Beardie fell on his back and has a hump now

[DeigantheDragon]

4 days ago my bearded dragon fell directly on his back onto linoleum from about 3-4 feet in the air. When he landed he stayed on his back until I hurried and picked him up so I knew it was bad. I immediately flipped him over and held him for a few minutes. His beard turned black and there was a visible hump in his back. A few minutes later he was walking, though not normally. I put him in the bath tub resting on a towel and pet him gently with a toothbrush until his beard went back to normal (he loves the toothbrush on his back and head). I was super worried about him and still am but he even swam a bit in the bath tub. Because he was still able to move all his limbs and has been exhibiting good signs, I have not taken him to a vet. I am a college student and cant afford to go in and have them tell me they can't do anything or say that he will be fine in a few days. Of course if it is a trip to the vet that he really needs I will figure out how to come up with the money.

Since he fell he has eaten every day except one, he has pooped once, his walking is more normal now than it was intially, he is drinking water from an eyedropper (normal for him to not drink out of his bowl), he has climbed up on his hammock and walked around his tank on his own. He hasnt shown obvious signs of pain (black beard, gaping mouth, lethargy). He is behaving pretty normally except for the hump in his back which looks pretty bad when he is curled up in his tank but not quite as bad when he is on a flat surface.

 

[HippieLizards]

Hello,

I'm Very sorry to say that I think your beardie obviously broke his back. Thankfully it doesn't look too bad, But he Most likely will remain a hunchback beardie for the rest of his life.

YOU WILL NEED TO GET HIM TO AN EXPERIENCED REPTILE VET ASAP. NOT A REGULAR VET. AS THEY WILL DO MORE HARM THAN GOOD. You MUST get him to a reptile vet that treats beardies and has had experience with this sort of thing. I Would recommend getting X-rays done to be 100% sure.

You are very lucky that he is not permanently paralysed. Thank goodness he is Active, Eating, and Pooping.

What did he fall off of? Could you please post some pics of his setup? What is his substrate? What do you feed him? Do you use calcium or multivitamin? Do you have a UVB bulb? is It a Tube or coil? T5 or T8? What brand is it? Is His basking bulb Colored? (Colored bulbs are bad for beardies eyes and sleep).

I'm Not 100% sure he did break it, But it's pretty obvious. So Second opinions please?

I Hope your Beardie gets better!

-HippieLizards.

 

[DeigantheDragon]

This is what I was worried about I feel so horrible because he's probably not been comfortable/been in pain all week. I am having trouble finding a reptile vet anywhere near me. I am going to call around to the veterinary hospitals within an hour of where I live tomorrow and see if they treat beardies/have experience with them.

He fell off of the top of the couch. I have a T8 tube UV bulb for him not sure which brand and the basking light is a zoo med 100w basking spot lamp, no color. I had reptile carpet but changed to using paper towels a few months ago. He was brumating and not eating regularly up until about a month and a half ago and all he would eat were wax worms and occasionally meal worms. He has started eating veggies and meal worms and wax worms regularly again and I get him crickets when I go to the pet store. The nearest pet store is about an hour away though so I have to stock up on worms. I have not replaced his calcium supplement yet though. before he stopped eating regularly I had him on a calcium powder, not sure the brand. I think that was all the questions

 

[DeigantheDragon]

 

[AHBD]

Hi there, sorry to see him in this condition, poor guy. He may not actually be in a lot of pain, definitely discomfort but it would be best to get an xray done. It may be a lot of swelling but it also may be broken. Be sure to get him calcium supplements ASAP, don't wait. His bones can break easily from lack of calcium. And post a few pics of his set up, show what type of lights you have as well.

 

[VenusAndSaturn]

Make sure you place that T8 bulb inside the tank and right underneath the basking bulb so its right above the basking spot. This way your beardie will get UVB as the screen blocks 40-50% of all UVB and T8's are quite weak compared to T5's.

