Is it going to die?

[Tomyuenck]

hello!
The rear body of my baby dragon cannot move, anyone could help?
I brought it from a local pet store yesterday and it is not eating for over 24 hours.
Thank you very much!

https://youtu.be/leobDqclIIE

 

[Gibsoali000]

I don't think that he's going to die, but try to get him to eat. If he won't, there are some great videos on YouTube about assist feeding. If you can, try to find a way to make or buy a little wheelchair for his back legs or something. Or you can't do beardie rehab to try and get movement in his legs.

 

[CooperDragon]

It doesn't look like he was well cared for at the store =(. He is active and alert though, which is a good sign. He may be able to bounce back but will need very proper care. What do you have in place for his lighting? How far is his UVB light from the basking area and which one are you using? What are the temperatures in his tank? What are you offering him for food? All of these must be carefully fine tuned to give him the best shot at recovering. He is young and active though so I have high hopes for him.

 

[Gormagon]

We need a rundown of his setup like all lights, substrate, tank size and, temperatures. Also dietary intake and, how many times he poops a week.

Also if you can post some pics of his viv, it will help us help your dragon.
Upload them at this link https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/#list and load them using the XIMG tab at the top of the post page.

 

[AHBD]

Hi Tom, is that a Witblit dragon ? They are a newer specialty morph....are you outside of the U.S. ? As was mentioned he has been very neglected....lots of bite wounds on his tail, looks like tail rot may be setting in. Hind leg paralysis could be due to number of things. Poor little guy, how is that pet store doing business ? Are you in the U.S or somewhere else ? If you don't want to say where you got him that's O.K, but that place should be avoided .

He does look lively though, poor little guy is still full of spunk. Be sure you get the best uvb bulb for him and dust his food with calcium powder. Use only small bugs, VERY important that they are smaller than the space between his eyes or he may become impacted which could lead to his death. He may already have been partially impacted , which would add to his paralysis. Cripple the bugs by placing them in a jar + shaking them up until they are slow-moving and dizzy before you drop them right near him.

His tail may need to be seen by a very experienced reptile vet.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Poor guy, he definitely wasn't take care of very well at all. He is lively though & very cute.
As suggested, please review your tank setup with us, so we can be sure he has everything that he needs to become healthier.
Hind leg paralysis could be from calcium issues, or commonly from impaction such as loose substrate ingestion or eating too large of insects that are not able to pass through.
For now, I would start giving some softer foods such as squash baby food mixed with either sugar free applesauce, or pumpkin baby food or canned pumpkin mixed with a few drops of olive oil or coconut oil. Please avoid mineral oil though. This can help things start to move through.

Tracie

 

[Tomyuenck]

Thank you guys for your reply!

This little dragon was bought at a local reptile store in Hong Kong. It was sold by online auction with description stating a recovered tail problem. However, when I took it back home, I found that its rear legs couldn't move at all. It has been sleeping a lot through the day and hasn't eaten any food.

I've sent the store lots of messages but it seldom replies and finally asked me to take the dragon back for refund. I'm not sure if the store will treat it well in the futur so I'm looking for a local reptile vet and see if I could help this little dragon recover. If not, then I have no choice but take it back to the store.

I thought the local pet store was popular but didn't know it would sell ill dragon.

Thank you for your replies!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

How is he doing this evening?
Which UVB light are you using for him? Being over in Hong Kong, you should be able to find
the Arcadia D3 12% tube bulb, possibly.
Can you find out whether or not it was injured or housed on a loose substrate? Those are two big possibilities which would cause the back legs to be immobile.
I hope you are able to find a vet soon, I am sorry he was in this condition when you got him.

Keep us posted on him.
Tracie

 

[mygirlz]

Poor guy! He's lucky to have you. At least you are trying. I hope you can get all the answers you are looking for! Tracie has helped me sooooo much. Please take Tracie's advice and answer any questions you are asked. It will help. Good luck!

 

[CooperDragon]

At this point I hope you're able to find a vet for him. It doesn't seem like the store cares enough to help him so he's probably best off with you. You may be able to get the store to help with vet costs, but I wouldn't be hopeful. If you can provide details about his setup we will be glad to review and help out in any way we can. As mentioned, his care will require very specific lighting, heat, and diet so it's important to get that straightened out for him soon so he has the best chance at recovery.

 

[EllenD]

Please don't take him back to that store! He is very skinny, he has lots of bites from tank mates he shouldn't be housed with, and yes it looks like severe tail rot. I see a bowel movement in his tank so that kind of eliminates impaction, which often causes paralysis of the back legs. We may be able to help you, but we really need you to answer the questions about your set-up as far as what exact lights you have, the temperature in his cool side, hot side, and basking spot, what his diet has been, etc. He obviously was dominated by tank mates and didn't get much to eat, and they would have eventually killed him judging from the bites all over him and the tail rot. If you take him back he will surely die...

Please list all of your setup details and answer the questions, and post a photo of the setup. If we can make sure your setup is correct right off the bat and that he has the correct lighting and temperatures, he can recover...You just got him so it's not at all unusual that he isn't eating yet, that's simply relocation stress, so don't worry so much about that. He will start eating soon as long as you have adequate UVB lighting and temperatures. He's active, he's moving around well, he's bright, so the not eating a few days after he was brought home is normal. He's got a very good chance of living a healthy life and recovering, but you need to be patient and help us help you. He won't recover over night, but he's not lethargic and he seems very alert, so if you keep him that way he should start eating soon and with proper husbandry he should recover. If you take him back to that awful store he's dead for sure.