Ember has septic arthritis :(

[McSkweeky]

Some of you know Ember - she's a sweet approximately 3 month old dragon I received from Rea (evanescent) and is missing her right arm. She's been doing great, but I've noticed some odd swelling on her back legs. I'm going to get her into the vet this week, but I'm not sure when based on my work schedule (we already have one person out this week, possibly two if one of my techs screwed up his knee). Any thoughts would be appreciated. All of her temps are within range and she eats like a pig. She's supposed to be on meds for internal parasites, but I haven't started her on those yet.

Her right hip looks a little odd to me too - not sure if it looks dislocated or if it's funny. The bone seems to stick out more on that side and her leg almost seems like it sits lower on the hip joint. It's hard to tell in the photo though..

Right leg (swollen) vs left leg (normal)

Underside of her right foot - even that is swollen

Close up of the toes on her left foot. Notice the swollen joints :/

Whole body! Her arm looks great

 

[MissT]

Looking at the photos again (I commented on your thread), is she shedding her feet?? Sometime shedding can cause some swelling but I'm not sure if it would be this much.

 

[HM3Taylor]

Just had mine to the vet on Sun. and he said something about what they look for is loss of muscle tone (can't stand on legs) and joint swelling. I know we were talking about paracites a lot during the visit. Maybe there is just not enough nutrician getting to her and she needs help. This was not the issue we are having but maybe till you see your vet...mine said to be sure that they are getting hydrated and enough stuff, add some pedialyte to the bath water and bathe frequently.
Good luck

 

[McSkweeky]

My roommate did me a huge favor and dropped Ember off at the vet for me. After X-rays, blood taken for a blood culture, and an hour wait to see the doctor, Ember has septic arthritis. The doctor suspects that she may have gotten her blood infected when she was bitten as a wee baby and it's been slowly affecting her body. I have a copy of the X-ray but it's only viewable on a PC and I have a Macbook at home. I will post it up tomorrow when I'm at work. It shows degeneration of the joints, knees, elbows, and her right hip. She's going to be treated with injectable antibiotics which are to be given inter-muscular in her forearms. The doctor said that if we treat it aggressively enough that it should clear up the infection and hopefully the bone will grow back.

She did really well at the vet too. No stress marks, and even handled the injections well. Just totally chill.

I'm also going to be treating her for the internal parasites she's had.

I feel so bad for Ember. Poor girl has been through so much, and now she has septic arthritis.
Here she is after a bath when we got home.

 

[Esther19]

What a sweetie she is! I'm glad they found something they could fix, even if it is septic arthritis.

 

[evanescent]

Poor baby...</3
but as you said on the phone, you caught it pretty early..
and she's still young, so maybe the bone will regenerate with treatment.. :c
other than than all the swollen limbs, she's looking beautiful and has grown so much..
You can hardly see all her head/tail bitemarks in these pics; they almost look like part of her pattern..
i'm still really glad that she's keeping up her chill spirit and appetite through all of this. >.<
I wish both of you lots of luck, and I am anxiously awaiting to see those xrays tomorrow. o:

 

[McSkweeky]

Here are the XRays

Link to the PB account so you can see them better if you want:
http://i752.photobucket.com/albums/xx164/McSkweeky/Beardie/EmberXRayLegs.jpg

 

[athenacp]

Oh geez, poor thing WIll keep her in my prayers.

 

[Drache613]

Hello Maggie,

Oh that is too bad!
So the infection has caused the swelling in the toes & joints? What were the blood levels, do you have a copy of the blood test yet that I could see?
She sure is a pretty little thing!
Which antibiotics is she on right now?
I would keep her hydrated as much as possible since she is on the medication right now. The bone should hopefully grow back but it will take some time to do so.

Tracie

 

[Ronniexx]

Amazing to see the x-rays.... I hope the infection clears up for Ember...wishing her a speedy recovery...

 

[Mirthy]

Poor little Ember. She is such a trooper. I'm so glad it is something that can be fixed and she is so young and still eating so well. Best wishes to you and your gang!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

How is Ember doing today? Has she improved at all?
How much longer does she have on the medication? Is she eating pretty well now I hope?
I hope she is feeling better real soon.
Keep us posted on her.

Tracie

 

[McSkweeky]

I apologize for the delay in updating Ember's thread. I've had finals for school and been putting a lot of care into Ember so getting online hasn't been on my priority.

My vet took blood for a blood culture, however there either wasn't enough blood to get results on the culture or it is a type of bacteria that would grow in a dish. Ember was given injectable Zoysn, but she didn't respond well to it since it was a broad spectrum antibiotic. The vet suspected it was a mycoplasma - a type of bacteria which is really hard to grow in a dish. Ember has been put on doxycycline for the last 2 weeks, and has a week to go for a total of 3 weeks. The swelling has gotten slightly better though still isn't great.

Most recently Ember's tail began to shrivel - about an inch and a half so far has died. I took her back to the vet on Saturday morning and it was determined that at least half of her tail is dead and necrotic. She needs a tail amputation. She's going to loose half to three quarters of her tail.

Ember also has been having labored breather. The vet thinks that because she isn't growing in length, but she is gaining weight, that all of that weight is hanging out in her oh-so-super-cute chubby belly. Reptiles don't have a diaphragm so they use all of their chest muscles to help expand and contract their lungs to breathe. Since her belly is so full she isn't able to use all the muscles she should. Breathing is very hard for her. It could also be pneumonia brought on by the infection. So she's on Baytril as well as Metronidazole for a total of 3 different antibiotics. My poor girl.

All of your support is appreciated. It's been a rough couple of weeks.

A week ago

Yesterday

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Wow, I am sorry her tail is necrotic. Please remind me what has caused her tail to become necrotic, initially?
That is too bad she is on several medications. I really hope she doesn't have pneumonia. Are you keeping her warm at night, around 80 or so? That can help her immune system.
Let us know how she is doing.

Tracie

 

[bltkpo]

Thinking of you, and dear Ember. Poor babe, I hope she has a smooth recovery from everything!