# Sick Bearded Dragon



## Christie_ZXR (May 14, 2011)

Wondered if anyone has experienced anything like this before and could tell me what it's likely to be. My bearded dragon is about 2yrs old, I got him from a rescue place and he's only been with me 2 weeks. I got him straight down the vet just to get checked over and he is about 100gs underweight. He has really runny poo and has done since I got him. His urate was a bright yellow a few days ago, today it was mostly white with a little very pale yellow in it. He seems quite active, he's eating sort of well. Has about 3-5 locusts a day, but only a little bit of veg. He'll only take the veg if I hand feed him, but he'll happily take the locusts on his own. The vet advised I just let him eat whatever he fancies to get some weight on him, rather than worrying too much about getting the right mix of veg and live food. On the vets instruction I've also been giving him 2ml of critical care formula a day with a bit of calcium mixed in.
I'm getting a fecal test done in the next few days, but I have no idea what results to expect.
Has anyone got any idea what it's likely to be? Parasites or something more serious?


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## Christie_ZXR (May 14, 2011)

no one got any ideas?


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## george10 (Jun 17, 2010)

hi. I would try a wormer an also make sure thers a steady supply of water because they can dehydrate with a lot of diareaha. so i would also stick to live food for a couple of days or keep a very limited supply of greens now an then untill maybe u notice a difference when yor beardie goes the toilet. make sure u dust the live food with the calcium supplement every other feed for a adult. an also let it have a luke warm bath bou twice a week. if your still in doubt i would go back to the vet for a second opinion or maybe someone on here could give u other information. Good anyways:2thumb:


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## george10 (Jun 17, 2010)

good luck:2thumb:


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## dickvansheepcake (Jul 8, 2009)

george10 said:


> hi. I would try a wormer an also make sure thers a steady supply of water because they can dehydrate with a lot of diareaha. so i would also stick to live food for a couple of days or keep a very limited supply of greens now an then untill maybe u notice a difference when yor beardie goes the toilet. make sure u dust the live food with the calcium supplement every other feed for a adult. an also let it have a luke warm bath bou twice a week. if your still in doubt i would go back to the vet for a second opinion or maybe someone on here could give u other information. Good anyways:2thumb:



Do not worm your dragon yourself. Over the counter wormers are not effective anyway but if you worm him without knowing for sure he has worms you could do more harm than good. Wait for the results from the fecal test and then the vet can prescribe the correct medicine for the specific parasites present, should their be any.

Also do not restrict his greens. If he's eating that's a good thing, so don't take his food away.


To be honest, parasites of some kind are sounding likely. All beardies carry a small parasitic load in their stomach, but stress or bad husbandry/keeping can make the number of parasites multiply hugely. I'm guessing as he came from a rescue that he has not had the best time recently, also all the moving about will have caused a large amount of stress.

When I rescued my male dragon he was small, underweight and had very bad diarrhea. After a vet trip and fecal testing he was found to be carrying a large amount of worms. He had a short course of treatment and he was sorted! Although he is still prone to stomach problems to this day.


Jenny


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## Christie_ZXR (May 14, 2011)

Brill cheers. So I don't need to panic just yet then! I've got to drop the poo off in a couple of days (vet wants 3 days worth) so I'll find out soon. I guess I just want an idea of what sort of problems are common so I've got a rough idea what to expect. 
The vet did say the yellow urate is a worry, is that a common side effect of parasites? Or likely to be something else do you reckon? He mentioned liver disease or an infection, but I don't know how common either is, or whether it's likely?

He has had a bad time of it, poor thing. The rescue place had no history for him, but it's a safe bet he wasn't being taken care of well at all  The vet also said he had a very mild case of MBD, but not to panic as it's not so bad it couldn't be sorted provided he's getting his calcium and the right light/heat etc, which he is now. I've been told to keep him on the critical care formula for the time being, and the vet will let me know if I need to continue it when he sees him next. 

He's chowing down the locusts like mad, which I'm really pleased about. And he's still very active, so hopefully whatever it is it isn't too bad.


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## Chrisuk33 (Oct 10, 2010)

i think runny poo and discoloured pee can be lots of things, maybe before you got him he was on a very poor diet

i dont think id like to speculate a problem and get you all worried, its best to wait until the vets gives the diagnosis


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## Christie_ZXR (May 14, 2011)

Okay, thankyou. I'm just worried about what the vet is going to say. Hopefully won't be long before I find out. Dropping the poo off tomorrow to be tested. Hate the waiting!


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## soul_girl (Mar 25, 2009)

You've only had him a few weeks so you will have to give him time to settle in. If hes had a bad diet in the past it will take time for his body to adjust to getting the correct food. If the poo is runny he might be getting too much moisture in his diet, its getting the balance right between live food and veg. 

Also try him on wax worms they are good for getting weight on a dragon, give him a few each day until he puts on weight then only use them as a treat once a week.

Another tip to get him to eat salad is put meal worms in with the salad, one of my dragons hardly eat any salad until I started putting meal worms in now he cant get enough salad.


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