Cat attack

[GeoffreyDragon]

Hi all. This is my first post on here and sadly not a great one. I've been reading through loads of forums on here with lots of great advice.

I got Geoffrey about a month ago. He's now 5 months old and has always been really active, eating well, pooping well, having baths.

Yesterday I forgot to put the lock on his viv (2x2 with strip uvb bulb, heat bulb, he was on calcisand but is now on newspaper) and he got out. Came home to find him on the floor with his mouth wide open and cat fur in his mouth. Pulled the fur out and put him back in his viv.

Got hold of an emergency vet and took him up there. The vet said he has two very very small cuts from the cats teeth (the cat only has two teeth) and a scratch to his eye (it's bright red). Vet said the eye is responding to light which is a good sign but there's still a chance he may not be able to see out of it. Vet gave me drops for the eye and some iodine for the cuts.

This morning he is very lethargic. I put water on a spoon and dripped it over his mouth, he drank a bit. I also put him in a shallow bath but he just stood there. The difficult bit is getting the drops in his eye, he won't open it, or when he does its not for long enough for me to get them in. Managed to get some in but he was getting so lethargic and stressed I put him back in his viv under the heat where, as I write this, he's just sat up a bit and opened his mouth to regulate his Temps

Not sure what I'm looking for by writing this, I guess any advice would be welcomed. Any warning signs I should look out for? I'm so upset by all of this, I feel like such a horrible person for letting this happen

 

[AHBD]

Sorry to hear this....can you post pics of Geoffrey ? Here's how:
https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/

You can put raw, unpasteurized honey on the wounds,[ from a health store or beekeeper ] it's a natural antimicrobial and can help keep bacteria from growing and keep the wounds sterile. Will you have a follow up visit with a qualified reptile vet ?

 

[GeoffreyDragon]

Hi AHBD

Thank you for your reply.

I uploaded a couple photos but because I'm on my phone it won't let me copy the link urls.

His left eye appears really clear and ok. There was some hair in it which I think I've washed most of it out with saline solution. The other one is very red and bloodshot and he won't open it at the moment.

I have heard about the honey, I'm heading out shortly to get some cotton wool ear buds to apply the iodine with, and I'll also buy a plastic dropper for the eye drops as the pot I have isn't very good at dispensing the liquid quickly, which is what I need as when he opens the eye it's for less than a second.

The reptile vet I saw yesterday pretty much said he'd be ok in terms of the skin wounds - he showed me and said they were so shallow that he shouldn't have any repercussions from them so long as I keep using the iodine. With regards to the eye he said it could go either way- the scratch didn't penetrate the cornea that he could see, so the drops may completely fix it, or it was just deep enough that it may have caused permanent damage. He said to basically keep using the drops and it'll either clear up or not. If not, because of his small size there isn't much else they can do. Regardless, I think I'll take him in in a few days anyway just to be sure.

 

[Terry15]

Pick up an extra eye dropper for water. You can keep him hydrated by dropping a few drops on his nose.

 

[AHBD]

A little dragon will have a more difficult time recuperating than an adult, so hopefully he won't get an infection from the cat saliva but since you're on top of everything he has a good chance. He will naturally be lethargic from this stressful event but hopefully will bounce back .

The extra dropper for oral hydration is a good idea if he'll drink.

 

[GeoffreyDragon]

What's concerning me is he's keeping his 'good' eye shut a lot too.
Will do, I poured water on his face earlier and he opened and closed his mouth to drink, so he's had some.
I'm surprised the vet didn't prescribe him any antibiotics, I had a read of the drops and that had antibiotics in it.

Is there anything I can give him for energy? I read somewhere dioralyte, but all the stuff I've seen is blackberry flavour so I was a little put off that.

Ahh I hope he bounces back. He's moving a little more now, and he had the energy to hiss at me a couple minutes ago. He just seems 'floppy' ?

 

[AHBD]

That would be like Pedialyte here in the U.S. I guess a wee bit wouldn't hurt to mix in with his water, but he hasn't had fluid loss or blood loss so just normal hydration will be fine. You can try baby food turkey , squash + green bean via feeding syringe with extra water mixed in if he doesn't eat soon. Limit handling, he needs rest to recuperate.

 

[GeoffreyDragon]

Here's a couple photos, sorry one is upside down. as you can see, one eye appears fine but it's shut a lot. the bad one- he wouldn't open for a photo.

Ok, i'll stick with normal water for now and if he doesn't seem to take any of it in the next 24 hours, i'll try add some.

I'll also pick up some baby food because my next concern was him not eating, i offered him a dandelion earlier but he wasn't interested and I'm not going to be putting any hoppers in there any time soon as he won't see them and I doubt has the energy to attack.

 

[AHBD]

He looks pretty good, wouldn't know a thing wrong from those pics. Looks like you've taken good care of him, nice + healthy. Just let him rest now so he gets over his trauma.

 

[GeoffreyDragon]

Thank you, I appreciate your kind words.
He's my first beardie and made sure I did plenty of research before buying him - I also have a 5 year old Mediterranean spur thigh tortoise. My mum recently rescued an emaciated beardie and he's doing a amazingly- he started off with a horrible temperament but now he's so loving and healthy I fell in love and wanted one for my own.

I'll keep you all updated about Geoffrey, he's currently sat up on his branch under the heat. Ill leave him for a few hours and then I'll bathe him, put some iodine on the cuts, offer him some water from a dropper and some food and try again with the drops. I really hope he pulls through and his eye heals up.

(My name's Laura by the way )

 

[AHBD]

Beardies are amazing reptile....there are very few types of lizards that are as docile + engaging. Sounds like you'll be taking good care of him Laura. For the next few days you might skip the bath if it stresses him + just offer water via syringe. But it seems like he's going to be O.K

 

[GeoffreyDragon]

Quick update: he's had a poo and is now keeping his uninjured eye open a lot more. He's still not very active and hasn't moved much. Managed to get some of the drops on his bad eye but he's not opening it much.

I won't bathe or disturb him for a few more hours. Will try dropping some water around his mouth and see if he wants any baby food later. Couldn't find just 'turkey' baby food but got 'Orchard chicken' which has 'baby grade vegetables (carrot, sweetcorn), cooking water, rice, chicken, Apple juice from concentrate, butter and rice starch'. Is this OK?

 

[GeoffreyDragon]

So it turns out I won't be needing the baby food. He's just had about 6 small hoppers. He's much more active now and he's opened his bad eye long enough for me to put drops in.

So much relief!

 

[AHBD]

Wonderful ! A good appetite is always a good sign !

 

[GeoffreyDragon]

Yippee.

I took him out to put some iodine on the cuts and managed it. Weird thing is, when I put him back, he went back to being completely still and floppy for 5 minutes. He's now perked back up.

I managed to take a photo of the eye. The 'blood' seems to have subsided a little, as yesterday after it happened, it was all red - no gold or yellow visible.