Hi there. I feel terrible about having to ask this question, but would regret it if I didn’t. Do all bearded dragons go into rigor mortis once they’ve died?
I adopted my sweet girl Dora from someone who wasn’t caring for her very well. She was severely underweight and her MBD made it quite hard for her to move about. She was between 6-7 years old when I got her, and it’s been nearly two years now (so she is quite old).
When she went into brumation last month, I suspected that she may not wake up (her appetite has been decreasing since the Fall and she has been less active). I did discuss this with my vet, and he agreed that her behaviour was pretty typical of an aging beardie.
Last week, I went to give her a bath (as she only poops in water), and she just seemed less reactive. I simply brushed it off as her being groggy from brumating, but continued to check on her every day.
Yesterday, I noticed her eyes were sunken in and she was no longer moving. I thought she may have passed, but decided to wait a day to see if rigor mortis would set in (to confirm that she is indeed deceased). However, after checking on her every few hours all day today, she is cold, has a black beard, and isn’t reactive when I turn her on her back- she is entirely limp.
All the information I’ve found says that beardies go into rigor mortis once they’ve passed, but it’s been about 36 hours since I discovered her yesterday, and there has been no change.
I’m fairly certain she is gone, but I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I buried her and she weren’t deceased.
Can anyone confirm that beardies don’t always go into rigor mortis? I haven’t been able to see her breathing, but I know some beardies can quite convincingly play dead.
Any advice or guidance would be much appreciated - Thanks,
Lari
I adopted my sweet girl Dora from someone who wasn’t caring for her very well. She was severely underweight and her MBD made it quite hard for her to move about. She was between 6-7 years old when I got her, and it’s been nearly two years now (so she is quite old).
When she went into brumation last month, I suspected that she may not wake up (her appetite has been decreasing since the Fall and she has been less active). I did discuss this with my vet, and he agreed that her behaviour was pretty typical of an aging beardie.
Last week, I went to give her a bath (as she only poops in water), and she just seemed less reactive. I simply brushed it off as her being groggy from brumating, but continued to check on her every day.
Yesterday, I noticed her eyes were sunken in and she was no longer moving. I thought she may have passed, but decided to wait a day to see if rigor mortis would set in (to confirm that she is indeed deceased). However, after checking on her every few hours all day today, she is cold, has a black beard, and isn’t reactive when I turn her on her back- she is entirely limp.
All the information I’ve found says that beardies go into rigor mortis once they’ve passed, but it’s been about 36 hours since I discovered her yesterday, and there has been no change.
I’m fairly certain she is gone, but I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I buried her and she weren’t deceased.
Can anyone confirm that beardies don’t always go into rigor mortis? I haven’t been able to see her breathing, but I know some beardies can quite convincingly play dead.
Any advice or guidance would be much appreciated - Thanks,
Lari
Breaks my heart to see this when so young- it is imperative that the tank is set up w/ correct surface basking temps--and correct uvb- no coils - if they do not have this they will not survive-
