HELP bearded dragon black eye

[Didi93]

Hi sorry it's my first time on a forum to try and get some help or advice. I have a male bearded dragon who's surrounding eye area is black rather than orange. I've been to the vets twice (two different ones) but they don't seem to know alot about it and just gave me drops. Has anyone ever heard of this before? Any advice would be appreciated. My beardie is fine in his self but I'm worries about the eye changing it's been like this for a while now and the drops have never worked. Thank you in advance I should be able to provide before and after photos but unfortunately I'm new to this and don't know how to post them

 

[AHBD]

Hi there, here's how to post pics :
https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Then use the XIMG to upload pics

Where did you get your dragon ? Is it possibly a transluscent ? Their eyes turn black as they get older.

 

[Didi93]

Hi there, here's how to post pics :
https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Then use the XIMG to upload pics

Where did you get your dragon ? Is it possibly a transluscent ? Their eyes turn black as they get older.

Hi thank you so much for your reply and I got him from a friend as they could no longer care for him he's about 6 years old atleast. I've uploaded two pictures a before and after. The one eye is fine but the other one has lost its orange colour

 

[kingofnobbys]

He looks fine to me.

 

[CooperDragon]

He looks OK to me too. Can you post some close ups of his eyes? Is the area around his eye crusty or wounded looking? Or is it just a darker color? They can have varied colors and be just fine so it's not necessarily something to be concerned with unless it looks damaged or seems to be causing him irritation/pain.

 

[AHBD]

He looks good + healthy, nice big boy. The straight on face shot doesn't show anything and the other pic doesn't either, so if there's a difference in the appearance of his eyes you'll have to take a close shot of each side of his head showing each eye. From those pics he looks fine.

 

[Didi93]

Hi guys thank you for your reply, I'll take some pictures when I'm at my mom's as she cares for him now for me. Last update I had is that his currently eye bulging in both eyes but he has been shreading. The black eye has a wound on it and this is why we had taken him to the vet. She said it could be from him rubbing his head on the log in his tank which he does. She wasn't too concerned with that as it isn't weeping or anything but we are. I just dont get how one eye can remain orange and the other go black. Hes fine in him self and doesnt seem distressed or in pain. The horrible thing about having pets like this is the worrying of them as they cant tell you id something is wrong. Sorry for the rubbish photos they were all i had on my phone to show when his eye changes first happened I'll get some more for you guys. Really appreciate your help

 

[Didi93]

Hi guys i got some pictures sent, we noticed his eyes had got like this 3 days ago and I got him into the vet the following day who had given him metacam oral medication and ciloxan. The photos i had posted originally were from like a year or so ago I noticed one of his eyes that used to be orange went darker. This was when I first took him to the vet who said he was fine. The photos i have just added show his eyes now, is there any connection to when I first noticed his eye change colour do you reckon? He's got to go back to the vet in 10 days but I am worried cuz he's an old boy

 

[AHBD]

It's O.K., it's perfectly normal to worry, we all do at times. This is a good place to come for advice since there are long time owners here that have seen + dealt with many situations. Some of us have owed + raised dragons for over 20 years,

BTW, is the black color you are concerned with surrounding the eye ? And the other eye has an orange surrounding ? Because that would probably be due to shedding + rubbing it .....is there anything in his tank that could leave stains if he constanly rubbed his face there ?
Andif he has any infection or wound you can treat it with raw, unpasteurized honey [ like from a health store or direct from a beekeeper ] Raw honey is a very powerful antimicrobial and can be use on any type of wound, even directly in the eye. I used it for my own dragon's eye infection about 5-6 years ago. Just mix a tiny bit of warm water with the honey so it's easier to apply, then use a Q-tip or an eyedropper. When using honey, be sure there are no loose insects in the tank and no loose substrate to stick to it.

 

[kingofnobbys]

From the close ups.

Right eye looks swollen.
Left looks quite sore.

Is that some kind of sand he's on ?

This is very likely scratching his eyes, eyelids and eye sockets. Best to get rid of the sand , not just for to stop future eye irritation / scratching by sand that's getting in his eyes.

Raw honey (manuka / medihoney) wont hurt, may even help, but I think it's best to have a vet take a look.

I think a reptile vet should take a look especially since both eyes are effected to some extent. I'm hoping it's grit getting in the eyes when he's scratching / digging , but could be something nasty going on.

 

[AHBD]

I'd put the honey on it + cut out the meds. There's no need for pain meds. + antibiotic for something like that. Raw honey should heal up any scratch like that.

 

[AHBD]

Is that sand or just tan carpet ?

The black area is possibly dried blood. You might give him a warm bath and VERY gently dab it with a warm, wet paper towel. One of my dragon's eyelid's got cut, he kept scratching it + there was blood specks all over the tank as he shook his head and dried blood on his eyelid looked dark like that. As I said, the honey healed it up very quickly. If it's dried blood , at least some of it should come off. Some dragons get fungal infections around the eye but it would happen somewhat gradually.

Obviously 2 vets haven't helped him so far.

BTW, did the black appear suddenly ?

 

[Gibsoali000]

Hi! I'm not a medical professional or anything, and I've only had one bearded dragon (which is only a year old), but do you know for sure that when he's shedding that he sheds his eyes completely? I had this problem for a little bit and the same hi g was happening where there was a buildup. I peeled off the top layer of skin that was dead just around his eye and it looked a lot better. Just be careful when you do, though, because they can get infections from new skin being peeled off to early. I decided to get a shedding aid spray, and it helped a lot. I'll post a pic of the spray.

 

[melissasiobhan]

I would remove all sand and stick to paper towel or newspaper substrate until you get this healed up. Even if not the cause, if irritated, he may rub face in sand making it worse. If you think it is incomplete shedding try a bath and a very soft toothbrush. My beardie loves having his face gently brushed during shed.

 

[AHBD]

I think the O.P's dragon is on tan carpet that looks like sand.