Stomach/Rib Muscle Spasms

[Karlymcole]

UPDATE on the twitching stomach dragon. just got the results of the x ray. They did not see any tumors or fluid build up. They did say his GI tract is very full and it is working very slow which can be caused by many things. They also said his bone density was a bit on the lower side even though his calcium score came back in the middle and suggested a prescription calcium supplement to give him for a few weeks. They are suggesting an ultrasound which im hoping can get done today at the special exotic vet we were referred to. They also recommended he get tested for Atadeno virus. If he is positive for that, unfortunately, there is no cure to save him.


I have a t5 uvb light but I have it on top of my tank. Do I need to put it inside?

 

[CooperDragon]

In my untrained opinion, his bones look good - nice and bright in the x-ray. I've seen some others that show a very dull gray and/or misshapen bones which is problematic.

As far as the UVB light goes, it depends on the distance and how fine the mesh is on the top of the enclosure. A finer mesh will intercept more UVB, requiring the basking site to be closer to the bulb. A T5 with a reflector should be around 12-14'' above the main basking area with no mesh top. A bit closer, maybe 10-12'' or so if there is a mesh top.

 

[Karlymcole]

In my untrained opinion, his bones look good - nice and bright in the x-ray. I've seen some others that show a very dull gray and/or misshapen bones which is problematic.

As far as the UVB light goes, it depends on the distance and how fine the mesh is on the top of the enclosure. A finer mesh will intercept more UVB, requiring the basking site to be closer to the bulb. A T5 with a reflector should be around 12-14'' above the main basking area with no mesh top. A bit closer, maybe 10-12'' or so if there is a mesh top.

So depending where he is, with the t5 on top it is anywhere from 12 inches to 6 inches away.

 

[CooperDragon]

That range should be just fine. That allows him to move close enough to get a healthy amount of UVB, and also to move away when he doesn't want UVB. I'd probably leave that as it is.

 

[AHBD]

I can't remember if you mentioned his basking temp. but make sure it's around 100F, high enough for digestion. Does he spend much time out of the enclosure ? As for atadenovirus , Drache613 [ Tracie ] works with the lab in Texas that tests for ADV at a very low price so talk to her about that. Some dragons do live with it and get along O.K for years.

 

[Karlymcole]

OK so he went to the exotic only vet today. They did test him for atadenovirus due to just the neurological side effects he seems to have with the spasms. The vet also wanted to do a repeat x-ray since they were not the ones to do the first and wanted to just compare. Apparently when they were trying to position him he would not let them put him a certain way. When they looked at the x-ray they believe they see possibly a broken rib. They are not 100% sure because they are not radiologists but they do see something going on in his rib area.

That could explain why all of his bloodwork keeps coming back perfect. The vet today even said all his numbers were perfect. No liver no kidney issues no parasites no you’re acid buildup everything looked pretty normal.

The radiologist from the first x-ray did not mention anything about Avery possibly being broken but they did not like what his bone density looks like and they said his G.I. tract is running very slowly. Now the exotics only vet today said there is nothing wrong with his bone density everything looks good as far as the G.I. tract, they told me to hold off on an ultrasound until we get back the results for the virus. If he is positive for the virus obviously I will have to euthanize him if his quality of life is no longer good. But if he is negative then I’ll have to see what the options are of getting him better.

 

[Karlymcole]

I found a group on fb of many people who own atadenovirus positive dragons who are still alive and doing well. Does anyone know if the virus is an automatic death sentence? Just doing research in the event he is positive. I also keep seeing many people saying every dragon is positive.

 

[Karlymcole]

So I am thinking maybe a vitamin b deficiency. Idk. Can they overdose on anything? I was also told about other remedies to try. Can anyone tell me if this list looks ok? I dont want to overdose my poor baby.


https://ibb.co/y8gLM2L

 

[AHBD]

Yes, that looks reasonable. Always dust lightly with vitamins though.

 

[Karlymcole]

Yes, that looks reasonable. Always dust lightly with vitamins though.

Thank you! The vitamin b is in liquid form. I can definitely dust light with the multivitamin though!

 

[Karlymcole]

He pooped for me today and the color of his urate was a rust color. He is having a CT scan on Friday as bloodwork and second x-rays still showed absolutely no reason for his spasms.

I did change around his vitamins and schedule could that be why his Urate is no longer white??

Photos below.

https://ibb.co/3FT8S4p
https://ibb.co/7CPjpJ1

 

[AHBD]

Yes, it's possibly from the change in vitamins. Maybe good to reduce the vits. to just 1-2 X a week, only very lightly on a small meal. How is his activity level ?

 

[Karlymcole]

Yes, it's possibly from the change in vitamins. Maybe good to reduce the vits. to just 1-2 X a week, only very lightly on a small meal. How is his activity level ?

I will try lowering everything. He is awake. Not so much active anymore. He walks back to his enclosure from my bathroom after his baths and occasionally around the house. I think the spasms just make it too hard. Before he was like the energizer bunny. His fat pads are still good. No blackbearding. And his eyes are not sunken in at all.

 

[Karlymcole]

Can anyone tell me if the bloodwork looks ok?

He is going for his ct scan tomorrow. I have lowered the amount of superworms he gets a week due to the protein being a hair high.

His wbc is within the range, but I still feel like 12.5 is high.

Here is a link for the bloodwork. https://ibb.co/RQ2DJg0

 

[Karlymcole]

WE FINALLY HAVE SOME ANSWERS!!! Diesels CT scan came back.

The radiologist states he had to have some type of trauma, how though, I have no idea. The vet said it could have been something as easy as him landing wrong when he jumped around his tank.

They saw a lesion on his spine in the thoracic area as well as soft tissue swelling and a possible slipped disc. The radiologist also stated possible nerve changes due to the swelling. He also has a slight dislocation is his clavicle bone which should heal. The vet said its not bad enough where it’s completely dislocated for them to pop it back in

The radiologist also mentioned there is a slight chance of him having osteomyelitis, a bone infection, but due to the bloodwork, they are very sure it is not this, but we will run a round of antibiotics anyway to be safe.

The vet said this can take months to heal and we should continue to monitor him. No climbing in his tank and we need to try and restrict his movements as much as possible. The vet could not guarantee he will be 100% normal after everything, but she is fairly confident he should heal.