My Beardie is not well :( tips and help please.

[NightFury]

My Beardie Night Fury isnt doing well I have taken her to the vet and it will be a couple of days before i hear the results of her tests.
I have been treating her for yellow fungus and tail rot since her tail has not been healing but her appetite was degrading and now she wont eat anything at all! idk if she is stressed from all the tests they were giving her or if she just is really sick. She doesnt look too well and to be honest when I picked her up from the vet she looked worse than before I left her! They were obviously not keeping her in the proper setup when I had to leave her overnight. She looked like she was dead! she wouldnt move hardly and she kept her eyes closed the whole time and laid completely flat. She is doing better now that I have her under her UVA and UVB bulbs, she began to open her eyes and stand up a bit but even after having her in her home for about a day after the vet visit she still refuses to eat! I have to force feed her meds and the critical care food that I mix with water to make into a paste. I hate making her eat it because she hates it and I have such a hard time opening her mouth that I am afraid im hurting her. so my questions are what do you all recommend I do to get her to eat? And I want tips on the best way to get her mouth open painlessly? Also the vet said I can mix my supplements with her critical care, but idk how much is appropriate? She is a bit underweight due to her illness and she is about 7-8 inches long and about 6-7 months old. Please help me I love her to death and I am afraid she'll die before I get her test results back and get her treated for whatever shes got. Thanks for reading

 

[Freddiemom]

She looks dehydrated to me. Are you bathing her very often? Did they give her fluids at the vet? My sick boy us getting baths 2 times a day and I am syringe feeding him baby food which he takes like a champ. Chicken and squash btw. You can syringe feed her pedilyte too. Good luck with her!

 

[AHBD]

Poor thing ! To get her mouth open, try sliding a credit card or playing card and pry gently. If you can flavor the meds. and drip on her nose she may lick/ eat voluntarily. Or if you can get her to eat some chicken or squash baby food, then disguise the meds. in it. Can you post a pic of the tail, also of the suspected Yellow Fungus ? Be sure to list the meds. she is on, and send a p.m. to Drache613 about this thread [ she's a mod. with lots of experience in dosing of meds. ] Hopefully you can get some help here. Has she ever had horn worms ? Some dragons go crazy for them , even when they have lost their appetite.

 

[NightFury]

Thanks for the replys! Yes she is a bit dehydrated, I keep a water dish in her terrarium that she goes to drink out of alot and I also give her baths and sometimes sprays if I suspect shes thirsty. (she has been thirsty ALOT) When I got her back from the vet her eyes were sunken in too, which is also a dehydration sign so I gave her water immediately. I am giving her Baytril orally, which is liver flavored and its a probiotic for her skin and I am bathing her in Dermachlor 2% Shampoo (Clorhexidine Gluconate 2%) for the yellow fungus ( i let her drink from the bath before applying the dermachlor) the critical care i am giving her doesnt tell me whats in it, she just told me its supposed to give her whatever it is she might be missing from her diet. i apply Silver Sulfadiazene to her tail tip and the sores she has from the fungus. i will post up pics of her fungus and tail in a bit. I gotta force feed her the critical care now feel so bad doing it, i have to use a rubber cathleter and make her swallow it and put the food down in her. I was using a pastic one but she hated it so much that she chomped down on it until her mouth bled. The vet said she nay have broke a tooth which she said was no big deal! :? Thank you all for the support. I hope she pulls through, I will go back to the vet tomorrow for a recheck.

No I have never gave her horn worms, I have seen them before but I figured she still wasnt big enough to eat them yet?

 

[NightFury]

This is her yellow fungus/bacteria infection. She has a couple of red sores on that area but its been healing well with the Silver Sulfadiazine. They took some of her scales from there and sent them to the lab to find out what kind of bacteria it is that she has exactly. She has also had some bloodwork done so we can see what kind of infection she may be dealing with inside. Oh and they also dewormed her incase of parasites.

This is her tail, its hard to see the tip because of the Silver Sulfadiazine I have put on it. The vet believes her infections started here since she has had this nip on her tail since she was barely out of her hatchling days. I was trying to get it to heal but it just kept scaling/scabbing over then falling off, It would then be an open sore again. This stuff is working pretty well on it though.

 

[NightFury]

I will pick up a dropper and some baby food as well as pedialyte tomorrow to try to see if she will lick it up. Hopefully if I can get her to eat it her appetite will improve. I will give you all an update tomorrow of what my vet says and whats been going on. I was able to open her mouth easily with a plastic/rubber cake spatula. Keep happy thoughts and hopes for my beardie Thanks.

 

[Esther19]

Poor girl! Poor you! I would mix the critical care with a bit of baby food squash or sweet potatos. Maybe water it down a bit. The medication is probably adding to her dehydration. Adequate hydration is necessary before they will eat, I believe.

May I ask what the temperatures are in her tank and what you use to measure with?
Temps are very important in digestion.

Best of luck,
Esther

 

[NightFury]

My vet told me she has kidney failure and liver damage. She told me outlook is not good and that I should put her to sleep but it's so hard for me to do she said its possie that her kidneys are damaged from too much calcium. I figure I might not have a choice but it's so hard, I feel so bad cuz it's my fault. Anyone have any advice? Anyone's dragon ever live from kidney failure?

