Tay1Day

Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Shenron
Hello,

Oh no, I hate to hear that. Is her beard dark?
I would probably stop giving medications right now
& focus on getting her system boosted up some.
Or they recommend keeping her on the cisapride
for now? Medications definitely can cause marked
lethargy & lack of appetite.
At the moment, I wouldn't let her brumate since she
isn't 100% right now. It's positive that the vet had
mentioned the values had improved so that is a
great sign.
Keep trying with her, she is hanging in there. Are
you able to get some food into her since she isn't
eating on her own?

Let us know how she is doing.
Tracie
Hi Tracie,
Her beard is not dark and she is showing no signs of stress. She was actually quite active yesterday (for her, at least.) She held herself up well and moved around her enclosure a bit. The vet just started her on the cisapride last week, and he just called me to check in but I missed the call. He advised that cisapride does not generally have side effects, so I am wondering if she is still working through the antibiotics that were in her system. I think he wants to keep her on it for now to see if it kicks her digestion into gear. I am hand feeding her daily still. She did drink water on her own yesterday after I flicked my finger around in her water dish and she realized there was water in it. She got lots of cuddles and seemed more alert than she has been. She seems to have good and bad days these days.
 

Drache613

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hello!

I am happy to hear that her beard isn't dark & doesn't seem to be stressed right now. I hope that she is
feeling better, & it sounds like she is more active. The antibiotics can be hard on them, but if you are
giving probiotics that should help her tummy. You can also give raw unpasteurized honey a few times a
week to help boost the immune system.
I hope she has many more good days, over the not so good days. She has her mom to help her!

Keep us posted on her!

Tracie
 

Tay1Day

Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Shenron
Hello!

I am happy to hear that her beard isn't dark & doesn't seem to be stressed right now. I hope that she is
feeling better, & it sounds like she is more active. The antibiotics can be hard on them, but if you are
giving probiotics that should help her tummy. You can also give raw unpasteurized honey a few times a
week to help boost the immune system.
I hope she has many more good days, over the not so good days. She has her mom to help her!

Keep us posted on her!

Tracie
Good morning,
This was not the update I wanted to give. Two weeks ago I brought her in for her ultrasound to see if it's poop or free fluid in her abdomen. The vet found that she was full of fluid and follicles due to never being bred. He believed those follicles became infected, so he told me our next step would be a spay and exploratory surgery to remove the follicles and fluid.
Last Thursday was her spay. He called me when they did pre-op bloodwork and said her red blood cell count dropped significantly since her bloodwork last month. He said it was a high risk to operate, but advised that if she passed during surgery, she would go peacefully and painlessly. I agreed to proceed. He called me shortly after once he had opened her up and stated that her organs were absolutely ravaged by cancer. We made the impossible decision to euthanize her while she was under anesthesia.
I appreciate all of your time through all of this. My heart is so heavy, and I feel immense guilt for not catching this earlier but it seemed like nobody knew what was happening to her.

We will have her ashes back sometime this week.

Thank you again.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 5
Good morning,
This was not the update I wanted to give. Two weeks ago I brought her in for her ultrasound to see if it's poop or free fluid in her abdomen. The vet found that she was full of fluid and follicles due to never being bred. He believed those follicles became infected, so he told me our next step would be a spay and exploratory surgery to remove the follicles and fluid.
Last Thursday was her spay. He called me when they did pre-op bloodwork and said her red blood cell count dropped significantly since her bloodwork last month. He said it was a high risk to operate, but advised that if she passed during surgery, she would go peacefully and painlessly. I agreed to proceed. He called me shortly after once he had opened her up and stated that her organs were absolutely ravaged by cancer. We made the impossible decision to euthanize her while she was under anesthesia.
I appreciate all of your time through all of this. My heart is so heavy, and I feel immense guilt for not catching this earlier but it seemed like nobody knew what was happening to her.

We will have her ashes back sometime this week.

