beardie accidentally ate a green onion yesterday, black bearding & lethargic today

[magnolia]

Yesterday my 5 year old male bearded dragon was out in my garden with me and he pulled out a green onion that was growing and ate the whole thing, including roots and some dirt clumped on the roots (about 3-4 inches of green onion total). I didn't think much of it at the moment, but today since he's woken up he's had a solid black beard (with the black even stretching down to the sides of his torso) and been extremely lethargic, opening and shutting his eyes and barely moving. I didn't know until googling green onion & bearded dragons that onions are toxic for beardies.

In addition to the lethargy, he also regularly snaps his mouth open and shut in quick succession several times after breathing heavily, almost like he's dry heaving or retching. He'll do this maybe every 2-3 minutes for a total of 4-6 times within an hour. I've attached some videos of him doing this.

Today I've given him activated charcoal mixed with water based on dosing I found on a previous post, but I gave it to him a full 26-27 hours after he consumed the green onion so I'm worried that the green onion has been fully digested and is poisoning his system.

Is there anything else I can do for him immediately? Unfortunately there were no exotic vet appointments available in my area until May 6th -- which I did schedule -- but I'm worried about how far out that appointment is, given how sickly he seems today.

He uses a Repitsun T5 HO 10.0 UVB in his enclosure, with a 75w PAR36 Bluex halogen flood light as his basking light. The cool side of his enclosure is 76 - 81 F and his basking area is 100 - 106 F. He ate 3 superworms about 6 hours after the green onion yesterday but wouldn't eat anything else (including more superworms; his normal amount is 6-8 in a sitting). Today he had a very small poop in the morning that was normal consistency & wetness. He didn't want to eat anything today, whether bugs or vegetables.

 

[AHBD]

That question is beyond my skill set so these folks could answer that one better:
@Drache613
@AHBD
@Claudiusx

I think that the breathing problem might be from his struggle with the toxicity after eating the onion. I really don't know for certain that the a.b's should be stopped if Licky goes back to normal breathing soon but I would at least shorten the duration of the meds. One month's worth would be hard on his system.

 

[magnolia]

I think that the breathing problem might be from his struggle with the toxicity after eating the onion. I really don't know for certain that the a.b's should be stopped if Licky goes back to normal breathing soon but I would at least shorten the duration of the meds. One month's worth would be hard on his system.

I see, thank you for your input! I really don't want to cause any unnecessary stress to his system since the green onion toxicity has already been such a huge shock to it; he was very touch and go on the day I posted.

Licky's continuing to improve today, yesterday and the day before he barely moved at all but today he's been more active and more like his old self. He even wanted to come out of his enclosure, where he walked around a bit and did some exploring, even climbing up to the windowsill so he can sit and watch outside (his favorite hobby).

 

[AHBD]

That's good progress ! Is he breathing better as well ?

 

[magnolia]

That's good progress ! Is he breathing better as well ?

Unfortunately he is still periodically breathing extremely heavily. I haven't seen him do the rapid succession mouth snapping today yet, but I also haven't been home all day so I can't be certain he hasn't done it while I wasn't observing.

 

[AHBD]

O.K better to keep him on the meds. then to be sure i's not an R.I
See how he does day by day. It still might be recuperation period from the green onion though.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

I agree, it is possible that his symptoms could still stem from the green onion ingestion. Reptiles tend
to have a slower metabolism & things stay in their system longer than in mammals making it harder to
detoxify.
It is ok to keep him on the antibiotics for a short bit if his breathing is off just in the case he does have a
slight respiratory issue going on.
I hope that he continues to improve!

Tracie

 

[magnolia]

Hello,

I agree, it is possible that his symptoms could still stem from the green onion ingestion. Reptiles tend
to have a slower metabolism & things stay in their system longer than in mammals making it harder to
detoxify.
It is ok to keep him on the antibiotics for a short bit if his breathing is off just in the case he does have a
slight respiratory issue going on.
I hope that he continues to improve!

Tracie

thank you for this information!
he's been energetic today, running around outside his enclosure a bit and VERY squirmy and eager to escape when I try to give him his antibiotics. But he still always has a black beard and is periodically breathing very hard.

