Since 1/20/14 he's been gaping and today he does this, video

[Menolly]

Hello all. My beardie has been gaping a little off and on and he does have a history of respiratory infections. I have an Arcadia MVB bulb and 65 watt Phillips dura max bulb. He has a 75 gallon tank and his basking temp is normally between 95 and 102. I would take him to the vet but the weather has been in the 20s around here and I don't want to make him sick or take him out when it's that cold. I don't know about the humidity levels but its normally pretty dry in my apartment. I'm getting a stool sample taken, but is there anything I could give that would help/boost his immune system?
Thank you!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

You can give bee pollen to help immune system functioning.
Are you keeping him at around 80 overnight also right now?
The Arcadia MVB is a great bulb so that should be just fine for him. Those temperatures are good also.
If it is pretty dry in the tank or house I wouldn't worry about lowering the humidity anymore.
Let us know how the fecal sample turns out.

Tracie

 

[Menolly]

Hello,
Well he sleeps outside the tank, but it doesn't get below 75 in the room. I definitely will. Thank you Tracie.

 

[Drache613]

Hello Jane,

That is ok as long as he stays warm enough. He wouldn't be spoiled & pampered would he?
I hope he is doing well this evening.


Tracie

 

[Menolly]

Spoiled?! Pfffffft no, not at all :wink: .
He's been gaping a lot more and he had a tiny amount of clear discharge coming from his nose. I would take him to the vet in a heart beat but it's no higher than 20 degreese outside. Is there something I can do or does he need a vet visit?

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Let us know how he does at the vets. I hope he is going to be ok.
Just keep him nice & warm overnight & hopefully he can get back to sleep.

Tracie

 

[Shrimpy12]

It sounds like he needs to see a vet. If he truly has a respiratory infection that requires antibiotics. Antibiotics are prescription drugs which requires and exam. If you have a small cat carrier you can put blankets in it and cover the carrier with a blanket. If you have heated seats in your car put the carrier on the seat and turn them on.

 

[Menolly]

Update: he went to bed a little early, but woke up not gaping!!!
He also didn't lay abed this morning, his head was up the minute mine was. He's not gaping in his cage right now, which is something he did yesterday. All in all it looks like his normal breathing is slowing down as well. He seems to be doing much better now. The only reason it got that far in the first place was because I though he'd be ok and didn't want to take him outside for people possibly referencing this. Take it from my example this could all have been avoided had I acted sooner. I'm also just lucky all he needed was some simple antibiotics.

 

[Drache613]

Hello Jane,

I am so happy to hear he is doing much better now & not gaping!
It sounds like he is more active & breathing easier now also. At least you caught it early & he just needed some antibiotics to help out for a short period. How long are you giving them?

Tracie

 

[Menolly]

The vet says ten days, but he hasnt been gaping as much. I haven't had a chance to be with him all day, so I'm going to see how he is over the weekend because it seems to be a little rough in him because he has just been grumpy with a black beard most of the day and that's not like him. He's been eating like a piggy, which is good though. He has been shedding as well, so it's just not been a fun week for him. What do you think? I have a vet appointment with his regular vet next week to just make sure everything is clear.

 

[Drache613]

Hello Jane,

How are things going, are you taking him to the vet this week?
Is his beard still black also? Poor guy, but at least he is eating pretty well right now!
The shedding wont be fun for him, that will definitely make him grumpy with everything else going on with him, too.

Tracie

 

[Menolly]

Hi Tracie,
Thanks for checking in, he's doing well. I did take him off the meds, the last day I gave them to him was Saturday. He's not even gaping anymore. I took him off because his beard was black and his stomach was grey with ridiculous stress marks, since than it's been getting progressively less. I have a vet appointment for him tomorrow just to check in with his regular vet to make sure everything looks good on the inside.
Sunday he also started running around and exploring, which is something he hasn't done in a month, so he definitely seems to be perking up. He even managed to get himself stuck in a box he was trying to climb over :lol: , he didn't find it as funny as I did.

 

[Drache613]

Hello Jane,

That is great news he is doing much better now!
That is very good he is not gaping anymore & is off of the meds also, finally. The meds must have been bothering him with his stress marks & black beard, too.
Are you still giving him probiotics?
I will check in with you tomorrow to see how the vet visit goes.
He was having fun climbing over his box? I guess he is back to his antics now, that is awesome news. I am so glad he is active & being his energetic again.

Tracie

 

[Menolly]

Hi Tracie!
They seemed to be. The vet visit went well, although I got a different vet than the one we normally see even though I requested him. I have to admit I wasn't happy about that because I've had some terrible vets in the past. When you find that one that you're comfortable with, its just such a relief, especially after the number that I've been through. In the past this vet reminded me that he had the same reaction to the Baytril, so they switched him to Amiglyde which seemed to agreed with him more.
Respiratory infections seem to be a yearly thing with him, is there something that I'm doing wrong or that I could do better to help prevent these in the future?
I leave things on the floor to block certain areas and things that he can climb onto because he loves climb again. Haha he wasn't to happy about being stuck in the box, that was an unpleasant surpise for him, but hilarious for me :lol: .
Thanks again for all your help, its nice being able to talk to knowledge people without someone giving you the :shock: look.

 

[Drache613]

Hello Jane,

Yeah, the meds tend to bother them. I am glad that he is off of them.
Oh so you saw a different vet though, than last time?
Is there a lot of air blowing through his tank area or a large variable of temperatures?
Do you keep the humidity at a good level, 40% or under most of the year also?
Did he attempt to climb today also & end up in the box?

I hope he is doing better today!

Tracie