Rescue with Twisted Spine

[casbear98]

Hello!
Today I rescued two 8yo beardies from twin boys who I think have never cared for them properly. Apparently they used to house 3 beardies in the 40gal tank they came in, but rehomed one because it bit off the fingers of another. That little gal is Ani.

Ani has one of the most deformed spines I have ever seen. The dad claimed this was all from the other dragon but I'm not convinced. When she moves, her lower spine and tail wriggle like a snake (the tail is broken in several places). I am hoping to get Ani into a vet this week but there's only one Herp specialist I trust nearby and they're fairly busy.

My question is: should I expect to have to put Ani down? And how can I help keep her comfy until then? She's got a lot of fight in her and is far more active and alert than her tank mate. Of the two, I was only able to coax her into eating, though both drank quite a bit during their bath.

(They have two basking spots with separate bulbs and equal access to UVB but they haven't taken an interest in the other.)

Padme appears to have an eye infection I'll start doing basic care for tomorrow until I can get him in too. He's extremely lethargic, didn't eat, and has barely moved.

Both are malnourished, didn't have proper UVB, were covered in filth, I'm not certain had functioning heat, etc, etc. But I'm more familiar how to care for a malnourished beardie than one with broken bones.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Poor guy! No, there really is no reason why you should have to put him down, just due to a
crooked spine unless he is suffering. A lot of them deal with physical challenges, not being able
to move as well as they should, etc but do just fine in a loving home.
Are you housing her alone?
In cases like this, she does need to be able to have a low stress life, along with a home that has
easily assessable basking area so she doesn't hurt herself when moving around.
What UVB are you using for them both? I would highly recommend upgrading them both to the
Reptisun 10 T5 or the Arcadia D3 12% T5 tube since they are high output UVB. Are you placing
them both on a liquid calcium also?
Give them a chance, it will likely take them a bit of time to adjust & they do recover slowly. Go
easy on the protein at first, to be sure their kidney function is optimal.

Tracie

 

[casbear98]

Hello,

Poor guy! No, there really is no reason why you should have to put him down, just due to a
crooked spine unless he is suffering. A lot of them deal with physical challenges, not being able
to move as well as they should, etc but do just fine in a loving home.
Are you housing her alone?
In cases like this, she does need to be able to have a low stress life, along with a home that has
easily assessable basking area so she doesn't hurt herself when moving around.
What UVB are you using for them both? I would highly recommend upgrading them both to the
Reptisun 10 T5 or the Arcadia D3 12% T5 tube since they are high output UVB. Are you placing
them both on a liquid calcium also?
Give them a chance, it will likely take them a bit of time to adjust & they do recover slowly. Go
easy on the protein at first, to be sure their kidney function is optimal.

Tracie

Thanks so much, Tracie!

They do have a Reptisun T5. Unfortunately because this was an impromptu rescue they're still in the same tank but I've got a barrier going down the middle long ways now(so I can keep my temp gradients). We thought at first they might be a bonded pair but Padme attacked Ani this morning so...

I've dusted their salad with calcium and vitamin powder but I'll get some liquid calcium today.

Cas

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

You are very welcome, that is very understandable when a rescue happens unexpectedly!
The Reptisun 10 T5 tube bulb is a great bulb, so they should be fine with that lighting of UVB
for now.
Yes, since there was an attack today, definitely get that middle barrier up to avoid any other
issues! What type of basking lights are you using?
Were you able to find any liquid calcium? If not, I do sell some on my online store.
Let us know how things are going.

Tracie

 

[casbear98]

They already seem to be doing better! No suspected eye infection and the one with the broken spine is moving better with some food and heat.

We've got liquid vitamins and calcium so good there!

Both have eaten some salad. The previous owner finally admitted he's only fed them kale these past several months... I tried to give them a Fluker's meatball (I use it for morning feedings for my juvenile dragon) but they weren't interested. I'm going to see if I can interest the male in a cricket tonight. I got the female to eat a small hornworm so I'll try pheonix worms with her next. Both have drank water in front of us and had a bowel movement (pure green liquid with a small white urate but that's to be expected with the kale diet).

I'm using regular basking spot bulbs in dome fixtures. A 50 watt over the tall basking spot and a 75 watt over the short one. Both basking spots get up to 99 and the cool side has stayed around 75-80.

The humidity is high right now (60) but I had that same problem when I first set up my personal tank (humid area). I'm hoping it will go down soon and am keeping a close eye out for signs of a respiratory infection.

The barrier only works most of the time. The male somehow managed to get over it today but I'm picking up a tank from a friend who no longer keeps beardies tomorrow. I think the male's scent is also unnerving my juvenile beardie. She hasn't seen the other two but she's been on edge since we brought them home so I'm going to move him to a different room at least until his femoral pores are unclogged and he stops stinking to us humans.

Padme in a femoral pores soak as I write.

 

[casbear98]

Just got a measure in!
Male (Padme): 16.25in 254g
Female (Ani): 16.25in 263g

My juvenile is also 16.25in and 280g but she's been fighting parasites for 3 months so I'm going to be happy putting weight on all of them.

Speaking of my juvenile, I have probiotics for her because of the parasite medicine. Would the rescues benefit from probiotics or would that be too much of a shock to their system?

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That is good news you will be getting another tank because I think you definitely need it,
with the male sneaking over the partition!
You wont want anymore injuries.
How are they doing today?
The probiotics would be fine to use for your two rescues, no problem at all. It should help
improve their systems.
I hope that they are able to gain some weight & start eating better soon. Please keep us
posted on them all.

Tracie

 

[casbear98]

As I update this, I am a little downhearted but trying to stay hopeful.

The male is refusing to eat. He will approach food and seem interested, but won't take that final bite. I fear he may be too exhausted to hunt and he's lost yet another 3g. All he seems interested in is mating. Even in his new enclosure in a separate room, he's just constantly head bobbing at his reflection. I've tried hiding it from him but we'll just wait and see. Tomorrow I'll put him in a tub of crickets to see if he catches one, but I worry about him getting too many before I get him back out again... On the plus side, we are making progress on those femoral pores. None are completely out yet but several have loosened and started flaking and I'll take that win.

Meanwhile, Ani, the female with the twisted spine and nipped fingers is more energetic, and is eating well. Still waiting for her vet appointment as her vent is... pushed out? Sort of seems like something akin to an anal prolapse to me but I'm not doctor. I'm excited for her next bowel movement as I do think she'll be ready for more protein.

More updates to come soon.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Keep trying, it does take time for them to recover. Have you tried any baby food with him yet?
They do tend to not eat near as much when they are in breeding mode. You can use shea butter,
or coconut oil to help soften the femoral pores, if needed. It is normal for them to have some
darkness on them, especially with higher hormone levels.
I am glad to hear that the female is doing well. She has not prolapsed has she? Do you have
any pictures of that?

Tracie

 

[casbear98]

The vet upped our appointment and saw them late last night.

Turns out, other than being underweight and malnourished, there's nothing really wrong with them.
She gave me Critical Care for Padme until he starts eating on his own. He actually ate a little banana and a cricket without it today, but I gave him some anyway since he has been losing about 3g a day. Hoping to get more into him and will do another bath tonight.

Ani is also doing well. Her vent isn't prolapsed. The Vet said she thinks it's air moving in out of her lower intestines because she's so underweight and that with some weight gain, she should be fine. Either that or she has a rare hernia that's usually present at birth. We'll keep an eye on it just in case. She's also walking a lot better with food and nutrients in her. The vet isn't worried about her tail or spine at all.

So yay! This is probably (hopefully) the last you'll hear from me until I'm ready to show recovery photos! Thanks for all the help!