Dragon flipping onto back constantly, lethargic

[Drache613]

Hello,

Great, Panacur is the most frequently prescribed medication for worms, really & is normally safe, too.
How is he doing today? I hope he ate well for you.
I hope he continues to improve but I am sure he is so much happier now.

Tracie

 

[SilverGravity]

Will he react alright to the medication since he's still not in the best of health and underweight right now? And he's actually been pretty grumpy and lazy ever since the new light surprisingly, I'm assuming because he hasn't been used to so much UVB and it's throwing him off a bit but he'll get used to it I'm sure. Hopefully he'll get better quicker with it though.

 

[dezismom]

I am so glad that Steve is on the mend!! Bless his little heart, he has been through a tough time. And you have been such a trooper! That orange color around the eyes is a good thing! Many Beardies have more than one color, and I have noticed that the eye area is most often more colorful. It will come and go, as has been said, according to mood, etc. The black color is not really his best coloring....probably a result of so very much stress, bad care, and poor health due to nutrition and no UVB. When they have bone issues due to lack of nutrition/UVB, it is painful--pain can also cause them to darken up a bit and be more black. But you finally have the UVB lights---yay! so things should get better even faster, now.

Yes, Steve will not necessarily love the bright, UVB lights at first; he is used to such poor dark lights at that school, and his eyes are not yet accustomed to better lighting. Does he have a little hide, where he can stick his face in to shade his eyes once in a while? The UVB is good for him, even if he hates it at first! They are like little children; don't always want what is best for them, so we have to lovingly get them to have it, anyhow. It will improve his metabolism, and reduce any bone pain, too. You are doing such a fantastic job. I still get teary eyed when I look at photos of little Steve, but at least he has a good chance, now...and he is where he can experience love. So important, to these beautiful creatures.

The worm meds will help him, because once he has been dewormed, all of his nutrition will be used to nourish him, instead of the worms. It will also make him feel much better to get rid of those things. Is he drinking water for you? I have found that keeping the weak ones hydrated is so important, especially when deworming. My boy, Dezi and I are cheering Steve on!!

Get well, Steve! (from DeziLu)

 

[SilverGravity]

Yes, he does have a hide, though he doesn't use it often. He's been taking water too, which is good. The new light is just making him a grumpy little thing but he'll have to deal with it. Even grumpy, he does hang out under the lights. As for the worms- both dragons test results actually came back negative. They both are still going to get medication however, since it's pretty clear they both have some type of worm, or at least is very likely they do. He'll start on his meds tomorrow. He's feeling a lot better though, his beard is almost never black anymore. Only when he gets tired of being fed his reptaboost really does it go black, then he just gets very grumpy and black beards at me. And Dezi is so cute! Thank you both!

 

[SpacialCoogs]

I'm so glad steve is doing better. I've been rooting for him since the beginning. Very proud of you for stepping up where most people wouldn't. He wouldn't be alive if you hadn't stuck up for him.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

I totally agree, Steve has come such a long way! It will take him a little bit of time to completely normalize & get accustomed to his wonderful new environment. Don't worry though, he will eventually acclimate to it & be a brand new dragon. LOL It just takes time & patience though.
At least he hardly ever has a black beard too, which means he must be feeling pretty good!
He should do just fine on his meds, just be sure he stays hydrated as much as possible.

Keep us posted on him.

Tracie

 

[mamakintobeardie]

Hey there, just wondering how Steve is doing? I know school is right around the corner and hoping you'll try to work something out with your mom and school to keep him. You've done such a terrific job with him!

 

[SilverGravity]

Pretty well considering how he started, though he's gotten pretty grumpy. His beard is black a lot again, but goes right back to normal when I take him out. He doesn't like eating his greens much anymore unless I hand feed them to him. Luckily, he has a quite a bit of energy when he decides he wants to move. Pretty sure the deworming meds didn't help, though, because poop is still watery (though urates are bigger- not as dehydrated). Gained a bit of weight. So overall he's s grumpy dragon who is slowly getting better.

Though there is a yellowish spot in his mouth that I see sometimes, but can never get a picture. It doesn't look like it ever gets bigger or anything and it's not big, so I'm not extremely concerned, but still hoping it's not mouth rot or something.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

What type of yellow spot is it, is it centralized in one area, or the whole inside of his mouth?
It sounds like he has gotten spoiled with liking to get out of his tank & will pout or black beard to get his way! This is very common.
Remember he didn't get ill suddenly, but gradually so he will get better slowly. Reptiles do take awhile to recover. At least he seems to have a good amount of energy. Keep trying to hand feed the greens, especially if he is eating them that way!

