Baby bearded dragon fell

[Ramirebert]

Hello everyone.

I had my roughly 5-month-old juvenile bearded dragon on my shoulder to take the things out of his tank to clean them, when all of a sudden he fell on the floor on his back. He was twitching bad for a few seconds and I picked him up very gently. It looked like his neck was broken because his head was just hanging, but its not. He wouldn't move although he was breathing, but very slowly to where it appeared he wasn't at all. I didn't know what to do so I put him in his tank to see if he would move around and he just stayed there. He trying walking but he couldn't, and he pooped but there was a little blood with it. I took him out and held him making sure he was okay. At this point I'm panicking. I put him on my bed a few minutes later and he started walking some, then I put him back in his tank. Did he go into shock? Is he hurt internally? I am only 18 and do not know what to do. He's my first lizard.

 

[Brittmar]

Hi there. I'm sorry to hear that your baby took a tumble. Are you absolutely sure that nothing is broken? It might be in your best interest to see if there is a reptile vet in your area that could check him out just to make absolutely sure.

 

[Ramirebert]

Well for a few weeks now, his arms have been swollen and we brought him to the vet. They told us we are doing everything right and gave us 10 days of inflammatory and antibiotic medicine but that did not work. We recently moved to Pennsylvania from Louisiana and we wonder if it's from the change in altitude or climate, or if it's gout or a bone disease. We don't know and didn't have the money for an xray. So from looking at him, I can't tell if anything is broken but he is moving normal now.

 

[Brittmar]

Well for a few weeks now, his arms have been swollen and we brought him to the vet. They told us we are doing everything right and gave us 10 days of inflammatory and antibiotic medicine but that did not work. We recently moved to Pennsylvania from Louisiana and we wonder if it's from the change in altitude or climate, or if it's gout or a bone disease. We don't know and didn't have the money for an xray. So from looking at him, I can't tell if anything is broken but he is moving normal now.

That's wonderful to hear that he's moving normal. Hopefully someone with more expertise will be along shortly to help you out

 

[AHBD]

Hi there, sorry to hear about your beardie's accident. Like the other poster mentioned it would be best to have him seen, but it does sound reassuring that he's moving around. The most troublesome thing is that there was blood in his poo....that could indicate internal bleeding. If you have any concern that that's a possibility then you should take him to the vet. Hopefully he'll be O.K.!

On a side note....PLEASE don't carry any beardie on your shoulder ! This is one of the biggest causes of accidents in beardies because they do not comprehend the distance to the floor. Because beardies seem so laid back, many owners are surprised when they jump or fall, but it happens a lot. There is more of a danger from carrying them on your shoulder than there is from keeping them on sand, and people would almost immediately point out a problem with sand but not mention the bigger risk of shoulder riding. So please pass the info along, a beardie on the shoulder may seem cool but it puts your pet in real danger.

 

[Ramirebert]

Hi there, sorry to hear about your beardie's accident. Like the other poster mentioned it would be best to have him seen, but it does sound reassuring that he's moving around. The most troublesome thing is that there was blood in his poo....that could indicate internal bleeding. If you have any concern that that's a possibility then you should take him to the vet. Hopefully he'll be O.K.!

On a side note....PLEASE don't carry any beardie on your shoulder ! This is one of the biggest causes of accidents in beardies because they do not comprehend the distance to the floor. Because beardies seem so laid back, many owners are surprised when they jump or fall, but it happens a lot. There is more of a danger from carrying them on your shoulder than there is from keeping them on sand, and people would almost immediately point out a problem with sand but not mention the bigger risk of shoulder riding. So please pass the info along, a beardie on the shoulder may seem cool but it puts your pet in real danger.

Thank you so much. I did not know that.