Lotus vomited - Doing much better now!!

[SpikesAgirl]

I would just go easy, 1/2 ml at a time. I wouldn't give her too much all at once for her first feeding. Give her up to 2 ml if she'll take that much, and see if she holds it down. A nice warm soak/bath might help her relax a little too. Maybe do that before she eats if you can? It might help her "go" if she's got anything left in her before putting more in. I would soak her daily anyway just to keep her hydrated until she eats again.

 

[XtinaBeardieMom]

Thank you Sue! I've been soaking her for at least 20mins daily plus some additional "rinse the poo off" baths, since all this started she's had liquid poo. The weird thing is, she usually hates baths and fights them all the way - but since all this has been happening she'll just go to sleep in the bath like it relaxes her or something. She still mostly holds herself up, but I hold her upper body in my hand anyway so she can just float and not have to use any energy. I almost get scared every time I give her a bath because it seems like she's going lethargic again but I'm honestly thinking *hoping* she's just exhausted and taking the opportunity to rest.

We're having massive thunderstorms where I live right now. Lotus got a bit freaked out so I snuggled her to sleep on my chest under a blankie until her tank lights went off, then I put her back in the tank with her blankie. If there's one good thing I can take out of the loss of my little Monster, it's the ability to cherish and appreciate the simple little moments like those.

 

[SpikesAgirl]

Awww, poor little girl. Not feeling good and afraid. I was gonna say you should keep a close eye on her in the bath where she might be really weak, but sounds like you've got that covered! :wink: I'm not sure how long you can safely withhold food. Maybe ask Tracie or your vet? Did the vet suggest waiting til Thursday? Just wondering. I think we all know they can go for periods without food but where she's already vomited her last couple of meals, she's probably pretty empty and maybe feeling weak from that? Again, just guessing. I'm thinking if what you give her is thin enough, it may get passed the obstruction and get in her belly. Maybe it's me, but I don't think you should hold off til Thursday. Sounds like she needs some nutrients. Get Tracie back here, quick!! :silent: Hopefully the thunder boomers won't wake her up. <3

 

[XtinaBeardieMom]

Thanks again Sue! Thankfully Tracie and I have been emailing back and forth as well, so she told me that Lotus could have a little bit of food today. The vet didn't necessarily tell me to wait until Thursday, he just said "a few" days but it had really already been a few days so I guess I got kind of confused. I just figured if she was vomiting even Critical Care then she probably wasn't ready for anything. I'm going to try a mixture of watered down baby food mixed with a little Critical Care today. I've got a little over an hour until her lights come on, but it's so hard not to go wake her now to make sure she's ok. I'm sure she needs her rest more than she needs me pestering her though :?

 

[SpikesAgirl]

*Fingers Crossed* that she's able to keep it down!!

 

[XtinaBeardieMom]

I mixed a bit of squash baby food with a pinch of the Critical/Carnivore Care plus enough water to make it a free flowing liquid but still mostly opaque. I gave her 1mL about 2 hours ago and she seems to be holding it down fine so far. However, the other times she vomited it was at least 6-8 hours after eating that she did it - so we're not in the clear yet I suppose. She did perk right up after I fed her that little bit today. She immediately wanted to get up and walk around to explore the living room. I put her back in her tank to bask though. She was also kind of looking at me like, "Come on Mom, is that really all you're going to give me?!" *sigh* Tough love

I ordered some phoenix worms and butter worms to feed her instead of the dubias. However, I have NO idea how many to give her in a feeding. I can't go by the whole "Let them eat however much they want in 10 minutes" rule because she will inhale everything in sight without chewing and then pack her beard full of more bugs for a storage snack. I think she was traumatized by being nearly starved to death by her previous owners :x Can anyone PLEASE tell me how many medium phoenix and/or butter worms would be the equivalent to the 35 x 1" medium dubias I was feeding her weekly?

 

[SpikesAgirl]

Glad to hear she perked up a little for you after she took some "food" in! YAY! Hopefully it will stay down, we have a while to wait! Wish I knew 'bout them bugs...I don't use roaches. Keep us posted on her progress!

 

[AHBD]

The phoenix worms are so small, she can probably eat quite a few at a time. Butters are larger, so only a couple at first. I still wouldn't rule out the dubias. Just give her the smaller ones or feshly shed. You should try hornworms as well....they come in a container with their food to gutload, they grow at an AMAZING rate, [ you'll have to see to believe ], are full of moisture and calcium, and are so beautiful that you will hate to feed them because they look like a work of art ! But really, if Lotus just had a bad spell, she may get back to normal with just a little rest from the huge portions and no other special treatment. Try a little syringe feeding, then a couple bugs, increase slowly...I think she'll be fine.

