Beth Campbell
Bearded Dragon Egg
- Messages
- 5
Hi All -
I have an adult Bearded Dragon in my classroom named Artichoke (Arti for short). I've had her since she was a baby, and for most of that time she has been doing wonderfully! A few months ago (first in Oct. 2017), there started to be times when we would find her on her back in her tank, unable to roll over. There were no other symptoms at the time. Since then, she has progressively gotten less mobile - at first, she was walking like an old man - like it took effort. Recently, she rarely holds her head up off the ground, and she hasn't had her belly off the ground in a while. When she moves now, she sort of drags herself, often unable to get her arms out from under her. When we put her down, we have to arrange her arms and legs - she doesn't put them into a natural position to support her weight. Her tail is flexible near the end, but it is stiff and not very mobile close to her body. It would be impossible to bend it up the way you would while sexing.
She was at the exotic vet today (a very experienced and highly-recommended vet), and he is very concerned. First they did a fecal exam, which was fine. Upon examining her vent, he said it "didn't look right" - I've never poked in there myself, nor have I seen inside a "normal" vent, so I can't offer more here. His next theory was kidney disease, so they did a blood test, and all of her levels came back normal, so her kidneys appear to be functioning well. He said her growth was great and there was no evidence of MBD. She pooped twice while we were there, so she isn't impacted, though she does tend to go for long periods of time between pooping. He really wasn't sure where to go from there. The two theories he floated were:
1. Cycling eggs, maybe gravid - does this make sense if she is 4 years old? She has never been around a male (I know they can still lay infertile eggs), and she has never laid eggs before. He did not feel any eggs, but I know that infertile eggs can be small. The thing is, everything I can find says that IF females are going to lay eggs, they start doing so at 10 months-1year.
2. Spinal infection - he said this doesn't seem to fit because usually this starts near the end of the tail at an injury and works its way toward the body. The stiffness in her tail is the opposite, and she has never had an injury.
Here's the thing - I spent $180 today for the exam, blood work, and fecal. His recommended next step, to try to identify either eggs or an infection, is an X-Ray, for another $90. If it is eggs, he recommends spaying her, since she obviously doesn't respond well to cycling. If it is a spinal infection, then he recommends antibiotics and anti-inflammatory meds, but said that if a spinal infection is causing her difficulty in movement, then the nerve damage is done and she would not regain mobility.
I love her and my students adore her, but as a teacher and mom of three, I can't spend hundreds of dollars on exploratory procedures that might not be appropriate, might not work, and might not regain quality of life.
Can anyone think of anything we might be missing? Or have any other suggestions?
Husbandry details:
She eats live Dubia roaches (dusted in calcium), occasionally kale and butternut squash (she doesn't usually bother eating them, it's not that I don't offer), freeze-dried mealworms (she LOVES these), and occasionally bearded dragon food pellets (I leave them in her tank on weekends). As she has lost mobility, it has been more difficult for her to catch the roaches, and she won't eat them unless they are alive.
She is in a 40 gallon tank with Zoo Med lighting - UVA and UVB mercury bulb on during the day, ceramic heater on at night. Her basking temp is 110, and the cool end of her tank is 85. She is taken out of her tank to be held or walk around the classroom about twice per day. Lately, she does not do much walking.
She is on vinyl flooring in her tank, with a large water dish and rocks for climbing.
When she is warm, she is a peachy-tan color with a white belly, and when she is cold, she is a mossy brown color with a gray and white "tiled" pattern on her belly.
Vet was impressed with her size (23" long) and said her food and lighting have had to be right throughout her life based on her healthy growth. Again, good calcium levels and no evidence of MBD
I know this post is long, but I wanted to provide all of the details I could. Thanks for taking the time to read it! I appreciate any advice or suggestions!
I have an adult Bearded Dragon in my classroom named Artichoke (Arti for short). I've had her since she was a baby, and for most of that time she has been doing wonderfully! A few months ago (first in Oct. 2017), there started to be times when we would find her on her back in her tank, unable to roll over. There were no other symptoms at the time. Since then, she has progressively gotten less mobile - at first, she was walking like an old man - like it took effort. Recently, she rarely holds her head up off the ground, and she hasn't had her belly off the ground in a while. When she moves now, she sort of drags herself, often unable to get her arms out from under her. When we put her down, we have to arrange her arms and legs - she doesn't put them into a natural position to support her weight. Her tail is flexible near the end, but it is stiff and not very mobile close to her body. It would be impossible to bend it up the way you would while sexing.
She was at the exotic vet today (a very experienced and highly-recommended vet), and he is very concerned. First they did a fecal exam, which was fine. Upon examining her vent, he said it "didn't look right" - I've never poked in there myself, nor have I seen inside a "normal" vent, so I can't offer more here. His next theory was kidney disease, so they did a blood test, and all of her levels came back normal, so her kidneys appear to be functioning well. He said her growth was great and there was no evidence of MBD. She pooped twice while we were there, so she isn't impacted, though she does tend to go for long periods of time between pooping. He really wasn't sure where to go from there. The two theories he floated were:
1. Cycling eggs, maybe gravid - does this make sense if she is 4 years old? She has never been around a male (I know they can still lay infertile eggs), and she has never laid eggs before. He did not feel any eggs, but I know that infertile eggs can be small. The thing is, everything I can find says that IF females are going to lay eggs, they start doing so at 10 months-1year.
2. Spinal infection - he said this doesn't seem to fit because usually this starts near the end of the tail at an injury and works its way toward the body. The stiffness in her tail is the opposite, and she has never had an injury.
Here's the thing - I spent $180 today for the exam, blood work, and fecal. His recommended next step, to try to identify either eggs or an infection, is an X-Ray, for another $90. If it is eggs, he recommends spaying her, since she obviously doesn't respond well to cycling. If it is a spinal infection, then he recommends antibiotics and anti-inflammatory meds, but said that if a spinal infection is causing her difficulty in movement, then the nerve damage is done and she would not regain mobility.
I love her and my students adore her, but as a teacher and mom of three, I can't spend hundreds of dollars on exploratory procedures that might not be appropriate, might not work, and might not regain quality of life.
Can anyone think of anything we might be missing? Or have any other suggestions?
Husbandry details:
She eats live Dubia roaches (dusted in calcium), occasionally kale and butternut squash (she doesn't usually bother eating them, it's not that I don't offer), freeze-dried mealworms (she LOVES these), and occasionally bearded dragon food pellets (I leave them in her tank on weekends). As she has lost mobility, it has been more difficult for her to catch the roaches, and she won't eat them unless they are alive.
She is in a 40 gallon tank with Zoo Med lighting - UVA and UVB mercury bulb on during the day, ceramic heater on at night. Her basking temp is 110, and the cool end of her tank is 85. She is taken out of her tank to be held or walk around the classroom about twice per day. Lately, she does not do much walking.
She is on vinyl flooring in her tank, with a large water dish and rocks for climbing.
When she is warm, she is a peachy-tan color with a white belly, and when she is cold, she is a mossy brown color with a gray and white "tiled" pattern on her belly.
Vet was impressed with her size (23" long) and said her food and lighting have had to be right throughout her life based on her healthy growth. Again, good calcium levels and no evidence of MBD
I know this post is long, but I wanted to provide all of the details I could. Thanks for taking the time to read it! I appreciate any advice or suggestions!
I think we can make the x-rays work, though. I just didn't want to add that cost if it wasn't going to get us anywhere actionable. With the advice here, though, sounds like it might be worth at least taking that step. Thank you!