hurt blue tongue

[Jenny]

Because I have a reptile licence, neighbours have just brought me a hurt blue tongue. I will take it to the vet tomorrow morning but in the mean time, have placed it into a dark and warm enclosure. I have put Betadine on its wounds (looks like dog puncture marks) and crossed my fingers.

My local vet specialises in wildlife rescue cases and works with WIRES but until I get it there, does anyone have any other informed advice?

I should add that there is a fair bit of blood around its mouth and I suspect one of the punctures is into its lung or respiratory track. I expect the wounds are fatal but where there is life there is hope.

Thanks

Jenny

[NRE-808]

i'd say keeping it warm and cleaning the wounds is as much as you can do and good work for doing that in regards to the possible lung puncture, i dont know that there is anything you can do there Give it some water though

good luck with the little fella

[spilota_variegata]

Sounds serious. I hope things work out. Good on you also for caring.

[bikiescum2003]

only advice i could give is dont handle it as it very well may have internal damage. i think there are 24 hour wildlife services that you can call but the might not responed well to a call this time of night for a blue tounge (some wildlife officers are a bit strange) just keep your eye on it and keep it warm. if it does have internal damages chances are that it may not live through the night. but fingers crossed

[Jenny]

I agree with all of that.

It's safe, warm , in a quiet place and has access to water. That's probably the best I can do until the morning. My fingers are still crossed and that has to help.

[NRE-808]

in light of recent events for you... your Signature seems a little Ironic...

i hope everything works out for the best

[Kelzarie]

Hi Jenny,

With regards to your injured blue tongue - all of the above, keep quiet, keep warm, try to put some food in there. Reptiles are rather hearty creatures so you never know the chance of survival - ie - we had a blue tongue in care - this poor critter got run over by a 4x4 and injuries ranged from breathing problems (due to impact), it's whole jaw is split and it actually upon impact chopped half it's blue tongue off with it's teeth (the vet had to do a clean cut of that half) but several months later he is doing very well - eating for himself and also with eyes open now which is a good sign. The only bad thing is that reptiles tend to take a bit longer to heal than other animals that tend to come into care so u have to be dedicated.If the vet (make sure you take it to a proper reptile vet otherwise a lot of the other vets will just write their death warrant due to not understanding properly the injuries) says it will be ok, find a local reptile carer in your area to look after it. It's a bugger when it's a dog/cat attack because apparently often if it's life threatening it's more the bacteria thats the problem, not the actual puncture. I hope everything goes ok with the little fella, domestic animals can be so cruel sometimes cant they. Good luck.

Kelly

[Jenny]

I got the bluey to the vet at 8.30am. It had obvious head injuries and this morning had blood weeping out from its eye sockets. Most seriously, it had a broken jaw and was immediately euthanased.

At least it is out of its misery.

[NRE-808]

sad to hear about but at least now its with all the lovely Blue Tounge ladies in the sky

[spilota_variegata]

Originally Posted by Jenny

I got the bluey to the vet at 8.30am. It had obvious head injuries and this morning had blood weeping out from its eye sockets. Most seriously, it had a broken jaw and was immediately euthanased.

At least it is out of its misery.

Jenny, I and most people on this site applaude your efforts. Thank you very much for caring enough to take this animal to the vet. I'm sorry about the outcome, but you did everything you possibly could to alleviate this animal suffering needlessly.

[olivehydra]

Sorry about the loss.
I have a rescue bluey in my care at the moment. When I got it it had been torn open and its lung was fully exposed. The lung tissue had started to become necrotic, so the entire lung was removed and its body cavity closed. I have been giving it injections of pain killers, antibios and fluids. Yesterday I removed the stitches and he should be released within the week. They can withstand some terrible injuries if infection is kept in check.

[jimjones]

wat a loss but an all to comin site dog meets bluey mower meets bluey etc

[Jenny]

When I was a kid growing up around here there were eastern bearded dragons, blue tongues and water dragons everywhere as well as snakes like red bellies.

I haven't seen a local bearded dragon for about 20 years and these days, an adult blue tongue is a rare sight. I've heard plenty of stories of drivers veering to run them over, that, dogs and cats and silly people killing them "because they're dangerous" doesn't leave them much hope.

This bluey's death is a sad loss.

[ando611]

You did your very best and I too applaud your efforts Jenny.

[jimjones]

or silly (uneducated) people who think a bluey is a snake