SamsonizeMe
New Member
- Messages
- 355
- Location
- Coconut Creek, FL
I won't apologize for the book you're about to read. I believe every piece of information I am about to provide is relevant to the situation. If you can help, thank you very much.
Background:
Early Tuesday evening I noticed something was wrong with Valentine, one of my boys (and my first leopard gecko). He was displaying extreme lethargy, difficulty moving, and occasional mouth-breathing. I gave him a warm soak and he spazzed out, turning himself over fitfully. I realized he had become unable to right himself. He would not squirm when turned over, either. Additionally, his earskin would not constrict when the area was stimulated. His eyes were open and responsive to light, and blinked when touched. He also obviously had touch sensation. I didn't screw around trying to research this or make a post here. I went straight for the vet.
The vet in town has an afterhours emergency line that I called, and upon calling me back he referred me to the only clinic in the tri-county area that handles herps and exotics after everyone else has closed down for the night. I packed Val up and hit the road. This is what the vet had to say:
General Notes:
Owner reports patient became acutely ill today, with depressed posture, inability to right from dorsal recumbency, and lethargy. Husbandry seems excellent. Patient was bred recently (April-May) and went off food, but has been inconsistently eating since July 15. Has not eaten the last two days, but before that was eating every 1-3 days. Patient recently recovered from stomatitis, owner was treating with BNP ointment daily. Patient recently had a long period of anorexia (>10 days).
PE: Depressed. Unable to stand, with weak and low posture. Unable to right from dorsal recumbency. Tachypneic, with increased gular breathing rate. Oral exam is normal, with no signs of stomatitis. Dermal exam - decreased skin turgidity. Palpitation normal.
DDX: Hypocalcemia, low nutritional plane, bacteremia/septicemia
Discussed case with owner - gave guarded prognosis. Explained the different diagnoses. Explained treatment and the need for continued supportive care and recheck with RDVM. Raise surface temperature to 100*F.
Here's what they did for him in the clinic:
Calcium Gluconate 3mg intramuscular injection (rear leg right)
Baytril 0.57mg intramuscular injection (rear leg left)
Norm R with BVits 3cc intracoelomically
And what they gave me to take home to continue his care:
Baytril 5mg/ml oral suspension - give 0.12cc by mouth once every 24 hours in the pm for 7 days.
Calcium Glubionate - give 0.1cc by mouth once every 24 hours in the pm for 7 days.
Carnivore Care - mix 1 tspn powder to 2 tspns water, give orally 1-2cc every 3 hours.
On my end during the vet visit:
I informed the vet about the stomatitis, and how it had presented. There was no waxy buildup, only inflamed gum material that fell out as it dried up and necrosed. I mentioned that I treated with bacitracin zinc - he was unconcerned about any toxicity this may have caused. I also noted that Val had recently gone back on food, after being off of food from late May to the middle of July, and losing about 25 grams of bodyweight.
That night, he passed water a few times. One time there was a tiny bit of blood. I assume this is from the injection made into his abdomen - he has not had any blood in his waste since.
Val has made it this far, but he isn't really getting much better as far as I can tell. I believe that the volume of Carnivore Care I was instructed to give him is too much for him to handle at this juncture - the reason being, twice he has vomitted soon after receiving it. I did not know how to handle this situation, so since he had also just received his medication I re-dosed him with everything at a half dosage. He handled this well.
I have reduced his feedings to twice a day as he has proved that he can handle this level of intake. He has defecated three times, and the product is well-formed, albeit due to the Carnivore Care does not appear the same "structurally" as normal scat.
Many times he has struggled and eventually succeeds in turning himself over, after which he just lays on his back. Is he trying to get away from the heat? Or is this worrisome? For one of his poos he actually seems to have dragged himself to his toilet corner... I took this as a very good indication.
I tried to follow up with my normal vet on Friday, as instructed. He had told me on Tuesday night that he would be out until Thursday/Friday, but when I called I was told he will be out until this coming Monday. As the emergency clinic's vet had told me I could call them with any questions, I did so but had to leave a message with the secretary as they were swamped. I waited until 3am to hear from them, finally went to sleep. They called at 7am and left a message (I was asleep at this time), noting that they would be out at 8am, and back at 12pm. I called at 12:05pm but the vet was not in yet. I left another message with the nurse, who said she would have the doc get back with me. Hard to get the current doc to take a moment, I guess - it's not the same vet who saw Val on Tuesday; there are two of them and they switch off days.
Earlier today he seemed to be doing a bit better. His color was returning to normal, and his "stress spots" - areas on his head where he once had pattern, but when in good health no longer does, which turn dark when he is stressed or otherwise unhealthy - had been fading. I am unsure if the fact that he was closing his eyes more was good or bad - in terms of rest, I am sure he needs as much real sleep as he can get, and in the first 72 hours he was not sleeping at all. He does not appear to be mouth-breathing anymore, even now.
Unfortunately tonight he is not doing well, and I blame myself and the reduced feeding strategy. I had not shined the light on him recently, so I didn't realize that he was getting as dehydrated as he is. I gave him extra water in addition to his food and medication, and I will be waking up every two to three hours tonight in order to hydrate him with the syringe. Additionally, I have a new cause for concern. In trying to do everything the vet recommended, I did not notice that his right rear foot is swollen. It took my girlfriend's examination of him to bring this to my attention. I am very worried about this and do not understand the ramifications of it.
At the moment this poor guy is resting on my lap in a blanket, soaking up some heat. His breathing is normal, and he is more responsive to touch. However he is ultra-depressed and appears to be sleeping.
Thank you for your time.
