Swollen toes & feet

[Drache613]

Hello Missy,

I am glad to hear he seems to be feeling good enough to headbob at your female. That is mating behavior so it sounds like they are having fun interacting anyway.
Maybe the black cherry extract is helping him out some.

Let us know how he is doing.

Tracie

 

[Misky]

Latest on Shelby- He still has swollen feet & only eats critical care diet but hes been more active lately. Hope his pain meds dont stop working! I noticed a while back that bottom of tail was darker but didnt think much of it until recently also noticed it was hard. Looks like it died! Was told probably from retained shed. So making an app with vet tomorrow. Then, last week I noticed this whitish bump on his spine. As its still there I'll show the vet that too. Poor guy is having so many issues! I'll post pics. Btw, the little curve at end of tail has been there sincehe wasfew mths old. Not sure why.
[ximg]90844 2285171072[/ximg]

 

[Rankins]

Glad your taking the dragon to the vet. Makes me wonder if the tail problem is related to the foot problem. If the end of the tail is stiff and dried...sadly it is dead tissue. Makes me wonder if the foot and tail might be related to a fungus or bacteria issue.
Have the vet take tissue samples for examination.
Keep us all posted

 

[Rankins]

Just noticed the spot on the back. I think all this is related...I'm pretty sure it's likely fungal or bacterial. I'm leaning towards fungal...definitly needs a vet appointment.

 

[Misky]

Shelby was on an antibiotic for over 3 mths then switched to a fungal med for 3 mths & there was no change in his condition so drs ruled infections out. I know lizards take a long time to heal but wouldnt there have been some improvement in that time if it was an infection?
Side question. I was reading the intro info on the home pg. about lighting. It said you can buy a fluorescent fixture at Home Depot for the Arcadia bulb. So does that mean the bulb it comes with is not appropriate (used for plant growth)?

 

[Rankins]

Fungal infections can be extremely hard to treat and cure. Did the vet do a skin scraping looking for a fungal infection? Did they do a culture to check for bacterial infection?
I'm assuming the light fixture will fit the Arcadia bulb, but doubt the bulb that comes with the fixture at Home Depot is a UV bulb.

 

[Misky]

Vet did blood work which was inconclusive & the bones looked good on the xrays. I believe she did try to draw out some fluid from swollen foot but that didnt tell her anything either. She didnt say anything about skin scrapings. She did treat my female lizard, Zilla for a fungal infection in Dec.cause she had a bit of yellowish gunk under her shedding skin. She figured that must be what Shelby has then too but after 3 mths of meds & no change they figured it wasnt an infection. I have a vet app tomorrow so will see if anything new can be found out.

 

[Rankins]

Okay, see if the vet thinks another fungal scraping might be more diagnostic. I am thinking this is fungal...it looks like it, and it's not responding well to treatment. Makes me almost sure it is a fungus.....
Let us know how the vet appointment goes. Depending on what the vet thinks I might have some helpful ideas.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Oh I will have to agree, it does look fungal. I definitely think you should get them to do a skin scraping. He will likely need an oral anti fungal medication. You can try getting some monistat or lotrimen right now, in cream form, to put on the tail. You could even try getting some raw, unpasteurized honey or manuka honey to put on the affected areas, at night. Be sure there aren't any insects in his tank that would be drawn to the honey.
Are you giving probiotics right now, also?
How is his appetite doing?

Tracie

 

[Misky]

His appetite is the same, about 1ml a day of the Critical Care diet is all he'll eat. He isnt on probiotics. The vet said it wasnt necessary with the fungal meds he was on, just with antibiotics. ??? I will definitely ask about getting the skin scraping done. Hope it doesnt hurt the poor guy. I'll try that stuff with his tail. Thanks

 

[Rankins]

Depends on what meds the dragon was on...but probiotics are not harmful so they are worth giving irregardless. Do you remember what antifungals were being used? Were they oral or topical?
A skin scraping is painless...

 

[Misky]

Oral meds. Antifungal meds were Voriconazole. Shelby was taking .13 ml daily. Both lizards did go through a hook worm treatment couple mths ago, Shelby had to be treated twice so I guess he should have been taking probiotics. Do they sell this over the counter?

 

[AHBD]

Wow, sounds like he should have been treated for probable gout right from the start. Three months of antibiotics has the real possibility of causing a hardship on the kidneys as well as killing off his strong immune system. Too bad the vet didn't seem to be on the ball, giving unnecessary treatment and costing you lots of money in the meantime. Prolonged antibiotic use is a probable cause of lizards developing fungal infections. Where are the injections being given ?

Hopefully Shelby can hang in there, he sounds like a trooper.

 

[Misky]

The antibiotics were injections in alternating front legs. The antifungal meds were oral. Hes not on anything but pain meds anymore. The vets didnt know what was wrong with him so it was hard to treat him. His tests supposedly didnt show anything conclusive, to them at least.

 

[Misky]

Question- How high is the humidity level supposed to be. I read above 25% but my tanks sit at around 40%. The vet said to put moss in Shelbys cave where he sleeps so I can spray it at night to keep humidity up & help hydrate him. Is that right?