Babysitting a sickly Bearded Dragon?
I have had a Bearded Dragon for over eight years and another one for six months, both adults. I agreed to babysit someones beardie for a week, I only know the guy from my son's bus stop and have never seen his beardie until yesterday. The beardie has bone damage (his tail is useless and totally crooked) from calcium fewer and is so weak he cannot walk and his tongue hangs out because his jowl line has deteriorated and is very in poor health. What can I do to get him in better shape (anything, I know it won't be a miracle) by next Monday so I can administer the guy some hinters and maybe he will listen since there was rise. The beardie is 3 years old and is tiny his eyes are bulging, oh it is so sad. My female beardie know something is wrong because she won't go near him (they are not in alike tank I just put her about 4 foot away in my beardie playroom) and she almost seem saddened, the little guy tries to wave his arms but one gets stuck under him and it take every bit off strength and his whole arm shakes and his fingers just dangle. It is heart breaking because he have spirit and the owner does care he is just uneducated give or take a few beardies. So if you have any hints please share them, he did take a bite of turnip greens yesterday, I infer the only thing he has be fed is super worms so I am having a hard time finding something to stimulate his will.
keep trying please dont tender up, dont give him back to the origonal owner, hes is not fit to look after this poor little one. please take him to the vet aswell, i no its expensive, but if you ahve the money please spend it on his little life.
he really does deserve better. please keep writting to update us if he is improving.
Another thing to include to the other posts is go to a drugstore, buy liquid calcium and a syringe. The dragon will need to be force feed this through the syringe twice a day. Make sure the crickets (not superworms) are dusted with calcium powder. He requests to be eating vegetables and crickets. The worms should just be a treat, not a diet staple.
Answers: That's so pitiful, it doesn't take much time or effort to do the research on proper husbandry techniques and it's infuriating/depressing when pet owners don't do so and the animal suffers. Get him below UV lights, keep pumping the veggies into him, start giving him supplements. Keep the log and take the pics (excellent ideas) and when you speak with the owner you might want to request keeping the beardie for an more month (at his expense for food and supplies) to get it on the road to recovery. If he really is a compassionate owner he will hopefully agree. During that time have him over and show him the proper care of his reptile. He needs to achieve into a vet (or pay for you to do so) for a fecal exam and possible additional supplementation. Offer to help near his husbandry and enclosure set-up, picking out proper supplements and designing a proper diet for the little guy. Direct the owner to good husbandry books or websites and encourage him to do the proper research.
We've done resues or have reptiles placed in our care from bad or untrained owners and it really is heartbreaking to see the obvious spirit still alive in the poor, barely moving beasties. Though he is most assuredly horribly stunted and his existence has been cut short by the bad guardianship thus far, he can probably be rehabbed to the point that he has a good quality of time for his remaining years with proper care.
Ok, first off - do not put this beard dragon anywhere near your beardies or even in the same space your beardies occupy!
You should treat him as whether he was in quarantine around your animals - it is easy to have a sneaking suspicion that the cause of his illness is obvious but who know what else might be lurking.
As for his very poor and sad state - please do not give him vertebrae to his owners.
Talk to the owner and explain how much of a poor a condition he is in - ask to see his setup and explain to him what is missing.
Discuss with him that the beard dragon will only get worse and that you agree he must either budge into an experienced rescue centre or should be put to sleep.
I know that it is hard to give up on them, but this is not a human we are conversation about - we are talking about a grossly deformed animal who cannot and never will own a quality of life. I tell you very soon that he is in a lot of pain and a great deal of suffering and continuing his existance is extending this suffering.
There a worse things than death - such as a life in agony.
