he's impacted...

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i took charlie my 9 month old beardie to Dr. Phoenix in nashua NH today and found out charlie is definitely impacted. he gave him multiple warm water enemas and was only able to produce urates. he also got a couple shots and he gave charlie some meds for parasites(not exactly sure why). the doc said he is showing signs of illness because he isnt standing the way he should be (how many of us are thrilled to be poked and prodded at the doctors?). the lump in his intestine has only gotten worse in the past few days. its so sad... i feel so bad for the poor little guy. he tries so hard to get it out but it just doesnt happen. ive been giving him 3 warm water baths every day for almost a week now and rubbing his stomach towards his vent but no luck. the doc said that if we dont have any results by monday that ill have to bring him in and leave him for a couple days so he can try to break up the blockage and try to get it out. charlie just isnt acting like himself at all. he's gotten very lazy and isnt eating like he used to although he is still eating some greens and baby food... ive noticed the tip of his tail getting pretty dark and today when he was trying to force it out the tip of his tail actually came off. i showed the doc but he didnt seem very concerned by it. i feel so helpless i wish there was more i could do for him. im just trying to keep him comfortable and hydrated until monday. i just hope he pulls through all this! i wish i knew about that damn desert blend crushed walnut shell so maybe all of this could have been avoided. that stuff is like letting your infant play with household chemicals. it should be banned from stores but instead they advertise it specifically for beardies! i really want to write the company a letter but i know it wont do any good because they could care less... sorry for the long post i just had to get that last bit off my chest im just so upset please keep charlie in your prayers.
 

Drache613

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Hello,

Sorry to hear about little Charlie.
A few more things that you can try for his impaction are to give extra oral fluids daily, as well as baby food such as squash along with pumpkin & applesauce mixed in together. You can add a drop or two of olive or mineral oil with that too.
Daily baths, with gentle tummy massaging starting up at the arm pits all of the way down to his vent. Try to get the water fairly warm, without it being too hot. If you can get him to swim around a little bit, that can help to stimulate them to go to the bathroom.
It is very unfortunate that they continue to sell these terrible substrates that contribute to impactions for reptiles. They do cause a lot of problems.

Please let us know how he is doing.
Tracie
 

charliesdad10

Member
Original Poster
thanks tracie! this morning i tried feeding charlie but he is refusing almost everything. he has been eating some baby food but not nearly the ammount he should be. ive been trying the baths and massaging but nothing seems to be breaking up at all. at the vet yesterday the doctor basically said that what he is trying to pass is way bigger than the opening in his pelvis and without it breaking up somehow its not going to happen. this is terrible. i wish there was something else i could do for him. he just looks so miserable and uncomfortable. i can tell he barely has any energy at all he has just been laying on his hammock since i put him back in his tank last night... its so hard to stay positive about this whole ordeal when i know how miserable my little buddy is. i dont wanna lose him. well its time for another bath and some meds ill check back later. thanks again
 

fez09

Extreme Poster
Poor little Charlie! When I got Mojo, he was impacted and would actually prolapse every time he tried to use the bathroom....If you get the canned pumpkin that Tracie mentioned he might lick some of that off his nose, it's very tasty...That's the only thing that Mojo wouldn't turn down. I just put a tablespoon of the pumpkin with a fe drops of water in the microwave for 5 seconds then added a drop or 2 of olive oil...it's worth a shot for your little guy. He shouldn't be eating any live feeders right now because it will just plug him up more than he already is...keep up with the baths and belly rubs too! Good luck
 

charliesdad10

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no luck today... charlie is definitely getting worse by the day. he doesnt want to eat anything now and he hasnt moved from his hammock. all he does is sleep. ive given him his meds a couple baths and now i have to force him to eat baby food (he used to love it)... i really hope he pulls through this. i wish the vet could have done something more for him rather than making me wait till monday to bring charlie back in. i just dont know what to do anymore... it hurts even looking at him in such a miserable state i cant stand it
 

Drache613

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Moderator
Hello,

How is Charlie doing, any improvements at all?
Something else you can do is to place him on a heating pad overnight. Make sure it is on low, & that you have a towel in between him & the heating pad. The belly heat may help out with the impaction.

Keep us posted!

Tracie
 

charliesdad10

Member
Original Poster
ive been trying everything you've suggested and nothing seems to be working... it looks like he has to go back to the vet tomorrow and stay for a couple days. i really hope the vet can get him unblocked. i just want my little buddy to be back to normal...
 

Drache613

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Staff member
Moderator
Hello,

Sorry he has not passed anything yet! I was hoping for the best. That walnut shell can really harden up & block the intestines pretty badly. It looks like they will either do surgery, or an enema. Maybe an x-ray would help to determine the severity of the impaction.
Please let us know how he is doing, & what goes on at the vet's visit, as well.

