HELP! 8 years old Beardie threw up last night, and is now dehydrated and lethargic

[Drache613]

Hello,

This is a great update on him, thanks! At least his pads aren't as sunken in then.
Yes, the hard urate is dehydration & maybe too much supplementation. Continue with the extra
fluids & softer foods for awhile longer. That will do wonders for his system right now. It is easier
for him to process than solid foods.
I'm sure he is very tired, so he deserves to rest on his hammock!
Did he like the Repti-boost too?
Let us know how he is feeling.

Tracie

 

[pogonavitticeps]

Hi!

He had his best day yesterday, and even wanted to run around after his bath! First time he seemed like his normal self since his this whole thing started. Been slowly introducing more food in his liquid food mixes and his tummy bothers him each time I do it, but he keeps everything down and gets over it in a couple hours.

He's never been a big fan of Repti-boost! Haha I have been adding some bee pollen and applesauce to try and make it taste better for him and that seems to be working.

The past couple times he's pooped, the actual poop looks great but his urates have been super watery and a has a yellow tinge to it. Is this still a side effect of dehydration? Maybe the been pollen coloured it?

Also when is it a good time to start to introduce calcium powder back into his diet?

Thank you for all your help!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

How is your boy doing today?
The Repti-boost is a pretty good product & some tend to like the flavor while others don't like it
as much. The applesauce & bee pollen probably do help the flavor a lot. You could also try some
squash or sweet potato if needed for more calories. The yellowish tint is most likely from the bee
pollen, I would agree!
When his urates are soft enough & not very discolored, you can add the calcium powder back in.
How are they looking, they are watery?

Let us know how everything is going for him.

Tracie

 

[pogonavitticeps]

Thursday and Friday were a little rough, he took a turn and on Thursday there was a little blood in his urate , his system seemed pretty irritated. I think I pushed it a too hard on adding more food to his fluids so I cut back on food and stuck to more fluids. He responded positively to that.

Today he seems way better and has a lot of energy! Ran around a bit after fluids with no grey/black beard. His urates are still pretty watery with a slight yellow tinge. I have bee giving him ~2 ml of pedialyte mixed with Repti-boost (two scoops), vitamins, and bee pollen in the morning and another 2 ml in the afternoon if he wants it. Today was the first day of adding calcium to the mix, so we'll see how that goes. I have also gotten some squash baby food so I will offer that as well and see what he thinks!

It has been over a week since he threw up (evening of May 19), I know reptiles are slow with everything but when should I be concerned if his stomach doesn't recover?

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That is great he hasn't thrown up in a week or so, I'm sure he feels better.
Are you using a little bit of probiotics to help out his tummy now? It will take a little time but he should
recover. Let us know how adding the calcium does for him.
Did he like the squash you added for him?
Go slowly & keep his foods soft until he is back to normal. I'm glad he is more active, that's great to hear!
Keep us posted on him.

Tracie

 

[pogonavitticeps]

We ran out of Repti-boost today so it was squash baby food all day today with all the supplements and he likes it just the same! Luckily a package of more Repti-boost came in the mail this evening so he'll get that tomorrow again. So far so good on the calcium, his urates haven't changed since starting.

He's been getting probiotics on and off, I have only been putting it in plain water or pedialyte so far but he likes the liquid food more. Should I start putting it in with the liquid food?

I have also got some Amber Naturalz Reptaid that I gave him a dose of for the first time to help boost his system a bit. He seemed to like it, interested to see how that goes.

Today he seemed about the same, maybe ate a 1 ml or so more of food. It was nice and sunny so we spent some time in the sun which he really enjoyed. Its been slow going but he's getting there!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

I hope the probiotics are helping him out. So the calcium supplementation doesn't seem to be
affecting him yet? The squash is great for him.
The Reptaid has been pretty popular & it should work well. Hopefully he is feeling a lot better.
The sun really helps brighten their mood & is so good for them.
You can put the probiotics in with the food if that is easier. How many times daily are you giving
him food or fluids?

Keep us posted on his progress!

Tracie

 

[pogonavitticeps]

His urates are more solid but still squishy and has a slight orange tinge to it, I assume that could be calcium?

A new thing today is that his morning poop seems small for the amount of food he's been eating, barely a centimetre long. They have been around 2 inches the past week, very strange. His fluids have been the same all week the only things that has changed is the calcium and a dose of Reptaid. Hoping this is temporary and he's back to pooping normally tomorrow.

I have been offering 2 ml of Repti-boost/pedialyte/vitamins/calcium/bee pollen/probiotics mixture in the morning, squash baby food/pedialyte throughout the day and another 2 ml of Repti-boost mixture in the late afternoon.

