Possible MDB!!!! Please help!!!!!

[haileytaco]

Hi I have an 8 month old female rankins dragon named Sami. She has been very healthy all her life. A few days ago I noticed a bump on her back along her spine, this is the first time I have noticed this. She is still acting normal just has the bump. I have a UVB bulb for her and dust all her food with a powder supplement daily. First I thought maybe impaction but I have bathed her 3 times between yesterday and today and she has pooped 2 times perfectly normally. Can she still get MBD even with proper lighting and suppliments? Should I take her to the vet or wait it out? How serious is this bump?!

Below is Sami's current care information:

• cool side 80-88 degs
• warm side 90-95 degs
• basking log spot 100-110 degs

• I am currently supplementing with a vitiman + calcium powder which I dust greens and feeders with daily.
• she is still only 4-6 inches long so is still being housed in a 10 gallon but I will upgrade to a 20-40 gallon when she is a bit larger.
• I have a coil UVB bulb (recommended by breeder) but I will switch to Reptisun 10.0 when I upgrade cage size
• I forget the brand but they also have a good basking bulb (recommended by breeder)

 

[AHBD]

Hi Hailey....She really is a sweet looking little girl. She looks well fed, too. I answered in your other post about the same thing. It may be related to the compact/coil UVB bulb which don't produce the proper UVB. The mods. might merge the 2 threads, and I'm sure that others will offer their suggestions. A vet may prescribe liquid calcium...other than that you will possibly need a change of UVB bulb. She may do better with the Reptisun 10.0 tube UVB.

 

[haileytaco]

Thanks for responding so quickly! So if I switched to the reptisun 10.0 (which I definitely will!) do you think her back will go back to normal? Also, are you sure it is probably MBD or should I get her x-rayed?

 

[AHBD]

Yes, it's MBD but since she's still young it MIGHT flatten out as she grows, but probably not completely. The sooner you get the new bulb the better, at least to prevent it from getting worse. She can still live a happy life like that.

 

[haileytaco]

Is it normal for MBD to appear so suddenly though? She has been fine for 8 months but her spinal bump made an appearence just afew days ago.

 

[AHBD]

Yes it can happen very quickly. The vertebrae becomes brittle and the body overcompensates by depositing all available bone material at the weakest site, forming the hump. Also, if she is eating mealworms and had a slight impaction, it could press on the spine adding to the problem. That may have happened before she was able to pass it.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

As suggested, metabolic bone disease can go unnoticed for awhile until it begins to compromise the bones & then it will manifest physically like the softened bones or irregular growths.
Changing to a better bulb will help along with getting some liquid calcium, too.
You can bathe her daily, to do some water therapy by gently massaging & stretching her back. It could help lengthen & straighten it out a little bit.

Let us know how she is doing.

Tracie

 

[haileytaco]

Thank you all for the advice.

Sami is acting normal, just still has hunch/bump along her spine. I will definately be purchasing a reptisun 10.0 ASAP.

Currently I have both rankin sisters being housed together and they get along great, are both eating well, etc. They are in a 10 gallon right now as they are still quite small. I already have a 20 gallon long for when they are ready for an upgrade.

I'm not sure if the 24" repti sun 10.0 + the hood can fit on a 20 long with an 8" basking lamp as well? And I must use the screen lid because I have 2 cats. Any suggestions as to how to fit the 24" reptisun? There are also compact reptisun 10.0s but are the compact ones bad like the coils are?

Thanks again,
Hailey

 

[haileytaco]

Sorry, going back to my post above... I just looked further into the reptisun 10.0 and there is an 18" option (20" hood). The 20 gal long tank is 30" so I could fit both the UVB lamp with hood + the basking lamp with 2" left over. Is that enough UVB? Also, it will be 8-12" above the girls at any point in the tank so is that close enough to receive proper UVB rays?

 

[CooperDragon]

I don't think a T8 will provide enough UVB at that distance through mesh. From what I've measured at that distance through a screen the output will be under 1 UVI (in my opinion the ideal would be 3-5 UVI at the basking site). Since you need the screen, I suggest getting a T5 bulb and fixture which will provide plenty of UVB at 12'' even through a screen. Maybe something along the lines of this will work well http://www.lightyourreptiles.com/22t5hofihouw2.html

 

[haileytaco]

I don't think a T8 will provide enough UVB at that distance through mesh. From what I've measured at that distance through a screen the output will be under 1 UVI (in my opinion the ideal would be 3-5 UVI at the basking site). Since you need the screen, I suggest getting a T5 bulb and fixture which will provide plenty of UVB at 12'' even through a screen. Maybe something along the lines of this will work well http://www.lightyourreptiles.com/22t5hofihouw2.html

Thanks for your help! Just curious, how does the quality of the t5 Arcadia 12% lamp compare to the t5 (not t8) reptisun 10.0? Either way, it will be quite a bit of total cost... Which is not a problem, I am definitely getting a better UVB setup no matter what cost. I just want to make sure to get the best lamp for the money.

Thanks again!

 

[CooperDragon]

They are both very good bulbs. I haven't tested the ReptiSun T5 but I know there are quite a few on here who use it and can vouch for it. I have the Arcadia 12% (the 36'' version of the one I linked) and love it. Keep in mind with the T5 bulbs they can last a year at least so you won't need to swap the bulbs as often as with the T8. If you go with the ReptiSun bulb, you can pick up an appropriately sized Sunblaster fixture which should work nicely. I think you'll be pleased with the results either way.

 

[haileytaco]

Are the Arcadia bulbs available in the US?

 

[CooperDragon]

Yep. I got my Arcadia bulb from Lightyourreptiles out of Maine.

 

[haileytaco]

Okay, I just ordered the fixture and Arcadia kit from the site you recommended. Again, thank you all so much for your help!!