Tracie

 

[SilverGravity]

It is one area. It's a small yellow spot on the side of his mouth, on the gum right below his teeth. It doesn't seem to cause him any issues, he doesn't black beard or try to get away when I was looking at it, but it doesn't look normal. And glad to hear he's just being spoiled, I was so confused as to why he seemed so dark and grumpy but instantly got lighter with no black beard when I took him out!

 

[dezismom]

Dezi also blackbeards for some attention or time out! They are very emotionial fellows, with definite ideas of their own wants and needs! I love DeziLus' huge sense of self. From photos on this site, I suspect it is not an uncommon trait in Beardies...

Reptiles, in particular, are slow to get completely well, after a long illness. Their "cold blooded" metabolism slows down drasticaly when they are sick or not cared for...when I was working at a wildlife sanctuary, we had some box turtles with pneumonia, who had been terribly neglected at a pet shop...they were dying, but very slowly, poor things. (although they were not, strictly speaking, "wildlife", I could not refuse them in their obvious need) The good about their slowed metabolism was that, because they hung in so long, we were able to get them the correct antibiotics, warm baths (to boost their metabolism) and nutrition, so we managed to save several of them. The bad news was that it took a long time to get them fully recovered. I bet it will be the same for Steve.

I hope that spot on his mouth is not something like a fungus, but it would not be entirely surprising, if he did develop some additional problems, because of his ordeal, prolonged low heat/lighting and reduced immunity. Good that you are keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. Hopefully, his mood will improve as he gains strength. I think you are an amazing person, to do what you have done for that little helpless Beardie. I have been in the "rescue business" many years, and know just how much work, money and emotion is involved. People like you (and your supportive mom) make this world a better place!

Dezi sends his good wishes to Steve, and offers to share his raspberries.

 

[Kevinthelizard]

That's great that Steve is improving! I would defidenly report the school to your local animal rescue or shelter or even sue for animal abuse. At such a young age you have been so mature and responsible.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That is great Steve is doing so well! I agree he is very spoiled now but, who could blame him?
I hope that area isn't fungal either. I would just watch it to be sure it doesn't change suddenly or start causing discomfort. Hopefully it is just a pigmentation inside of his mouth.
It sounds like he is a very happy boy now! Keep us posted on him & his progress.


Tracie

 

[SilverGravity]

I'm glad to see he's feeling better enough to be a dramatic little guy, even if it's unsettling, since his black beard used to be strictly something was wrong. Long as he's feeling better I can't complain about it I guess. He did get some time out today which he seemed to enjoy running around on some towels. Hopefully he gets well enough to start eating greens on his own so he doesn't need reptaboost quite as bad. Currently that and crickets are pretty much his diet. I'm hoping he starts to gain more weight, too.

Some bad news: He started flipping again. The good news: it's nothing serious. While he was out I noticed he lifts his hips a lot higher up due to being so forceful with his hind legs, and sometimes it seems he just looses his footing and his hips kind of get thrown over his back and it ends up with him on his back, if that makes any sense. Or he entirely messes up and his foot slips and he flips. He didn't actually flip while he was out, but he almost did. So his flipping is him having enough energy to run around which is good in its own way I suppose.

And I'm hoping it's not fungal either. Is there anything I can do do figure out if it is at all? It really doesn't look like it's just pigmentation, but it could be. I'll try to get a picture if I can get my brother to help, I can't hold him, get his mouth open, and take a picture on my own. If only I had more hands.

Dezi is super cute, and Steve has decided once he figured out that red things can be food he'll take him up on that offer.

 

[SilverGravity]

Oh, and I figured I'd share something I'd noticed.

That was one of the first pictures I had taken of Steve, and you can clearly see he still has his fat pads and his hips, tail and legs don't look very underweight. I'm pretty sure he was slightly underweight and you could have seen his hips a bit, but not nearly as much as when I picked him up. His tail wasn't bony either. It look like him becoming so malnourished and dehydrated mostly started when they got him. He was alert and at least somewhat active in the first few days, too. The lack of heat and UVB really took a lot from him in not a long time.

That was him today. His hips are actually looking slightly fuller than when I picked him up at least, though his fat pads have actually gone down a bit unfortunalty, despite daily water with a syringe. He's actually starting get color back, though. There's a lot of scales on his legs that have picked up a reddish color and clearly is the color of them rather than damaged or something.