Heavy breathing + bubbles in the mouth

[traceyb73]

Hello again,

things have taken up a positive turn. For two days now my boy has been acting pretty normal, and I mean "beardie male + spring normal". He's literally climbing up the walls and running around like a madman. There was also a poo issue, because he ran over it and got it all over himself, so I had to wash him, lol. So I don't know what happened but it looks like he's starting his normal spring. He ate yesterday a bit and today a bit more. Not as much as he should but it's a good start. He seemed to have slight stomach issues when he ate but nothing too serious. So things are looking up. I've given acidophilus and vitamin B, nothing more. Today I changed his setup so that the UV tube is inside. Was quite a task I must say. We'll see if it has any effect. My boy has a bad habit of jumping on things, like Tracey's beardie, so I have to keep an eye on him to make sure he can't reach the tube or the basking spot which I had to place inside, too. He has literally no self-preservation during spring.

My female is in a different room and they have not been in direct contact so I don't think she is going to fall ill. I'm pretty certain now that it's not RI but more likely about his stomach. It's been now 3-4 days without those fits. If they return, I'll try this other stomach med which is milder than Antepsin.

Thank you all for your advice! I knew about the acidophilus, I keep it in the fridge until it expires (and then throw away, naturally). I also keep my multivitamin in the fridge since it's been shown to lose it's effect if kept in the room temperature. I've kept reptiles for 20 years and beardies for 10 so I'm pretty well educated already but you can never know everything. It seems I always get these mystery cases. Wish I once had a text book example of an illness in my hands. Or better yet, no sick beardies at all!

Edit: About the vet. I take my reptiles to vet when necessary but sometimes it's really frustrating when you yourself know more than the vet. My beardies have always stressed enormously about any changes in the environment (my late male only got used to it after I moved the 5th time) so I don't want to take them to somewhere only to hear that "Yeah, your pet could have this or that and that'll be 100 euros, thank you" and then possibly have a more sick beardie to bring back home because of the stress. X-rays and those kind of things every vet can do, of course. Some of the meds I've had my mom prescibe - she's a doctor - and then I just called a vet for dosing. I use a styrofoam icebag and put a warm water bottle in it if I have to take my reptiles somewhere. Luckily our houses here in Finland are very warm, always at least 68-70 degrees, but during winter you can't take a reptile outside without a warm bag because it's really freezing.

I am so relieved to hear that your little man is doing so much better!! They sure do know how to scare us.,.sometimes I think mine does it just to mess with me. lol

I know what you mean about finding a vet. I never do anything without talking to Tracie first. (I drive that poor woman crazy sometimes. ) You are so lucky that your mom is a doctor, that makes life ALOT easier!

I do hope your little one keeps on this upward turn and everything goes back to normal. His eating and running around like a wild man are VERY good signs.

 

[Reptiles4Life]

i agree about asking Tracie and sometimes probably diving her crazy .

 

[traceyb73]

i agree about asking Tracie and sometimes probably diving her crazy .

LOL, she is the most patient person I've ever met!

 

[Reptiles4Life]

i know i don't think i can be that patient ever lol she knows like everything! lol thanks so much for telling me to speak up at those pet store's and i did and they cared to here what i said!!!!!!

 

[traceyb73]

i know i don't think i can be that patient ever lol she knows like everything! lol thanks so much for telling me to speak up at those pet store's and i did and they cared to here what i said!!!!!!

She really does have a heart of gold.

I am so proud of you for saying something and standing up for those who can't speak for themselves!! :-o

 

[Reptiles4Life]

yes she does all right!

Thanks so much i am so glad i did it and they seem to take better care of them now. i told them when they put a big beardie male in with a ton of baby's and one had MBD i think and they took care of it and they said the are treating one to make sure it's healthy!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That is great news he is doing better now, as well as starting to eat a little bit also.
Start slowly on the food so it doesn't upset his tummy. Hopefully it wasn't a respiratory issue but just keep a close eye on him for other symptoms.

At least you have warm houses in Finland, that absolutely helps out. Having your mom being a doctor helps out with meds as long as you can get the dosing correct for a reptile. It can be stressful transporting them, especially in the dead of winter too.

