sick water dragon

Lrptls · 04-01-04, 06:07 PM

my water dragon was showing signs of URI which he's had 2 times before. I raised the temps alot in his cage and he started geting better but hes still breathing funny. I had made a vet apointment but sadly i couldn't get a ride there, i was so mad that i couldn't go. then i was hoping i could make another one and it would only be a few days away. but i had really bad luck. the soonest i can go is on the 13th. what can i do for him till then so he doesn't get worse?

lissag · 04-02-04, 12:52 AM

Upping the temps like you did is excellent. you can also try upping the humidity... and keep a night light on him as well. try to keep the temps a constant 86-88 degrees. maybe you could call your vet and plead to get in earlier. a URI left untreated can infect the eyes and everything else.. then you and your dragon would be in a real hurting situation..

also what is your setup like? What are you temps like when he is not sick. what are your humidity levels, what size tank is he in, how old is he, and what is he fed on a daily / bidaily basis? I only ask this because you stated that this would be his third URI... and how long of a period between these are we talking about???

Alissa

Leviathan · 04-02-04, 01:38 AM

Also, what kind of substrate are you using? Some barks (which alot of pet stores suggest for reptiles) have oils that are too strong and will cause respitory infections.

Alecia

Lrptls · 04-02-04, 07:46 AM

my dragon is in a large plexi glass enclosure, it has a screen top and a small door on the front which is also screen (i have coverd that up now to hold in heat better) the cage is 24 inches long, 42 inches high and 15 inches wide, he is around 2 feet long (about 7 inches snout to vent) and hes about 3 years old. right now he is on news paper. i just purchased him a 260 gallon reptarium that he will go in probably in a few months.

the temp of the cage before he was sick around 80 and the basking spot was a bit over 90. i dont know exact humidity because i dont trust my humidity gauge any more. i plan on geting a new one this weekend (i share it between my animals) but the humidity is very high, i will do more to try and make it higher.

over a year ago was when he got his first URI,i had to temporarily move him into a screen cage and it didn't take long till he was breathing funny. i had to put him in a very small cage and kept him in my room to recover and while he took meds. about a week or two after the meds he was still opening his mouth to breathe so i got more meds from the vet and it went away.

my dragon eats mealworms almost every day, he gets 12 crickets once to twice a week and he gets some sort of rodent at the end of the week (usually fuzzies, sometimes pinkies and ocasionaly hoppers)

lissag · 04-05-04, 12:04 AM

the cage he is in now is a lil small.. and switching him to a repaturim (sp) may not be a good choice especially if you are having problems with humidity control and URI's. Heat is benifical for all lizards ... heat alone can quickly heal a Uri in young hatchlings or if you catch the symptoms early on and screen cages do not hold heat well at all.

here are a few suggetions for keeping him in the future.

lay off the crix, older dragons really shouldn't have much of an interest in them anymore. same goes for the mealworms..much too small for a water dragon.

up his amount of whole prey, nightcrawlers, and superworms. you could also try silkies and hornworms.. but my wd's never did like the hornworms. Older dragons don't need to eat every day . i feed my Wds three times a week.

try to include more live plants in his cage as well as a pump or air bubbler in the tank. make sure the substrate is damp (but not wet) and mist the cage twice a day . that should up the humidity a bit in the cage.

everything else sounds good... maybe you just have a sickly dragon on your hands.. good luck at the vet

Alissa