Bloody stool -Update. 2nd vet trip

[Mariah94]

I witnessed this poop today. It didn't appear that she strained, but since this poop she has definitely been acting as if she isn't feeling well...

We have a vet trip tomorrow morning at 0900.

Three successful poops until today.

She ate too fairly large hornworms today, put them down no problem but they were close to full grown in length, not as much in width.

Today she had
7 Dubia
2 supers (freshly shed as we are/were slowly introducing them to her)
2 hornworms

We have only had her for about a week so she hasn't been eating much. She's been adjusting.

Basking at 101.3
Reptisun 10.0 mounted inside
Tile substrate

Thoughts? My vet will do a physical and fecal but I'm typically the one answering her questions, not the other way around. I trust the forum thoughts more honestly.

 

[Esther19]

Good thing you have a vet appointment. How old is your girl? Do you have a weight and length on her?How big were the bugs she ate? Did you save the pooper in the picture? If not, take the pic to show the vet.

 

[Mariah94]

She's 16", 297 grams

I saved the poop

Dubia roughly 1"
Horns were 2.75"
Supers 1.5"

 

[Mariah94]

Oh, and she is 9 months old. I've had her about a week

 

[Esther19]

Gosh, with her being 16", I can't connect the bloody stool to her food. Hopefully someone else will chime in tonight. Looking forward to hearing the vet's report tomorrow.

 

[Mariah94]

I'm praying it was a one time thing...she's been really pale tonight compared to her usually dark (relocation stressed) self. It looks like what could be a coat for a shed but it's really bad timing getting all pale after a bloody stool.

No rigidy or discoloration of her abdomen...

I just hope I didn't hurt her with the bigger hornworms. My other girl takes them like a champ

 

[Mariah94]

I am reading a whole lot on bloody stool being linked to parasites and let me tell you I have never smelled poo as bad as this girls. Malachi is a big pooper and hers is nothing compared.

So that's two symptoms linked to parasites

 

[HGMedic2012]

Well, we took her to the vet today (Mariah is taking an afternoon nap so I figured I would update-I'm sure she will add more later) and we got mixed news.

Good news- no parasites. Doc did the fecal test of the bloody stool sample on-site, which came back parasite-free. Se did see some trace amounts of bacteria and wants us to send off a sample for more in-depth analysis- anyone ever heard of this/know more about different kinds of fecal testing that could shed some light?

Bad news- we still don't know exactly what the problem is. She's been pretty lethargic today, only becoming active in very small amounts, typically to move from place to place. Doc checked her belly, no signs of impaction, but said that because of her skin turgor it appeared that she could be somewhat dehydrated, however her urates have all been white. Doc recommended soaking twice a day for now. We had been soaking once daily, but are going to give it a shot. She doesn't really appear to like drinking while she's having a bath. We've tried feeding her water from a dropper, which she's reluctant to take, but have managed to get approximately 1.5mL in her this afternoon. I'm not sure what the correct fluid resuscitation dosages are in reptiles- in EMS we use a 20mL/kg IV dosage, which for our 260g BD would equate to roughly 5mL, but I'm uncomfortable using that as a guideline for beardies, especially since we're talking about oral intake as opposed to intravenous. She has also refused all food offered today, which isn't terribly surprising considering all the excitement from this morning.

Doc prescribed flagyl for her, 20mg/kg every 48hrs for 10 doses, so we'll be doing that along with a probiotic. The flagyl, being an antibiotic/anti-parasitic/antidiarrheal should hopefully help with the runs, dehydration, and possibly the bacteria traces.

As I'm typing this, the little girl is lying on my chest just hanging out. Again, not much energy to do anything else it seems. Just worried, hoping that we're worried for nothing.

Question for the beardie gurus (totally forgot to ask the doc)- do you think that refrigerating the stool sample could have killed off bacteria/parasites living in the stool sample?

 

[Mariah94]

Had another bloody stool today...appetite had picked back up and now it has slowed down again. Before the poop she had about 5 dubia, 5-10 silk worms, and a handful of red runners.

I have no idea what I'm doing wrong...all of the care and feeding is fine. I think I am going to take her to Stahl vet about 2 hours away for another fecal/exam...see if they have something more than what my vet offered me. Problem is the previous owner can no longer cover it when I thought he was going to...so it wouldn't be until September-October that I could pay for it. And it would be Malachi's vet money since Chomper has already used up her vet funds.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

I am sorry she is still having blood in the stool to that magnitude. The Flagyl should be effective for amoebas & flagellates which have a tendency to cause blood. Hookworms can cause blood in the stools too.
I would highly recommend getting a blood test to see what could be going on. Does she weigh at least 100 grams?
I would try giving probiotics such as non dairy soy yogurt or acidophiliz to see if that helps with settling the tummy.
How are her colors today, is her beard black?

Tracie

 

[Mariah94]

She is still bearding on occasion. She had a stool yesterday with small traces of blood. We have a probiotic from beardeddragon.co that we will start using. Do you know of any places to get flagyl for cheaper than the vet? She is about 260 grams but is underweight for her age. We have had her in our care about 3 weeks and her appetite has not increased enough for us to start seeing any weight gain progress.

It is very strange. She is the nicest, most docile beardie you will ever meet but she has been bearding us and shying away the last few days. I wonder if it is because of her tummy.

 

[HazmatVisuals]

Im sorry for her! My girl I've had for three weeks just got a bloody stool three days ago, she's only 9 inches with a reptisun 10.0 tube, basking spot of 108, paper towel substrate, and all the other necessities. Her diet consists of mainly Superworms the width of her eyes because she was never interested in crickets. She's only had about 30 in the three weeks I've had her. I just started giving the crickets to her three days ago! And she got bloody stools daily. She was a good popper until I fed crickets . Im almost positive Reptar has pinworms!!! Im only 14 with a dog walking job so I don't make much, my parents are willing to split the price but I'm worked about the cost. So we ordered Panacur (sorry for spelling) Panacur Liquid (Fenbendazole) 10% Dewormer to be exact. Heres a link: http://www.beardeddragon.co/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=113 Im buying a gram scale to see what dosage to give her. I could post a pic of the blood in her stool tomorrow if that would be helpful? Btw she eats collard greens everyday as well. Could any body give me some tips of the dosage and how often I give her it? I love her so much and I need help!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

I can help with dosing, if you need.
Blood in the stools can indicate worms/parasites.
She is 9 inches in length? I wouldn't feed anymore superworms right now they can be hard to digest for smaller dragons. They have a very sensitive digestive track which is very vulnerable for impaction.
I would stick with small crickets which are smaller than the space between the eyes.

Are you going to be giving probiotics to help while she on her meds.
Let us know how how she is doing.

Tracie

 

[Jaskotch]

do you think that refrigerating the stool sample could have killed off bacteria/parasites living in the stool sample?

i don't think so- or at least it would not render them invisible...
i've been told to refrigerate until bringing the sample in.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Refrigerating the sample wont affect the reading, unless it was somehow contaminated. If it was left in a baggie then it should have been fine.
How is she doing this morning?

Tracie