I accidentally dropped my new beardie - help??

[dystopoly]

So I ended up with a rescue bearded dragon the other day, no official age, but I'm guessing around 3-4 and fully grown. She came from questionable conditions in a tank full of weird brown substrate that was far too narrow for her, and there was no way I was going to leave her there. I've owned one beardie prior, and I consider myself to be relatively versed in their care, but I made a very rookie mistake with my new girl. She was an absolute sweetheart when I first met her, and seemed comfortable and relaxed while being handled and riding on my shoulder, to the point that I was carrying her around only a day before this for about half an hour with absolutely no issues. She's only been with me for 3 days now, so I really should have just let her chill and get settled in her tank, but she had been so fine yesterday - and she showed no signs of stress when I was taking her out, but about a minute after I'd taken her out and walked downstairs, she suddenly started absolutely freaking out and literally jumped off my shoulder before I had a chance to stop her. I believe I broke her fall somewhat before she hit the tile floor and scurried off, but she was incredibly stressed out had cornered herself and puffed up at me several times before I finally managed to scoop her into a box and get her back into her tank.

What's really concerning me now is the thought that she could have something wrong internally, all her legs seem to be working just fine and she's been wandering her tank normally since I put her back in it - and she also seems very calm again, but I know they're good at hiding injuries. I can't inspect her closely because every time I try to get my hand close to her she instinctively puffs up and gets angry, but she isn't agitated at all when I'm leaving her alone. I'm assuming she's scared of me because of how scary I looked leaning down with her while she was backed into a corner, but from what I experienced and heard of her behavior prior - this is not like her at all. Are there specific signs besides bloody poop/mouth, swollen limbs, or a general reluctance to sit down fully that I should be watching for?? Also - has anyone else ever dealt with an otherwise sweet and incredibly relaxed beardie suddenly freaking out and acting hostile?? I hope it's all relocation stress and that she's not harmed in any way from the fall, but I'm absolutely worried sick about her and want to know if there's anything I should be doing immediately for her.

 

[AHBD]

It sounds like she's going to be O.K....if you see lethargy, gaping , blackbeard there may be a problem but if she's walking around normally I think she's fine.

I always warn people when I see pics or hear about them carrying beardie on their shoulder. Beardies have very good vision but don't realize that a jump from up high can hurt them. Never carry a beardie like that, it's always a possibility for even a very calm dragon to jump at any time.

 

[dystopoly]

It sounds like she's going to be O.K....if you see lethargy, gaping , blackbeard there may be a problem but if she's walking around normally I think she's fine.

I always warn people when I see pics or hear about them carrying beardie on their shoulder. Beardies have very good vision but don't realize that a jump from up high can hurt them. Never carry a beardie like that, it's always a possibility for even a very calm dragon to jump at any time.

I had never heard that before, but thank you for telling me - I'm DEFINITELY going to avoid keeping her on my shoulder after this incident. She just wandered to her food bowl and scarfed down literally every mustard green on the plate, so it seems like her appetite is just fine - I just have absolutely no idea what freaked her out when she's been otherwise so calm.... I'm probably a bit over-paranoid today as I just lost my corn snake to health complications earlier this morning, and I'm jumpy about everything she does in fear of her suddenly keeling over.

 

[dystopoly]

Update: She seems kind of restless, wandering around her tank for a few minutes scratching at the walls before settling in under her basking spot and repeating, but she doesn't appear to be having any trouble getting around and isn't acting particularly *strange*, just kind of more energetic than usual. She did eat a bunch of greens, so her appetite seems in check, but is this restlessness something I should be concerned about, or is it a good thing? Her tank temps all seem normal, about 100 on the warm side and 80 on the cool, so I don't think it's that.

 

[dystopoly]

Bumping again.... after walking around and glass surfing for a bit she settled into a corner and fell asleep, she let me touch her stomach a little bit but got a bit upset when I tried to lift her slightly, so I can't tell if there's anything painful in there or if she just doesn't want to be taken out... she's awake now since I touched her again but seems to still be trying to dig (there's no sand in her enclosure, just paper towels lining the bottom). She seems to be a bit stressed out again, too...

 

[AHBD]

It's O.K, she's in a new place and can be expected to be a bit restless. I don't think anything sounds worrisome. When you get a chance can you post a few full body shots of her and a few of her tank ? Here's how :
https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Then use the XIMG to upload pics

 

[dystopoly]

It's O.K, she's in a new place and can be expected to be a bit restless. I don't think anything sounds worrisome. When you get a chance can you post a few full body shots of her and a few of her tank ? Here's how :
https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Then use the XIMG to upload pics

Here are a few I took a minute ago, she's managed to half-burrow her way under the towels and seemed calm enough when I went to take pics, but she's been very aggressive towards things approaching from too high up ever since earlier. That big blue thing in the left corner is full of shallow water.

 

[AHBD]

Aw, she's just a bit frightened now but she'll be O.K That's a very nice set up for your new girl. She does look very chubby so if she loses her appetite + starts digging a lot she may looking to lay eggs.

BTW, water dishes can be a problem, beardies often poo in them and some fall asleep in tem which can chill them quite badly and cause scale trauma from being too wet. You can hydrate her with an eyedropper on the snout or spray gently from a spray bottle 1-2X a week.

