Hi everyone!
Over the course of 3-4 months, I've been posting lots of questions about my dragon, Drogon. I wanted to share my experience with you, especially if you're new to the forum. Unfortunately, Drogon was diagnosed with adenovirus, a common virus among bearded dragons.
What is adenovirus?
Adenovirus is pretty much like HIV in humans or FIV in cats. It's a chronic virus that causes a compromised immune system. Any beardie who tested positive or showing signs should be kept away from other dragons and live in a extra hygienic habitat, since their immune systems are already battling a virus.
My Story:
Ever since I got Drogon, I noticed he kept having reoccurring parasite infections. Normally, this isn't something to worry about, but in the back of my mind, I kept questioning why this was happening. At his first vet appointment at the exotic specialist, Drogon received a negative result for adeno, which is always good news, right?
Fast forward four years later, specifically to March 2023. Drogon was going through his yearly shed, but he seemed to be taking it worse than normal. Even after he stopped shedding, he wasn't eating, wasn't pooping, and I also noticed he had a head tremor. Some surmised it was just a weird tic, but coupled with the other symptoms, I took him to a local vet, since the exotic specialist is about an hour away from me. After my first visit, she suggested warm baths, believing he had bad constipation.
Unfortunately, this didn't help much. So we did a blood test and found his lymphocytes, or white blood cells, were double than normal, a true indication something was wrong.... also pointing to potential leukemia. I was devastated. How could this happen??
But the vet suggested visiting the local exotic specialist in my area. Can you imagine my surprise when the specialist compared results from his previous visit for a parasite infection and found his bloodwork was exactly the same! That's right: Drogon had double the lymphocytes in his blood for over a year! At first, I was very frustrated, especially since the another vet at the exotic specialist who handled his parasite problem didn't tell me that (still very annoyed).
Based on the specialist's experience and seeing Drogon's head tremors and stiff gate, she was very certain it was adenovirus.
But even after another cloaca test, his work came back negative!
The truth about Adenovirus:
According to my exotic vet, there is still so much we don't know about adenovirus. Does it have other variants like covid? What are the other symptoms? Based on her findings and research, the vet told me there is a study about adenovirus testing. Even if your dragon comes back negative, they can still be a carrier OR you might get a false negative result. Considering how many of us have multiple dragons, this is a scary thought. I wanted to share some of the symptoms you should be aware of in case you have a similar situation to mine.
Common adenovirus symptoms:
- Lethargic, sleepy behavior
-Hiding a lot
- Lack of appetite, especially if your dragon loves to eat
-Lack of bowel movements
-Cranky disposition
Most important: head tremors and a stiff gait. Sometimes, this can occur from low calcium levels, so it's important to check for this.
Prognosis:
Bearded dragons can live very long and normal lives, even with adeno. But it's important to never expose them to other dragons, which risks infection and your compromised beardie catching something. I've also learned that Drogon's disposition improved with syringe feeding critical care herbivore or omnivore mix on his bad days, and keeping the basking spot extra warm (obviously, give them a temperature gradient, but the increased temperature helps with their immune system).
I've always had a close bond with my baby boy, but this bond has blossomed into a mutual understanding since we both suffer from chronic conditions, him with adeno and me with my fibromyalgia. We have are good and bad days, but we can always comfort each other when needed.
Thank you for reading my story, and I hope this helps other dragon owners in the future.
Selkie
