AHBD":mu93r56x said:
Having said that, at least it is the back leg and although it's extended backwards it's not as dramatic as it would ave been if it were the front [ I forgot that it was the back ] but it will still be very uncomfortable and many dragons do heal without being splinted. Either way , if you say he's still eting that's a good thing. It IS difficult to dose a tiny dragon with metacam though.
Normally I'd agree with you AHBD, but not for a femur fracture like that. That femur fracture must be in a splint, I saw the x-ray and it's a displaced fracture and it absolutely needed to be set and splinted in order for a collagen matrix to start to form between the fracture. If a Bearded Dragon has a "Hairline" fracture or even a Greenstick fracture or Spiral fracture that is not displaced then I wouldn't want them in any type of splint either, but in this particular instance he absolutely needed to have the bone set and immobilized, at least for 4-6 weeks. It was an experienced Herp Vet that did it, and he knew what he was doing. Had that fracture not been immobilized there's no way it would have healed properly, not even close. It was too far displaced.
As far as the MetaCam, it definitely does always seem to cause drowsiness and sometimes even nausea in both reptiles and birds. I've given it to both, and in both cases they were sleeping on and off all day, not moving much at all, and when you combine that with the pain of a femur fracture like he has, I would certainly expect him to not be very mobile and be sleeping. It's okay, he needs the rest, and it's better that he's not moving around much for right now, it's only been a couple of days since it happened, it's going to be pretty painful for the first week or so and he definitely needs the Metacam. I think I already stated that I was surprised he wasn't given a stronger narcotic pain reliever for a displaced femur fracture like that, it's the largest bone in the body and is extremely painful when it's fractured. Bone pain is a very unique pain all it's own, it hurts like a mother, lol. No other way to say it. As someone who has broken several bones and had hardware put in, there is no worse pain that I've ever experienced, and it's constant for the first few days to a week. And I had two open abdominal surgeries including a complete hysterectomy with 32 staples going across my belly...didn't hurt anywhere near like the broken Tibia and Fibula did. So he's a hurting little guy right now, and it's completely normal for the Metacam to make him sleepy and the pain + meds making him immobile. It's not only normal, but it's necessary for him to just be lazy for this next week.
As for the runny stools, I'd say that's probably a combination of both the Metacam and the stress he's going through. He's in a lot of pain, he's got the splint on his leg, he's not understanding what's going on, and stress can certainly cause runny stools. He's going to be out-of-whack for a while, but I'd say after the first week he should be out of the really harsh, "acute" pain that he's in now. Then it just becomes pain that he'll feel when he's moving it or bangs it on something, etc. That's the other reason he needs the splint for 4-6 weeks, not only for the displaced fracture to heal properly and to prevent as much ensuing Arthritis that will no doubt result when he's older, but also to protect the leg from being banged off of things and moved all around, which would be even more painful.
It's a nasty, serious injury he has. He'll fully recover, no worries there, but a displaced femur fracture is a very painful, very serious, very stressful injury, especially for a little baby dragon. He'll be fine, but this next week or so will be rough on both of you, I'm sure. I'd be a total mess if I was in your situation with one of my guys, lol, so I totally understand.