Background:
- Male
- 20 months old
- Recently had stomatitis (did not present as typical mouth rot) - treated with bacitracin zinc - cleared up a few days before current issues arose
- Removed from female when bodyweight fell below 70 grams (currently 60 grams - originally 85g)
Early Tuesday evening I noticed something was wrong with Valentine, one of my boys (and my first leopard gecko). He was displaying extreme lethargy, difficulty moving, and occasional mouth-breathing. I gave him a warm soak and he spazzed out, turning himself over fitfully. I realized he had become unable to right himself. He would not squirm when turned over, either. Additionally, his earskin would not constrict when the area was stimulated. His eyes were open and responsive to light, and blinked when touched. He also obviously had touch sensation. I didn't screw around trying to research this or make a post here. I went straight for the vet.
The vet in town has an afterhours emergency line that I called, and upon calling me back he referred me to the only clinic in the tri-county area that handles herps and exotics after everyone else has closed down for the night. I packed Val up and hit the road. This is what the vet had to say:
General Notes:
Owner reports patient became acutely ill today, with depressed posture, inability to right from dorsal recumbency, and lethargy. Husbandry seems excellent. Patient was bred recently (April-May) and went off food, but has been inconsistently eating since July 15. Has not eaten the last two days, but before that was eating every 1-3 days. Patient recently recovered from stomatitis, owner was treating with BNP ointment daily. Patient recently had a long period of anorexia (>10 days).
PE: Depressed. Unable to stand, with weak and low posture. Unable to right from dorsal recumbency. Tachypneic, with increased gular breathing rate. Oral exam is normal, with no signs of stomatitis. Dermal exam - decreased skin turgidity. Palpitation normal.
DDX: Hypocalcemia, low nutritional plane, bacteremia/septicemia
Discussed case with owner - gave guarded prognosis. Explained the different diagnoses. Explained treatment and the need for continued supportive care and recheck with RDVM. Raise surface temperature to 100*F.
Here's what they did for him in the clinic:
Calcium Gluconate 3mg intramuscular injection (rear leg right)
Baytril 0.57mg intramuscular injection (rear leg left)
Norm R with BVits 3cc intracoelomically
And what they gave me to take home to continue his care:
Baytril 5mg/ml oral suspension - give 0.12cc by mouth once every 24 hours in the pm for 7 days.
Calcium Glubionate - give 0.1cc by mouth once every 24 hours in the pm for 7 days.
Carnivore Care - mix 1 tspn powder to 2 tspns water, give orally 1-2cc every 3 hours.
On my end during the vet visit:
I informed the vet about the stomatitis, and how it had presented. There was no waxy buildup, only inflamed gum material that fell out as it dried up and necrosed. I mentioned that I treated with bacitracin zinc - he was unconcerned about any toxicity this may have caused. I also noted that Val had recently gone back on food, after being off of food from late May to the middle of July, and losing about 25 grams of bodyweight.
That night, he passed water a few times. One time there was a tiny bit of blood. I assume this is from the injection made into his abdomen - he has not had any blood in his waste since.
Val has made it this far, but he isn't really getting much better as far as I can tell. I believe that the volume of Carnivore Care I was instructed to give him is too much for him to handle at this juncture - the reason being, twice he has vomitted soon after receiving it. I did not know how to handle this situation, so since he had also just received his medication I re-dosed him with everything at a half dosage. He handled this well.
I have reduced his feedings to twice a day as he has proved that he can handle this level of intake. He has defecated three times, and the product is well-formed, albeit due to the Carnivore Care does not appear the same "structurally" as normal scat.
Many times he has struggled and eventually succeeds in turning himself over, after which he just lays on his back. Is he trying to get away from the heat? Or is this worrisome? For one of his poos he actually seems to have dragged himself to his toilet corner... I took this as a very good indication.
I tried to follow up with my normal vet on Friday, as instructed. He had told me on Tuesday night that he would be out until Thursday/Friday, but when I called I was told he will be out until this coming Monday. As the emergency clinic's vet had told me I could call them with any questions, I did so but had to leave a message with the secretary as they were swamped. I waited until 3am to hear from them, finally went to sleep. They called at 7am and left a message (I was asleep at this time), noting that they would be out at 8am, and back at 12pm. I called at 12:05pm but the vet was not in yet. I left another message with the nurse, who said she would have the doc get back with me. Hard to get the current doc to take a moment, I guess - it's not the same vet who saw Val on Tuesday; there are two of them and they switch off days.
Earlier today he seemed to be doing a bit better. His color was returning to normal, and his "stress spots" - areas on his head where he once had pattern, but when in good health no longer does, which turn dark when he is stressed or otherwise unhealthy - had been fading. I am unsure if the fact that he was closing his eyes more was good or bad - in terms of rest, I am sure he needs as much real sleep as he can get, and in the first 72 hours he was not sleeping at all. He does not appear to be mouth-breathing anymore, even now.
Unfortunately tonight he is not doing well, and I blame myself and the reduced feeding strategy. I had not shined the light on him recently, so I didn't realize that he was getting as dehydrated as he is. I gave him extra water in addition to his food and medication, and I will be waking up every two to three hours tonight in order to hydrate him with the syringe. Additionally, I have a new cause for concern. In trying to do everything the vet recommended, I did not notice that his right rear foot is swollen. It took my girlfriend's examination of him to bring this to my attention. I am very worried about this and do not understand the ramifications of it.
At the moment this poor guy is resting on my lap in a blanket, soaking up some heat. His breathing is normal, and he is more responsive to touch. However he is ultra-depressed and appears to be sleeping.
Thank you for your time.
