Coughing and biting tongue?

[sirenique]

My beardie Bones is a 1.5 yr old male. He just beat a mild bacterial infection about two weeks ago, and has been healthy and has a great appetite ever since. Just a few minutes ago, he started coughing/puffing? And biting his tongue 99% of the time while doing so?? His beard gets a darker black while he does this... he does not appear to be threatened. This is a completely different thing from when he puffs his beard while heating up in the morning. I have looked in his mouth and his gums and tongue were healthy and normal colored, no excess mucus. He did not eat anything recently (as in the last hour) and our apartment is aired out... Any ideas?? Help!!

Here is a video I just took with my iPhone of this... not the best quality, but you get the jist of it: http://youtu.be/xslnvrhD_sE

He'll do this for like 7 straight minutes, catch his breath for a minute or two, then start again...

He is trying to sleep, but can't because he keeps coughing.

 

[sirenique]

Anyone??

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That "appears" to be early symptoms of a respiratory infection. The forced exhalation is or can be a sign of a respiratory infection, so I would take him in to be evaluated & have an x-ray done to see what his lungs look like.
What type of bacterial infection did he have?
Also, at night, keep his tank around 80 to help boost his immune system as well. What are his daytime temperatures & his humidity levels at?

Tracie

 

[sirenique]

Tracie thank you SO MUCH for responding! I'm going to call my vet today and send him the video and we'll go from there. I like to check here first to make sure that I am not overreacting to something that is just beardie mannerism hehe. He had a lot of trouble going to bed last night because he couldn't stop coughing, so I didn't know if I needed to rush him to an emergency center or if it could just wait until this morning.

I forget the strain of bacteria he was infected with (I want to say it was a staphylococcus-based infection, but even then I'm not sure exactly what strain) but his white blood cell count was slightly elevated. He received some repti-aid to boost his weight back up, as well as an anti-microbial to help fight the infection. His bloodwork last week came back perfectly, so I thought this was fixed.

His daytime temps range from 90-105 (depending on elevation) of the hot side of his cage, and 75 in the cool side. The humidity, while I am not sure of the specific number, SHOULD be low in the apartment because we're running a dehumidifier in the same room as his cage. At night, we keep the apartment temp at 68, but I rigged up a (vet-approved) setup for Bones in the spare room... it consists of a small cave made of a comforter, with a fire-resistant and towel-wrapped heating pad underneath. The temp of the heating pad I measured to be at 75-80 at any given time, and Bones has space to move away if he decides he wants to lay somewhere cooler.

Again, thank you for the suggestions, I really appreciate your advice I hate freaking out alone haha.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

You are welcome. Perhaps the bacterial infection was a precursor to the respiratory infection & it has set in. I think you are catching it early.
The only other thing I could think of would be some other type of respiratory irritant such as dust, dirt, paint, etc?
Poor thing, he was coughing so much he couldn't sleep last night?
The heating for nighttime sounds fine & he can move away if he needs to. I hope that he will be alright.
Let me know how he is doing.

Tracie

 

[sirenique]

Yeah, poor guy was up until 1am coughing... he tried to sleep standing up, almost stretching his neck out. He finally laid down and got some good sleep after 1am. He woke up this morning around 8am and starting coughing almost within 10 minutes of being alert until 2pm today. I just got back from the vet, and she agrees that given the fact his bloodwork recently came back clean and he's eating/defecating/being active, to wait and see how the situation pans out. I have some anti-microbials to use in a nebulizer to clear his lungs, but she feels that antibiotics are not necessary at this point, which is a relief. She also said his mucus is a bit thick and maybe that was causing an airway obstruction, so to keep his food moist and fresh to keep him hydrated well. Glad it's nothing serious (yet) and hopefully we can combat it before it becomes a bigger problem. Thanks again for your input Tracie - I guess when in doubt, just go see your vet and know you did right by your animal.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Ok, that sounds like a plan.
Keep his tank a little warmer at night around 80 or so. Hopefully you will be able to nip it in the bud so to speak, before he gets a respiratory infection. You can try giving some bee pollen & extra vitamins to help his immune system, too.

Let us know how he is doing.

Tracie