Stuck shed or lost eye?

[tommy1449]

I recently lost my bearded dragon of 10 years a few months ago. My coworkers thought it would be a great idea to get me another dragon.

I was immediately concerned about his eye. Does this seem like stuck shed to anyone? This was my initial thought but upon spending more time with him. I think the eye might have been lost.

 

[hdochow]

I don't think that is stuck shed, but I don't have an answer for you. I will tag some people that might. @Claudiusx @AHBD @Drache613 @KarrieRee

They are going to start by asking you about your set up. Such as what type of UVB you have, distance from basking to UVB, temperatures, how you are getting temperatures.

It will be helpful if you can upload pictures of these items, as well as your whole set up.

Most of the time issues can be solved by making sure lights and temps are on point. If not, at least you have a better idea of where to go from there. If this was my dragon I'd be making a vet appointment ASAP.

 

[tommy1449]

I don't think that is stuck shed, but I don't have an answer for you. I will tag some people that might. @Claudiusx @AHBD @Drache613 @KarrieRee

They are going to start by asking you about your set up. Such as what type of UVB you have, distance from basking to UVB, temperatures, how you are getting temperatures.

It will be helpful if you can upload pictures of these items, as well as your whole set up.

Most of the time issues can be solved by making sure lights and temps are on point. If not, at least you have a better idea of where to go from there. If this was my dragon I'd be making a vet appointment ASAP.

I have had him less than an hour. I can only assume he came from a large retail store. As for my setup he is currently in a temporary tank until I can convert my adult setup to something suitable for the little guy.

 

[KarrieRee]

I have had him less than an hour. I can only assume he came from a large retail store. As for my setup he is currently in a temporary tank until I can convert my adult setup to something suitable for the little guy.

Get a reptile vet appt please -- www.arav.org type in a bigger cities zip code if your in a small town - make sure you are not using sand for substrate it's going to irritate the eye- you want a long tube fixture for uvb they are not all the same quality we can recommend 3 good ones- surface basking temps should be 105-110 take w a digital probe thermometer-

 

[AHBD]

Poor little one. That's some type of injury, it's just a guess as to whether it can be saved. Can you take him to a good reptile vet ? Until then get some raw, unpasteurized honey, dilute about 2 drops with 4-5 drops warm water [ NOT hot ] and use a syringe or Q-tip to apply it to the eye 3-4 X a day. Make sure not to leave any loose insects in his tank, not even 1 because they will go for his eye.

 

[tommy1449]

Poor little one. That's some type of injury, it's just a guess as to whether it can be saved. Can you take him to a good reptile vet ? Until then get some raw, unpasteurized honey, dilute about 2 drops with 4-5 drops warm water [ NOT hot ] and use a syringe or Q-tip to apply it to the eye 3-4 X a day. Make sure not to leave any loose insects in his tank, not even 1 because they will go for his eye.

I didn't think about that. I used to hang feed my other dragon so I will probably continue with this one. I will

Poor little one. That's some type of injury, it's just a guess as to whether it can be saved. Can you take him to a good reptile vet ? Until then get some raw, unpasteurized honey, dilute about 2 drops with 4-5 drops warm water [ NOT hot ] and use a syringe or Q-tip to apply it to the eye 3-4 X a day. Make sure not to leave any loose insects in his tank, not even 1 because they will go for his eye.

I did not even think about leaving insects in there. Thanks for the advice on that.
I'm curious why honey? Would that be more beneficial than a sterile saline solution?

 

[AHBD]

I didn't think about that. I used to hang feed my other dragon so I will probably continue with this one. I will

I did not even think about leaving insects in there. Thanks for the advice on that.
I'm curious why honey? Would that be more beneficial than a sterile saline solution?

Raw honey is a natural antimicrobial. I've seen it heal things very quickly, including a baby fresh out of the incubator that had gotten it's eye clawed by another hatching clutchmate. It was swollen shut with just a dab of pus visible. I used the raw honey and it was healed + normal within days. I can't say that will happen for your baby but it did with mine.

 

[tommy1449]

I appreciate everyone's input on this. I luckily know a vet. I can see in the morning if they can get me in.
He seems to be alert and eating so I'm going to stay hopeful.

 

[hdochow]

Please keep us updated! Tracie (Drachie613) hopefully will chime in, too. She's usually on late at night and is a vet tech.

 

[AHBD]

I appreciate everyone's input on this. I luckily know a vet. I can see in the morning if they can get me in.
He seems to be alert and eating so I'm going to stay hopeful.

That's good to hear !
I just wanted to add that since some of us had read about and observed the benefits of using honey as " medicine " one of the mods. put a stickied thread here a few years ago. There's some great info on the benefits of honey, very informative and fascinating, have a read .

Honey - Bacteria's Worst Enemy! | Health

Some of you might have seen the suggestion on this site every once in awhile to put some honey on an open sore, or to place it over an infection. This might sound strange, but honey truly is a great anti-bacterial. It can really come in handy in a pinch while you wait for a vet visit, or simply...

www.beardeddragon.org

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That is good to hear you do know of a vet. I think it would be a good idea to see what the vet says,
also. As AHBD suggested, try the diluted honey on the eye area. It's hard to tell whether or not it
can be saved or is even viable but it's worth trying it out.
I'm glad that he is alert & eating some, all great signs!

Tracie

 

[tommy1449]

Came home from work today to a little guy covered in shed.
THERE WAS AN EYE UNDER THERE.
I think we are developing a love hate relationship. He hated the q tips but loves looking around.

 

[xp29]

Came home from work today to a little guy covered in shed.
THERE WAS AN EYE UNDER THERE.
I think we are developing a love hate relationship. He hated the q tips but loves looking around. View attachment 87023

That is great news

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Wow, that is great news! Apparently the eye had shed stuck over it but somehow it worked
itself free, without any trouble. The eye looks perfectly healthy also & I'm sure that he's so
happy to be able to see out of it too!

Tracie

 

[tommy1449]

He seems to prefer to close it. Could this be from having it shut for so long? Im planning on taking him in anyway just to put my mind at ease.
Any thoughts?