Tracie
 

charliesdad10

Member
Original Poster
well i just got back from dropping charlie off at the vet this morning. he's still all blocked up and the vet said he's going to try to break up the blockage and give him a few enemas. he's going to have to stay there for a day or 2. i just hope he is able to get it all out of him. i want my little buddy back i miss him already
 

charliesdad10

Member
Original Poster
well i got charlie back from the vet and he was able to remove a majority of the blockage which unsurprisingly was the crushed walnut shell as i had expected. he already is looking and acting alot better than this morning... im just glad he's getting better even though it took 18 enemas today to get this far... i just have to monitor him for the next couple days and hope the rest passes on its own. charlie has a checkup scheduled for wednesday so we'll see if we're in the clear then. thanks for all your help and support through our tough time over here we both really appreciate it! ill keep you posted.
 

LennyTheLizardKing

Juvie Member
charliesdad10":1goddkis said:
well i got charlie back from the vet and he was able to remove a majority of the blockage which unsurprisingly was the crushed walnut shell as i had expected. he already is looking and acting alot better than this morning... im just glad he's getting better even though it took 18 enemas today to get this far... i just have to monitor him for the next couple days and hope the rest passes on its own. charlie has a checkup scheduled for wednesday so we'll see if we're in the clear then. thanks for all your help and support through our tough time over here we both really appreciate it! ill keep you posted.
Wow 18 enemas. My friend got his beardie off craigslist and they had play sand as the substrate. She was impacted so bad she couldnt walk and had a big lump in her spine. We got her off the play sand and put in carpet, Warm baths everyday, few drops of olive oil, lots of water fresh greens. A week has gone by and she is getting better going to the washroom daily mostly in the tub. Actually eating crickets now.. And has some energy moving around a bit in her enclosure..
They should ban all sands, shells etc from petstores... I was using ground walnut shell for my 10month and found out that its extremely bad and got him off it immediately before it did any harm.
 

Drache613

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hello,

Oh poor Charlie! :shock:
Geez, I hope that he feels better soon. At least though, he has most of that terrible walnut shell out of his body now. I am sure that he feels a lot better now. I am happy that the vet was able to remove it without surgery then.
Let us know how he continues to do, I am sorry that this happened to him though.

Tracie
 

charliesdad10

Member
Original Poster
HORRAY!!! dr phoenix is awesome! expensive as hell but awesome lol! charlie is getting much better by the day! i had to drop him off on wednesday for another round of enemas and that seems to have fixed the problem entirely... he's alot more active and he is eating again. when i brought him home i gave him a bath and used a turkey baster for a whirlpool effect(he loves it!) and he pooped on his own for the first time in a month(in his bath of course lol)! then today when i was at work he pooped two more times. unfortunately i still have to annoy him by giving him 2 antibiotics and 1 pain med. but at least he's acting like himself again. the doc said he has parasites though from the fecal test... what causes parasites when he has been in a tank since he was a baby??? i have to go pick up the meds to treat that tomorrow... i may be almost broke from this whole ordeal but at least charlie is ok!! im so happy my lil buddy made it through this! his blood test showed his calcium level to be a little low but when i get his crickets i have them dusted at the store i dont get it... i bought a calcium spray rather than the powder since charlie really doesnt like the powder. it says on the bottle for calcium deficiency you can give a few drops of it to compensate. how much is too much?? the last thing i need is for him to end up with MBD from too little but are there side effects of having too much calcium? i never thought i would be this excited about poop lol! i really cant express how thankful i am to all of you who helped us out and supported us through this major issue THANK YOU SO MUCH!

NOTE TO ALL OWNERS!!! DO NOT EVER BUY THE DESERT BLEND CRUSHED WALNUT SHELL SUBSTRATE!!! EVEN THOUGH IT IS MARKETED SPECIFICALLY FOR BEARDIES IT CAN AND WILL KILL THEM IF YOU DONT CATCH IT IN TIME. WE GOT REALLY LUCKY... IF YOU HAVE YOURS ON IT TAKE IT OUT IMMEDIATELY!!! DONT GO THROUGH WHAT WE DID!!! SAME THING APPLIES FOR SAND IT MAY LOOK PRETTY BUT IS IT REALLY WORTH YOUR BEARDIES LIFE??
 
Hi, I was just curious how good of a vet dr Pheonix is because I just got my beardie and need to take him to the vet for a check up and I live in Lawrence, MA soooo Nashua is very close for me :D also, what are the prices for just a regular check up? thanks!
-Alex
 

charliesdad10

Member
Original Poster
i believe a checkup runs about $70 but well worth it. dr phoenix is very good at what he does and i would recommend him to anyone and everyone. i live in salem and its about 40 min for me to get there but i honestly wouldnt bring charlie anywhere else. he saved charlies life without the need for surgery which i was almost sure was going to happen. if you end up going there tell them that charlie the beardie from salem recommended them they will know who you're talking about lol everybody up there loved charlie and im sure they would be very happy to know that we recommended them...

how old is your beardie?
is it a male or female?
are you just going for a routine check up?
what is his/her name?
what do you have for a setup?
 
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Does this look like a healthy beardie
LarryTheLizard wrote on ForLeonard!'s profile.
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cookie event at my library today, quite fun! Made some bracelets for my comrades too, to give them at church in the morning. Got a busy day tomorrow even though I’m off work… i go back on tuesday so atleast I’ll have 2 days off to rewind….then back to hell lol

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