 

[Permutation]

Beardies love putting themselves in odd positions and ours love jumping from heights they shouldn't, they lack depth perception. But we will find ours under his log, in his hide but mostly on his hammock. Some don't like to much heat some do. Ours doesn't bask all day or even most of the day but he's still a hyper guy and scratching at the glass is common.

I don't want to say oh hey don't worry, but it doesn't sound to abnormal.

Fritz also scratch when he wants out, he refuses to poop in his enclosure, and will hold it for considerable time. When it gets bad he will run around like a maniac trying to get out... All in the name of not pooping in his home, not that I blame him

 

[dystopoly]

Beardies love putting themselves in odd positions and ours love jumping from heights they shouldn't, they lack depth perception. But we will find ours under his log, in his hide but mostly on his hammock. Some don't like to much heat some do. Ours doesn't bask all day or even most of the day but he's still a hyper guy and scratching at the glass is common.

I don't want to say oh hey don't worry, but it doesn't sound to abnormal.

Fritz also scratch when he wants out, he refuses to poop in his enclosure, and will hold it for considerable time. When it gets bad he will run around like a maniac trying to get out... All in the name of not pooping in his home, not that I blame him

My previous beardie used to fall asleep half standing against her driftwood and would get herself into all kinds of weird positions when I wasn't looking - it's really funny to me how oblivious they seem to that kind of thing. xD I'm just overly anxious about every movement my new girl makes because of the drop, but I'm glad from the sounds of it she seems to be acting normal - I'm going to keep a really close eye on her for the next few days.

Aw, she's just a bit frightened now but she'll be O.K That's a very nice set up for your new girl. She does look very chubby so if she loses her appetite + starts digging a lot she may looking to lay eggs.

BTW, water dishes can be a problem, beardies often poo in them and some fall asleep in tem which can chill them quite badly and cause scale trauma from being too wet. You can hydrate her with an eyedropper on the snout or spray gently from a spray bottle 1-2X a week.

Oh, really? I hadn't heard that - I'd been told giving them a place to soak would be good, but I really don't want to cause her any more problems, so I'll dump the water out as soon as she lets me reach close enough to get to it. Is there something I should be trying to do to get her to settle in/trust me again? I've gotten my leopard geckos accustomed to me by keeping my hand stationary at the bottom of their tank a few times a day to let them get used to it, does that go for beardies too?

 

[AHBD]

Yes, that's actually a good idea, along with slow movements when you do go to pick her up again....then hold her against your chest firmly [ but gently ] And don't carry her for a while, just sit with her.

 

[Permutation]

Oh I understand, my girlfriend freaks out about every little thing but it is care and I know it. They are our babies

 

[kingofnobbys]

It sounds like she's going to be O.K....if you see lethargy, gaping , blackbeard there may be a problem but if she's walking around normally I think she's fine.

I always warn people when I see pics or hear about them carrying beardie on their shoulder. Beardies have very good vision but don't realize that a jump from up high can hurt them. Never carry a beardie like that, it's always a possibility for even a very calm dragon to jump at any time.

.... or simply loose their grip and fall.... adult beardies don't grip like hatchling can (little hatchlings seem to grip like Velcro...).

My beardies also like sitting close to or on my shoulder, but I only let them do this if I'm sitting on the lounge .... if they fall off or slip off (more often it's a slip off) they only slip or fall a small way until they hit the back rest or the cushion.



How is she today ?

 

[dystopoly]

.... or simply loose their grip and fall.... adult beardies don't grip like hatchling can (little hatchlings seem to grip like Velcro...).

My beardies also like sitting close to or on my shoulder, but I only let them do this if I'm sitting on the lounge .... if they fall off or slip off (more often it's a slip off) they only slip or fall a small way until they hit the back rest or the cushion.



How is she today ?

She seems okay this morning - she's been kind of a slow waker for the past few days and is again today, she hasn't moved from the spot pictured last night yet but her head is now up and she's fully alert - watching us move around and tilting her head whenever she hears something odd, lol. She hasn't touched her salad yet, but I did offer her a bug to see if she had any appetite, and she ate it almost immediately - so I know she's hungry, just probably a bit too lazy at the moment to make the effort to eat her greens. She also let me put my hand next to her face this morning and stroke her chin lightly without puffing up or acting aggressive, so I think she's also calmed down just a bit. I took the liberty of raising her tank higher up too - I'd meant to do it earlier but got so worried about everything else that I forgot.. @o@ Shes a tiny bit lower than waist level now, so hopefully she feels less threatened when we walk next to her. I really need to get a front opening tank so I don't have to reach over the top to get to her.

Edit:
I ran out to the store to get some more supplies for her and she got up onto her basking spot, so mobility doesn't seem to be an issue for her today. I'm glad to see she's still moving around, although she's a bit more defensive now that she's fully awake... I really hope it's stress induced and not because she's in pain. Here she is now:

 

[dystopoly]

This is probably going to be kinda gross - but she just pooped and it looked alright to me, if a tiny bit watery, but I wanted to upload a picture and see if it looked weird to anyone else. It does seem a bit liquid-y, but I don't see anything that looks like blood.

She's a bit restless now because I had to gently scoot her away from her basking spot to clean it up, but is also getting around with no problems.