Baby Beardy not breathing properly- One more Question..

[Kalyn876]

Hey I hope someone can help me figure this one out as I have been pouring over webistes and have found little..

I bought a baby beardy from pestmart just over a week ago. All was well he was eating tons, pooping everyday (Very healthy looking), drinking water off my finger and so on. I have his basking spot at 105 degrees and the cooler side at 85 degrees with a hideout. He never uses the hideout but I keep it there just in case. I am using a Exo-Terra Repti-glo 10.0 desert compact coil 10 to 12 inches away. He always has access to greens and beardy bites and he was eating 15-20 crickets a day. I dust the crickets in calcium one out of three feedings a day he gets vitamin/ minerals once a week.

Today i came home at lunch and fed him as per usual. He looked great so I went back to work...I got home about 5pm and he is now only breathing when his mouth is open. When he closes his mouth he holds his breath for a good 20 seconds until his body forces him to exhale through his mouth using his beard as well. When he keeps his mouth open he manages to breath consecutive breaths until he closes his mouth. His nasal passages look clear and there is no mucus whatsoever.. I noticed his carpet was wet around his water dish probably from him splashing around. There was also quite a commotion around my house today as new gravel was being packed down in my back alley. This shakes the whole house pretty badly including his tank... He was also rubbing his face on his rock fairly aggressively?

I don't know if it's stress or an RI?? I don't think hes overheating...

Please help me

 

[H31d1]

Hi there im no expert but was hoping just to bump up the page.

what are you using to measure the temps in the viv?

I see your using a compact coil, personally these bulbs are not rated very well. Depending on where your from the best fluorescent tubes are reptiSUN 10 or the arcadia D3.

Only other question is how big is your water dish and how much water is in it? Personally i dont leave a water bowl in the viv as it can raise humiditiy levels, also i guess there is a possibilty especially having a baby beardy that it could drown or inhale water if left unattended. I find giving baths whilst monitoring them at all times much easier.

hows your beardy doing now?

I hope someone can give you the answers your look for

 

[Kalyn876]

I use a temp gun, I have now removed the water dish. It is 6am here and he is still forcibly breathing through his mouth

 

[Kalyn876]

He is still eating about 8-9 crickets in a feeding, about 30 a day.. He also makes a click when he forces the exhale. He is also shedding only his bottom lip line?

 

[AHBD]

First off, don't worry about the shedding, it always comes in stages, sometimes they look a bit raggedy, and yes, that would cause the face rubbing to loosen the skin. Second, yes, I'm afraid it sounds like a R.I......how big is the tank he's in ? As the other poster said, removing the water bowl because if he's splashing around in it, then there is extra humidity because the reptile carpet would hold the water and create a humid atmosphere. Again, list your set - up, tank size, etc, because in a very small tank it would be more likely to create a high humidity level. The good thing it sounds like he's still eating like a champ. He will probably need vet attention. Sometimes you can catch it early and just increase night temps. to about 80 -85 degrees and this will help clear it up.

 

[Kalyn876]

He is in a 33gal tank. I have it partitioned off so he gets about 23 gallons. About two feet long by a foot wide. I turned his under tank heater on last night to keep ambient air around 80 degrees no change yet

 

[Kalyn876]

He just pooped looks good as far as the naked eye can see. I'm gonna take it with me to the vet today, he's not lethargic or anything just breathing funny. Now he's arm waving little cutie!

 

[Kalyn876]

I have removed the water dish and put newspaper down instead of turf.

 

[Kalyn876]

It's 930am and he is at my vet, they are all booked up but they are going to squeeze him in. Still any comments would be greatly appreciated

 

[AHBD]

Hi Kalyn, hopefully you can nip this in the bud, and again, the fact that he's in good health [ eating, etc.] is def. on your side. He should recover quickly [ I hope ] Post an update when you get out of the vets.

 

[GeckoGarden]

If it was under the 14 days, I would have brought him into petsmart and have them pay for the vet bill.

 

[Kalyn876]

If it was under the 14 days, I would have brought him into petsmart and have them pay for the vet bill.

I didn't realize I could.. Oh well he's worth it

 

[randommonks]

If it was under the 14 days, I would have brought him into petsmart and have them pay for the vet bill.

I didn't realize I could.. Oh well he's worth it

Well what they say they'll do is give you a refund for your money and either exchange it for a different bd or they can notify you when/if the bd recovers after they take it to the vet. Honestly, I would have taken him myself , since I'm not sure if they consider the beardie more or their bottomline. You could take your vet bill to the Petsmart you bought him at along with your receipt, and ask the manager if he could either refund you the price of the beardie or maybe give you some future discounts. Never hurts to ask

 

[Kalyn876]

So all finished at the vet, because he is so small diagnostic tests arent really plausible.. The vet feels it is either a RI or he inhaled something, we are starting antibiotics to try and clear this up. I am also going to go to the health food store for some asidopolis or soy yogurt any comments on which is better and how much to give? Also do I give it with the antibiotics or wait a few hours or before?

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

You can give the antibiotics first, in the morning. Then, wait until the afternoon or so, to give a probiotic such as the acidophiliz or the non dairy soy yogurt. They are both fine, so whichever one you want to use will work for him.
Which antibiotic is your baby on? Make sure you get extra oral fluids to keep him from getting dehydrated.

I hope he feels better soon.

Tracie