NO ADV!!UPDATE: IS THIS NORMAL?! Purple beard, neck and tail

[anenglish15]

Oh my gosh I can't express enough how relieved I am!! Lillie tested NEGATIVE for the adeno virus!! She DOES have parasites and DOES have a blood infection (stemmed from her tail before we got her) but at least those things are treatable!

They said we were overfeeding her crickets (is that even possible?!).. we were giving her one feeding every day and she would eat like 20-30 crickets. She's 1 year old. They said that caused her liver to be "fatty" and now we should only feed her protein once every THREE days. Does that sound okay? And to have veggies the rest of the time. My problem is that she doesn't really LIKE veggies. Do I just keep trying and one day she'll be so hungry that she'll just go for them?

Speaking of fatty livers, does that cause their liver to shut down? She said she thought she was borderline liver failure because her gums were REALLY yellow.
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Here's the update:
She said Lillie's darkened tail makes her think she has a blood infection. She said the very tip of it was cut/biten off (must've happen when she was a baby) we've had her since November and it's been that way ever since. She said she could very well have been sick this entire time. She's been lethargic the last two days and turns out her gums are yellowing as well.

Heres the technical stuff people have been asking for-
They did a blood sample to analyze organ function and found severely elevated liver values. They also said she is anemic (very low blood cell levels). They think it's either due to chronic disease, kidney or bone marrow compromise or loss of blood from where in the body. They did find parasites as well.
They tested her for the viral disease "Atadaenovirus" they said it's very common in dragons?! They have her on a "empirical therapy" for liver disease, anemia and parasites.
Here are her meds-
Unasyn: Antibiotic for potential bacteria infection (maybe from her tail they're thinking) they're injections we have to put in her leg
Metronidazole: Antiparasite medication
Atadenovirus supplement: Liver supplement. It contains liver protectants
Omnivore critical care: Since she's not eating as much

There's a couple tests we're waiting to hear back on. It was SOOO much information that I'm in a little bit of a daze. Apparently one test we're hoping is negative because if it comes back positive, there's nothing else they can really do. I'm not sure which one it is though? I'm very confused and upset Any advice/experience/words of encouragement is appreciated. I just feel so dumb I didn't do something sooner!! She's been hiding like the last 6 weeks, up until like a few days ago and I thought she just wasn't liking her temps.. or maybe she was brumating

Oh AND they mentioned to NOT feed crickets?! They're pamphlet they gave me says to only feed crickets every other day, or every third day. And always give greens. (Which we DO that) They suggested pellets soaked in water or juice to soften them at first or mealworms. I had never heard that before instead of crickets? They said it's because they have such a high risk of parasites.

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I have NEVER seen my dragon look like this before. Her body is lighter (like it is when she's happy), but her beard is dark dark purple and the tip of her tail! Her beard is not puffed out though. High temps are 100*, low temp is 85*. She has a 10.0UVB.. the good kind. She ate crickets today AND pooped like.. 4 hours ago. Is she okay?

 

[Esther19]

She's fine. That's black bearding. They do that when they are feeling aggressive or uncomfortable, or sick.

 

[anenglish15]

She's fine. That's black bearding. They do that when they are feeling aggressive or uncomfortable, or sick.

Even with the dark tail though? like the last 1/3 of her tail is very dark

 

[KarenInCA]

She is probably not happy about having to take a bath. She is black bearding you. I suspect she is not very old. Our dragon is about 10 months old now, and just came to the age where he black beards me more often. The black beard is not aggression like puffing out the beard would be. It's more like a pout when the black beard is by itself. Or like suggested already, not feeling well. It's more of a mood swing rather than a fight or flight attitude. It seems your girl is just throwing a small tantrum because she doesn't want to be in the bath.
I have not seen my guy's tail turn black too, but I assume it's all related. She looks healthy, just not happy with her human at the moment.

