Respiratory Infection.....

[Shakti75]

Yes, I saw her take off. I sit on the ground next to her basking spot just in case something like that happens, and also to spray her nose in case she wants some water, considering how insanely hot it has been here.

The RI seems to be getting better finally. Making that cringeworthy sound less and less each day. I have been soaking her a lot and going nuts trying to get her to drink some water though, since she hasn't been eating as much, because I think she is somewhat dehydrated. I floated her greens in a shallow dish of water to get a bit in her that way, but she is really stubborn about the water thing. She freaked me out yesterday and had me worried all night. Had her in the tub and she was swimming around. She stopped at one point, strained a little and all that came out was a bit of urates and a tiny bit of poo. I didn't worry too much about that since she hasn't been eating much, but then a few minutes later, she strained again and a tiny bit of blood came out. She doesn't seem impacted in any way, especially since she hasn't been eating much. She ate maybe 5 superworms yesterday morning, along with a few bites of arugula (it was the only green she would eat, normally I mix it with mustard greens). I felt all along her stomach in case maybe she was egg bound and felt nothing. No eggs, no impaction of any kind. I did notice in her mouth that on her bottom gums, towards the back by her jaw, there was a little spot that was a bit redder than the rest on both sides. Nothing major, just an observation. Her fecal came back parasite free yesterday, so I know it isn't that. Maybe her urates were hard and scratched her a bit? The blood was bright, so I'm assuming it was surface blood, not anything internal. Just going to keep an eye on her today, see if I can get her to eat some more and wait for Fed Ex to deliver her UVB.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

How is your girl doing? Thank goodness you saw her take off! We lived in Ocala, Florida up to 7 months ago but moved back to Texas for awhile. It does get hot there & humid!
That is great the respiratory infection seems to be getting better now, it just takes time. They can be very stubborn about taking fluids sometimes or eating. LOL Is she maintaining her weight? At least she had 5 superworms though, that helps!
She may have just strained too hard or her urates were too hard & hurt her a little. Good to hear her fecal came back normal then & she doesn't seem impacted or have any eggs.
I hope the UVB gets there soon! That should help her out a lot.
Let us know how she is doing.

Tracie

 

[Shakti75]

Hello,

How is your girl doing? Thank goodness you saw her take off! We lived in Ocala, Florida up to 7 months ago but moved back to Texas for awhile. It does get hot there & humid!
That is great the respiratory infection seems to be getting better now, it just takes time. They can be very stubborn about taking fluids sometimes or eating. LOL Is she maintaining her weight? At least she had 5 superworms though, that helps!
She may have just strained too hard or her urates were too hard & hurt her a little. Good to hear her fecal came back normal then & she doesn't seem impacted or have any eggs.
I hope the UVB gets there soon! That should help her out a lot.
Let us know how she is doing.

Tracie

She seems to be doing pretty well today. FedEx guy FINALLY got here around 4:30 and I couldn't get that light in her tank quick enough. She immediately perked up. Her color is looking a lot better just after a few hours. She was looking pretty dark the last few days. Now she is nice, bright yellow and orange. Still not eating much, but I figure that will take a day or two for her to get back to normal. I have some calcium drops I will give her to make up for all the dusted insects she missed. Was just waiting for the UVB before giving it to her. Definitely going to have to get her a leash, though, lol. I had her out a little while ago and she was chasing the cats. That was a sight! It certainly doesn't look like she has lost any weight though, which is good. She's a little porker. 500 grams at her vet visit a few weeks ago and 18 inches, nose to tip of her tail. She finally stopped being stubborn today and drank a good bit of water while I sprayed it onto her nose. She also drank some out of the dish that I float her greens in. She has definitely come a long way since I got her as a baby a year ago.

This pic is from the day I got her last September....

And this was her on the same basking spot back in May, just 8 months later....

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

The before & after pictures are lovely! She looks great now!
That is excellent she perked up once you put the Reptisun 10 tube bulb in! It usually does help fairly quickly.
How is her appetite coming along now? She was chasing the cats down, that is really funny. At least she has not lost any weight right now.
I hope she is doing well today!

Tracie

 

[Shakti75]

She is doing a whole lot better now. The noise she was making from her RI was non existent yesterday for the first time in over a month. I am sooo happy about that, because every time she would do it, it would make me cringe. Her tank is directly behind where I work all day, so I would hear her and turn to check on her, and I swear it was almost like she knew I was watching and wouldn't do it again til I turned back around.

Her colors are looking much more normal now and she is starting to eat a bit. Not a whole lot yet, but a few supers and a couple bites of her greens. She's just as stubborn as ever. I've been giving her calcium glubionate liquid since getting her new UVB to make up for the calcium she lost while not eating and I swear, she practically bites those little syringes in half, lol. As soon as she sees the towel on my shoulder when I go to get her out, she knows it is coming and starts bearding at me, lol. But then as soon as we are done, she is back to miss lovey dovey, nosing my chin.

Oh, and a funny little tidbit. I had her with my male beardy last night, and when he yawned (which he does quite often), a few seconds later, she yawned also, and I have never seen her yawn before. Looks like yawning is just as contagious for them as it is for us.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That is great to hear she is doing better now! It just takes time.
So she likes her liquid calcium then it sounds like?
That is super to know that she has no more sounds coming from her that indicate a respiratory infection! Hopefully it is all gone now!
They are very receptive, aren't they?
That is so funny she started bearding because you had the syringe?? I guess she gets over it pretty fast then.
That is so cute they both yawned right after each other. LOL
I am happy to hear she has improved so much now.

Tracie

 

[Shakti75]

We went back to the vet today, kinda as a follow up and partially because I was curious about a lump on her back. I thought it was possibly
an egg. Our vet, who I think is the best vet I have ever encountered and one of only 2 in Ocala that will see beardies, checked her out, said it
definitely felt like an egg, so he did an x-ray to double check. Definitely an egg, not calcified, and obviously not fertile, so no worries. He said
she should pass it or her body will reabsorb it and told me to bring her back in a few weeks, free of charge just to check her out again.

Respiratory infection is completely gone now and she has gained half an ounce, so no worries about her appetite having affected her too much.

Thanks, guys, for the input and especially Tracie.