Help with shingleback

[LadyJ]

Shingleback juvenile, under a year old. 3 and a bit ft enclosure, basking spot at about 34 and low end at 26... fed on organic dog food, snails, grated carrot, dandelions, greens, diced apple... 4 month old UVB light used and food dusted with calcium.

She (Brissie) has been not as active for a little over a week, but I didn't worry at all and left her be, not handling etc. but just before she was at the glass so I brought her out. Placed her on the bed and noticed she was dragging herself along with her front legs... I pretty much went into shock and watched her for a bit more... she continued to drag herself.

I hadn't noticed this in the enclosure and this is the first I've seen it, she's usually a blast with handling and petting all over but she's suddenly protective of her legs... she seems laboured on all of them.

I'm going to the vet tomorrow first thing in the morning, but... god... I'm so worried. I can't see anything wrong with my husbandry but first Rem (who hasn't been in contact with Briss at all) and now this.

It looks like MBD, but i've only just noticed it now... any ideas...

 

[LadyJ]

Vet isn't open until 8:30 am tomorrow, I'm taking the day off to go there and then rush to an interview... I was already stressed for my interview for VCAL next year but I think this threw it over the edge (which is at a vet hospital, this'll put me off...). Would uploading a video help? It would pain me to record it but if someone can help through seeing it...

 

[Asharee133]

oh hun your not having much luck with your animals are you how much is the UVB output

 

[LadyJ]

oh hun your not having much luck with your animals are you how much is the UVB output

I'm not... I feel useless, these things don't just happen, but I can't seem to find what I'm doing wrong. The UVB is 10.0 Zoo med ReptiSun - I have it there despite so many saying that skinks are fine without and some breeders have done so fine fo years.

 

[Asharee133]

bump up the heat a bit in her hot spot?

 

[thals]

Your husbandry sounds all good, and yes, unfortunately sometimes these things do just happen, especially with reptiles. Just keep her as warm and undisturbed as possible, and get her into a vet Monday morning. Better to get a proper diagnosis and prompt treatment than mere guesswork on here which'll only make you more worried and stressed out.

All the best with her, keep us posted as to how she goes.

Cheers,
Thals.

 

[hornet]

Listen, i'm no expert but to me your husbandry sounds fine, the only things that could possibly be a problem may be the dog food, i've always been told to feed them on cat food but i'm not sure if thats all that important. As for the grated carrot your better off giving them chunks, if you dice their greens too finely or grate them it can give them gum rot but thats obviously not the problem here. What substrate is she on? I would suggest a warm bath for now till you get her to the vet. Is she eating at all still?

 

[LadyJ]

Thank you so much everyone - her temps have been raised and she's been out basking. I'm keeping her warm and avoiding all handling, I've covered half her enclosure although she seems intent on resting her head where she can see. The vet (trained with reptiles and birds... and only 5 minutes away, what a blessing!) was closed without afterhours number, but they open at 8:30am tomorrow and I'll be calling them the moment they're there.

I'm actually getting worried about the dog food too... I don't know... something doesn't seem right. I'm interested in getting her some bluey pellets (she LOVED those) to replace the dog food, as I'm a little concerned. I've even been thinking human mince or steak? I dunno, don't trust dog food, although this is good quality (those little single serve packets, organic, $2 a pop). As for the carrot, never knew about that, I'd always heard that they have trouble digesting the larger chunks due to them being a solid mass - same applies with apple, etc.. Any other opinions?

Her substrate is high grade astro-turf, short stuff. she's enjoyed a warm bath a few minutes ago and drank a little, and with a massage (to clear any potential blockage), passed major gas and let a little string of urates pass...

She's still eating, although not as much as she once was - she's lost a little condition...

Edit: The substrate's been disinfected, I've left her favourite natural hide with her scent though, as usual, and she's spent a while in there... bed time for her now, this is always the hardest part with an unwell animal, leaving them for the night in peace...

 

[danieloflat]

Oh LadyJ that must be terrible! i hope you and your shingleback will be fine! cthe only thing i can think of is calcium deficiency that normally is the cause for the unfunctioning of back legs, although it has never happened to myself, it has happened to friends and they took their lizards to a vet and now they are functioning well. hope everything goes well.
Regards, Daniel

 

[Asharee133]

lizards can fart??

 

[varanophile]

Hi, I'm sorry to here that your shingle isn't doing well. I feed mine dog food as well, and have done so for years with no problem. I know of many other keepers who do so as well without issue.

Calcium deficiency is certainly a possibility. The other thing I would be leaning towards would be an intestinal blockage. I know of other type of reptiles that get paralysis of their back legs when the blockage causes impingement of the nerves.

I hope it all works out, good luck at the vets.

 

[Elapidae1]

Hornet, I am of the belief that cat food or more importantly the fish that's in it is no good for shingles.
I have also heard about intestinal blockages from carrot etc however I feed mine finely diced carrot and as of yet have not had a problem, also I feed dog food regurlarly. I can't see it being calcium, I'll be interested to find out what the vet says.

 

[hornet]

yes you have to avoid anything with fish but i've always been told to use cat food, i'm not sure if there was a reason behind that or just personal preference but by the sounds of it the dog food is fine. How did you go at the vets?

 

[Kristy_07]

Hey J, how's the shingle?

 

[LadyJ]

Hi guys, sorry, here's the updates,

Took Briss to the vet that morning and was feeling horrible in the waiting room... I started crying. The receptionist and others were lovely though and the vet was so much better than I'd ever hoped for! He's seen thousands of herps and has just come down here (Emerald Vet Clinic) and was great to talk to. She looked a lot better that day and was walking fine, but luckily I took a video to show him her struggles (I'll upload to Youtube and link it).

She got away without antibiotics or shots, but when he inspected her mouth it was evident she's devolping RI... she had a small 'bubble' at the back of her throat. My temperatures have been far too low and switching them all off at night has only made it worse, big mistake on my part. I also haven't been measuring temps in that enclosure correctly as I kept thinking "yeah, I can put off buying a good thermometer"... humid conditions have also played a part when I've placed astroturf that has not yet dried in the enclosure as I washed it late at night and didn't allow enough time to dry completely. Feeding her fruit and veg grated is also a big no no, despite that fact that's what I'd always been told to avoid compaction... she needs the more solid pieces to allow her to work the jaw. I'd also not supplemented her correctly with vitamins (I had with calcium), huge error and probably a main cause.

Temps have been raised, course food has been offered and she's being correctly supplemented. Waiting for improvements but she's taken great to food and higher temps. Thanks everyone!

 

[Kristy_07]

Glad to hear you and your animals are back on track, J. Maybe worth investing in a couple of good books for future reference?