Thank you again.
I am so sorry to hear about her--- cancer seems to be common these days - I dont know what is going on w/ that but it just seems so common now- I feel for you it is so hard when this happens and dont beat your self up - you did the best you could for her -- again I am sorry --
 

Tay1Day

Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Shenron
I am so sorry to hear about her--- cancer seems to be common these days - I dont know what is going on w/ that but it just seems so common now- I feel for you it is so hard when this happens and dont beat your self up - you did the best you could for her -- again I am sorry --
Thank you so much. I'm seeing it often as well. I suspect it's because beardies cannot be exported from Australia, so the genetic diversity is really lacking, which makes them much more prone to diseases. I really don't know if I will be bringing another beardie into the family any time soon. I had such a special bond with my girl, and I am so worried I will never have that again and it'll break my heart.

It's crazy because none of the tests we did for her previously (4 blood tests!) showed any hint that it could have been cancer. Typically, beardies develop GNT, which causes their glucose levels to spike. The only questionable value on her bloodwork was her red blood cell count.

I wish I knew then what I know now. Maybe I could have caught it sooner, I don't know. I am just sad that she's gone, but thankful she is no longer suffering. She was so sweet through it all.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 5
Thank you so much. I'm seeing it often as well. I suspect it's because beardies cannot be exported from Australia, so the genetic diversity is really lacking, which makes them much more prone to diseases. I really don't know if I will be bringing another beardie into the family any time soon. I had such a special bond with my girl, and I am so worried I will never have that again and it'll break my heart.

It's crazy because none of the tests we did for her previously (4 blood tests!) showed any hint that it could have been cancer. Typically, beardies develop GNT, which causes their glucose levels to spike. The only questionable value on her bloodwork was her red blood cell count.

I wish I knew then what I know now. Maybe I could have caught it sooner, I don't know. I am just sad that she's gone, but thankful she is no longer suffering. She was so sweet through it all.
Yes it is so sad- maybe Tracie can help w/ this
@Drache613
 

Drache613

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hello,

I am truly sorry for your loss, it is very sad. I realize it has become a fairly common ailment. Honestly,
I believe that a large number of cases are due to the food chain & what the ingredients are in the
commercialized foods. The commercialized foods contain a majority of corn & soy products most of
which are genetically modified. They cause a myriad of health issues.
All we as keepers can do is continue to do research, document, & educate ourselves to try & improve
the diets of our dragons.
They hide illness very well, so by the time they are showing outward signs it's often too late. The heart
break of losing a dragon to something you never knew the ailment of what caused the illness in the first
place is hard to come to terms with.
It is a gift, to form a bond with your dragon. In time, I believe you will have that again.

Tracie
 

Langkelley

New member
Forgive me if this is posted elsewhere, but I cannot find any other threads where anemia is treated with Baytril.

I got my girl Shenron from my sister in 2021. In that time, I have learned a lot. We gradually went on a diet with assistance from her vet because, as an adult BD, she was being given too many bugs. She has lost 41 grams since I first got her, and is currently 531 grams. She's still a big girl, but we're working on it.

Shenron started showing signs of illness about a month ago. She became lethargic and would not eat anything besides super worms. Her tongue and gums became extremely pale. I started using worms to trick her into eating her greens. She is on a calcium with/without D3 and vitamin regimen (vitamins once a week, calcium with and without D3 the rest of the week, not combined with vitamins.)

I took Shenron to an exotics vet this past Monday (it's Friday now). It took a while because they only have one exotics vet in their office and he was extremely booked up, but I got her in as soon as I knew something was wrong. They ran a fecal and a basic blood panel. She has some pinworms, but not a high amount. She is, however, anemic. The vet advised it may be due to an infection, but did not indicate what kind and did not seem to stress any urgency in her current situation. He said she was a "fine specimen" and well cared for, and otherwise healthy. She is approx. 9 years old.

Her vet gave her a dose of wormer but did not send me home with any. Her vet also prescribed her Baytril. He did not have the liquid, so he told me to quarter the 22mg chewable tablets, mix with a small amount of water, and administer via syringe every other day. He also suggested to feed her Kaytee baby bird hand feeding formula, as she is not currently eating much due to her lethargy. As BD's are omnivores, I reached out to a reptile specialist for a second opinion and she advised to give her Critical Care Omnivore formula instead, so I have been creating a slurry of that plus collard greens/dandelion greens + a small amount of her calcium.

