Albi is having trouble breathing

[albithebeardie]

So I somewhat rescued Albi from an acquaintance who couldn't take care of him any more. She is pretty sure he is around 4 years old. I did my due diligence and have researched a ton on bearded dragons. I have had him in my care since February 11th. Since I have bought him I have bought him a new bulb for his heat lame (his had burnt out when I got him) A UVB lamp, and I have been feeding him mostly greens (kale, bokchoi, broccoli etc.) and crickets and horn worms and super worms (not all at the same time ) once or twice a week.
His shed started about two weeks ago and we are kind of in the home stretch all he really has left I think is his beard.
I have been giving him regular baths and been helping him with a soft bristled tooth brush and I haven't had any concerns there other than the fact he only swims on one side at a time.
After his bath today I put him back in his viv and left him to heat up and have his dinner (kale). After a while I missed him and took him out to cuddle and he was lying on my chest and his mouth was gaping. At first I'm not going to lie I thought it was cute and weird and than I started to get worried. I know they generally only gape when they are regulating their heat so the fact is opening and closing his mouth is quite odd. Than what really scared me was he made a sound I had never heard before it sounding like a wheeze and than I started listening more carefully and I could hear a clicking noise.

Honestly I am really worried after reading the stuff on the internet and I called a vet (who did't sound very experienced with reptiles) and the vet said he could have just eaten too quickly or eating crickets is hurting his throat..
I am really nervous and now his beard has gone black/grey (not the same as when he puffs it) and his beard feels really rigid..
He is in his viv sitting really weirdly.

Please Help I can't sleep and I love him so much

 

[AHBD]

Hi there....how is Albi doing this morning ? Is he breathing heavy or still wheezing ? Sometimes beardies do eat too quickly and breathe kind of hard after....is it possible that he might have even drank while in the bath and swallowed too much? Sometimes they do, and sometimes water goes down the " wrong pipe". Just keep him in the tank where it's warm and don't bother with a bath for the next few days. It's good to pat them dry + put them right back in the tank like you did after a bath, too so they don't get chilled. You can keep his night temps. around 78 -80 to boost his immune system as well. If he really is sick, try to find an experienced reptile vet who can give you antibiotics [ usually Baytril, generic is enrofloxacin ] Hopefully he'll get over this little spell + be fine.

 

[albithebeardie]

Hi there....how is Albi doing this morning ? Is he breathing heavy or still wheezing ? Sometimes beardies do eat too quickly and breathe kind of hard after....is it possible that he might have even drank while in the bath and swallowed too much? Sometimes they do, and sometimes water goes down the " wrong pipe". Just keep him in the tank where it's warm and don't bother with a bath for the next few days. It's good to pat them dry + put them right back in the tank like you did after a bath, too so they don't get chilled. You can keep his night temps. around 78 -80 to boost his immune system as well. If he really is sick, try to find an experienced reptile vet who can give you antibiotics [ usually Baytril, generic is enrofloxacin ] Hopefully he'll get over this little spell + be fine.

He is still breathing really heavy and he didn't really sleep all night (he usually sleeps all night+) and so I barely slept and when I did at around 5 an hour later he woke me up with this really weird noise and I only caught the tail end of what he was doing but it looked like he was attacking the glass but sort of coughing and his mouth was wide open. Now he looks okay but the sides of his mouth keep opening. I'm super worried..

 

[AHBD]

Is it possible for you to record it and post it on here [ if you can ]

 

[albithebeardie]

Is it possible for you to record it and post it on here [ if you can ]

The clicking noise is too faint to catch on video (I tried) and his breathing is sort of getting better but I just took him out of his viv for a second to see if he is still clicking (he is) and he was ice cold and his beard feels like there's a lump in it..

 

[AHBD]

If he's breathing better he might be getting over whatever the problem was. If his beard is hard he might have some food stuck in his throat....see if you ca get a look inside his mouth. If you think there's food stuck and he keeps struggling badly again, try to find an experienced vet, or any vet that might be able to dislodge the food. Most vets would have forceps to do so.

 

[albithebeardie]

Update!!!
I just took Albi out of this Viv before I left for school (my mom bf is going to take care of him during the day) he started coughing and his mouth got huge and I could see green and I sorta wanted to grab it because I thought it was kale he choked on but now I'm sort of wondering if it was mucus.. I really hate that I'm not home today with him..
Any thoughts?

 

[SDragon]

If it's mucous I'd take him straight to a vet as that combined with the breathing suggests the possibility of an RI.

It's impossible to say what it might be without seeing it. I'd have thought if he had something stuck he would have been doing more to try and dislodge but that is a guess no more.

I'd find a different vet though and quiz them on their experience of treating reptiles.

What are his temperatures at the moment?

You mentioned kale, does he eat a lot of this? Can you describe the diet?

 

[AHBD]

It sounds like he has some greens lodged in his throat....it's happened before on this forum. Either way it would be good to get him to a vet. It may go down on it's own, but he probably should be seen.

 

[albithebeardie]

His temps have been lower than I would like them to be at but I just bought him an under tank heater and I'm hoping that will help.. His diet is veggies mostly kale and Bok choi and once or twice a week crickets and a couple hornworms. My mom says he's looking good but honestly my mom doesn't know much about beardies I think I'm going to take him to the vet but I'm nervous about the price.. Generally how much do these things end up costing? I mean I love my baby and I will pay it I just need to wrap my head around it.

 

[SDragon]

How low are we talking? UTHs are not overly effective, also it really must be stated. A stronger bulb to get the correct hotspot is what you need, then if your home gets very cold at night a ceramic heater.

Is there any chance the lump you are feeling could have been developing longer than this recent incident? Has Kale been a staple for a long time? If so It might be worth mentioning it to the vet. I personally wouldn't use it as a staple.

I assume you are in the the U.S? Can't really advise on vet costs, if you call they will let you know the initial consultation cost, if it's a case of just removing something then I would expect this included in that. If it's something else then it will go up with possible tests and meds, well done for taking him. I'd definitely try to find a genuinely experienced reptile vet though.

 

[albithebeardie]

I just got home after my mom saying he is okay and everything. He seems to be acting okay. Breathing is normal the only things still concerning me is that A he hasn't pooped today ( he's very regular ) B the side of his mouth has been staying open ( he looks like a stroke victim )
C I'm letting him run around and normally he licks everything like every few steps he will lick the wall or a table leg and he hasn't done that at all.
I don't know how to post pictures so if someone could tell me that that would be awesome because I have a picture of his Viv and his mouth. Thank you everyone for the advice you have been giving.

 

[SDragon]

If you upload the image to an image hosting site like photo bucket or similar they will give you a url link.

When you post click the 'img' button which is above the message field then paste the image url into that.

Whislt you are worried about him, I'd keep him in his vivarium so he can thermoregulate happily and stay stress free.

Do you know what the exact temps are?

 

[albithebeardie]

<iframe width="480" height="360" src="http://s296.photobucket.com/user/Havana_Hibbard/embed/slideshow/"></iframe>

Okay I hope this worked
I'm not sure about his exact temps on his basking side because my temp gun got lost in a move with him and I have been meaning to buy a new one but normally they are 80 on the cool side and roughly 103 in his basking area

 

[SDragon]

You've used iframe tags not the img ones.

I'd definitely get a new gun and get that temp up to around 110.