Firstly, reptiles do not tend to show signs of illness until it gets severe. Lizards are probably the worst for this. So if you have only had them for a few months, they may well have been going slowly down hill from the start.
Analysing the Situation
You basically need to go through a checklist of husbandry plus other possible environmental factors. It may be a combination of factors.
Some of the other possible environmental factors I can think of that should be considered are...
· Introduction of a virulent disease. This can occur where another reptile is introduced to or near the living area without being quarantined first.
· Reptiles in pits require a perfectly dry retreat that is protected from temperature extremes, regardless of the weather.
· Consistent presence of predators. Large birds, cats or dogs on the cover or barking from the sides of an outside cage, on a regular basis, can keep inmates in a constant state of stress. Dragons are particularly prone in this respect.
Some of the husbandry issues to consider...
· Heat: Been mentioned – affects health in general and digestion in particular.
· UVB access: Does not appear to be an issue here
· Humidity: Animals from semi-arid or arid zone must always be provided with an extensive dry area. They cannot cope with prolonged exposure to wet substrate and their health will suffer accordingly.
· Feeding: Are they getting a balanced diet that is correct for them, not necessarily you think they should have?
· Space: Bearded Dragons are territorial and males are dominant towards females and antagonistic towards other males. They establish and assert their dominance through a complex system of head bobbing and arm waving. Where there is limited room and virtually no visual barriers, this will result in submissive animals become highly stressed. Even a dominant male can become stressed where it is constantly having to exert its dominance. To successfully house males with others you need lots of space and plenty of visual barriers e.g. rock piles, bushy plants, elevated and sunken areas. Prolonged stress from on-going dominance behaviours can affect the immune system to the point where death results.
· Privacy: Each animal requires more than one retreat that is screened from other animals and allows each animal to feel secure.
· Fresh water: Access to fresh water on a regular basis.
· Cleaning: Removal of wastes ASAP so they do not provide a breeding refuge for noxious bacteria.
Diagnosing an Infection
To determine if there is an infection present, the vet will take a blood sample. By examining this under the microscope, the vet can see and count the number of red blood cells (RBC) and the number of white blood cells (WBC). In humans, for example, the normal RBC:WBC is 600:1. The body's response to infection is to produce lots of WBCs to fight the foreign invader. Consequently, a blood count such as 600:50 would indicate a severe infection.
To determine the type of infection, several samples of blood are required and they are sent to a pathologist. The pathologist uses the blood to grow the infective agent on plates of agar or other media. As different bugs need different conditions to grow outside the human body, the pathologists has to grow a whole range under different conditions to hopefully get one to grow. The pathologist will utilise information from vet about the signs associated with the disease, in order to narrow the field. If nothing grows first time around he will ask for a further blood sample and set up culture conditions for disease agents that he has not tired to culture yet. Once the pathologist gets something growing, he/she will look at it under a microscope and may have to prepare several specially stained slides to determine the ultimate identity of the bug. This is why getting the particular disease causing organism identified is so expensive.
Blue
Hey guys a few months ago i had 3 beardies 2 males and 1 female they were 3 and 4 years old first the male (he's usually yellow) turns black and is falling over cant walk or eat i talk him to a reptile specialist and she tells me he had an infection that had spread to the brain next day he's dead :'( then my other male gets an infection in his lip and mouth i take him to the vet 3 or 4 times and pay about $300-400 for antibiotics he gets better then he gets worse again 2 weeks later hes dead then 1 week after that my female drops dead for no reason at all they were all very healthy and stunning lizards they lived in a pit outside i have a shingle back and some blue tongues in there and i havent had a problem with them i want to try again and get a few more at the reptile expo this weekend and just keep them indoors this time but im worried about it happening again should i or should i not??? thanks Jordan