 

[XtinaBeardieMom]

The phoenix worms are so small, she can probably eat quite a few at a time. Butters are larger, so only a couple at first. I still wouldn't rule out the dubias. Just give her the smaller ones or feshly shed. You should try hornworms as well....they come in a container with their food to gutload, they grow at an AMAZING rate, [ you'll have to see to believe ], are full of moisture and calcium, and are so beautiful that you will hate to feed them because they look like a work of art ! But really, if Lotus just had a bad spell, she may get back to normal with just a little rest from the huge portions and no other special treatment. Try a little syringe feeding, then a couple bugs, increase slowly...I think she'll be fine.

Thank you again AHBD, it's nice to see someone with a more optimistic view of this situation than I have. I think the ultrasound results are still weighing heavily on me - I just don't know how significant it all is. I'm still planning on giving her freshly shed dubias eventually, but they're so hard to find in my colony because the roaches all pile on top of each other and try to hide! I want to try horn worms too for sure, just waiting for Mulberry Farms to get some more in stock. I may order them from somewhere else if they don't have more soon. I thought of getting some silk worms, but caring for them and keeping them just seemed so daunting for now... maybe sometime in the future. So far she's held down the tiny amount of food she had earlier. I just gave her the meds plus electrolytes and some oral fluids. I'll give her another few mL of "food" if she's still doing ok in a few hours.

 

[AHBD]

Sounds good. For hornworms, try Great Lakes hornworm. I've had perfect delivery the times I ordered mine. I know you are worried about the ultrasound....for now there's a fine balance between taking it easy on the food, but yet knowing that she has to eat. If she had no trouble digesting food before, she should [ barring some crazy diagnosis that just pops up out of nowhere ] hopefully get back to herself with a little time....again, hopefully.

 

[SpikesAgirl]

Howz she doin today???

 

[XtinaBeardieMom]

Thanks for checking in Sue! Lotus seems to be doing well so far. She's definitely feeling better, or acting like it anyway. No more vomit so far. No poops either, but she hasn't had much besides oral fluids and a few mL of watered down babyfood + Critical/Carnivore Care for the past two days. I've been soaking her in 95 degree water (measured w/infrared temp gun) for about 15 minutes every evening to help her digestion, but then I dry her off and put her right back under her lamp to warm up. I think I'll feel better once she poops so I know her digestive system is at least working on a basic level. I was happy to see that her beard shed is finally lifting off of her. I feel like I should be checking her for retained shed in other places just in case though. What does that look like?? I did increase her light cycle from 13 hours on to 14 hours on, is that ok? I had to have her lights come on earlier so I could give her the meds before I leave for work, or else she's too sleepy to do much of anything. She's trying to hide her head under the paper towels now, but her body is still under the heat/light so that's ok lol. She wants to run around every time I take her out for oral fluids or food, but I just put her back in the light. My boyfriend even took her outside today (she usually FREAKS outside), and they sat on the porch for 15 minutes for some sunlight, and she seemed to enjoy it. I'm sure she's so tired of being in her tank. I even have a huge rabbit hutch for her to go outside in, but she still flips out. This time she just relaxed on my boyfriend's chest. Her weight seems to have stabilized now, no more loss. I'm still giving her probiotics & electrolytes too. Should I give her some liquid calcium & vitamins? I use the Leapin' Lizards brand of probiotics and electrolytes, and I know there's a little vitamins & calcium in those. Plus she's eating the little bit of Critical Care, which has that stuff in it too I think. Anyway, more updates whenever anything actually happens.

 

[Esther19]

I'm so glad to hear there's been some improvement! Nice that Lotus got some sunshine, too. Thanks for checking in! You're doing a fantastic job with her!

 

[SpikesAgirl]

I hope her keeping the liquid diet down is a good sign! I can see why you want to see her pass something though. At least then you would know it's not just sitting somewhere in her digestive tract. :| I think the extra hour of lights on is probably ok to help her digest. She's still getting 10 hours of lights out. Sounds like she felt more secure being held/laying on someone outside! So cute! Sounds like you're doing everything you can to "move things along". I hope something happens soon! I'll keep an eye out for some more news!! :wink:

 

[XtinaBeardieMom]

Thanks guys! One question, if anyone can answer... I'm supposed to be getting the pheonix & butterworms in the mail today and I'd like to give her some this evening. Is it too soon to be giving her some worms? If it's ok, then how many of each kind should I give her to start off slowly? Both were listed as "medium" sized.