 

[anenglish15]

She is probably not happy about having to take a bath. She is black bearding you. I suspect she is not very old. Our dragon is about 10 months old now, and just came to the age where he black beards me more often. The black beard is not aggression like puffing out the beard would be. It's more like a pout when the black beard is by itself. Think of a child throwing a tantrum, vs a child who's afraid. It seems your girl is just throwing a small tantrum because she doesn't want to be in the bath.
I have not seen my guy's tail turn black too, but I assume it's all related.

That makes sense. To add though, she has been this color for the last 30 minutes, and we just put her in the bath 10 minutes ago to see if maybe she was backed up from eating so much this afternoon.

 

[KarenInCA]

Is she still black bearded? Usually my dragon stays that way for a small while, but it's a mood swing, so once I do what he wants, he goes back to normal. It's definitely a black beard you're getting from her. But if not from the bath, it has to be for a different reason of her feeling uncomfortable from something. I now see what you are saying.

 

[anenglish15]

Is she still black bearded? Usually my dragon stays that way for a small while, but it's a mood swing, so once I do what he wants, he goes back to normal. It's definitely a black beard you're getting from her. But if not from the bath, it has to be for a different reason of her feeling uncomfortable from something. I now see what you are saying.

Yes, still black bearded. I checked on her at like 6pm and she wasn't black bearding. Then I checked on her like 8:00pm and it's been black ever since. (It's 8:35pm right now) I'm not sure what triggered it. Her lights were shutting off right when I checked on her and noticed it.

 

[CooperDragon]

That dark of a black beard combined with the light color on the rest of the body for that long may indicate a problem. They lose color and have very black beards for an extended period if they are uncomfortable. If this continues for much longer, I suggest a vet visit if possible. If the beard clears up and the colors/behavior return to normal soon, then it's likely just a mood about something (too cold, wrong flavor of crickets, why are you looking at me, etc).

 

[KarenInCA]

Please let us know how she is in the morning, if you have time.

 

[anenglish15]

Here she is this morning. She's usually here when she wakes up, but she's scratched a couple times at the back wall, almost like she's trying to climb up it. And she's propped herself upward towards the UVB light. I have made no changes to the light lately. It's 10.0 long bulb... Reptisun I think. It's the better one. Her lights DID just come on, but she keeps closing her eyes occasionally, which I've never seen her do after her lights are on. Her beard is still purple/black and tale is as well. I don't think her beard is AS BAD as it was last night.
Here she is this morning:

 

[CooperDragon]

That doesn't look as bad. The color on her back makes me think she's getting ready to shed which could contribute to moodiness. That's still a pretty long time to have a black beard going. Is she acting lethargic? It's something I'd keep an eye on for now. If it continues for much longer it may be worth a vet visit if possible, just to check everything out.

 

[anenglish15]

UPDATE:
We took her to the vet and she is really really really sick I had to go back to work so I don't have all the technically terms she used. She DOES have parasites, but she also is nearly going into liver failure. They wanted to hospitalize her, but we couldn't afford the extra $500 after the initial $500 just for ALL the tests they ran. They also said her red blood cell count was VERY low. They said she's probably been sick for some time. They gave us some injections to give to her daily and said hopefully that will help instead of being hospitalized, sedated, and given an IV. They also gave us food that we have to force feed her.

Then they're waiting on a couple of tests for some common bearded dragon diseases?? She said there's no cure, but we can maintain it. She said it's similar to like HIV or AIDS. And apparently 60% of bearded dragons have it? I've never heard of this and I don't have the paperwork in front of me. Anyone heard of it?

 

[Brezzy99]

I am so very sorry she isn't well. When you get home could you post those results? There are a few people on this site that may be able to help you further and understand what you are dealing with.

-Sabrina

 

[CooperDragon]

I'm so sorry to hear the news isn't good. I agree with Sabrina, there are some folks on here who are amazing and have a great deal of experience with helping sick dragons. If you can post more information about the Vet's findings, I'm sure they can provide some further advice.

 

[anenglish15]

I'm so sorry to hear the news isn't good. I agree with Sabrina, there are some folks on here who are amazing and have a great deal of experience with helping sick dragons. If you can post more information about the Vet's findings, I'm sure they can provide some further advice.

Just updated up top. Thank you