J4ckdaw-
Sub-Adult Member
- Beardie name(s)
- Leo
Hi there, strangers of the internet; I'm concerned that my bearded dragon has caught some kind of parasite. For reference, he is a 4 1/2 month old male central bearded dragon with a big appetite and a big personality. He sits at roughly 92 grams and 13" in length as of right now, I am almost certain that he is not malnourished nor is he dehydrated. He eats 50 medium wingless crickets a day (he has trouble digesting the ones with wings) all dusted in calcium powder with added D3 with occasional BSFL when they are available. On treat days (once a week) he gets 1-3 mealworms and a small hornworm or two. He eats a salad of collard greens, spaghetti squash and bell peppers.
Now, onto the topic of the symptoms of parasites... He's been having nauseatingly bad smelling diarrhea for weeks now, it is not remotely solid nor is the urate itself. Today in fact, the urate had a reddish orange tint which I've read to be a sign of parasites or some further issue with the intestines; is this accurate? He has also been dragging his hind legs after passing stool before getting back to normal, though this could be because of the shed coming off of the area near his vent and hind legs. He's been acting oddly recently as well, this started when he first had symptoms 2 1/2 weeks ago. I need advice, does it sound like he has parasites?
I am scheduling a fecal sample with an exotic vet asap, we are calling her as well for advice before hands and getting him on antibiotics when ever we can if it does turn out to be what I've feared, how long does it take for a parasitic infection to become life threatening? Have we messed up horribly by waiting so long for further symptoms? Is this a life or death situation? He hasn't acted lethargic but I've read they are asymptomatic until something is really wrong, will he recover? There are no obvious worms in his stool.
Now, onto the topic of the symptoms of parasites... He's been having nauseatingly bad smelling diarrhea for weeks now, it is not remotely solid nor is the urate itself. Today in fact, the urate had a reddish orange tint which I've read to be a sign of parasites or some further issue with the intestines; is this accurate? He has also been dragging his hind legs after passing stool before getting back to normal, though this could be because of the shed coming off of the area near his vent and hind legs. He's been acting oddly recently as well, this started when he first had symptoms 2 1/2 weeks ago. I need advice, does it sound like he has parasites?
I am scheduling a fecal sample with an exotic vet asap, we are calling her as well for advice before hands and getting him on antibiotics when ever we can if it does turn out to be what I've feared, how long does it take for a parasitic infection to become life threatening? Have we messed up horribly by waiting so long for further symptoms? Is this a life or death situation? He hasn't acted lethargic but I've read they are asymptomatic until something is really wrong, will he recover? There are no obvious worms in his stool.