Clyde has a terminal illness

[clyde612]

Clyde has been diagnosed with Gastric Neuroendocrine Tumors (GNT). I don’t know how much longer he has. Just looking for support.

He is only 2.5 years he’s just a little baby. My first and only beardie.

 

[xp29]

I'm sorry to hear that . I don't know anything about gnt, 2.5 is not very old though. Maybe reach out to Tracie @Drache613 and see if she has suggestions on how to help him and keep him as happy as he can be for the time you have left with him.

 

[KarrieRee]

Clyde has been diagnosed with Gastric Neuroendocrine Tumors (GNT). I don’t know how much longer he has. Just looking for support.

He is only 2.5 years he’s just a little baby. My first and only beardie.

Wow I am so sorry to hear this --- as Xp29 recommended reach out to Tracie

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Oh wow, I am sorry to hear little Clyde has GNT. Did the vet give any type of medications or
supplements? Is he eating very much right now?
What supplements do you use now?
You could try adding some CBD to the daily regime, it has been shown to help with health issues
& with cancer.
I would also keep him a little warmer overnight, to help boost his immune system.

Let us know how he is doing.
Tracie

 

[Drache613]

Moved by Moderator from General to Beardie ER

 

[CooperDragon]

Unfortunately these seem somewhat common. Know that this is a genetic problem rather than something you did wrong. My first dragon, Cooper, had the same issue at right around the same age. Is clyde showing any symptoms like gout? Did the vet discuss any possible treatment? Perhaps the options have evolved in the last several years.

 

[clyde612]

@CooperDragon
Thanks for the comment about it being generic, I didn’t know that. I otherwise knew it wasn’t my fault but still was wondering and worrying about what could have potentially caused it (carcinogens, etc). So knowing that makes me feel better. No treatment for it still, and Clyde is getting weaker now. He is down to 434g, his normal weight is 490-500g. He stopped eating salads over a month ago and stopped eating bugs maybe 3 weeks ago. Liquid diet ever since. They say it’s terminal.

Also if you could give me more insight on what GNT looked like for Cooper, prognosis wise, I’d love more info on that. I know every dragon is different but the doctors have yet to give me a real outline on that. It should be noted that his blood sugar came back “off the chart.” He is generally in good spirits, more lethargic but still has energy. When he’s in his tank undisturbed he has no stress marks nor dark beard.

@Drache613

His meds right now are:
0.03 ml Meloxicam (1.5mg/ml)
0.05ml Cisapride (10mg/ml)
0.45ml Metronidazole (50mg/ml)
Amber Naturals Reptaid Immune Support

The metronidazole was because his white blood cell count was high. It’s gone down since his last course and he’s on his second and final course. (So two 5 day courses, 4 weeks apart).

He’s on a diet of liquid beardie buffet, blended kale and zucchini, calcium and vitamins (vitamins not every day, beta carotene, no straight vitamin A). I try to give him water via dropper but it’s difficult with all the other meds he gets frustrated with the droppers and doesn’t want to lick anymore. I’m giving soaks too but I know that offer little to no hydration in reality.

I’m interested in this CBD oil, please give me some specifics on type and dosing!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Clyde is definitely a trooper, bless him! You are doing a great job with him. As Cooper has stated,
it seems that it has become fairly common now. Genetics definitely play a huge role. I as well, am
worried in general, about the food supply & the commercialized feed for insects, animals, etc. So,
anything that you do get, be sure it is organic, non gmo, etc.
His diet sounds fine to me, no problem. He wont voluntarily eat on his own, at all? I am sure that
he does get frustrated with the dropper, etc.
The meds aren't too terrible, be sure he gets some type of probiotic if you aren't already giving one,
to help out his tummy.
Sure, the CBD oil has been on the market awhile. For reptile use, there is starting to be some data
out there, as well as starting doses, etc. My husband & I had began a small business for it, meaning
we literally grew it & harvested, bottled, etc with proper licensing here in Texas. It is catching on but
very limited. So, we don't have our website up for that right now. We do still have some though made
up in solution, with organic coconut oil as the carrier oil. The dose is very small but, it is natural & very
safe, too. I can look at my dosing chart info to get a specific amount but we are looking at 1-2 drops if
you used a solution that is a 1000mg per 1 ounce bottle. That is essentially 33.3mg/ml.
Each dragon responds differently but at this point, you never know what may or may not work.
Everything you are doing for him is excellent & I'm sure he greatly appreciates your love & attention
for him.
You can simply PM/message me if you wanted to try it out.
Let us know how he is doing!

