Lamp fell on Kevin!

[KevinsMama]

How's he doing ? You know there's a basketball player named after him...Kevin Love.

LMAO! I didn't know that!

He's having another good day. I did notice yesterday as the day went on he got more slumpy looking. So that's not fun.

But so far this morning he ate the 3 remaining live crickets (they've all died thru this) and a hornworm and is looking pretty perky... when I hold him. Every time I put him back in his tub, he stares at me & his tail goes black. The temp is good, staying around 105.8 in basking spot. His t5 bulb FINALLY CAME today so he might not like it? Or since he's beside me all the time now, it's just his way of saying get me out now. It immediately goes back to normal when I get him out. Still trying to figure that out.

He is definitely scooting around more, which also causes a black tail, & he accidently flipped himself over earlier. Finally seen that he is in fact capable of black bearding. 1st time ive seen it so i was a little worried he just didnt do it. Now i know he hasnt been black bearding for sure lol. Thank God I'm right here, I actually seen it happen. The injured stiff leg paired with the really kinked tail is really screwing his movements up. I see it going wrong. So he will definitely not be getting any alone time. I had a Dr appt this morning & was an anxious mess worrying about him being home alone. Thankfully everything was fine & the flip over didn't happen til after I was back. I'm about to go on a cricket hunt (Petco can't keep the damn things) & he will definitely be going with me.

I'm not sure if I've even showed how bad his tail kink is so I took a pic just to show

It's bad. He will hold it in the air a lot lately. It's so strange that it's exactly where that black spot is & is in the position from the splint. I'm not sure if this is from whatever is going on or if it maybe had gotten a fracture also & the splint caused it to heal that way?

I didn't even realize it but while I was holding him earlier, I had my hand on my belly over his tail & guess what he did?

He raised his chest up a little on his own!! Not sure if I was helping his balance by holding his tail or if it's just improvement but it was awesome! He stayed that way for about 5mins then slowly slumped back down. (Also, sorry for the bit of cleavage, I tried very hard to not get it in the pic. If it's an issue, I'll gladly remove the pics. I just had to show this off!)

While I'm out, I'm going to get some betadine or raw honey for his nasty spot. Whichever I can find. It's not getting worse but looks a lot grosser. Its turned white quite a bit so I think it's just weird late shed troubles. His tummy & tail base have started shedding today. Yay!

Oh, he still hasn't had calcium. His curated look perfect now so I'm not sure but I'm gonna try to hold off a bit longer on it. Unless that kinked tail is a sign of the opposite. As far as the Metacam, I gave him a half dose last night cause he looked so rough. But after the flipping this morning, that will probably be withheld today to see how tomorrow goes.

Yay, changes!

 

[AHBD]

It could be that he's uneasy because of the new light, but it shouldn't make that much difference. Glad that he's still eating, and I think the black beard + tail tip is just related to his insecurity/slight pain/disorientation. It's scary for him to flip. So he has a tail kink now ? Get some pics of that when you have time, also the spot on his tail.

It's nice that your'e so modest, I don't think anyone will have to avert their eyes because of the angle of the picture though. Myself, I was looking at the little guy holding himself up, that's great ! And hopefully your little guy will one day be able jump like his namesake here [ Kevin Love ] :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESqtJbPWzpw

 

[KevinsMama]

Ha! I showed Kevin the video so he could learn from him a little lol!

Ok here comes a flood of pictures:

That's the kink. It's more of a bend. It never straightens out. The vet asked me when it happened, if I dropped him or something. I had just assumed it was from the positioning with the splint. Never seen it for more than maybe 30minutes at a time (between splints) & just thought he hadn't relaxed to straighten it. This "kink" is why she said spinal cord right away.

That's the spot. He also has one right where the break is on his leg and another on the same leg what would be his calf. None of the spots are spreading. I was using Lotrimin until we went to the vet and she said it's superficial infection caused by splint. It does seem to be slowly healing. I did my best on the pics but the closer I get, the blurred it gets.

