Very sick and limp adult! Please help!!

[amesk]

Hello, I am new here and I have a very sweet bearded dragoon named Mo. We have had her for 5.5 years and we got her when she was fully grown. Suddenly 2 weeks ago, she started swinging her head backwards and spinning in circles. She's been to the vet 3 times since then and she is on the Critical Care food and is taking antibiotics, but nothing seems to be helping. She is also very lethargic, her whole body is limp, she hasn't walked by herself for the last two weeks nor has she opened her eyes much at all. I am so scared and do not know what to do for her. Any help would be so so appreciated.

[Drache613]

Hello,

I am sorry your girl isn't doing well, it sounds like she is very critical indeed!
Can you review your tank setup for us, such as the lighting, supplementation, temperatures,
etc just so we can be sure everything is all correct.
Do you have any pictures of her?
Which antibiotics is she on currently & did the vet determine an infection of some type?
Are you keeping her hydrated while she has been on her meds? I would recommend to get
her on some type of probiotic such as non dairy acidophiliz or non dairy organic soy yogurt
to help her tummy while on meds.
Has her beard been darker than normal?

Tracie

[amesk]

Hello,

I am sorry your girl isn't doing well, it sounds like she is very critical indeed!
Can you review your tank setup for us, such as the lighting, supplementation, temperatures,
etc just so we can be sure everything is all correct.
Do you have any pictures of her?
Which antibiotics is she on currently & did the vet determine an infection of some type?
Are you keeping her hydrated while she has been on her meds? I would recommend to get
her on some type of probiotic such as non dairy acidophiliz or non dairy organic soy yogurt
to help her tummy while on meds.
Has her beard been darker than normal?

Tracie

She has. a 150w basking bulb and a Reptisun UVB with her basking temp somewhere around 100-102 and her cool side of the tank about 75. She has a basking rock and a hammock and her substrate is just paper towels.
The vet did the antibiotics just in case (the packaging got thrown away so I can't see what its called but its an orange color and she takes .2ml of it once a day) and I am doing my best to keep her hydrated by dripping water on her nose, but she never licks it. She does get water in her CriticalCare food supplements though. I will absolutely look into a probiotic for her as well.
[Click image to enlarge]
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[KarrieRee]

Your UVB is a coil or tube? this is very important
Karrie

[amesk]

Tube.

[amesk]

She is going to the Vet in a couple hours. She just seems to keep getting worse. her whole body is so limp and she can hardly lift her head

[AHBD]

Aw, I'm so sorry about your girl. Do you have blood test results ? If so can you post them here ?

[amesk]

Aw, I'm so sorry about your girl. Do you have blood test results ? If so can you post them here ?

The last 3 times we went to the vet, they did not feel the need to take a blood test. So maybe they will today? if they do, I will post the results.

[AHBD]

Yes, you should ask for them for sure. Blood tests will reveal a lot and can possibly help to diagnose the problem.

[amesk]

We are waiting on the results from the blood test now. Really hoping she has a chance!

[AHBD]

Yeas, I hope your girl is going to pull through ! Be sure to ask them to send you the test result write up.

[amesk]

Hi all,
We got Mo's blood test results back and she was just slightly anemic, but otherwise perfectly healthy. They concluded that there is nothing else we can do except make her comfortable for now. She is such a treasured part of our family and it is hard to know that her time with us is coming to an end.

[Drache613]

Hello,

Oh dear, I am so sorry about your girl. Is she still with you? Could they offer any type of
reason as to why they felt she was anemic? Has she ever laid any eggs before? You could
try to boost her levels, using a liquid mineral solution that has iron included.
If you can, keep her around 75-80 overnight, to help boost her system. It is never ever easy
having to watch your beautiful dragon slip away, with no apparent cause. Please let us know
how things are going.

Tracie

[amesk]

The vet did not really have an answer as to why she was anemic. We thought it could have been because she has not eaten insects in a few weeks. She has not laid any eggs before. We are keeping her warm at night to keep her cozy. She has been more awake today, but has not moved much on her own. It is so hard to watch her slip away, but I will keep you all posted. Thank you for your thoughtful responses : )

[loljelloclowdz]

I find it kinda ironic that a vet would say "Your pet has anemia, there's nothing to be done." Anemia in humans can be cured in a matter of several days by consuming vegetables with iron in them. Assuming you provide a daily salad, I don't think it makes sense for your pet to be so anemic unless she has genetic factors for it. You said she hasn't eaten bugs in a few weeks. Has she been brumating or just flat out refusing them? Also I have a few other questions.
Do you give carrots very frequently? (If so, stop.)
Did she fall recently?
Could her antibiotics be causing side effects that make her appear worse? (Don't stop the antibiotics, you gotta do the whole course, but if we knew what type they were, we could probably look up the side effects to see if they include lethargy. I'm on a cocktail of them myself and feel a whole bunch of effects.)
How often do you give a vitamin supplement?
How often do you give a calcium supplement?
Is she hydrated? (Excess wrinkles = boost the amount of leafy greens and offer water. She might not want to drink which is okay, just provide more greens.)
What color are her urates?
Is she bloated?
Does she poop as often as she normally would?
Are there any changes in her diet that may have occurred before this started?
Do you wash the produce you feed her?