Severe dehydration and malnourishment

[Marsh]

I just took in a dragon from someone that received him as a gift (I believe it's a him) and he is severely dehydrated (his scales feel very dried out compared to normal) and extremely skinny. He has almost no fat and his belly goes in instead of hanging down. The previous owner claims that he is about 2 years old but I'm not sure if he hasn't grown because of a small tank and not enough food or if he is actually a young juvenile, because he is definitely not a fully sized adult. Another thing to note is that he was previously only fed dried mealworms and pellets and does not recognize moving worms as food. He is also jumpy and defensive due to rarely being handled. I'd like to know what I can do to help him and any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Marsh]

Additional note: I do not blame the previous owner for any of these conditions because they were unexpectedly given him as a gift without any previous knowledge of captive reptiles.

 

[Marsh]

Another note: despite his problems, he has all of his toes and does not seem to have MBD and has been relatively active since I moved him into my home earlier. He is currently lying under a piece of driftwood beneath his heat lamp.

 

[Hdrydr31]

I just took in a dragon from someone that received him as a gift (I believe it's a him) and he is severely dehydrated (his scales feel very dried out compared to normal) and extremely skinny. He has almost no fat and his belly goes in instead of hanging down. The previous owner claims that he is about 2 years old but I'm not sure if he hasn't grown because of a small tank and not enough food or if he is actually a young juvenile, because he is definitely not a fully sized adult. Another thing to note is that he was previously only fed dried mealworms and pellets and does not recognize moving worms as food. He is also jumpy and defensive due to rarely being handled. I'd like to know what I can do to help him and any advice would be appreciated.

Welcome to the forum!!! Bless you for taking this sweet one in to give it a chance.. If you could please take a picture so we can see him/her so we can better help you. What are the living arrangements that this one has come from? I guess do you know what he's had or not had?
What are the living arrangements now?
As far as eating make sure you take things slow when your feeding him/her as you can shock it's system if you feed to quick too soon.. Hydrate him first off so he's got fluids. Supplement/slurries, critical care would be helpful...Have you thought about getting him to a vet to be checked out..

Not sure what your experience is with them so please take a look at the links below some of our comments as we have lots of info on general care, it will give you everything you may need to know.. the rest we can fill in
By the sounds of things this little one needs stability and TLC. Take your time go slow with him let him adjust, show no fear of him you need to gain his trust..once you get that your set!!
Lots of hydration to get the mealworms out of his system, is he pooping?? He may love a nice warm bath!
Nice greens collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion greens are great staple greens..Toss out the pellets as those are just preservatives and are crap really... Some nice juicy hornworms for hydration, dubia roaches are packed full of meaty juicy goodness..

 

[PatsyB]

In his weak state, it's best not to feed protein right off the bat. The body uses a lot of energy to process protein, energy that he doesn't have right now. I would get some critical care or some Pangea creasted gecko diet and start with that. You can also make a smoothie/slurry with healthy veggies and some plain coconut water and bee pollen, probiotic, and calcium. I would give him a good soak in a tub, he may drink water in the tub.

Try to let him settle in to his new home. Go at him with slow movements and reach underneath his chest to pick him up. Talk to him in a calm voice to make him comfortable being around you. He should start to come around.

 

[Marsh]

Thanks for the advice. I should be able to get some pangea easily, although I'm not sure how willing he'll be to eat it. And I'd take a picture but right now he's sleeping and it's dark in my room. I will in the morning. I'll also be sure to give lots of baths.

 

[PatsyB]

My girl was refusing any food for awhile but she loved the taste of the Pangea. I gave it to her in a syringe, just dripped it on her nose and she licked it off.

The go to web site we use for our food chart and disinfecting information (beautiful dragons.com), stopped selling critical care in favor of CGD. In their research the CGD, gave a better result.