This is new. Is he too young to have gout? And what causes it & how do I treat it. I've seen cherry juice recommended in other posts. I thought that ankle was swollen but yesterday it got big. Idk what all this could be, no other "good" ankles to really compare it to.

Gah, he has so much going on. It's really overwhelming lol. I'm trying to just stay calm & let him tell me what he needs. The vet called yesterday to see if there was any improvement. I expected them to at least wait until weds to give him time. This was the "are we euthanizing" call. I don't want to take him again over these things because she kinda writes all the side issues off. I.e, if I go to have the swollen ankle looked at, she will only focus on his upper body. Or if its the black spot, she will focus on the kink. I can't seem to get her to cover everything at once and hear me out on all these issues. Plus, money lol.

On a side note, at what age do they develop femoral pores? Idk how old Kevin is but last week I found femoral pores that weren't there before! It was exciting lol!

 

[AHBD]

The tail might straighten a bit , only time will tell. Is the swollen ankle the same side as the break ? Darn, you're right the poor little dude just has one new symptom after another. Cherry extract is recommended and lots of oral hydration. Maybe the swelling is related to the break, maybe too much calcium, it is puzzling. Tracie or Ellen may have some thoughts.

I hope he got some inspiration from the K-Love video.

 

[KevinsMama]

Believe it or not, it's not the broken leg. That's what worries me. It's definitely swollen tho, right? The broken one is so weak looking, loss of muscle & whatnot, that I can't compare them.

So far, if it's not one thing, its another! Soon as i get one issue figured out & start taking care of it, something else pops up. I'm really trying to make sure everything is right for him but it seems like I'm just torturing the poor guy. He's falling apart.

I'm not so sure hos tail will straighten out. I sure hope it does. It really seems to bother him. I'm pretty sure it's what's causing him to flip because of the way it weighs over to the side towards his hurt leg to where he can't support it.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Poor Kevin, I do see the kink in his tail. I am wondering if too much calcium caused that,
along with having his leg in a cast. The same could go for the development of a gout like
symptom, too. Oversupplementation & lack of better quality UVB can contribute to pseudo
gout thus lead to swelling. Is that the only swollen area?
Go ahead & keep him off of calcium a few more days, then start him back on it, using only
the calcium from your vet but none of the other calcium. You could also start using black
cherry juice or tart cherry juice, or black cherry powder, just to help his kidneys out. If you
feel he doesn't need meloxicam anymore, I would discontinue that as well to help out his
kidneys in case he has secondary gout. Can you try to get some extra oral fluids into him,
daily right now to help?
How do you have the T5 mounted?
It does sound like though, his spirits are good, he is eating & is more active which is great to
hear.
The pictures are fine, no worries!
Let us know how he is doing.

Tracie

 

[KevinsMama]

I gotta say... I am SO THANKFUL I found this site!! Kevin is shedding in all kinds of places right now. I'm not really new to the shedding, seems he's always shedding. But I just witnessed something that would have definitely gave me a heart attack if I wasn't already well informed. EYE BULGING! Omg... that was the freakiest thing I've ever seen. He kinda looked like his whole head was gonna explode lol. I wish I'd gotten a pic but I was too amazed & freaked out. I just watched, ready to do lizard CPR lmao! Oh gosh... that was crazy... Now i k ow why he's keeping his eyes closed more than normal today too. I just thought he didn't wanna wake up.

He seems pretty good today. His tail is noticeably straighter so that's awesome. He also has started flailing ALL 4 legs when I go to sit him down. He used to do that a lot but here lately he's just limp. I'm thinking he will be crawling off my hand to the ground within a couple days.

I always try to get him water but he doesn't really drink it. Just let's it drip. I do feed him hornworms more often than I'd like & his poo usually has a big wet spot around it. I don't think we're having any hydration issues. I'm gonna pick up some cherry juice sometime today.. if I go anywhere lol.