If your using that stick on temperature gauge you'll want to get a temp gun or digital temperature gauge with a probe. This way your monitoring the surface temp and not the air temp, this is very important for the basking temps which should be around 100-110, no less and no more.

Make sure you have at least two supplements, a calcium without D3 and a Multivitamin one.
Regularly you dust about 5x with calcium and 2x with multivitamin a week for beardies less than 2 years of age.. for beardies at 2 years or more its usually 3-4x with calcium and 1-2x with multivitamin a week.
However for him it may have to be more for a short time.

Just a little feeding guide, I'd recommend using silkworms and BSFL for him. They have quite a lot of calcium and other great stuff inside them.
All life stages eat 10-20 bugs a feeding.
1-4 months 3x a day.
4-12 months 2x a day.
12-20 months once a day.
20+ months twice a week at the least, every other day at the most.

Staple feeders - Crickets, locusts, grasshoppers, silkworms, black soldier fly larvae, dubia roaches, turkish roaches, possibly earthworms.

Most of these except butterworms and hornworms have too much fat in them which can cause fatty liver disease if given too many. A fat beardie isn't a healthy one.
Treat feeders - Waxworms, hornworms, superworms, mealworms, butterworms.
Wax worms - once a week, 4-5 max.
Hornworms - every other day to every two days, 4-6 max.
Mealworms - every other day to every two days, 5-10 max. Only for beardies above 6 months.
Superworms - once or twice a week, 3-4 max. Only for beardies above 12 months.
Butterworms - once or twice a week, 3-4 max.

Daily greens- Turnip/collard/mustard greens, endive, and kale if added to a mixture of the other staple greens mentioned.
Fruit once or twice a week - Banana, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, red raspberries.
For more food items -
http://www.thebeardeddragon.org/bearded-dragon-nutrition-data.php#veg
http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html



http://www.anapsid.org/vets/#vetlist
This is a list of reptile Vets. You'll have to call around to find one that has experience with beardies and this type of thing.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Poor thing, he probably did either break his back or severely injure it to where it caused
the vertebrae to sublux then swell. They don't have discs that slip, just the vertebra that
can slip over or under each other when injured.
How old is he?
I think I would remove the hammock for now, also so he doesn't have to climb so much &
hurt it further. You will need to reposition the Reptisun 10 underneath of the screen for
him to get better UVB exposure. I would bump his calcium up to 5 times per week, too.
I hope you are able to find a v et nearby to get an x-ray done. Let us know how he is doing.

Tracie

 

[EllenD]

Yeah, a visit to an experienced Reptile Vet is not optional here at all, it's unfortunately pretty obvious that he has either a fractured spine, or at the very least he's ruptured/herniated a disc or pushed a disc completely out away from his spine, and this is causing him tremendous pain every time he moves, it's impossible that it's not. I understand about being a college student, but this is why having an emergency vet fund is crucial, as having a pet is a huge responsibility, regardless of what the pet is, and if you cannot afford to take him to a vet in an emergency situation like this, then it's a big problem. As it is it's been days since this happened to him and he's not had any pain relief, and that's a huge issue. I cannot imagine having a broken bone and no pain medication, let alone a broken spine.

So you're going to have to get him to an emergency vet immediately and have an x-ray done to see how badly he's injured, and then make a decision as to what to do from there. If you can't do this like now, today, as too much time has already passed, then you need to make a decision about surrendering him to the closest Certified Reptile Rescue to you. They will take him to their emergency vet immediately and get him the help that he needs. I know it's a very difficult decision to make, but he may have internal bleeding and not make it anyway. The other thing you have to think about is that him moving around like he has been with a fractured spine that is not stabilized can suddenly result in permanent paralysis at any moment. Plus he needs and deserves to get some pain relief immediately, it's not fair to him to keep him like this.

