Izzy updates, and some questions

[zye1984]

So, i'm on the break period for the meds for the trichomonas. As you may know i was worried she might have had infertile eggs to lay and i mad a sand box for her. Well, the vet said to worry about the trich first, so i've just let her stay in the sand box mostly unless being fed, since she likes it better in there than the viv, and i'm using the wood cave thing to make sure there's no cave in from the sand if it gets too dry.

I haven't fed her too much during the medication process as she typically just digs and hides in the cave, alert usually. She won't eat anything but bugs unless she's in a rare mood for greens, and i don't want her to eat bugs all the time; she's fat (tho losing weight now) and it's not good for adults to eat bugs all the time. I'm going to try to flavor her greens with reduced sodium chicken broth or beef broth and see if she will be more interested...I tried to see if she'd taste warm chicken broth but:

Since the med treatment is sort of traumatic, (i have to force her jaw open with the syringe, hold her down from squirming, and the stuff itself is EXTREMELY bitter) she's gotten less trusting. She shakes her head if i touch her lips. She's never really liked me all that well, she'll nearly always go "HUFF huff huff huff..." when picking her up. It's quite different from a normal hiss. heck, if i pick her up when she's slightly irritated with something she takes a breath and sorta whistles, then immediately calms down. She never opens her mouth at me. The only time that happened was when i was trimming her nails.

So anyways, questions:
1. should i just let her stay in her cave and not put her in her viv to feed her since she won't eat anyway? I can't put the food in the sand bin, she'll just throw sand in it. x-x I can't take her out of the cave without destroying her work ( ) and then she won't eat anyway. Is she brumating?

2. if she poops in her bath, or in her viv while i was away, i will hand wash her with anti-bacterial hand soap and rinse her under running water, avoiding her eyes and nose, is that alright?

3. my viv is rather non-furnished. I have a hammock for her to hang out in and the log is now in the sand bin, with fleece carpet and a food and water bowl. Do they really need more than that, or is it more-so the owner wanting to make the viv look pleasing to themselves/other people? I am going to get a bigger viv at some point and hopefully put a few things in there. I do feel bad there's nothing to do in there other than hang out under the light, but the sand bin seems to make her happy. I don't want sand in her normal viv though, i don't want her ingesting it.

4. Is it ok to use glass cleaner to clean out the viv? Does it kill bacteria and is it safe after venting out for a bit?

 

[zye1984]

Izzy is acting very strange in her normal viv...she's constantly trying to get out now, even grabbing at the top screen, which she's never done before...

 

[AHBD]

Hi Zye....I'm sorry this got missed , I would have responded sooner and you could definitely posted this in the health forum for more exposure. Anyway, just leave her in her viv and put her in the lay box once a day. Oh, and how do you know for sure that she has eggs ? Some dragons will dig a huge cave and then just sit in it, and if you add the stress of medicating her it can cause her to want to hide away from the world in her cave. So she may or may not actually be digging to actually lay eggs. As for cleaning her, no antibacterial soap , look for something for babies that has no fragrance, and even then don't get in her eyes] and definitely no window cleaner ! That's very toxic + irritating. To clean her tank, use vinegar + water then rinse.

I hope everything turns out well for you both.

 

[zye1984]

what is the reason for no anti-bacterial soap? i would think it would be helpful against salmonella and such. Baby wash would probably do no such thing. o-o

 

[zye1984]

also, i was only guessing she had eggs since she is over a year old and i get paranoid easy. she would hide in her cave before the meds.

what about her weird "GOTTA GET OUT" behavior? she even does this in her sand bin. She's possibly hungry since i haven't fed her too much lately, but she is ignoring the greens i have in her normal viv. I'm wondering if i should just let her do her thing until she decides greens are worth eating.

 

[zye1984]

ok so i let her out and she just goes in her nap spot in my living room. What's going on??

 

[AHBD]

She's just busy at what lot's of beardie's are busy at.....driving you crazy. :lol: Seriously, all that behavior is normal for some dragons....you'll just have to wait + see if she's going to lay. Is she interested in any insects ? If so you can certainly feed her if she's hungry.

Antibacterial soap could really irritate or sicken her if she swallowed some or got it in her eye. If she were harboring salmonella it would be in her system anyway, so just washing YOUR hands after handling her is the best thing to do imo. But if you really want to use it, just be very careful and rinse her very well.

 

[zye1984]

she ate 3 crickets, then proceeded to try to get out again. my vet does not think she has eggs, right now i'm worried about her appetite.

 

[zye1984]

this behavior isn't really normal for her. i've had her for a year or two now and this is the first time she won't stop trying to get out, and will not eat at the same time. usually when she tries to get out it's because she needs to poo, but that's not the case here.

These types of things cause me to be VERY irritated because i don't know what's going on. i've already lashed out at her a couple times. i really need some insight...i don't know if i should go to the vet again.

to be clear: she's not going to lay eggs. she is acting super strangely. she is not eating OR drinking.

 

[AHBD]

Whether she's going to lay eggs or not, females can just get super active in the spring.....some males do, too. Is her weight good ? They can go off food at these times, it's not always e sign of something wrong but the meds. are upsetting her now as well.

 

[Taterbug]

Could you tell us a bit more about her setup? (Size, lights etc). If she isn't finding it to her liking she may be trying to get out to find greener pastures, so to speak.

Personally I prefer a well appointed viv to a spartan one. I've got lots of branches and things that my guy climbs all over. I woudlnt say its for my benifit or looks so much as enrichment for him.

 

[Drache613]

Moved by Moderator from General to Health

 

[zye1984]

Right now her viv only has eco-carpet, food/water bowls, and a hammock. Her Habi-hut (curved wood cave thingy) is in her sand bin atm. I think the tank is 30 gal, i plan on getting a larger one soon. There's really not enough room for branches, and she's kinda fat, so she'd probably have some trouble staying up on them unless they were fat themselves. I have had proper lighting for a year and a half, though i've reduced the heat to calm her down. I got a replacement uv bulb like a month ago, it should still be good. i get them every 4-6 months.

other than the habi-hut missing, the viv has been the same for the most part, it's only recently she's started doing this.

I took her out to lie with me in the sun today and soak some rays, and after that she randomly started eating the crickets that were in her viv, rotating eating and poking her head at the glass. She didn't try to desperately dig or climb out after that point. Eventually she calmed down and rested in the hammock, but it was in the evening when she'd calm down anyways. (no i don't normally keep crickets in the viv)

I'm not sure if it was because she is miss-behaving, but i've been highly impatient/irritable lately. after the sun soak and munching on a sub, that faded around the same time her anxiety faded.

I'm going to put her in the shower in the morning and see if she will drink. She poops better that way too.

Oh and i say she's fat, but i'll be damned if the baggage on her belly doesn't flex and stiffen when moving around and stuff.

 

[zye1984]

i put her in the sand bin and stuck her head at the entrance of the cave, she went on a digging rampage and is now buried in there, all nice and calm.

Before this, i had her under the covers lying with me. usually she calms down from that, but not anymore..

 

[zye1984]

no change in behavior or appetite. maybe i can chat with someone instead of leaving messages...?