What's wrong with my blue tongue!? Please help

[Jamela]

There is something wrong with my lizard.
Her back is slightly sunken in on the back half.
She has lost her appetite and is becoming less and less active.
It is so sad to see.
She is kept in an enclosure with another blue tongue but they do not fight.
We feed them raw mince and chicken, egg, fruit and vegetables and they are
sunned in natural light outside each day.
I do intend to take her to a vet I'm am just looking for a bit of "right now help"
I have researched the sunken back ect and it sounds like a calcium deficiency.
If this is the case does anyone know how I can get her eating again so I can give her ccalcium or have any other ideas on what to do to help or or if it could be something else that is wrong with her?

Thankyouuuu!

 

[dragonlover1]

There is something wrong with my lizard.
Her back is slightly sunken in on the back half.
She has lost her appetite and is becoming less and less active.
It is so sad to see.
She is kept in an enclosure with another blue tongue but they do not fight.
We feed them raw mince and chicken, egg, fruit and vegetables and they are
sunned in natural light outside each day.
I do intend to take her to a vet I'm am just looking for a bit of "right now help"
I have researched the sunken back ect and it sounds like a calcium deficiency.
If this is the case does anyone know how I can get her eating again so I can give her ccalcium or have any other ideas on what to do to help or or if it could be something else that is wrong with her?

Thankyouuuu!

the sunken back is definitely a calcium deficiency you should be putting calcium powder on her food to begin with but the vet can give her a calcium injection to get her back up to speed,then buy something like reptical and dust her food.do you give her snails?they have a certain amount of calcium.but make sure you don't use snail bait or other poison in the garden.also give her banana

 

[Jamela]

the sunken back is definitely a calcium deficiency you should be putting calcium powder on her food to begin with but the vet can give her a calcium injection to get her back up to speed,then buy something like reptical and dust her food.do you give her snails?they have a certain amount of calcium.but make sure you don't use snail bait or other poison in the garden.also give her banana

We don't feel right feeding live food so no she hasn't had snails. But we give them banana quite often.She loved raw chicken and I even tried that with the calcium dusted on it but she won't eat at all so I can't get anything in her.
Ive seen her drink a little bit of water but not much. And from the time I went to work this afternoon, to the time I got home she has gotten worse. It's like she can't move. I will be taking her to the vet tomorrow. Do you know if there is anything I can do for her now? Or a way to maybe force feed so she can start getting the calcium in her?

 

[Tsubakai]

Do some research on appropriate foods for blue tongues. Things like banana, raw mince etc are not good in large amounts as they have no calcium or have very high phosphate:calcium ratios. This has resulted in metabolic bone disease (the sunken in back). Both your lizards will be affected and have very thin, squishy bones. Unfortunately you cannot reverse this now but you can stop the process worsening even more with appropriate treatment. I would suggest a trip to the vet for some injectable calcium as a first step.

 

[Jamela]

Thank you, I took her to the vet this morning. They gave her a shot of calcium, antibiotics and vitamin b. she goes back in on Thursday to do it again. Do you know if the sunken back is going to be there for the rest of her life now? Or will that slowly heal?
Honesty, the vet didn't know alot

 

[PythonLegs]

Wow..no treatment for dehydration?? Really?? I'd be giving her an electrolyte bath ASAP- put her in an escape proof container with about 5cm of powerade (straight from the bottle @ room temp will do the job).

Oh- please don't force feed, you'll only end up making things worse.

 

[LippyM]

Her back won’t heal. Although not reversible it is preventable. The calcium & Vit B shots should help short term but get her onto a varied and balanced diet going forward.

Other signs of calcium deficiency can be difficulty using the limbs as well as twitching in the limbs. These are usually earlier signs prior to bending bones so if you see them having difficulty moving their legs you may need to reassess the diet. Another sign of disease related to poor diet is swollen limbs which can be a sign of gout which is caused by a diet too high in protein or fatty foods.

Yes they do love banana but feed it sparingly because as mentioned above it is high in phosphorous which binds calcium and so prevents absorption.

You don’t have to feed snails live. Place them in a dry quiet place and they will seal their shell then pop them in the freezer for a day; they won’t wake again.

A good balanced diet can contain things such as dog food (wet mainly but the little dry dog food biscuits are usually taken as well), raw veggies like squash, zucchini, peas, mushrooms, occasional fruit items like blueberries or strawberries and the very very occasional whole prey item like a frozen fuzzy mouse. Although you’re not a fan of live items, bluetongues will love most insects that are slower than them such as centipedes, beetles and grubs from a pesticide free environment. Raw egg coated on food can get a picky eater going but should be used sparingly because it can cause diarrhoea.

UV is not essential if you provide a good enough diet but they do love to bask and take advantage of daylight in the wild so why not give them a chance to do so in natural sunlight in a sheltered and protected outside area. A few hours a week and they’ll love you for it.

Again, supplements shouldn’t be needed if you get the diet right but calcium powders or liquid calcium (Sandoz which you can get from the vet) can be used on every 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] meal or once a week. Providing too much calcium can be as bad as providing none.

Don’t be too overwhelmed, bluetongues are hardy creatures and if you give them a diet that is varied and balanced you’ll have a friend for the next 20 years or more.
However they do grow quickly and a good diet in the first year or two is essential.

Remember also that as the weather gets cooler your bluetongue may want to brumate so if you are going to continue to feed them then make sure they have a good heat source to aid digestion.

I hope she gets better soon.

 

[camcamcam]

Didn't read the rest of the thread, so excuse me if this has already been said, but straight to the vet for a calcium shot, or ask for a vile of calcium gluconate mixed with water for injections and orally give that to her - if you ask a vet they will tell you the amounts and mix it up for you etc.

Best of luck.