I've also noticed both yesterday and today that Licky won't fully close his mouth and always has his mouth open just a little bit, my guess is to get more air through his mouth (pictures attached). Prior to the green onion his mouth is almost always closed when he's at rest, unless he's gaping while basking.

Licky also pooped today but it was drier than normal and his urate was hard and shriveled, is that a sign of dehydration?

He doesn't drink when I put water drops on his nose (and I've never seen him drink from the water bowl in his enclosure, even prior to getting sick), but I will be buying hornworms as Sue E. suggested to help keep him hydrated while he's on the antibiotics

 

[Sue E.]

Is his beard getting progressively darker since you saw the vet or is it the same? The open mouth, is it the same as when you saw the vet or more often/more open? I cant answer your question on what is going on with him but any worsening of his condition since you last saw the vet might help provide some insight.
@AHBD
@Drache613

 

[magnolia]

Is his beard getting progressively darker since you saw the vet or is it the same? The open mouth, is it the same as when you saw the vet or more often/more open? I cant answer your question on what is going on with him but any worsening of his condition since you last saw the vet might help provide some insight.

It's the same as on the day I saw the vet, which was already improved from the day after he ate the green onion (4/24). On 4/24 his beard was the most solidly black I had ever seen it, especially since it extended all the way down his torso; I would say on a scale of 1-10 it was 10/10 blackness. On 4/25 and 4/26 it was improved, no longer going to his torso, and more of a dark grey, maybe a 8/10 in blackness. Today felt the same, maybe a smidge lighter like 7.5/10 blackness

Re: the open mouth, I don't remember seeing him doing it on the day I brought him to the vet (4/25). I only noticed the constant little gap in his mouth yesterday and today (4/26 & 4/27). He was still doing occasionally doing the rapid mouth snapping on 4/25, but I haven't seen him do it yesterday nor today. However I also have been out of the house both days and not monitoring him as closely as I did on 4/24 and 4/25, so he could have still been doing it while I was gone.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

So, overall, his beard is not as black? Is his behavior normal though, he is basking, eating, etc?
Are you still giving a dose of activated charcoal daily right now?

Tracie

 

[magnolia]

Hello,

So, overall, his beard is not as black? Is his behavior normal though, he is basking, eating, etc?
Are you still giving a dose of activated charcoal daily right now?

Tracie

Yes, overall his beard is not as black as the day when he was most severely sick. His behavior is maybe 70-80% back to normal: he's basking, eating, and eager for time outside his enclosure where he can run around and sit at the window, but he doesn't have his full appetite back yet (eats smaller amounts of food) and isn't quite as active yet as he was prior to eating the green onion. But overall he seems as alert, curious, and responsive as he usually is!

I haven't been giving him the activated charcoal since he started the antibiotics because I was worried the charcoal might negate the effect of the medicine. Would you recommend that I still give him activated charcoal daily?

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

OH I had forgotten he was on the antibiotics. That is probably why his beard is a little darker because
they tend to upset their system. Be sure to keep him well hydrated & try some probiotics for him in
case his tummy isn't feeling optimal.
I hope that he is feeling better soon.

Tracie

 

[magnolia]

Hello,

OH I had forgotten he was on the antibiotics. That is probably why his beard is a little darker because
they tend to upset their system. Be sure to keep him well hydrated & try some probiotics for him in
case his tummy isn't feeling optimal.
I hope that he is feeling better soon.

Tracie

I just ordered some Reptophilus for him yesterday, hoping to get him started on it soon!

He's already doing much better, yesterday was the first day I would say he wasn't black bearding all day long (still some occasional grey bearding). His other respiratory symptoms also seem to be on the mend: I see less labored breathing, and he is able to fully close his mouth now (though every now and then he'll open it up a gap).

 

[Sue E.]

I just ordered some Reptophilus for him yesterday, hoping to get him started on it soon!

He's already doing much better, yesterday was the first day I would say he wasn't black bearding all day long (still some occasional grey bearding). His other respiratory symptoms also seem to be on the mend: I see less labored breathing, and he is able to fully close his mouth now (though every now and then he'll open it up a gap).

Thats awesome! So good to hear!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That's great he is doing even better today, so very little black bearding. It does take time for toxins to pass through their system.
I hope the Reptophilus gets there to you soon.
Is he eating anything yet?

Tracie