Hi guys! Hades has been dragging his back legs which are clearly about to shed. He has been fine up until this point and has been eating, pooping, etc. Regularly. He’s in a 40 gal with a 150 watt basking bulb and a T8 10.0 ReptiSun UVB mounted underneath his viv lid. The bulb isn’t even a month old. He has a diet of dandelion greens, butternut squash and crickets.
Last time he was shedding he refused to use his back leg, but I freaked out and took him to the vet. Nothing was wrong that the vet could see after x-rays and he miraculously got better after finishing his shed on his legs. Is this something that some Beardies normally do because of the discomfort of shedding or should I be really worried? Attached a pic below, am working on putting some more weight on him!
Hi there, irregular sheds like that are totally normal and would have nothing to do with lack of mobility. Are you positive he's really not moving them or is he just being lethargic ? It may just be coincidence since you said that this happened last time. Do you use a calcium supplement ? Can you get a video of him moving around ?
Hi there, irregular sheds like that are totally normal and would have nothing to do with lack of mobility. Are you positive he's really not moving them or is he just being lethargic ? It may just be coincidence since you said that this happened last time. Do you use a calcium supplement ? Can you get a video of him moving around ?
He is dragging them behind him but I know he is able to move them. As he was using them to climb onto my hand during a bath. I do give him a calcium supplement once a day with his feeders. Am at work currently but will try to get a video when I’m home!
The UVB is inside the tank approx how far from the basking distance ? And is there a cover over the UVB bulb --- if there is a plastic cover over the bulb take it off --- the UVB rays are being blocked and make sure your distance is directly over head approx 6-8 inches from basking decor
Karrie
The UVB is inside the tank approx how far from the basking distance ? And is there a cover over the UVB bulb --- if there is a plastic cover over the bulb take it off --- the UVB rays are being blocked and make sure your distance is directly over head approx 6-8 inches from basking decor
Karrie
The current pictures you have posted, is that recent, correct?
What type & brand of calcium & vitamins are you using for him & how often do you use
the supplements?
For the crickets, what type of dry feed/gutload & other foods do you feed your crickets
before feeding them to your dragon?
There seems to be swelling on his feet/ankles slightly as well as some starting on his
front hands/wrist area. I am hoping it is not gout developing for him.
To be proactive, try to get some black or tart cherry juice extract to give to him daily. Start
with .5ml to 1ml daily. You can give it straight or diluted for extra oral fluids, too.
The current pictures you have posted, is that recent, correct?
What type & brand of calcium & vitamins are you using for him & how often do you use
the supplements?
For the crickets, what type of dry feed/gutload & other foods do you feed your crickets
before feeding them to your dragon?
There seems to be swelling on his feet/ankles slightly as well as some starting on his
front hands/wrist area. I am hoping it is not gout developing for him.
To be proactive, try to get some black or tart cherry juice extract to give to him daily. Start
with .5ml to 1ml daily. You can give it straight or diluted for extra oral fluids, too.
They are recent! I use Repti-Cal for the calcium and herptivite for his other vitamin supplement. The crickets are fed Flucker’s cubes and dandelion greens with some butternut squash. I hope not either. His limbs usually aren’t that swollen - could it be because he’s shedding? Noticed his front legs turning pale this morning. But I’ll keep an eye on it. Picked up some black cherry juice anyways, and some applesauce just in case he is impacted. Will keep you updated!
Update: I got Hades some black cherry juice and applesauce. He loves the juice and ate a little applesauce. I’m starting to think he’s impacted as he hasn’t pooped in a few days. I’ve tried warm baths and belly massages but no luck. Does anyone have any advice?
What are you feeding him? Any insects bigger than what he can eat ? If not let him go on his own - what goes in does come out- do you have good basking temps and good UVB ? NO coils -- you can try some baby prunes or sweet potato or squash --
Karrie
What are you feeding him? Any insects bigger than what he can eat ? If not let him go on his own - what goes in does come out- do you have good basking temps and good UVB ? NO coils -- you can try some baby prunes or sweet potato or squash --
Karrie
He grabbed a piece of squash I was letting him bite from my fingers the other day. Was way too big for him but that’s all that I can think of that would cause this. He’s on reptile carpet so the substrate isn’t the cause either
He has good basking temps with his 150 watt bulb and a good ReptiSun T8 10.0 UVB that is a tube and mounted on the inside of his viv lid about 6 inches from his basking spot. No coils.
I dont know if the squash would impact him or not --- one of the other more experienced w/ that would need to respond -- I would keep up w/ the applesauce and warm baths --- the dragging the back legs would be a sign of impaction -
Karrie
I dont know if the squash would impact him or not --- one of the other more experienced w/ that would need to respond -- I would keep up w/ the applesauce and warm baths --- the dragging the back legs would be a sign of impaction -
Karrie
I’ll keep everyone updated and watch him over the next few days. Will continue with the warm baths and applesauce. Would you recommend feeding anything else during him being impacted? If it doesn’t get any better will take him to the vet early next week.
No Enemas --https://www.beardeddragon.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=45&t=252267
It is best it comes out naturally --- enemas are only the last resort - 3 days is not long enough -- if the back legs gets worse we should let Tracie advise on the subject or AHBD
Karrie