Let us know how he is doing & any other changes for him.

Tracie

 

[Namipulla]

Hello again!

Here's the situation now. My boy is eating some superworms almost every day. By some I mean 2-4. One day I got him to eat a cricket but after that he's not been interested. I still give him water every day, sometimes with probiotics. I bath him sometimes but it seems to stress him enormously so I don't want to do it too often. I should get a new UV tube next week. There's still the old one but it shouldn't have expired yet because it was off during his brumation period. I've lowered it and there's a reflector, too. The ceramic heating bulb for night time should arrive on Friday, finally. I bought a bag of Critical Care and started feeding him it today. I'm also planning to give him electrolytes since he looks dehydrated. His weight is the same, 370 g. Good thing is he hasn't lost any more weight but he doesn't seem to be gaining any, either. I'm worried because even though occasionally he's very active and lively, there are days when he just lies on his log and looks ill. And he's so wrinkled! So my question now is, could he still be dehydrated even though he eats and drinks every day? Poop has been quite watery, I think it's because of the heavy meds he was on. He doesn't poop that often, though, maybe twice a week. I wish we could get Reptaid, I've read good things about it.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

I recommend giving probiotics daily for now. Is he done with his meds or is he still on them?
I am glad he is eating a little bit. I am glad he is maintaining his weight. How much oral fluids do you give him daily? Does he seem to like the critical care? The electrolytes should help him out for dehydration. I think that the meds probably had a lot of affect on his system & it does take awhile for their systems to get back to normal.
If a bathe stresses him to that point, then definitely keep the frequency down on them as stress wont do him any good. Sometimes dragons just do not like baths.
That is great you are getting a new UVB next week. Did you get 6 or so months of use out of the older UVB light? The reflector should help out the emissions though.
You are not able to get Reptaid online?
Are you keeping his basking temperatures to optimal readings?

I hope he is doing better soon!

Tracie

 

[Namipulla]

He's not on any medication right now. I'd just like to see his system recover. He gets fluids somewhere between 1-3 ml every day. I think it's quite a lot for a desert animal. Some of my beardies have refused to drink water alltogether. But of course at the moment he doesn't eat veggies so he doesn't get that much hydration from his food. He ate all the Critical Care I gave him and didn't seem to hate it. Then again he licks off everything I drop on his nose, even medicine. Temps are the same as in my first post, should be ok. Now I've got the ceramic heater so we'll see if it makes any difference. The UV tube has been on for ~8 months so it's time to change it.

I couldn't find any store inside of EU to sell Reptaid. Reptaid contains a herb called Pau d'Arco which is considered as a medical-like product in my country, therefore importing it is forbidden and I could get in serious trouble if I ordered it and customs office caught the package. :/ Maybe at some point one of our national stores start importing it. Funny things is that we do have teas and natural products with Pau d'Arco but ordering medical-like products outside of EU is illegal.

Anyway, thanks again for your answers. I'll let you know how things proceed.

 

[Namipulla]

Hello again!

My boy is doing alright still. He's fairly active and not that wrinkled anymore. I still give him Critical Care, probiotics and sometimes electrolytes. There are a couple of problems still and the most urgent is diarrhea. And I mean complete liquid. I assume it's because of the antibiotic treatment and his system hasn't fully recovered yet. Temps are fine as well as other setting (he's been relatively more active after I lowered the UV tube and got him a ceramic heater). I'm getting a bit worried again. I know crickets could make his poo more solid but he still refuses any other food than worms. Do any of you know which probiotics are the most essential ones for beardies? I've been giving him that pectin + kelp mix originally made for dogs and cats, and for a some time human probiotics (without dairy). Then my sister who's also a doctor said it's inefficient to give a wide range of probiotics since they will compete over their spot in intestines and none of them has a chance to start growing. I know one efficient method is to feed a healthy dragon's poo but I wouldn't like to go that far yet since my female might have coccidia and the male was treated for it a couple of months back. Any suggestions how I could get his guts flora in balance again?