Vomiting bearded dragon

[SophieRobinsonx]

Hi everyone, i need some help, my bearded dragon is 6 years old & 2 nights ago i noticed he was being a little jumpy in hes viv. I heard him doing it through the night too. Just jumping around for about 5 seconds. In the morning he was very dark and unhappy so i gave him a hot bath, just minutes after that he was vomiting. It was quite red & it looked like undigested bugs, iv been spraying him to keep him hydrated but hes been sick 8 times in 24 hours & im now waiting to get to a vet tomorrow morning. Im worried. Hes still really dark hes eyes keep closing & hes not slept at all for 2 nights.

 

[haileytaco]

Hello,

I'm so sorry to hear that your beardie is not feeling well. Would you be able to give us a quick rundown of his current housing setup and feeding information?

Include the following:
- cool, warm, and basking temperatures
- use of UVB lighting
- feeder insects you are offering
- how much he usually eats (could he possibly have over-eaten?)
- how often he is given greens, insects, and supplements

Hailey

 

[SophieRobinsonx]

His UVB is 10.0 repti glow which runs the whole length of the viv, the strip is 2 months old, he has a heat lamp over a rock as his basking spot temperatures are between 105 and 110 at the hot end down to 80-90 at the cooler end and in his cave,
He has fresh veg and greens daily, which we dust in calci dust which has d3 in it for calcium digestion, and fresh water in his water bowl,
We feed him on locusts, no bigger than the space between his eyes,
And spray him with a water bottle to keep him hydrated,
The bottom of the viv is lined with calci sand.
He has never been ill before, and i think it may be the locusts as, 2 weeks ago 2 batches of locusts we bought turned bright red/ pink and all died and, we bought the locusts from the same shop 2 weeks later, and when he has been vomiting we can make out the undogested locusts and the pattern still on them after 48 hours of feeding them to him,
We do have an appintment at the vets tommorrow morning to make sure eveything is ok

 

[haileytaco]

Okay, his set up sounds great! Has he still been pooping normally and as frequently as usual?

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

I am sorry to hear that your dragon has been vomiting. It sounds like the locusts may have been bad. How long before lights out did you feed him?
I do recommend though that you change out your substrate from the calcisand to a safer substrate. Try non adhesive shelf liner, tiles, or paper towels to lessen the chances of impaction & bacteria also.
Let us know how things go at the vets.

Tracie

 

[SDragon]

Get rid of the calci sand asap, is it the dyed variety?

When you say the vomit was red, did it look like blood?

 

[SophieRobinsonx]

Weve been to the vets, they noticed hes breathing quite heavily and hes now on antibiotics. He did a poop on the way there (first time in 3 days) & she said it looked healthy. Ill keep you all posted thank you for your help. I will be getting rid of tge calci sand today.

 

[SDragon]

Hope it works out. Did she test the fecal sample for parasites or just examine it?

You may also want to get a probiotic (non dairy) as in humans antibiotics are pretty harsh on the natural gut flora. So it's worth pre-emptively boosting those.

 

[SophieRobinsonx]

She just looked it at while it was in hes box, i did wonder when i should feed him? Hes not ate in a few days and now hes got antibiotics in him.

 

[SophieRobinsonx]

Hes thrown up hes antibiotics

 

[SDragon]

Is this the first thing he's tried to ingest since he last vomited?

Did you gets a fecal done? Can you retain a sample of the vomit?

I've not had to administer ABs so not best placed to advise if it could be the underlying issue or the ABs causing it. I'd call the vet to discuss, are they a rep specialist?

 

[SophieRobinsonx]

Yes its the first thing hes tried to digest, im going to get some fresh veg for him now maybe try him with some butternut squash.
No fecal was done. The vet just said to come back if the AB's dont work.
Yes she was an exotics vet

 

[SDragon]

Shame it wasn't tested to identify if it was parasites, which AB is it?

I'd speak to the vet before giving more food, she might tell you to go ahead but she should be aware imo. I'd definitely look to get a probiotic.

Hope he perks up, it would be great to hear how he gets on.

 

[SophieRobinsonx]

Hi everyone, just a little update, today Zhu hasnt been sick! Hes kept his antibiotics down but hes refusing to eat. Is their anything i can do to help him? I think he's scared to eat.

 

[MapleDeer]

Antibiotics can cause upset stomach in humans. I think it may be the same with lizards as well. That could be why he doesn't want to eat.