The vet she is seeing does not seem super knowledgeable about BD's - he gave me a LOT of dated husbandry and care advice that I will not be following. We are re-testing her blood at the same clinic Sept 15th, but I will be taking her elsewhere for treatment if her red blood cell count is still low. In the meantime, I will be bringing her to a different exotics vet who seems to be more qualified to treating reptiles for yet another opinion and a full blood panel with organ function.

Temps and husbandry info are all on my profile, but to my understanding, she is all good there. Since her calcium and phos levels were good, the vet advised that her husbandry is not the issue. I just need to know if this treatment plan sounds solid to you guys. Has anyone else had a dragon bounce back from anemia? What was the cause and treatment plan?

I know a lot about these guys, but I am not a vet and I don't see anything online about treating anemia as an infection with Baytril, and I am scared that if this is not the correct plan, she will suffer for longer and won't recover.

I am bringing her to the other vet next week. It was the soonest we could be seen.

Money is no object. She is my everything and I will do anything it takes to get her better, even if it means opening up a line of credit and maxing a card out. I don't care. I just want to help her. Seeing her so sick and lethargic breaks my heart.

Thank you all in advance. I sincerely hope I am doing the right thing for her. I'm doing everything I possibly can, and I am being extremely careful with the advice I take. I remember how I almost ran out of money and was looking for ways to earn it on the Internet. I didn't want to invest much and was looking for a game where you can make a deposit from 2 dollars. Then I came across good choice and it's a really great resource. There I found a game on which I was able to win a fairly significant amount of money. Therefore, I can confidently recommend it to you.
I liked the fact that you are ready for anything for your pet. It really shows your love for him. Thank you!
 
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ChileanTaco

Sub-Adult Member
Beardie name(s)
Taco
commercialized foods. The commercialized foods contain a majority of corn & soy products most of
which are genetically modified. They cause a myriad of health issues.
All we as keepers can do is continue to do research, document, & educate ourselves to try & improve
the diets of our dragons.

That's something that makes sense (and also for myself for this reason I avoid highly processed foods to an extend that people often ask me why I'm not eating X, "but it's just"... and me thinking "no, that's not 'just', that's unhealthy").
Regarding a dragon, I was just wondering: Which kinds of food could that be? I think of feeding insects and feeding leafy greens and some other vegetables - none of them are any corn or soy products or highly processed.
Are you referring to what the bugs eat? (I see some people raising them on breakfast cereals. I use oatmeal and veggies.)
Or are you referring to pellets? (I have seen such exist, but I wonder if a dragon would eat them at all - mine would refuse pretty sure at it's neither a leaf nor a colorful vegetable nor a wiggly bug.)
Or regarding which kind of emergency food to use (baby food, "critical care")?

So I'm asking especially because a healthy diet is a top priority for me (for myself and for any pets I care for), and I don't really see which kinds of food could be an issue for a bearded dragon with its specific eating habits. For a e.g. bird or rabbit - tons of pellet food, snacks... available - I could see more easily why and how somebody might get some food that's not good for them.
 

Drache613

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hello,

Yes, overall in general, a good number of people do feed commercialized feeds for their insects which
is a big issue. Some do feed pellets which are corn & or soy based or both. The breakfast cereals for
feeds are ok, as long as it is organic. It's very difficult to find good quality foods I know, so just trying to
start awareness of things that can greatly affect animal health.

Tracie
 

ChileanTaco

Sub-Adult Member
Beardie name(s)
Taco
I just feed my feeders organic oatmeal and organic vegetables (and my dragon the insects, of course, and organic vegetables). As I also buy them for myself, I don't find it complicated (we are a "cook each day, bake our own bread, never convenience food, only buy raw ingredients, it's muesli and not froot loops" household ;) ) - but I have seen regarding when I had to rehome other pets (hermit crabs*) that many possible new owners tried to talk about "but they can also live on pellets, or?" (often these were the same people who said they "don't need" the tank as they "already have one"... half the size), as they found it complicated to feed fresh veggies... likely as they don't buy them for their own meals.

*felt so sorry when I had to rehome them - but I had to move long-distance, and they were (are?) not allowed on planes :(
 
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I can feel her staring into my soul demanding food
She was having a staring contest with a mealworm. I guess I never taught her to not play with her food, lol.
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