Trycten7
Bearded Dragon Egg
- Messages
- 13
Quick Background: Liz was adopted by my S.O., about 6 years ago, from a family that adopted him from another family. We estimate that he is at least 8 years old, but can't be sure beyond that. He's always been a poor eater (doesn't eat leafy greens much, if at all, and needs assistance eating worms as he's blind in one eye and has trouble aiming his strikes), and pretty lethargic.
With that out of the way; Liz has had a rough couple years. We took him in about 12 months ago because of lethargy and poor appetite. He was treated for worms and 'assist fed' for a couple weeks after. He passed the worms, gained a little weight, and then went back to the slow and steady crawl towards starvation.
Well, here we are a year later, and he's back to eating almost nothing (if we're lucky, he'll eat a couple giant worms a week and maybe a handful of superworms, but you have to be very patient). My S.O. (bless her heart, she means well) decided to start assist feeding again. She bought a tempered glass eyedropper to feed him the insectivore mix. He snapped down on it, shattered the glass, and swallowed the tip of the eyedropper... so, back to the vet we go.
5 days, and $500, later... he's gained weight from the hospital stay, hasn't shown any signs of bleeding or discomfort, and hasn't passed any glass. We've continued assist feeding (which he clearly hates and causes him great discomfort... as it's the only time he moves with strength), and after a week he's still looking fine (and no glass has passed), but his appetite is still non-existent.
So my question is: Are we just delaying the inevitable here? How do you know when they are at their end, and can't be rehabilitated? Should we just keep rolling with it, and force feed him against his will? It's incredibly frustrating, as we both care very much about his health and happiness. Any advice about elderly dragons, their appetite, and their end-of-life cycle would be much appreciated!
With that out of the way; Liz has had a rough couple years. We took him in about 12 months ago because of lethargy and poor appetite. He was treated for worms and 'assist fed' for a couple weeks after. He passed the worms, gained a little weight, and then went back to the slow and steady crawl towards starvation.
Well, here we are a year later, and he's back to eating almost nothing (if we're lucky, he'll eat a couple giant worms a week and maybe a handful of superworms, but you have to be very patient). My S.O. (bless her heart, she means well) decided to start assist feeding again. She bought a tempered glass eyedropper to feed him the insectivore mix. He snapped down on it, shattered the glass, and swallowed the tip of the eyedropper... so, back to the vet we go.
5 days, and $500, later... he's gained weight from the hospital stay, hasn't shown any signs of bleeding or discomfort, and hasn't passed any glass. We've continued assist feeding (which he clearly hates and causes him great discomfort... as it's the only time he moves with strength), and after a week he's still looking fine (and no glass has passed), but his appetite is still non-existent.
So my question is: Are we just delaying the inevitable here? How do you know when they are at their end, and can't be rehabilitated? Should we just keep rolling with it, and force feed him against his will? It's incredibly frustrating, as we both care very much about his health and happiness. Any advice about elderly dragons, their appetite, and their end-of-life cycle would be much appreciated!
I hope things improve soon.