Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hi my name is amie and i've had a pair of bearded dragons for a little while and when i got home from work tonight i noticed that my male was not moving his front legs at all. i got some "giant mealworms" sunday and fed them. the male threw them up all day yesterday. they have never had any problems like this before. could someone please let me know what it is and how to fix it. thanks....amie

Throwing up the superworms could be due to having fed too many of them at once. You didn't indicate the age of the dragons or if they are housed together,so hard to say the actual impact of having such large worms offered. (superworms for very young dragons can be risky, as they can cause impaction. FOr adult dragons, it isn't much of a problem, as they can handle the larger size. Too many deffinitely can cause regurgitation at either age).

THe front leg paralysis is odd though, as typically impaction affects the rear legs. But giving the fact your dragon regurgetated all the worms anyway, impaction shouldn't be an issue. However, several factors not relating at all to the superworms could be causing the front leg paralysis.

A blow to the spine either from a fall or a heavy feed/water dish that the dragon can squeeze underneath (the weight can damage the spine, especially if the dragon is young). A fall from a basking branch or a bite injury to the shoulder area could be causing it. However bite injuries would be noticeable visually, and would only happen if your dragons are housed together.

Other causes could be a dietry deficiency, such as not enough calcium, vitamin D3 or UVB rays, or a combination of these three. Other nutrient deficiencies can cause this as well. My suggestion is to take your dragon to your reptile vet immediately. He can do blood work to test for nutrient deficiencies, take x-rays to check bone density and look for any spinal injuries.
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PHLdyPayne

thank you for the advice! i have my male and female in a 20 gal long. to be honest i'm not sure how old they are but they are about 11 inches long-the female is a tad bigger though. i've never notice any aggression between them. they have a zoo-med 75w basking light and a reptisun 5.0 uvb bulb. i have ALWAYS had a problem getting him to eat any greens. he loves crickets and mealworms-i dust them with miner-al. she will eat whatever i put in front of her! the male is still able to move around but he has to drag himself. he is alert and responsive and does not look like he's lost any wieght or anything. i'm worried!

Amie