I'd like everyone to meet my new beardie, Papa Smurf. I met Papa Smurf at our local reptile shop last week. He was brought in by two pre-teen girls in a cookie tin, unable to walk, severely malnourished and destined for the freezer. They said they felt sorry for him and hoped he could be helped. He's has a severe case of MBD with jaw, limb and tail deformities. I was drawn to him and I wanted to take him so badly, but we already have our hands full and after the Holidays we were pretty broke.
But then PetCo had a $1/gallon sale and we got two 40-gallon breeders...and there was no excuse for not taking him. The shop owner said he would lend me an entire set-up if we took him saying he knew we would give him a good home, and even though we didn't take him up on the tank and lights loan, I just couldn't leave him there.
May I present the glorious Papa Smurf:
This was him the night I got him, December 28th. It took hours to set up the viv for him and the other new beardie we got that same day (yes we are insane LOL) so he got out of his pet carrier around 11:30pm. He looked so sad:
We gave him a midnight soak and he needed full support in the shallow tub water to keep him from drowning. I was worried I bit off more than I could handle with this sick boy, but after his bath he looked a little bit better. We noticed the blue sand in his eye and used a q-tip soaked in distilled water to gently remove it. Why do people house these poor guys on sand?!? His mouth had sand it in, it was caked on his vent, and his little arms and legs are stained blue. Now you see where he got the name Papa Smurf! He is little, grey-bearded and blue. :lol:
I hope this leg can straighten out. He has a really hard time walking because of it. I had some advice on here about vet wrap to protect his scales and I did buy some so we'll hopefully get him rehabilitated to be able to use this leg. I am kinda worried it may be broken or a prior break that healed wrong.
Here he is on December 30th, basking on his little low ladder in his jamming viv. He can't handle furniture right now because he is very crippled and can't really climb or get around, but he doesn't seem to mind. After mounting the UV inside the viv and raising the floor so he can be within about 6 inches, he really perked up. That UV is so important!
Here he is in his little bathtub with 1/2 Pedialyte and 1/2 water. Again he will drown if his head and neck aren't held above the water. He was drinking and drinking and all that thick saliva was running out into the water. After his bath he was swallowing and moving his neck as if we cleared out so much mucous. He looked much more comfortable.
And of course, after the bath we get a snuggle in the towel. He just lays wherever we put him and behaves so sweetly.
And here is how he slept. I was told here in my Beardie ER thread that he needed a night temp of at least 85 degrees since he is sick and it would help his immune system, and it really did make an improvement to the way he woke up the next day. He was much less stiff the next morning and ate breakfast right after waking up.
My husband, Otto, told me Papa Smurf may not survive and you just never know with a sick beardie. He is trying to make sure I have a realistic understanding of Papa Smurf's disease because he knows what a softie I am. I've cried over this little guy so much already. His poo is terrible and we know he has parasites. The medication to treat that is pretty harsh so he is worried the treatment may be too much for him. I've been giving him AcidolphiLiz daily hoping to boost that good gut flora in preparation for future veterinary intervention.
Papa Smurf is a sweet lover of a bearded dragon. He is tough and a fighter but gives the sweetest looks. He truly appreciates us and he knows we are trying to help him. He 100% allows us to do whatever we try to do with him and is a total doll. :love5:
Uh-oh I think I have fallen in love.....
But then PetCo had a $1/gallon sale and we got two 40-gallon breeders...and there was no excuse for not taking him. The shop owner said he would lend me an entire set-up if we took him saying he knew we would give him a good home, and even though we didn't take him up on the tank and lights loan, I just couldn't leave him there.
May I present the glorious Papa Smurf:
This was him the night I got him, December 28th. It took hours to set up the viv for him and the other new beardie we got that same day (yes we are insane LOL) so he got out of his pet carrier around 11:30pm. He looked so sad:
We gave him a midnight soak and he needed full support in the shallow tub water to keep him from drowning.
I was worried I bit off more than I could handle with this sick boy, but after his bath he looked a little bit better. We noticed the blue sand in his eye and used a q-tip soaked in distilled water to gently remove it. Why do people house these poor guys on sand?!? His mouth had sand it in, it was caked on his vent, and his little arms and legs are stained blue. Now you see where he got the name Papa Smurf! He is little, grey-bearded and blue. :lol:
I hope this leg can straighten out. He has a really hard time walking because of it. I had some advice on here about vet wrap to protect his scales and I did buy some so we'll hopefully get him rehabilitated to be able to use this leg. I am kinda worried it may be broken or a prior break that healed wrong.
Here he is on December 30th, basking on his little low ladder in his jamming viv. He can't handle furniture right now because he is very crippled and can't really climb or get around, but he doesn't seem to mind. After mounting the UV inside the viv and raising the floor so he can be within about 6 inches, he really perked up. That UV is so important!
Here he is in his little bathtub with 1/2 Pedialyte and 1/2 water. Again he will drown if his head and neck aren't held above the water. He was drinking and drinking and all that thick saliva was running out into the water. After his bath he was swallowing and moving his neck as if we cleared out so much mucous. He looked much more comfortable.
And of course, after the bath we get a snuggle in the towel. He just lays wherever we put him and behaves so sweetly.
And here is how he slept. I was told here in my Beardie ER thread that he needed a night temp of at least 85 degrees since he is sick and it would help his immune system, and it really did make an improvement to the way he woke up the next day. He was much less stiff the next morning and ate breakfast right after waking up.
My husband, Otto, told me Papa Smurf may not survive and you just never know with a sick beardie. He is trying to make sure I have a realistic understanding of Papa Smurf's disease because he knows what a softie I am. I've cried over this little guy so much already. His poo is terrible and we know he has parasites. The medication to treat that is pretty harsh so he is worried the treatment may be too much for him. I've been giving him AcidolphiLiz daily hoping to boost that good gut flora in preparation for future veterinary intervention.
Papa Smurf is a sweet lover of a bearded dragon. He is tough and a fighter but gives the sweetest looks. He truly appreciates us and he knows we are trying to help him. He 100% allows us to do whatever we try to do with him and is a total doll. :love5:
Uh-oh I think I have fallen in love.....
