head so they don't struggle ] and if you can get Phoenix worms [ black soldier fly larva ] that would be good since they're high in calcium.

Good on you for giving him special care and a shot at a happy life =). He will require specialized care and top notch equipment including excellent UVB exposure and temperatures, lower & easily accessible hides and basking areas, and a calcium rich diet. He may require quite a few vet checkups as well so it's good to have some money set aside to handle that without causing a financial strain.

If you can provide details about his enclosure we'll be glad to run through it and make sure everything is just right for him. Which ReptiSun 10 light are you using? Is it a T5? How far is it above his basking area?

I am not completely sure I know the bulb costed me about 40$ as it's all the shops around here sell.and funds are low I just rescued another one today and have to get bulbs... I'm going to have to start a non profit fund for these guys.... He's not in a huge tank his bulb is around 12 inch's from him with a basking spot makes it about 8 inch's I dust his food with calcium with vit d3 and mix a little pinch in his water. Which he likes to soak in more then drink lol he gets baths daily as directed by the vet. The mind is not reversable but we love him and that's what counts... The new one I got now was covered in feces cage was covered cracked on bottom which I have layered over with two rows of tape to insure no cuts and bathed him he's so sweet I don't know how anyone could treat him how he was treated...

Aww, Joe is a cutie! Reminds me of my mbd beardie. She has "reverse sexy leg" too, lol

i used to work there but they had no pets just supplies, i heard they don't care for their animals well.. and that goes to any pet store. i got squishy from petco, as soon as i adopted that poor boy, he fell in love and is scared to loose me.
i am happy you saved him from that pet store, he could been somewhere else in the world. Joe is a survivor, i hope he lives strong and grow a bond with you. <3

Joe is such a sweet beardie we have grown found having Joe around... Joe was our 2nd we are up to two rescued now 3 dragons in total they are awesome. I wish they all got along but we all know they are Territorial so that won't happen lol

Hello,

Joe is a sweet looking dragon, poor guy! At least he has a good home with you now.
Since he does have a hard time getting around, just be sure his basking area is low to where he doesn't have to climb much.
Which brand of tube bulb are you using & how close to him is it?
I would definitely consider getting some liquid calcium as they tend to absorb that more quickly than the powder.
Is he eating anything for you?

Tracie

Oh yes he eats great! I give him super worms as it is easier for him to eat something that moves at his place instead of crickets and they are dusted during feedings he has a reptisun 10.0 compact bulb right now because that's all that's available​ where I live.. his basking spot is perfect he can crawl into it fine and we help him if he needs it when he's not being held and petted of course. He enjoys laying on our chest and being stroked on the side of his face gently.

We also add calcium in his water because he likes to soak in it from time to time figure he can absorb it into his body that way too when he desires

Cmane419":kf5jlowg said:

We also add calcium in his water because he likes to soak in it from time to time figure he can absorb it into his body that way too when he desires

Click to expand...

I am so glad you got him out of a terrible situation! It looks like he will have a much nicer life with you

Just real quick, dragons are unable to absorb water/nutrients through their skin as some people suggest. This also includes absorbing water/nutrients through their vent.
The only way dragons get this is orally. You can try dripping water on his nose to get him to drink it, but soaking in calcium water currently is just a more expensive soak

Also considering his limited mobility, you can try crippling crickets by breaking off their back legs. This is a technique often used for timid/new dragons as well as dragons with special needs.
I am unsure of his size or age, but super worms as a staple is an impaction risk for dragons under 16" in length due to hard chitin, and considering his already special situation they may not be the best option at this time.

I look forward to seeing his improvement!

That is awesome! Joe is lucky to have you!

It's wonderful that you're taking care of this little guy, and that you're thinking of starting a rescue.

However, if you don't mind a little advice, it's important to make sure you have sufficient resources before you take in more than you can handle. I know it's hard to turn any of them away because you'd like to save them all, but sometimes you just have to be realistic about what you can do.

A cautionary tale: There was a lady here in Anchorage who ran a local reptile rescue for about 10 years (we got our beardie from her), and also sold food and supplies for them out of a little rented house (we used to buy a lot of our stuff from her too) -- a little "mom and pop" business, or in this case, actually "mom and son". She was a sort of self-taught reptile naturopath, and was always willing and able to give out lots of good advice at no additional cost. Eventually one of the local TV stations found out about her little venture and put her on the evening news, but the net result of that was that instead of more people offering donations and volunteer help, the majority found out that there was another place they could dump their unwanted animals, so she got swamped with more than she could handle, and her dream of running a viable rescue turned into a nightmare. Some people would tell her that if she wouldn't take their unwanted reptiles they'd just turn them loose (instant freeze to death for most of the year in Alaska) or kill them, and she'd give in and accept them even though she was already maxed out. Sadly, she ended up having to shut down both the rescue and the business because she just couldn't make ends meet.

The moral to the story is that if you're going to start up a rescue, make sure that you have adequate funding, space, supplies, and manpower to take good care of the animals you take in, before you start accepting the animals.

Meanwhile, I hope you will be able to successfully nurse Joe back to health. As others have said, it would be good to get him to an experienced reptile vet since the MBD is apparently so advanced. Also, you may need to be prepared for the possibility that he may always have some deformities, but with good care (calcium, Vitamin D3, UV, warmth, etc) he may still be able to recover enough to have a good life with you.

SHBailey, thank you for sharing that cautionary tale. I am sure we have all had the mindset of wanting to save/take them all, but it really is about being prepared for all that comes with it. It's a heartbreaking story, and a true shame that the disregard of others ultimately put her out of business.

I don't do it daily I only do beardie and I'm the kind of rescue I look for people who sell them pay a visit and if I feel the beardie is going too cheap or mis-treated I advance to bring them home to get proper care I'm not really locally known and kind of like it that way.