Eye won't open

[AmberBarton]

Hi
My dragon charlie's eye won't open. He can open the right one but the left one won't open at all. Any ideas on how to help him! I am super worried.. it isn't swollen, it is the normal color on the outside, and he is the only one in his tank.... please help!

 

[Reptilelady]

Could you please post a picture? Also, can you describe your terrarium setup? What size? Lights? Temps/ humidity etc. Also, is the poop normal? Hydrated? Has an appetite? How long has eye have not open? Sorry to ask so many questions but its really important so we can better assist you.

 

[kingofnobbys]

My money is on bacterial or viral conjunctivitis .... I think he needs this seen by a good reptile vet as it's likely he'll need a swab taken (to culture and determine the most appropriate treatment).

Don't try to treat this yourself as you risk spreading it to his good eye and any other reptiles you have as pets.

Good hygiene , F10 spray , F10 handwipes after handing him , keep his viv clean - else he'll reinfect himself.

 

[EllenD]

Agreed, you never want to mess around with eyes or ears. If it's a bacterial or fungal infection it can easily spread to the other eye. A certified Reptile vet will do a culture and sensitivity to diagnose what it is and identify the correct antibiotic or antifungal.

 

[AmberBarton]

Hi
For some reason it won't let me load any pictures, but his eye is alot better. He had a piece of lettuce in his eye (probably because he sticks his face in his food bowl, silly dragon)! Thank goodness I was super worried about him, but he is fine now and there is no drainage or crusty stuff in or around his eye anymore.....

quick question though...what do you use for the bottom of your tanks? I know it is not good to use sand, which I don't... when I took him when my friend moved, she used newspaper in the tank, but I started to use indoor/outdoor carpet, but I have heard that isn't good either...so what do you suggest?

 

[kingofnobbys]

Hi
For some reason it won't let me load any pictures, but his eye is alot better. He had a piece of lettuce in his eye (probably because he sticks his face in his food bowl, silly dragon)! Thank goodness I was super worried about him, but he is fine now and there is no drainage or crusty stuff in or around his eye anymore.....
<<<< lettuce is not a good food for beardies - virtually zero nutrition in it , see http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutritionframeset.html

quick question though...what do you use for the bottom of your tanks? I know it is not good to use sand, which I don't... when I took him when my friend moved, she used newspaper in the tank, but I started to use indoor/outdoor carpet, but I have heard that isn't good either...so what do you suggest?<<< raid the pantry and take some sheets of absorbant paper toweling from the roll, that's a good bedding , easy to remove soiled sheets.

Carpet is very bad as a reptile substrate, some people put down some lino as their bedding, loose laid wall or floor tiles are very good too.

I just upload my photos to TinyPic (use 17 inch size) and then copy and paste the [img ..... /img] code into the post .... very easy.

 

[AHBD]

Hi there, glad to hear that there was an easy solution. Very often it is just a piece of shed skin or other simple irritation like that, especially when there is no swelling. I've had 2 dragons in the past that had eye infection that cleared right up after applying raw honey.

For flooring you can use newspaper in a pinch or non adhesive shelf liner.