 

[AHBD]

I'm so,so sorry....I'm not sure what to tell you. I sent a p.m. to Drache613 to see what she might suggest. Until you can decide, try giving as much liquid as you can, without causing too much discomfort. I'm so sorry, don't be angry at yourself though, you are trying to help her.

 

[NightFury]

Thanks so much for your support, it's been a hard day for me. I am going to try to fight for her and hope she somehow pulls through. If anyone does know the best stuff to give a beardie in that sort of condition then the tips will be very much appreciated. I got her some pedialyte and baby food to try to give her. I will hope for the best and hope she can fight through it. Anyone know also If u can give a beardie any type of painkiller safely in case she's in alot of pain also? Thanks everyone.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Oh I am so sorry about your dragon.
Which medication has she been on for the fungal issue? How long has she been on it & what has the dose been?
When are the blood tests coming back? I would like to see the results if possible, thanks.
How much calcium have you given her?
Which UVB are you using, a tube bulb or a compact/coil light?

I hope they didn't overmedicate her at the vets, that could be one thing that is going on with her right now. Do you know if they gave any meds this last time?
Continue to give extra oral fluids, if possible & a bath, IF she tolerates it without becoming too stressed. Keep her stress levels down as much as possible.
The metacam/meloxicam is a good painkiller that can be prescribed for short term if she is in pain right now.

Let us know how she is doing.
Tracie

 

[Freddiemom]

Oh dear- I know how tough it is. Flip is on my chest right now, not doing well. You both will be in our prayers. Trust yourself to know what's right. Liz

 

[NightFury]

Hello,

Oh I am so sorry about your dragon.
Which medication has she been on for the fungal issue? How long has she been on it & what has the dose been?
When are the blood tests coming back? I would like to see the results if possible, thanks.
How much calcium have you given her?
Which UVB are you using, a tube bulb or a compact/coil light?

I hope they didn't overmedicate her at the vets, that could be one thing that is going on with her right now. Do you know if they gave any meds this last time?
Continue to give extra oral fluids, if possible & a bath, IF she tolerates it without becoming too stressed. Keep her stress levels down as much as possible.
The metacam/meloxicam is a good painkiller that can be prescribed for short term if she is in pain right now.

Let us know how she is doing.
Tracie

I had the results back but she told me them over the phone, he said the calcium levels were too high so I know I must of been doing too much. I would cal supplement about 3 times a week. I feel so bad cuz I caused all this. I have been using a shampoo in her bath called dermachlor, I also use silver suffadiazine on the open wounds. I was told to force feed her this critical care powder for omnivores that I mix with water to make into paste. I have also been having her take baytril once a day. Other than that I started to give her baby food and I even made it more liquidy for her to drink since she won't eat anything. I have been having a bit of pedialyte in a dish that I'd let her drink from a couple of times when she was thirsty. She isn't doing very well, I just wish I could start all over. I am heartbroken over all this. I'm afraid her kidneys are calcified which could be why they are failing but the vet needs a biopsy in order to know for sure. I'm glad u all are being supportive, just let me know if you all think it's best for her to be euthanized or should I continue trying to save her? Also I wont leave her with the vet because they had her in an incubator and not what's suited for a bearded dragon so I refuse to let them treat her. I just want her to be as little stressed as possible. How can I keep her from being stressed when I have to force feed her?

I use a UVB tube light, it's a reptisun 5.0. I know I need the 10 but idk how much that'll help her at her condition
I also use a floodlight as the UVA source with a temp ranging from 100-110F and 80 on cool side.
I was using the repcal brand of calcium and multivitamin.
Her substrate is reptile carpet.
I fed her crickets, dubia roaches,phoenix worms, collard greens, mustard greens, kale, and butternut squash. I did mealworms with her at first but stopped shortly after I heard they were bad for her.

 

[NightFury]

When she said the night at the vets they made her eat the critical care stuff and took blood as well as skin for the tests to see what she had. They also dewormed her and have her a vitamin A and D injection. I know they prob stressed her out more especially since she looked worse when I got her back from there than when I left her. They also charged me for the benebac that they never gave me that I have to pick up, she said that's also for the fungus and bad appetite.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

How is your dragon tonight?
Is there any way that you could get a copy of that blood test for me, please? I really want to see the values on that & what the vet considers too high of calcium, as well as the renal & liver values, too. Were any x-rays done as well to view any calcification possibilities of the organs?
How long have you had the Reptisun 5 tube bulb & do you have anything in between her & the light such as plastic or screen? How far is the light from her?
What is the Baytril for, an infection of some type? Just for arguments sake, IF she is in renal failure, Baytril is not really an acceptable route to go since it is a nephrotoxic agent which would expedite renal failure anyway. So personally, I would take her off of the Baytril unless there is a good reason that she should be on it at the moment.
Did you give an oral antifungal medication or just topical treatment?
Three times per week for calcium doesn't sound like any overload at all to me, so I am not sure I agree with oversupplementation theories quite yet at this point. It could by a thyroid dysfunction causing imbalance or malabsorption problems, cancer, or other calcium issues.
As far as the critical care, as you mixing it up with water or juice instead of a paste? She might prefer more liquid with it, plus you can also put in some chicken or turkey baby food in with it to make it more palatable for her too.
Keep her tank around 80 overnight right now also to help boost her immune system.

Tracie