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Have a baby beardie that's a stargazer. I've been caring for him since he hatched (mid-may) and he appears to be getting worse. Can't tell if he is in pain or not, but he does the curly shuffle quite regularly now and I don't see him going anywhere but down hill from here. Anyway, my question is, what is the most humane way for me to put him down (not a vet, me)?

Ok, I'm probably going to catch some flak for this but the traditional way of puting down reptiles is to put them in the freezer. There has been some debate recently about whether or not it's right but on a baby it should go down real quick. The theory is that because they are cold blooded they don't really feel cold they just slow down and go to sleep then freeze really quick because they're bodies don't fight it by trying to stay warm. Personally I think it's still more humane than a shot of nicotine which burns like hell. I have also tried CO2 chambers but I think they take too long. Any way you decide to go try to keep it as quick and painless as possible. I'm sorry you have to make this decission, good luck with whatever method you use.

Sean
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Heart Mountain Herps

Thanks

We used to use dry ice to kill our rats before feeding if we had live ones. The vapors eat all the oxygen in an enclosed area. It's not expensive but it still costs more than the freezer. Just another option.

Mike
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If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you are reading it in English, thank a soldier.

I just wanted to make sure you knew that the gas that dry ice lets off is carbon dioxide. Dry ice is solidified (frozen) carbon dioxide. It can be very harmful to you and your other animals as well. You probably know this already but I just wanted to make sure you knew to use it in a well ventilated room. And like Sean said in the post above, he's tried using CO2 before but the animals seem to suffer longer.

Just my 2 cents worth.

~Veronica
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Beautiful Dragons

make sure that you first wrap the baby in a wet paper towel first. I believe that this will help the process along a bit more quickly. I also think that cooling the animal off a bit with the paper towel slows them even before the deep freeze. It is a sad way to go, but i have had to do this before as well...with certain baby rescues that were far too gone to save. good luck with this, and i am sorry for your loss.
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"raised by a cup of coffee"

1.0 ball python- Azazel
1.0 columbian boa- Brooklyn
1.0 red blood python-Hiss
1.0 peach phase thayeri-Sancho
0.1 creamsicle corn- Pandora
0.1 partial stripe ghost corn- Raven
1.0 Sunglow motley corn-Ernie
1.1 hognose- Pricilla and Odd
0.1 russian tortoise- Manja
0.1 collared lizard-O-ren
0.1.1 leos- Boji and Kodama
0.1 beardie- Indie
1.0 BTS- Griffon
0.1 Iggy- Sunny
0.0.2 Red american toadlets with 0.0.7 legs total (er, i have one w/3....)
0.0.1 gray tree frog toadlet
0.0.6 land snails
0.0.2 millipedes of unknown species from TN
0.0.1 spotted slug
5.3 bettas
0.1 pacific parrolet- Mishka
1.1 cats- Cairo and Oberon
2.3 ratties Rizzo, Bounce, Bree, Blitzkreig, and Zelda

I can't say if freezing is any better or worse than other 'humane' methods to put an animal down, but if you are going to go that route, wait till night time, this way the dragon is already asleep and less likely to flip out if put on a wet towel or into the freezer.

However, before going to the final extreme, have you done everythign possible to cure your dragon of StarGazers? I know others had bearded dragons here that were afflicted with this ailment had successfully treated them. Not everyone, but some have had success. If I recall correctly it is either a neurological disorder or nutitional deficiency. Vitamine/mineral shots administered by a vet and proper diet may bring him back, not sure if y ou have already tried this or not.

Haven't put the dragon down yet, probably will tonight via the freezer method. I can tell you with certainty that this is not a nutritional deficiency. It is most likely neurological with possibly additional problems. The dragon in question can not eat independently, his eyes are very tiny and I do not believe he can see well at all. If this were the only problem I'd just handfeed him for the rest of his natural life, but he has fits (rolls around on the ground and in circles). If anything touches him he panics for a few seconds. He moves his head to the side often as if he also has inner ear problems and his balance is off. Thank you everyone who responded to the post, I've been contemplating putting him down since he was hatched. Since he didn't appear to be suffering at first, I've tried to give him every opportunity to see if could recover, but for the last week or so his rolling and circles have steadily increased. I think if I continue to handfeed him he will survive a few more weeks, but his days are numbered and I would rather put him down as humanely as possible than watch him slowly waste away (and suffer, that's what I'm concerned about).

humane uthinization.
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sincerely,
Jonathan D. de Kluyver
JDDK Reptiles
Quality Reptiles and Amphibians
www.jddkreptiles.com

i would agree with that as well...that is the best and most humane way...
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"raised by a cup of coffee"

1.0 ball python- Azazel
1.0 columbian boa- Brooklyn
1.0 red blood python-Hiss
1.0 peach phase thayeri-Sancho
0.1 creamsicle corn- Pandora
0.1 partial stripe ghost corn- Raven
1.0 Sunglow motley corn-Ernie
1.1 hognose- Pricilla and Odd
0.1 russian tortoise- Manja
0.1 collared lizard-O-ren
0.1.1 leos- Boji and Kodama
0.1 beardie- Indie
1.0 BTS- Griffon
0.1 Iggy- Sunny
0.0.2 Red american toadlets with 0.0.7 legs total (er, i have one w/3....)
0.0.1 gray tree frog toadlet
0.0.6 land snails
0.0.2 millipedes of unknown species from TN
0.0.1 spotted slug
5.3 bettas
0.1 pacific parrolet- Mishka
1.1 cats- Cairo and Oberon
2.3 ratties Rizzo, Bounce, Bree, Blitzkreig, and Zelda

I have to add I'm very sorry for your loss.