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Sick chinese water dragon

22 13:55:48

Question
Hi, I rescued a basically half dead, approx. 6 months old water dragon from a pet store, took him to the vet, he's anemic, underweight, dehydrated, has had shedding problems, snout damage, mouth rot and a lung infection. He's currently on Baytril antibiotics and Reptifluids along with Carnivore care supplement to gain some weight. I started feeding him worms along with the supplement instead of crickets because he lacks energy and they're easier to catch. I have a couple questions. He has some pretty damaged scales, a lot of dark brown and grey on the feet, tail and elbows, and I was wondering if it's ok to apply a bit of castor oil after bathing him to retain the moisture, also I was wondering if drowsiness can be a side effect of the antibiotics? They're given once a day subcutaneous. I was also wondering if it's a good idea to mix a vitamin supplement with the food supplement, I do coat the worms in calcium powder, but he is in pretty rough shape and quite underweight. And another question is, he's not drinking on his own yet, but he gets 0.6cc of the fluids every day, will this plus the worm juice and the water added to the supplement food be enough to hold him over for now? Sorry I have so many questions, but I could really use the help. Thanks for taking the time to read, hope to hear from you a.s.a.p.

Boots

Answer
Hello Kali,

The poor poor dragon!  Geez, he got absolutely no care previously so you have your work cut out for you that is for sure!
Can you post a picture of him for me?  How do his eyes look right now, are they elevated or sunken in any?  What about his skin, is it pretty wrinkly or taut?  
I would say that right now, he needs at least 2-4ml's of oral fluids, daily.  Do you think that he gets that in combination with all of his food & water?  
Yes, the antibiotics are going to drastically affect him.  Are you giving any probiotics such as acidophiliz or benebac?  What is the dosage?  
The castor oil applied topically is fine, no problem there.
What is your tank setup like?
What type of supplementation do you have?  He would probably benefit from liquid calcium & a multivitamin yes.  Did the vet say whether or not he though the had Metabolic Bone Disease?

Tracie