I have worked at a Reptile Rescue in central Pennsylvania for years, and I would be more than happy to find the closest reputable Reptile Rescue to you, it would only take me a couple of phone calls. I've done this for several people, and I can get them to waive their "Surrender Fees" or "Required Donation" as well for you, and they'd be ready and waiting for you to bring him so they can immediately take him to their emergency vet or animal hospital when he arrives. It's a very difficult decision to make, but you don't have much choice in this situation at all...Also, if you need to know where the closest experienced Reptile Vet is to you, or since it's the weekend the closest 24-hour Exotics Hospital, I can also find that for you quickly with a few phone calls. Feel Free to PM me any time for help...I'm sorry this has happened to you, but this is a big deal and too much time has already passed, the more time goes on without his spine being stabilized, the less chance he has for recovery.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

How is your boy doing today, has he eaten anything? Have you been able to get a vet's
appointment yet?
Please keep us updated on him & I hope that he isn't in too much pain.

Tracie

 

[DeigantheDragon]

Thank you everyone for the concern and for the advice, I found an exotic pet specialist an hour from where I live and I have an appointment for Deigan to get an exam tomorrow! This vet has worked with a lot of bearded dragons and they gave me some additional information over the phone in regards to what may be wrong. I am very anxious to see what they say during the exam tomorrow. If they think it is needed, they will do an x-ray. I will also be able to get him some more food and vitamin supplements while I am down there near the vet.

There's only a Petco and Petsmart within an hour of where I live and their bug selection is not very wide. They pretty much just have mealworms, wax worms, crickets, and the occasional horn worm. Is there a cost efficient way to order bugs or something so I can get him on a better diet? I am a college student and I don't have anywhere to store bugs so I would not be able raise them myself as I know others do. I will be graduating and moving to a less remote place in 2 months so it shouldn't be a problem then, but how can I get bugs now without breaking the bank?

 

[EllenD]

That's very good you have an appointment for him, I'm certain they'll do an x-ray when they see him, that's going to be required...Hopefully it will be something that will heal with time...How's he doing? Any black bearding? How's he moving around?

As far as buying live insects, it's definitely not worth buying them in a pet shop, as they need to eat a ton of live insects every day up until they are at least a year old, so you definitely should order them online. You don't have to have a huge bin to keep them in, but it is definitely a lot cheaper to order them in bulk, and if you're in a dorm then you might want to think about ordering size large BSFL/Phoenix Worms, they are excellent staple feeders and they don't make any noise, they can't escape a little plastic tub, that's all you would need. And you can dump some regular old oatmeal or oatbran in a plastic container for bedding, and just throw in some fresh greens for them. I order mine from www.dubiaroaches.com and you'll save a fortune. Get the size larges, they are completely soft-bodied so he can handle the larges without an issue. They are full of healthy protein, lots of calcium, and lots of hydration. I get 1,000 of them a month for $25 shipped, and you can buy 200 of them for like $12 I think...

 

[kyleena29]

Did you find out anything form the vet? How is he doing now?

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Yes, definitely let us know how your boy is doing. We hope that you were able to get him
to the vet & that he is feeling better.

Tracie

 

[HippieLizards]

Yes, Hows your Beardie doing today? I Hope he gets better.

Best of wishes, and Please, keep us posted! Hopefully he will make a full recovery.

-HippieLizards.

 

[DeigantheDragon]

Sorry it has been a while. We visited the vet and he said there was obvious trauma and likely multiple fractures. He said Deigan is very healthy otherwise, shows no signs of metabolic bone disease. He is healthy weight and his legs are all strong and his coloring and everything looked good

he advised that I take anything out of his cage that he could climb on for at least a month and a half to two months. Make sure he is on a calcium supplement, balanced diet, proper lighting etc. He said he will likely have the hump and a limp the rest of his life but he should heal okay.

It has been about a month and Deigan is walking better, he's active, the hump seems to have gone down although it is still visible. He is alert and seems happy, no blackbearding or signs of discomfort. I still am not allowing him to climb and am closely monitoring and have begun handling him a little more frequently now.