He woke up before me this morning & had managed to pull himself over out from under his blankie. So that's a good thing. I'm so glad he's moving more, but it's tons more stressful on me. He doesn't have the hang of it yet & I feel I gotta watch him very closely ALL day. That's kinda hard.

I'm getting pretty worried about having the baby. At first it was just somebody's gotta feed Kevin while I'm at the hospital. Now it's somebody needs to stare at Kevin all day to make sure he don't flip over while I'm in the hospital. I think I'm gonna hire him a babysitter & write one of those ridiculously long rules & what he needs notes. ????? That is if he hasn't improved enough by then. My husband says he will be a totally different little guy in a week at the rate he's going. I think so too. We're doing good!

I think I did just overload him on calcium. & the t8 without the reflector, not mounted well enough & not close enough just screwed him all up. I've got the t5 just sitting on top of his tub & since he can't move much, I've made it where he's mostly directly under it all the time. He's exactly a foot under it so I'm gonna fold up some towels to kind of raise him closer to it today.

I took a pic of his poo today to show how it's looking. I forgot to upload it before I started this so I'll come back and add it.

Ok. I said I wouldn't be a poop poster but it's weird. See how his urate is orangish at the end? Then it's kinda spotted with that orangish going down a little. That's too much calcium, right? I'm really just hoping this is the answer to everything & he will continue to improve now that I'm not giving him any & got the better UVB. I swear, by the time ive got him better, I'll be a beardie pro! He's teaching me everything. Poor guy has to go thru my learning curves lol!

And no one answered me about the femoral pores! I may be not noticed em but before he got hurt I did look for them. Then one day I was like oh Kevin you're growing up! ?

 

[CooperDragon]

That poop looks OK to me. Sometimes the poop and urate has an odd color but I don't worry about it too much unless it continues for an extended period. It's often dietary or could be supplementation as you mentioned. Offer him plenty of water and his system should flush out any issues on it's own. As far as the femoral pores go, I think they always have them, they just become more pronounced as they grow older.

 

[AHBD]

Poolooks good....and both males + females start out with wee little pin point femoral pores but the males have the larger ones when mature.

 

[KevinsMama]

Ah, ok. Well he's got em. I'm not 100% sure if he's even male or female. I checked before he got hurt but he's so young. I planned on checking every so often but then he got hurt & I doubt it's a good idea to be lifting his tail right now.

He's got a lot of shed coming off his head & back & my goodness his colors are pretty underneath. Getting more citrus looking than tan.

His urate was a lot more of the orangish but that's how it's looking now. I wish I'd took pics of those crazy looking ones he had. I keep trying to get him to take water but he just isn't having it. I did however screw up & make some chicken & greens flavored water that he loves. It's a whole small jar of chicken baby food a few greens & my blender couldn't blend such a small amount so I added water. And more water. Then a little more. It was a disaster lol. But he was really digging it. Do you think that might be good for hydration or is it more of a food? It's so watery but it's still food too so idk...

 

[AHBD]

That would be fine, just be sure the chicken does not have broth, gravy or salt. If you want, you can experiment with different greens and a few fruits like strawberry, cataloupe + blueberry.

 

[KevinsMama]

That would be fine, just be sure the chicken does not have broth, gravy or salt. If you want, you can experiment with different greens and a few fruits like strawberry, cataloupe + blueberry.

Omg he is so spoiled... He's gonna get flavored water. I swear...

 

[AHBD]

He'll be like, coconut water ? Pffft....Kevin -Love needs some more strawberry mango or pomegranate or acai blueberry or......

 

[KevinsMama]

I just wonder if when he is healed, he's gonna be a brat like that. I literally do everything for him right now. He's already spoiled cause he knows I will give in. I'm gonna have an overly grumpy sub adult if it keeps going this way. Puberty plus tough love. Gonna make him drink regular water and chase his own food... looking forward to it lol

 

[AHBD]

He'll adjust O.K. , he deserves to be spoiled now. He's been through the ringer , little boy with a broken leg , flipping over, wondering what it's all about. Spoil away !