Beardie ate a toad! But puked it up. Next steps?

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JenFid

Sub-Adult Member
Hi all - well I never thought I'd find myself posting here after all these years but here I am. The subject says it all but here are the details:

My 6 yo female beardie Starling snatched a toad while my husband had her out in the yard, unbeknownst to him. I was at work unfortunately so had to find this all out by text. He said she had a huge poop on the couch, but on closer inspection he saw it was actually a large toad, along with her greens/squash from last night. I panicked almost immediately because I know toads/frogs are toxic and I've read too many horror stories from this very forum about what happens to beardies who eat them.

So he immediately gave her a soak and forced her to have a CC of water in addition. A couple hours later he gave her some more water. I just got home from work and gave her another 10 minute soak until she wanted out. She is not lethargic - she's quite alert, basking fine, walking fine, but black beard.

I'm hoping the fact that she puked the toad up saved her from getting really sick and possibly dying. She had it in her stomach maybe 2-3 hours. She obviously doesn't feel good but isn't showing signs to make me think she's getting worse at all. I want to know what I can do to help - slurry (she has no appetite right now obviously)? Pedialyte bath? I'm terrified of going to sleep tonight but I can't keep her up all night - should I put CHEs in her tank so she can sleep but keep the temp up? Anything else I can't think of? Try and bring her to the vet tomorrow if she isn't improving (obviously I will if she starts getting worse)?

I will upload the pic my husband sent me of the toad. He thinks it's a basic American toad.
edit: here's the pic. Left is her meal from yesterday that wasn't digested yet, right is the toad
full
 

JenFid

Sub-Adult Member
Original Poster
Yes, I actually have an emergency bug kit for her but wasn't sure if that was necessary since she already puked. It's probably 5 years old though, not sure if those go bad or not.

edit - went ahead and gave her the charcoal per the dosing instructions (thank you Tracie/Drache613 for always providing clear instructions for these things!). I didn't realize it helped absorb toxins, I thought it was always just to get them to puke ASAP. She didn't enjoy the dose but she didn't puke it up. In the interim she's gotten more active and her beard has become noticeably less black, so it seems like she is starting to feel better.
 

Drache613

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hello,

Wow, that is really surprising she is doing so well, all things considered! Is her beard still
black or is it starting to recede back to normal color?
You can definitely give activated charcoal if you do have some. If you decide to give that, I
can help with dosing. I would just need an estimated weight for her.
Has she shown any interest in eating? I would keep her a little warmer overnight, around
75-80, to boost her system right now. Is she drinking water too?

Tracie
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
How is she feeling today? I'm glad you had a charcoal kit on hand. I also really like that Tracie's kits have easy to read and easy to put together dosing since when you need those, it tends to be in a whirlwind state. I keep one of those kits near Darwin at all times (in the pocket of his travel bag).
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
What kind of toad ?

Many toads are highly toxic if ingested , having toxin glands in their skin.

I'd take the dragon to a reptile vet IMMEDIATELY , a single toad can kill a 6ft long goanna , or a 15 ft long esterine crocodile .

This is a common problem in NW WA,NT, Qld and more so in northern NSW now ( as invasive cane toads are spreading ).
Signs of (cane) toad poisoning
profuse salivation, drooling and/or frothing from the mouth
very red and slimy gums
pawing at the mouth
vomiting
disorientation
shivers and/or tremors
muscle rigidity or spasms
convulsions or seizures
very rapid heart rate and/or heartbeat irregularities
death

First aid measures
Call your Vets clinic or your local Vet Emergency Care and advise them of the toad poisoning incident
Using a wet cloth, gently and thoroughly wipe the inner surfaces of the mouth, that is the gums, tongue, and roof of the mouth as well as the outer surfaces of the mouth for 10 to 15 minutes, rinsing the cloth out after each wipe
Washing of the mouth with a hose or tap is not recommended due to the possibility of water entering the lungs
After this time, transport your dog for veterinary assessment.
 

JenFid

Sub-Adult Member
Original Poster
Drache613":2utft8h7 said:
Hello,

Wow, that is really surprising she is doing so well, all things considered! Is her beard still
black or is it starting to recede back to normal color?
You can definitely give activated charcoal if you do have some. If you decide to give that, I
can help with dosing. I would just need an estimated weight for her.
Has she shown any interest in eating? I would keep her a little warmer overnight, around
75-80, to boost her system right now. Is she drinking water too?

Tracie
Yes she seems to be doing just fine, I'm so thankful!

After I gave her the charcoal on Wednesday night all seemed OK, I made her lay in her basking spot until we went to bed and I put the CHE in there to keep that part of her tank in the 80s. When I woke her up yesterday morning she was very alert and black beard was almost entirely gone except for some dusting of grey on her cheeks. She made a small white liquid urate only poo that I assume was due to the charcoal. No interest in food right away. I took her outside several times for some sun (her favorite). Luckily I work from home Thurs/Fri.
Around noon it was back to business as usual for her - aka not wanting to be in her tank, sprinting around the house, trying to get outside. She ate 4 superworms (all I had left!) but wasn't interested in greens until around 2pm, I had her outside again and she accepted a handful of clover from me but wasn't interested in anything else - usually clover she'll eat by the handfuls and follow it up with butternut squash. That's actually what that huge wad is next to the toad in the picture.
She didn't drink any water besides what we forced her and her multiple soaks. That's not unusual for her, in the time since I had her as a baby I've seen her actually drink water from her bath maybe 3 times. I just gave her another soak and managed to get about half a CC of water into her (she'll do anything she can to not open her mouth for a plunger lol). Sending my husband out to get fresh worms and I'll try offering some greens/squash once she's warmed up after the bath.

I can't believe how lucky we got, especially after the stories I saw of a beardie even just biting a toad and nearly dying, much less eating a whole one. Maybe because she had all that other food in her stomach already? Either way I'm glad I bought that charcoal kit all those years ago!
 

JenFid

Sub-Adult Member
Original Poster
One more small update: after her bath I offered her some butternut squash and she ate a bunch! Just a few minutes ago my husband came home and she got a couple nice big hornworms that she pretty much inhaled. She's pretty contentedly basking now - didn't want the clover I offered but I'm sure she's full after those worms. I think she's almost back to 100%!
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Most of the native toads in the U.S are not anything more than mildly toxic. It sounds like your girl is doing just fine but poor toad ! :(
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
AHBD":yd0zi6y4 said:
Most of the native toads in the U.S are not anything more than mildly toxic. It sounds like your girl is doing just fine but poor toad ! :(

It's tough being a toad sometimes... =/
 
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