SICK! stroke? stargazers? hibernation?

I have a full grown female bearded dragon. Ive had her for about 6-7 months now. I got her from a teacher who got her from a student so i dont know her exact age/ previous care. I have a 2-3 year old female also that i purchased from a breeder. they shared a tank these last few months no fighting or anything. their dry food is dusted with calcium, i give them crickets, change their water. they have a 75wt basking bulb and a 55wt blue (daylight) blub. they have a basking rock & cave. the substrate is a mulch mix. but the peices arent small enough for them to eat.

About 2-3 weeks ago i noticed the (now sick) dragon- Agrondray acting sleepy, i noticed her big appetite slacking off. i pegged this to burmination.
well one night i noticed her alseep in the corner of the tank right next to the water dish, not wanting her to fall asleep in the water i went to move her just alittle. she spazzed out. and appeared to have a seizure. i pulled her out, she went really pale all over except her feet. i gave her a warm bath, and that was when i noticed that she kept moving in a circle. with just her front legs. and she cocked her head to one side. i have never had a dragon do that before. BUT! when she slept she stretched out into a straight line again.
she was displaying the symptoms of stargazers.
so fast foward to this week she dosent seizue up and curl into the ball anymore. i have been syringe feeding her baby foods of apples, bananas& prunes with calcium mixed in. and giving calcium water. but she is barely responsive. like a limp noodle. she fights alittle when i open her mouth with her front legs but i have not noticed her moving her back ones much. she will flex them it looks like but thats about it. i know she can still use them bc in the earlier parts she would grip my hand with them still.
she is going to the bathroom. theres just not much too it bc shes not eating as much.

I dont know what to do bc i cant afford a vet bill right now eapcially if theres nothing to be done/ if its something i could do.

she just appears to be sleeping, and i am sorta caught between:
trying to let her sleep on the chance that shes hibernating and youre not supposed to wake them.
or
keeping food and water in her.

its just frustrating bc she was fine 6 hours before she spazzed. she was up and walking around.

just any advice would help. or any ideas

Hi Katie, I'm so sorry that your girl is so sick. It may very well be a stroke [ hopefully not ] but it could be other things. One possibility is an inner ear infection from getting water in the ear, the symptoms can be similar to other neurological problems. Do you bathe /soak the dragons aside from keeping water in the tank ? Take the water out of the tank now to be on the safe side and don't do any soaking unless she gets dirty [ poo ] only under strict supervision.

Your beardie does need to be taken to an experienced reptile vet, if it is an ear infection, antibiotics can clear it up. The vet can do different tests to possibly rule other causes.

It would be best to separate the dragons, too.

I agree that she needs to see a reptile vet if you can possibly swing it, but one other thing I noticed was the description of a "basking bulb" and a "blue daylight bulb" -- do you know how much ultraviolet light she's getting from these? Beardies need adequate UVB to make the right kind of vitamin D to process the calcium they get from their diet or they can develop metabolic bone disease, which can cause symptoms similar to some of the ones you describe. Zoo Med's Reptisun 10.0 fluorescent tube is one of the best ones that is often recommended.

If some of it is MBD and if it's not too far advanced, it can respond well to calcium supplementation and proper lighting, but it's likely that something else could be going on with her as well with everything you describe, so I hope you can find a way to get her to a good experienced reptile vet as soon as possible.

Thank you for the advice! I am going to start looking for vets in the area, i bathe them only when nesscessary, and i dont put the water near their head. but they do have a shallow dish that i leave water in! i will take it out just in case. i have been giving her extra calcium since she got sick, the basking bulb is a 60watt Zoo-Med "Daylight Blue" bulb. it gives off heat, as well.

Hello,

I hope you are able to find a vet soon.
I am not sure if she had a stroke or not. I do think that she has developed metabolic bone disease from not having any UVB exposure. The basking bulbs only emit the UVA but no UVB. She isn't able to absorb her vitamins or calcium or synthesize any D3 for bone strength.
I highly recommend getting either the Reptisun 10 tube bulb or the Arcadia D3 12% tube bulb for her. Avoid the compact or coil type of bulbs, they really do not emit enough UVB or distribute it evenly, either.
That is a good idea to take the water out so one of them doesn't drown.

Let us know how she is doing.
Tracie

thank you, the closest vet that sees bearded dragons is not available until monday. i will be taking her then. i have been moving her tank to the window. can she get the d3 vitamin from sunlight?
she is still unresponsive. she only time she stirs is when i go to open her mouth

Hello,

How is she doing, she is unresponsive meaning she isn't opening her eyes? Geez, that is awful.
The sun wont go through glass but if you have a screen & the sun shines through that she would at least get filtered sun.
Is her beard black?
Keep us posted on her & let us know how the vet visit goes on monday.

Tracie

I think she passed last night.
she opened her mouth at some point and the tip of her tongue dried out. she is completely unresponsive now. i noticed yesterday she went pale, and her beard stayed a black to grey.

if she is gone, its ok, i hated seeing her suffer. but i want to make sure. are theyre any certain signs i should look for?

That's sad to hear =(. At least she won't be suffering any longer as you said. It does sound like she's gone. If she is unresponsive to being flipped over or touched around the eyes that's probably it. Her body will start to stiffen up after a little while too. Thank you for giving her such good care and trying to help her recover.

Hello,

Oh no, I am so sorry to hear that, poor girl. Have her eyes sunk in yet?
If she doesn't show any signs of breathing, she is likely gone. I would definitely wait though, to be sure as sometimes they are not. At least she had you helping her & was comfortable at home, with you & not alone.

Tracie