Adult female not acting right, wobbling when walking

[Camel413]

My adult female has been acting strange the last few weeks. When she walks she kinda wobbles and almost falls down. Occasionally when she is getting out of her hammock she will fall over on her side and has a hard time righting herself. Also when she tries to eat a roach or worm she will till her head and completely miss several times. After she tries a few times and doesnt get it she will just give up and not eat at all. She hasnt been eating much so I have been giving her some babyfood with a syringe. I dont have to force feed her just put some on her snout and she will lick it off, but she isnt eating much of it.

It is kinda of hard to explain how she is acting but to me it seems like and inner ear infection or something. I know that when other animals have inner ear problems it will throw their balance off, this it was it seems like is happening. As a side note her eyes seem fine so I dont think it is a vision problem at all.

She is housed with another female that is basically the same size as her. Also since I know people will want to know the set up it is correct: basking area taken with infered temp gun 95 cool side about 80-85. Fresh reptisun 10.0 uvb about 2 months ago. Fed salad daily (collard, mustard, turnip greens, squash). The lights are on a timer set to about 13 hours of daylight. Roaches and supers are staples dusted 2-3 times a week with calcium, once a week with mutivit. I also give Vitamin B complex and Acidophiliz every once in a while.

Any one have any suggestions?

 

[TheWolfmanTom]

I would suggest a vet visit. If its an infection you will need antibiotics from the vet.

 

[Theresa20]

I don't know about the wobbling and walking part, but I'm pretty sure that the tilting head when eating and missing targets is normal. My beardie does that too, all the time, and I've heard plenty of stories of other dragons doing that as well.

I'm sure a vet check wouldn't hurt though.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Well, it could be an infection, a viral or bacterial infection but a blood test is needed to determine that.
How far away is she from the UVB light?
How long has she been acting this way for? It is a possibility she is having a calcium or vitamin issue. Sometimes, just because one is not having problems doesn't mean the other one wont. It is largely due to genetics.
Could she possibly have any eggs that she could have retained or has not laid yet? Has she ever laid any eggs?
The basking temps could be a little higher, say to around 100 or so. I realize that most adults do not like it above 105, so maybe increase it to a range or 95-102 or so.
Could she be dehydrated perhaps?
How do her urates look, are they soft or hard?
Balance issues such as that are not normal, & neither is wobbling. So we do need to figure out what is going on.

Tracie

 

[Camel413]

She has been acting this way for a few weeks. She has never laid eggs the 3 years that I have had her. Her urates look normal, white and not real hard. She absolutely loves her bath, she will just swim and swim and when I get her out she gets pretty mad at me. She gives me that look of "I wasnt done yet." She is about 12" away from the uvb light.

 

[spyder79]

first is the reptisun a tube or a compact?

also with uv flourescent bulbs you want her to be able to get within 6 inches of the light. the uv dispersion is greatly increased the further away they get which can cause them to not be able to process the calcium they are being given. she could be having issues from a calcium defficientcy (of course i am speculating you will need to take her to a vet to make certain). also you should dust her feeders with calcium 5 times a week and 2 with vits. and as was said above it would be better to have your temps at the basking site between 100-105 their internal temp needs to be 95 to allow for proper digestion and obviously 95 external will not equal 95 internal.

i hope this gets figured out soon and i hope she is ok.

 

[Camel413]

I was told by tracie not to dust 5 times a week for adults. My uvb is the tube not the compact, I know that the compacts are bad. I have tried to move the basking spot to a higher tempature a few times last year but she just doesnt want it that hot. If I go much above 95 she will never go near the basking spot.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Ok, thanks for answering those questions. At 12 inches, while the Reptisun 10 is a great light, it is not quite enough UVB emissions for her I don't think. At 6-8 inches it would greatly improve! Your flourescent tube bulb fixture does it have reflective backing built into it?
It might not hurt to increase the calcium to 4 times per week for a month or so, to give her system a boost along with moving the UVB light a little closer as well.
How is she doing today?
So no infertile eggs at all, well, some females never lay them while others do.
I know you mentioned that she wont bask if it is higher than 95, but perhaps you could try to raise it just a few degrees, say to 97 or 98 to see if that helps her out.
One thing about too low of basking temps is that it impedes the excretion of uric acid so that can cause kidney problems later on.
Could you post a picture of her for me?
Thanks.

Tracie

 

[Camel413]

Sorry for taking a while to reply, we are in the middle of moving so things are a bit hectic. I moved her closer to the UVB and bumped the temp us a little too. No change yet. I called my rep vet and they are booked for about 3 weeks. I do use a local vet that I really like but he is not a rep vet. Tracie if you remember I contacted you a while back about using this local vet, he did help when I had another dragon that had parisites. I just dont know if a regular vet would know what to look for with a "blood test."

 

[NeedleDragon]

it means shes not getting enough calcium try getting beardie calcium spray and spray it on any food u give her for a week
i think shell get better.or try buying a calcium light or get a new uvb light

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

I do remember talking to you about the fecal previously. You are right, a regular vet probably would not know what to look for with a blood test of a reptile. They might not know how to do a blood draw either.
Good that you moved her closer to the UVB light for now. I hope that will help her out.
How is she liking the temps right now?
Which vitamins do you use right now? She might be low in the B vitamins, that can cause behavior similiar to that also.
Is she staying hydrated too? You could also try mixing some water with some apple or grape juice to give her a little bit of sugar, her blood sugar might be low as well. There are several nutritional factors that it could be.

How is he doing today?

Tracie

 

[Camel413]

I thought it might be a vitamin and/or calcium deficiency. I have been giving her the Vitamin B complex that beautiful dragons sells. Also I have gave her a few doses of the liquid calcium glubinate. No change yet.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

How are things going today? I hope that the extra vitamins & the liquid calcium will help her out. Give her a little more time in case her levels were really off.
Keep me posted!

Tracie