Tracie

 

[xp29]

Hello,

Clyde is definitely a trooper, bless him! You are doing a great job with him. As Cooper has stated,
it seems that it has become fairly common now. Genetics definitely play a huge role. I as well, am
worried in general, about the food supply & the commercialized feed for insects, animals, etc. So,
anything that you do get, be sure it is organic, non gmo, etc.
His diet sounds fine to me, no problem. He wont voluntarily eat on his own, at all? I am sure that
he does get frustrated with the dropper, etc.
The meds aren't too terrible, be sure he gets some type of probiotic if you aren't already giving one,
to help out his tummy.
Sure, the CBD oil has been on the market awhile. For reptile use, there is starting to be some data
out there, as well as starting doses, etc. My husband & I had began a small business for it, meaning
we literally grew it & harvested, bottled, etc with proper licensing here in Texas. It is catching on but
very limited. So, we don't have our website up for that right now. We do still have some though made
up in solution, with organic coconut oil as the carrier oil. The dose is very small but, it is natural & very
safe, too. I can look at my dosing chart info to get a specific amount but we are looking at 1-2 drops if
you used a solution that is a 1000mg per 1 ounce bottle. That is essentially 33.3mg/ml.
Each dragon responds differently but at this point, you never know what may or may not work.
Everything you are doing for him is excellent & I'm sure he greatly appreciates your love & attention
for him.
You can simply PM/message me if you wanted to try it out.
Let us know how he is doing!

Tracie

Wow, when do you sleep? You are involved with so many things and still find time to help here as well, it's amazing! But dang there couldn't be much time left for sleep lol . I've met a lot of cool people that loves reptiles but man your some kind of dedicated!

 

[clyde612]

@Drache613 yes clyde has never eaten any produce that was not organic in his life lol, much healthier diet than me! Pesticides kill bugs and he is so small I never wanted to expose him to those. All his veggies were always washed too.

He is on a probiotic once weekly called Bene-Bac Plus.

I’ll look into the CBD oil now! And he is on a probiotic once weekly too. Just got Fluker’s Reptiboost and I’m adding a pinch of it to his daily liquid food (it’s still mostly kale and beardie buffet). Should I switch to Fluker’s as the base?

I’m also wondering if anyone knows which beardie-safe baby food has the most calories. That would be helpful.

 

[clyde612]

Also here are some photos of what Clyde has been up to since his diagnosis. He is still in good spirits despite the lack of appetite.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,


Ok, that sounds terrific! The food supply has been so polluted so it's good to be meticulous no
matter what these days.
You can definitely use the Flukers as a base but be sure it isn't loaded with soy or corn. Some
really good baby foods you can implement would be sweet potato & squash babyfoods. They
have starch in them which would help out.
How is Clyde doing today? Those are great pictures of him, he doesn't even have a black beard,
either.
We are all pulling for him!

Tracie

 

[xp29]

He is a good looking , spoiled looking boy

 

[clyde612]

I can look at my dosing chart info to get a specific amount but we are looking at 1-2 drops if you used a solution that is a 1000mg per 1 ounce bottle. That is essentially 33.3mg/ml.

Based on my math this would be about 0.04ml of solution, or 1.33mg CBD per day. Does that sound right? He is currently 434g. Online says to start with 0.1mg per pound of body weight (would be about 0.096 mg for Clyde I think) and work up to more, but that is for general reptile use not cancer patients, so I would assume Clyde could start with more?

Let me know which brand is best in your opinion, I want to get him on this asap!

I also did message you! I used to “conversation” function hope that’s right.

 

[CooperDragon]

@CooperDragon
Also if you could give me more insight on what GNT looked like for Cooper, prognosis wise, I’d love more info on that. I know every dragon is different but the doctors have yet to give me a real outline on that. It should be noted that his blood sugar came back “off the chart.” He is generally in good spirits, more lethargic but still has energy. When he’s in his tank undisturbed he has no stress marks nor dark beard.

The GNT actually caught us by surprise. Cooper had been fighting gout for a while (nearly a year as I recall). There was testing done for that and he started on Allopurinol. Aside from the swollen joints on his fingers he didn't seem to display any symptoms. I didn't yet know enough to keep track of his weight, so I didn't notice the sudden dropoff. That's a big reason why I typically suggest that people keep a weight chart so they can track weight over time and catch any changes quickly.

There was no early identification or prognosis. One day Coop had a really black beard and just didn't seem to feel well. I brought him over to the vet and they did a blood draw. The next day he died, so he went downhill very quickly and suddenly. It was devestating to me. The vet got the blood test back after he died and it showed the telltale off the charts blood glucose level which led her to the diagnosis with quite a bit of certainty. In retrospect we think the gout was probably an early symptom. Aside from that, he was happy and energetic with a bright orange beard all the time. Even a decade later, armed with a LOT more knowledge and experience I don't think there is anything I could have done to change the outcome if I had a do-over.