RSPcrazy
Very Well-Known Member
G'day everyone,
I have shown my Lace Monitor with "Metabolic Bone Disease" on some other forums and I thought it was time I showed it to everyone here.
I bought a Lace Monitor back in October 2010 (she was 7 months old then). She got a big burn on her back 2 days before I picked her up, but that wasnt a big deal for me, as I was buying her for her amazing temperament (which is still amazing today). When I picked her up, the owner talked me through how hes been keeping and feeding her. Her enclosure was a wardrobe decked out with big branches and mesh doors, her diet was lots of chicken breast from the supermarket cut into strips and 1 mouse every 2 weeks.
Later that night and realized she was "shaking" and looked very unable to move properly, which was very confusing for me, because when I got her, she was strong and could move fine. I figured it was stress from the hour long drive when she regurgitated, so I left her till the morning. The next morning she was still "shaking" and had regurgitated again, but the main problem was, she had "BENT" her snout down from pushing on the glass doors all night. This is when I booked her into the reptile vet, which almost didnt happen because they were booked out for a couple of days, but they made a spot for me because of how bad it sounded.
The reptile vet had a look at her and told me she had "Metabolic Bone Disease" and according to there records, there hasn't been a Lace Monitor to ever have this disease before (her bones were like rubber and bent all over the place). We talked for a while and had some x-rays done, he (along with some forum people, eg. crocdoc) informed me the MBD was caused by the previous owner feeding her nothing but supermarket chicken breast, instead of hole small animals. The vet told me to give her oral injections of calcium morning and night everyday for around about a year, plus oral food injections every sencond day (because she couldnt eat on her own) and I would have to bring her back from time to time, to see how she was going and get another x-ray.
Jumping forwards 11 months, her bones have almost fully recovered, she is now eating fuzzie rats, but I have to force the head of the rat past the bend in her jaw first. The vet has no doubt she will be eating on her own within 6 months, she also had some fractures in her upper ribs that have healed, she is just left with some deformed ribs, joints, snout and a couple of kinks here and there. She still has the most amazing, placid temperament. I can hold her, pat her, I even let her walk around outside on her own with nothing to stop her from running away.
Well I think its time you all saw some pictures of what can happen if you dont feed your reptiles the proper food.
And the x-rays.
1st. Notice how dull the bones are, there's very little calcium there. Also she is a bit bloated. She has deformed elbow joints, kinks in her tail, fractures in her upper ribs, her snout is bent down and to top it all off, she has broken her little toe.
2nd. I was giving her calcium injections twice a day for, I think? 3 months before getting this X-ray. Notice how bright the bones are. This is how they should look. She is also still very bloated.
3rd. 6 months since last X-ray. The bloating is now gone and her stomach is at the size it should be. She will always have the kinks, deformed elbow joints, deformed upper ribs and bent snout.
4th. 1 month since last X-ray. Side view of head. First of all, LOOK AT THOUGHS TEETH! I'm glad she can't bite
Now notice the jaw bends like a boomerang, but when she opens her mouth, it bends the other way. Her whole head should be strait.
I am still amazed that this much damage was caused by simply feeding the wrong foods. Don't be cheap when it comes to the health of your reptiles, feed them properly.
I have shown my Lace Monitor with "Metabolic Bone Disease" on some other forums and I thought it was time I showed it to everyone here.
I bought a Lace Monitor back in October 2010 (she was 7 months old then). She got a big burn on her back 2 days before I picked her up, but that wasnt a big deal for me, as I was buying her for her amazing temperament (which is still amazing today). When I picked her up, the owner talked me through how hes been keeping and feeding her. Her enclosure was a wardrobe decked out with big branches and mesh doors, her diet was lots of chicken breast from the supermarket cut into strips and 1 mouse every 2 weeks.
Later that night and realized she was "shaking" and looked very unable to move properly, which was very confusing for me, because when I got her, she was strong and could move fine. I figured it was stress from the hour long drive when she regurgitated, so I left her till the morning. The next morning she was still "shaking" and had regurgitated again, but the main problem was, she had "BENT" her snout down from pushing on the glass doors all night. This is when I booked her into the reptile vet, which almost didnt happen because they were booked out for a couple of days, but they made a spot for me because of how bad it sounded.
The reptile vet had a look at her and told me she had "Metabolic Bone Disease" and according to there records, there hasn't been a Lace Monitor to ever have this disease before (her bones were like rubber and bent all over the place). We talked for a while and had some x-rays done, he (along with some forum people, eg. crocdoc) informed me the MBD was caused by the previous owner feeding her nothing but supermarket chicken breast, instead of hole small animals. The vet told me to give her oral injections of calcium morning and night everyday for around about a year, plus oral food injections every sencond day (because she couldnt eat on her own) and I would have to bring her back from time to time, to see how she was going and get another x-ray.
Jumping forwards 11 months, her bones have almost fully recovered, she is now eating fuzzie rats, but I have to force the head of the rat past the bend in her jaw first. The vet has no doubt she will be eating on her own within 6 months, she also had some fractures in her upper ribs that have healed, she is just left with some deformed ribs, joints, snout and a couple of kinks here and there. She still has the most amazing, placid temperament. I can hold her, pat her, I even let her walk around outside on her own with nothing to stop her from running away.
Well I think its time you all saw some pictures of what can happen if you dont feed your reptiles the proper food.
And the x-rays.
1st. Notice how dull the bones are, there's very little calcium there. Also she is a bit bloated. She has deformed elbow joints, kinks in her tail, fractures in her upper ribs, her snout is bent down and to top it all off, she has broken her little toe.
2nd. I was giving her calcium injections twice a day for, I think? 3 months before getting this X-ray. Notice how bright the bones are. This is how they should look. She is also still very bloated.
3rd. 6 months since last X-ray. The bloating is now gone and her stomach is at the size it should be. She will always have the kinks, deformed elbow joints, deformed upper ribs and bent snout.
4th. 1 month since last X-ray. Side view of head. First of all, LOOK AT THOUGHS TEETH! I'm glad she can't bite
I am still amazed that this much damage was caused by simply feeding the wrong foods. Don't be cheap when it comes to the health of your reptiles, feed them properly.
