PLEASE HELP

[Ilovemybeardiebaby]

I just got a new female(hat I was told) any way the guy said she has a "jaw problem" doesn't know the specifics but he gives me some green powder and says to mix it really well with water and feed threw a syringe..she won't open her mouth to allow me to feed and she is rather skinney.her jaw is a little crooked and the left side is pushed up ..she has a lot of really sticky like saliva..she was really shy at first but right now she's hanging out on mychest taking a snooze...if anyone could help please let me know :?:

 

[Esther19]

Do you know what her living circumstances have been? How old is she? Can you measure her length and weight?Do you know what happened to her jaw? We will need to know if she has had any UVB light, calcium or vitamin supplements, etc. If you can't find out, we'll just take it from here. Can you post a picture or 2 of her? Do her limbs function properly? Do you have a basking light or UVB bulb for her? Please give us some info about her set-up. Be as specific as possible about the lighting and temperatures. Please also tell us how you measure temps.

I'm guessing that she will probably be dehydrated. You can give her a bath in baby-safe temperature water up to her shoulders for 15-20 minutes. You'll have to change out the water to keep it warm. Try offering her water by dripping some on her nose/lips with a dropper or your fingers.

Do offer her some of the green powder with water. You can also feed her stage one baby food turkey or chicken and veggies-squash is popular, as well as green beans and peas. She should have some of any of this 2- 3x per day. Let her lick it off her nose. If she looks like she has not eaten in a while, she should not be overfed, even though it will be exciting to see her eat.

Please let us know how she is doing and what we can do to help you further. The info I have given you is just for starters.

 

[Ilovemybeardiebaby]

As of the moment she lived in a shoe box that what she was given to me in how do I post a picture? He tank wich I've set up is at 70 it's a little chilly in az tonight,I'm going to the store now to buy some baby food..all her legs ate working fine..she's a bit stiff unless injus let her do her own thing,then she flicks her take opens her eyes ect.i offered water she wouldn't take it and I had given her a bath when we first got home,the man said he doesn't knw what happened to her jaw.

 

[Esther19]

She'll need temps of at least 95 degrees to digest her food. Temps for basking for a baby or juvenile and be up to 105 or 110, but no more than that. If you have a plastic rubbermaid container, that would be better than the shoe box. As soon as you can, get a digital thermometer with a probe or temp gun. They are the most accurate. Do your light fixture have a clamp? I would try a higher wattage bulb to get a higher basking temp. 70 is fine for the cool side, but it needs to be higher for her to digest. You can use a regular CLEAR household bulb for heat/basking. You might need to try 100 watts. Be careful not to cook her,though. There should be a place in the container where she can hide from the light. No lights for sleeping, either. You might consider putting a washcloth or something soft in her enclosure to sleep on.

edit* Sorry. I see that you have a tank. Can you tell us how big it is? If you have sand or walnut shells, or any other loose stuff like that on the bottom of the tank, please remove it and put down newspaper or paper towels. That loose stuff can clog up their innards and cause big problems.

Your girl is very lucky that you have her now.

 

[Esther19]

Here's a link on posting pictures:
http://www.beardeddragon.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=167225

 

[Ilovemybeardiebaby]

She is no longer in the box I have a 20 gallon tank until the morning when I can get a 60

 

[Esther19]

Do you have any prior experience with beardies?

 

[Ilovemybeardiebaby]

I'll have to post photos later I have to download photo bucket to my iPad

 

[Ilovemybeardiebaby]

Yes I cared for 2 a few years back,just none with a special need

 

[Esther19]

Oh good. Do you have any guess as to whether the jaw is actually injured, or could be MBD?

 

[Ilovemybeardiebaby]

I don't think it's accually injured,she does have ALOT of spit,do you have an email I can send the photos too.

 

[Lurhstaap]

It sounds like she's suffering from MBD to me. You might want to get ahold of some liquid calcium and make sure she has the best UVB lamp you can get -- the ones usually recommended are the Reptisun 10.0 tube and the Arcadia 12%.

 

[Bhavana]

What is MBD? My newly adopted beardie also has a slightly crooked jaw, and a slight underbite. He also has a crusty brown scab right on the middle of the lower "lip". I have been sprinking calcium on his worms (which are all he will eat).

He also has inadequate lighting -going to Petsmart tomorrow for new lights.

 

[Lurhstaap]

Metabolic Bone Disorder. It's a very common and unfortunate problem for beardies with inadequate calcium in their diet, improper lighting, or both. The scab makes it sound like yours might have been injured by being kept with other beardies, though, rather than by MBD, but someone with more expertise in dragon disorders will have to say for sure. I can only quote what I have been reading lately. (I've only had my beardie a few months and I am trying to brush up on proper care; good thing, too, because as it turns out, I had a lot of things wrong!) Long story short, beardies have a high need for calcium, but they require vitamin D3 to be able to utilize it in their bodies. Unfortunately, while D3 supplementation doesn't -hurt-, it doesn't -help- all that much either because beardies apparently do not absorb dietary D3 very effectively. As such, they require -both- a sufficient intake of calcium -and- proper lighting, because their bodies synthesize D3 through skin contact with UVB rays. Therefore if they are not getting enough UVB, it doesn't matter how much calcium they eat because their bodies cannot make effective use of it.

It's good that you are getting new lights tomorrow because if your beardie does have MBD that will help a LOT. What are planning to switch to? From my reading the Reptisun 10.0 tube and the Arcadia 12% are the best available.

 

[Bhavana]

My beardie was kept alone, so the scab on his chin couldn't be from other lizards....and it is starting to look as if it is healing since I got him.
I know that lighting was inadequate with his previous owner. I am not sure what I am going to get, but you are the second person to recommend Reptisun lights, so I am going to look for those at PetSmart. Thank you very much for your information/reply!