My poor Jelly Bean

[novafire]

I went to check on my dragons only to find a blood bath. I have 2 female that have been kept in the same 40 gallon breeder thier entire lives (aprox. 3 years). I pulled Smiley out first and bathed her. She had blood on her snout and feet. No wounds. Then I went to get Jelly Bean. She was hiding in the corner. When I picked her up I could see she had a bad wound in the vent area. I gave her a shallow bath and discovered that she has a large red mass coming out of her vent. No other wound. I am convinced that this is some kind of hernia or something and it just happened that the other dragon bit it. She has no other wounds.

I have cleaned the area as best I can and have wrapped a small piece of gause around her. She is still alive, but has a full black beard and black sides. The rest of her body is a bit lighter than usual.

I'm not sure if there is anything I can do for her at this point but keep her comfortable.

If anyone has anything info on her condition please reply... and keep her in your thoughts.

 

[novafire]

I am sure she prolapsed, and Smiley just got nosey and bit it.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

The best thing you can do at the moment is to separate them, as she is in pain.
Do you have any vaseline or KY jelly to put on the area to keep it moist until you can get her to the vet? You can also soak her in a cool sugar bath to help take down the swelling of the area too. Use 1-2 tablespoons of sugar & dissolve it in warm water. Then, add cool water & soak her in it for 15-20 minutes.
Are you using a UVB light, & if so, what type & brand are you using? A fluorescent tube bulb or a compact/coil light? Do you use calcium supplementation on a regular basis? Has she laid any infertile eggs?
Most prolapses are caused by nutritional deficiencies usually calcium, or possible egg binding issues.

Tracie

 

[novafire]

Thank you for the info... I have scoured the internet last night to get as much info as I can and came up with exactly what you said. I seperated them right away of course. Jelly Bean is now in a 10 gallon tank... small, I know but it's all I had for last night. I gave her a sugar water soak, and applied Neosporin (another site suggested it) both to keep it moist and for antiboitic perposes. How often should she be bathed?
My bulbs are:
5.0 UVB Repti Glo (tube)- this is on during to day hours
Zoo Med 100W Infrared heat lamp - this is on 24/7

She has never been mated so I don't think there is an egg issue.
My beardies get super worms for protien 3 times a week and I coat them with the calcium suppliment every time.

I have read that this could be brought on by impactation. I think that may be it.

It sucks that it is the weekend because finding a vet will be hard. I do have a vet we went to a few months ago that saw Mr. Spike, but I was not impressed. It seemed like I knew more than the vet about his health issues and wasn't sure if they had even ever seen a bearded dragon before. I will be looking for more of a specialist this time.

It's nice to be able to come on this site and hear from people who you know are concerned about these animals.

 

[novafire]

She looks better thismorning... gave her a soak in sugar water. She pooped! Is this a good sign? I cleaned the area and applied ointment. I have paired her tank mate with another female so Jelly Bean is now back at home in her own tank, just alone. The prolapse seems to have gone back in a little.

Forgot to mention I feed my dragons a salad every day of turnip greens (used to be mustard greens, but they don't last as long in the refrigerator), and summer squash which I chop into about 1/4 inch pieces. They enjoy a few carrot slices a few days a week that I shave real thin. And on occation for a special treat they get a few wax worms if my husband has them for fishing.

Should I be varying their greens more or is it okay to get the turnip green everyday? Would a mix of turnip, mustard and maybe another kind be better?

 

[mickeysmomma]

Just because she has never been mated doesn't mean she can't be egg bound. Females lay infertile eggs. Mine just laid 23 of them a few days ago!

 

[novafire]

I have read about that also, but just figured it was not very common. How could I tell if that is the case?

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That is good she pooped. The neosporin is fine, I did forget to mention that. How is she doing today?
The Reptiglo 5 tube bulb is an extremely weak UVB light & unfortunately doesn't emit enough UVB for a bearded dragon. You will need to upgrade to the Reptisun 10 tube bulb for better UVB. The calcium intake doesn't help her any if she can't absorb it & when they don't get enough UVB exposure they can't absorb the calcium & vitamins properly.
Has the area gone down in swelling much yet? You can give a daily sugar bath to see if that will help.
Is she interested in food at all? At least she is in the comfort of her home now. I hope she is doing better. Please keep us posted on her.
The only way to know if she is carrying eggs is if you see them, or she is acting like she needs to lay such as restless behavior like looking for a place to dig or nest, or to get an x-ray on her. It is relatively common for them to lay infertile eggs especially since you have other females. They tend to become cyclic when housed together.

Tracie