Beardie getting worse and worse..what can i do???

[cupcake143]

I had a vet appointment for him yesterday. She poked at him a little, took an x-ray, and said "im a little puzzled! take some calcium medication and have a good day" i paid almost 250$ for this, and my beardie is getting so much worse. Yesterday he at least agreed to eat something, and was moving more than usual. Now, he has been up since 4:00 this morning with his beard dark black so im assuming hes in pain. He has black circles under his eyes. He has not gone to the bathroom in 5 days. Its obvious he doesnt have any strength to move, and his eyes are barely open. I have been giving him water with pedialyte through a syringe and bathing him in warm water and gatorade.
Someone told me he may have parasites..what are the symptoms of that and should the vet have tested him for it? Im so upset that she basically did nothing, and i shelled out 250 dollars which i really coulnt afford. And now theres no guarentee he will get better because she doesnt even know what the problem is. What should i do?? I just want him to get better and i feel so bad

 

[Ethelia]

A faecal should show up most paracites.
Im not sure about the US but in the UK you can call up the vets and ask to bring in a sample for a paracite screen.
After taking in the sample you call up in a couple of days time for the results, which eliminates the additional appointment fee of seeing a vet.

Im so sorry to hear about your little one.
Im in a similar situation myself.
Good luck and god bless x

 

[protiemama]

Heavens! Is that vet a reptile specialists? I can't believe she didn't check his poop. I'll PM Tracie or one of our other moderators ASAP. Till then try to get a drop or two of olive oil or veggie oil in him to get things moving. A dog/cat vet can check for parasites. Just bring in the sample. As fresh as you can. Do the warm bath several times a day till something comes out. You can scoop the sample from the tub, the water won't hurt it. Apple sauce can help too. Use a dropper he might lick it off. Most of them love it.
I'll go PM now good luck.

Sandy H

OK- I sent a message to Tracie. I don't know when she will see it. But she will help as soon as she does. Hang in there.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

A fecal should have been performed, yes. Parasites cause alot of different types of symptoms such as loss of appetite, lethargic behavior, & weight loss.
What was the x-ray for, do you suspect impaction? If so, what type of substrate is he on? Did you feed too large of feeders perhaps?
Did he give you liquid calcium, & did he give you a dose to give to him daily?
If he has dark circles under his eyes, he is very dehydrated. I recommend begin rehydration therapy immediately. You can get either some gatorade, or pedialyte & mix 3 parts water to 1 part of solution to dilute it down. Try to get at lesat 2-4 cc's of oral fluids into him, daily. I know you mentioned you are doing this already, but try to increase it just a little bit if possible.
If he is not eating, get some squash babyfood, & chicken or turkey babyfood & mix it up & try to get a couple of cc's into him daily as well to keep up his strength.
Try going to http://www.herpvetconnection.com to see if you can find another vet.



Tracie

 

[cupcake143]

Hi everyone thanks for the responses and i just took him back to the vet, and i did let her know i was really concerned and dissapointed that i spent all that money for basically nothing. She said to me "oh i meant to ask yesterday for a fecal sample to test.." and now he isnt going to the bathroom, she even gave him an enema or whatever and he still didnt go =/ she is a reptile vet. (the only one in my area)

She wanted to take an x-ray because she said she felt a lump in his belly. But then when she didnt see anything abnormal in the x-ray, she said it was probably a blockage from not pooping for so many days. (?) He is on papertowels so i know he didnt swallow anything. I always cut up his foods really tiny, actually i usually smoosh them so it kind of looks like baby food because he seems to like it better.
Also today the vet gave him a fluid injection for dehydration. Not sure how long that takes to work but as of right now he doesnt look any better. Ive been bathing him and giving him water/pedialyte through a syringe.
He wont move at all though. His eyes havent opened in hours. His beard is still very very black so i know hes probably in some sort of pain right? Im so upset i just want him to get better

 

[protiemama]

Thanks for the quick response, Tracie. As always it's appreciated.

Sandy H

 

[Jasper's Mom]

I recently went through something similar. Continue with the baths and giving water and pedialyte. You could also try giving him some butternut squash baby food with the syringe - if he has some food in his system then he will have something to poop out so that it can be analyzed. I don't see how he could be impacted if he's on paper towels and you chop his food for him. The subcutaneous fluids that the vet gave should help though. And yeah, if you can possibly find another vet from that link that Tracie provided, that would be great. It doesn't sound like the vet you've been going to knows a lot about beardies.

 

[cupcake143]

I fed him some babyfood, and he didnt enjoy it too much =/ his chest area looks puffed out and he is taking deep breaths. theres no noises or anything coming out when he breathes, it looks like hes trying to poop but hes having trouble. His eyes are still very sunken even after the fluid injection, baths, and pedialyte. About how long will it take for him to get hydrated or at least look a little better?

 

[cupcake143]

Oh yeah i forgot to add that his beard isnt as dark as before, but the tip of his tail, about 2 inches of it, is black? is this normal? thanks for everyones help

 

[Tatty]

Having a black tail is a sign of stress, sickness, or pain. I unfortunately have been down that road before. Please call the vet immediately if you think he isn't getting better. Beardies keep their symptoms hid from us until they are really, really sick. When the beard isn't black any more and the tail isn't black, that is a good sign. I will pray for you and your beardie. :|

"Tatty"

 

[cupcake143]

Thank you Tatty
I guess im just so frustrated is it normal for a vet not to able to figure out whats wrong with my beardie? Almost 300$ later, after the past 2 days? At this point i dont even care about the money i just want him to get better, and she had no answers for me He is in the corner of his tank puffing his beard and taking deep breaths still :?:

 

[Tatty]

I don't know where you live at, but, I have an excellent reptile vetrinarian that I take my beardies to in Pekin, Illinois. He has even performed surgery on them when needed. Perhaps you could get your vet to call him for a consult diagnosis. His name is Doctor Craig Thacker in Pekin, Illinois. The telephone number is 309-346-1375. I do know that reptile vets consult with their peers. He has had quite a bit of experience with bearded dragons. He had a successful practice with exotics before he came to Pekin. I know he also contacts Dr. Mader who is the reptile vet that writes for the magazine "Reptiles". He also keeps many of the Dr's reptile medicine textbooks. Best of luck. Please feel free to call him and tell him that Janice and "Popcorn" from Canton, Illinois sent you.

Sincerely,
Janice aka "Tatty"

My youngest female beardie is named Tatty

 

[cupcake143]

Thanks so much for that advice! Im from MA but it wont hurt to make a phone call. Theres not a lot of reptile vets in my area, the only good one who i went to for over a year left and moved out of state.
And an update on his behavior...i just took him out of the tank to kiss him goodnight, and he freaked out, jumped right out of my hand, onto my desk, and then onto the floor. He landed on all 4 legs but seemed shocked after it happened. Hes still breathing very heavy, and now im starting to hear some very faint little popping/crackling noises. does this mean its an RI? the vet told me she didnt think he had one (but after all it doesnt seem like she knows too much)

 

[Tatty]

I will pray for your beardie to get well. I really hope you can get a consult/second opinion that may shed some light on this situation. People who don't own beardies can't understand how affectionate they are or how attached we get to them. Keep fighting for his life. I'm rooting for the little guy.

Tatty

 

[augustwst]

I hope your beardie gets better soon! I know how frustrating it can be trying to find a good reptile vet.