Rescued beardies

reddawg · Member Joined: Nov 02, 2006 Posts: 47

I rescued four dragons this evening. They were sure to die very soon in the home they were in. In fact I am hoping that two of them survive the night.

Have you ever seen those starving horses on animal cops? That is what these guys look like. There is ABSOLUTELY no fat or muscle left on these poor guys, worst I've ever seen. One of them can't even hold it's head up.

Know for the questions. Any input on what I should or shouldn't do. I fed some crickets, greens, and yellow squash. I don't want to over feed these guys right off the bat. I haven't tried soaking them yet, I'm trying not to over stress them. Any help would be great.
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martee · Member Joined: Apr 22, 2007 Posts: 65

i would soak them for a little bit in warm to sorta hot water, i bet if they were starved, they are more likely to die from dehydration. misting the greens is a good way to get them hydrated, but do both to be sure.

What was the situation that they were bein left to die?
Props for saving them, i have several and if you need any help i will be more than happy.

reptilefreak · Honored Member Joined: Feb 28, 2007 Posts: 196

First off, soak them in warm water with pedialite in it. Then get some turkey baby food and mix a bit of calcium w/ d3 and multi-vit in it. Get them eating some of that. It may sound gross, but another good idea would be to throw some crickets and some wax worms or super worms into the blender for them. They probably won't have the strength yet to go after any crickets or eat greens. Just worry about getting them to perk up and putting meat on their bones. Make sure they have a nice hot basking spot (not too hot though) and a good UV light (at LEAST an 8.0 but 10.0 would be best). PM me if you need any more help.
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1.1.0 Bearded Dragons (Damien and Miss Priss)
0.1.0 Crested Geckos (Priscilla)
2.6.0 Leopard Gecko (Tonka, Rhaco, Hermine, Talia, Kalypso, Serendipity, Faith, and Sprinkles)
0.0.1 Henkeli Leaf Tail (Houdini)
0.1.0 Chacoan Black and White Tegu on her w

mike · Posted: Mon Jul 30, 2007 11:20 pm Post subject:

I'm glad you cared enough to get those beardies. I would keep them warm, maybe soak them like this (link below) so they don't get too stressed. http://www.proexotics.com/faq_images/soaking_geckos.jpg

Anyways, good luck with them, I hope they make it.
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Animals: Too many.

reddawg · Member Joined: Nov 02, 2006 Posts: 47

Thanks for the replies. This morning things are looking up for three of them. One still looks way weak.

The old owner said that he used to work at a pet shop(imagine that), and he was breeding these guy a while back. He said he just didn't have the time for them any more.(Still not a good reason to starve them) They must have been in the dark and not fed for at least a month if not longer

The guy didn't really want to give me all 4 of them, but I pretty much told him That I wasn't leaving with out them all! Anyway I'll keep you updated.
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It's all fun and games until you lose your right to vote and bare arms!!!!

All_American · Posted: Tue Jul 31, 2007 4:04 pm Post subject:

If you can afford the vet bill, take them in and have them injected with plasma and a good does of liquid calcium. The baby food is your best bet for now. They do have reptile aid that can be mixed to proper doses. As said before, use the pedialite for hydration.

keep us informed on the progress. If your in Orange county or Temecula county I can swing by and give you a hand with them.

I currently house 21 of these great little giants.

Ed

reddawg · Member Joined: Nov 02, 2006 Posts: 47

WOW, After giving these guys a good soaking and letting them drink, and after having them under some heat they are looking WAY better. They all seem to have enough energy to chase a few crickets(though they seem to tier easily) and all have eaten some greens. But holy crap did they eat the heck out of beef liver. I cut it up into small pieces, covered it with calcium and a multi vitamin, then fed each one by hand. Boy did they eat a lot. Thats got to be a good sign.

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It's all fun and games until you lose your right to vote and bare arms!!!!

mike · Posted: Tue Jul 31, 2007 9:13 pm Post subject:

Good job.

I'm glad they're coming around.
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Animals: Too many.

reptilefreak · Honored Member Joined: Feb 28, 2007 Posts: 196

Yay!

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1.1.0 Bearded Dragons (Damien and Miss Priss)
0.1.0 Crested Geckos (Priscilla)
2.6.0 Leopard Gecko (Tonka, Rhaco, Hermine, Talia, Kalypso, Serendipity, Faith, and Sprinkles)
0.0.1 Henkeli Leaf Tail (Houdini)
0.1.0 Chacoan Black and White Tegu on her w

reddawg · Member Joined: Nov 02, 2006 Posts: 47

Well I just thought I would give you an update. Unfortunately one of the females died after just a few days. She had started to eat but I never saw her poop. Now after about three weeks one of the two males, that was eating, pooping and putting on weight seems to be dying.

In the last three days he stopped eating and lost A LOT of weight. It's almost like his insides are just shutting down. I don't think he will make it through the night.

On a good note the other two (one male the other female) look great and today I saw the female mate with a male I had put her in with. I had her in a cage by her self and thought I would put two of them(both from different rescues) outside for some sun, then she started waving him in.

I can tell you one thing, it is heart breaking when all you can do is just sit back and watch something die. I do feel I have done all I could have done for these poor guys. If the former owner wasn't a detective I would have rung his frigging neck.

I just want to add one more thing. In the last three weeks I have rescued SEVEN dragons from ultimate death. I don't blame people for not being able to keep their pets, for what EVER reason. If it's from having to move, lack of space, or just flat losing interest in them! Just PLEASE find somebody to take them BEFORE it's to late to help them!!!!
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It's all fun and games until you lose your right to vote and bare arms!!!!