Over the past week he's been eating his Repti-boost mixture morning and afternoon but rarely ate the squash throughout the day. But today he's been hungry! Ate this morning's food enthusiastically, ate 3 ml of squash and another 2 ml of Repti-boost.

I have been home sick from work so luckily I can offer him food throughout the day and hang out with him in the sun for a bit, but when I go back tomorrow it'll be back to a morning and afternoon feed.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

The orange tint to his urates could possibly be from the Repti-boost also. As long as they don't
get real hard & grainy then that should be fine.
That is terrific to hear he has finally decided to eat more & especially some squash, what a good
boy!
They can go through digestive issues from time to time where their metabolism may change some
so I wouldn't worry too much about that yet.
I hope you are feeling better soon but at least you get to spend more time with him at home right now.

Tracie

 

[pogonavitticeps]

Thank you!

So today went about the same, he unfortunately didn't eat as much as Tuesday but I was also not home all day to offer him food whenever.

He also didn't poop that much, another centimetre in the morning. Feel like he is constipated. When he was out running around this afternoon, he stopped to poop, strained for a bit and nothing came out. His urates are coming out just fine, its just the actual poop that is the problem! I have never encountered this before.

Is there anything I can do for him to help him out? Or is this a wait and see type situation?

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Sure, you can add some canned or fresh pumpkin, butternut squash or sweet potato mixed with
sugar free applesauce blended up. You can add in a few drops of olive or coconut oil in with that
& give that to him daily to help add some fiber into his system. That should help out for him!

Tracie

 

[pogonavitticeps]

Hello!

I have an update, and unfortunately it is not a great one. He was doing great, gaining more energy each day, eating lots, poops and urates look normal. He even transitioned to eating salads a few days ago. Our routine has been veggies or veggie liquids in the morning and Repti-boost in the afternoon. I have been offering a Black soldier fly worm the past few days to see if he was interested and today was the first time he ate one.

This evening out of nowhere at about 7:30 PM he got very light and black bearded. He tensed up his stomach and looked very painful. He stayed like this for about an hour and as of right now he has calmed down but his fat pads are back to being extremely low and sunken eyes. Something has irritated his stomach and I am at a loss of what. Today he has eaten: 4-5 pieces of cactus pad with bee pollen, one small black soldier fly, and 2 ml of Repti-boost with bee pollen and vitamins.

The only thing that changed today is the small soldier fly larvae. Is it just his system getting used to worms again? Worried and sad to see him take some steps back in his recovery.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Oh poor guy! How is he doing tonight? I hope he is able to sleep.
So you got him to eat a soldier fly & he seemed to have that type of reaction to it?
How long has it been since he has eaten an insect or more solid foods? It is possible that it just
didn't sit very well with him. The soldier fly worms are good but maybe the outer shell is too hard
for him?
Perhaps you could try some small silkworms, they are very soft bodied or waxworms in moderation.
Go slowly with him, hopefully his system will start to get back on track. Are you giving him any type
of probiotic to help?
I know it's frustrating, but keep trying with him.

Tracie

 

[pogonavitticeps]

I am so surprised, this morning he looks great! Relaxed in his hammock, eyes look good and fat pads not as low as last night. Maybe what ever was bothering him has moved farther dow his system?

I'm guessing its the black soldier fly, its the only thing that was new to him and its was his first time eating a worm since before he threw up, I'd say since May 17th. He has been eating solid veggies since Monday with no problem and passing them fine, maybe the worm was a step too far.

Oh yes I forgot to mention, I have been putting Nutri-bac probiotics in his Repti-boost, so he is getting them everyday.

Yes waxworms are a good idea. Unfortunately I live in western Canada and there are no good sources of silkworms here, so I can't afford them at the moment. Wish I could, they are such a good feeder! Definitely will head to my local pet shop for wax worms soon.

Will take a step back today and offer liquids and applesauce this morning to calm his stomach and try waxworms in a couple days and see how that goes.

Thank you for sticking with us! Will update soon

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That is excellent new to hear he is doing better now. His tummy could have been upset from the
black solder fly for whatever reason. Go slowly on getting him back on solid foods but he will
eventually keep it all down without an upset tummy!
That's good he has been getting probiotics then, hopefully that helps his system out. Yeah, those
silkworms are expensive but in Canada definitely hard to get. Hopefully a few waxworms will be
easy for him to digest. It's been awhile since he has thrown up so keep giving him the veggies
right now. I hope the Applesauce has been helpful for him.

Keep us posted on him!

Tracie