Reptile & Amphibian Forums

my collared lizard has become sick, he has a discharge comming from his eyes and nose. and is refusing to eat and drink.
what happened was a few days ago some one hit a power line and we had a power outage i was at work so im not to sure of how long the power was out, but when i came home all of my herps were still chilled....
i took him to the emergency vet, the vets here dont know much about herps..... all he told me was to keep the heat up and force feed him.
any one here have any suggestions.
the cage he is in is a 30 gallon tank with a full spectrum light, a basking light, and a under tank heater, the tanks hottest side is usually 90 degrees, the cool side gets to 83, at night it drops at 75.
he eats crickets, meal worms, and an occaisonal pinkie.

I don't have the best of luck with these guys, but it sounds like an eye infection, but then again maybe an upper respiratory infection...

Someone else can help you more, I just wanted to put in my two cents.
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Amanda ^_^

"Animals are reliable, many full of love, true in their affections, predictable in their actions, grateful and loyal. Difficult standards for people to live up to." ~Alfred A. Montapert

with Dexter.

First... do you live in an area that is fairly populated or close to an area that is? I live in the chicago area and even here there are a lot of vets that specialize in reptiles/aviary, but that is who you REALLY need to see. I know you have spent money (and probably a fair amount) to take him to the ER vet, which is good, but I STRONGLY suggest you take him to a vet who specializes in reptiles! I have had two take care of mine. One takes care of the lizards at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, and the new one (just b/c he is closer) is also well known in the area for his knowledge.

If he has ooze coming out of his eyes, the first thing to do is make sure he only has felt, paper, or papertowel in his aquarium. With sand, etc. he is going to be rubbing his head on the ground to try and get the ooze off him and when he does this, he is going to get sand in his eyes. I know from experience. Dexter had to have his eyes flushed and then a dye put in to make sure they weren't scratched - thankfully they weren't. So first, take care of the substrate. I still keep felt in his tank to this day (the kind that have at Petsmart).

Second, do you have a UVB light in his cage? Didn't sound like it. These little guys NEED UVB!! Not just full spectrum. Very important and you can see other strings about lighting.

The eye drops that the vet prescribed to me each time was "Gentamicin Sulfate Opthalmic Solution" by Falcon. Those cleared up his eyes every time! One drop in each eye two times a day. He also has been on antibiotics. One was Enroflexacin and the other was SM2-TMP. He has been sick a couple times. The one vet said it was b/c when these guys get sick it is tough to pull them back out of it and get them back to 100%. When his system didn't seem to be responding to the two oral antibiotics any longer, she had him take some by syringe (trust me, that wasn't fun). I believe the spelling on that one is Fortez.

Without the proper lighting, he can have all sorts of issues with digestion and metabolic bone wasting disease. My second vet just gave him an xray to make sure all was fine and it was. But to make sure he is strong, he still has me giving him Neo Calglucon once a day, which is a calcium supplement. I also have had to force feed Dexter. The vet gave me some stuff from Walkabout Farms which my new vet also said was the best supplemental food to give - not baby food. Their web site is www.herpnutrition.com and the email is walkaboutf@aol.com Dexter has responded to this very well.

But as my current vet states, all lizards are individual and what works for one may not work for another. He said another great website to visit about lizard care is www.anapsid.org This is a web site by a very skilled herpetoculturist. Her focus is iguana's, but she has a lot of good lizard info too though. And www.kingsnake.com which is where you are at!

I know this can cost money --- trust me on that.. I have spent much on Dexter... but I feel he is worth it. And I have a feeling you feel the same if you already took him to an ER vet. If you follow the vets instructions TO THE TEE, you can get them better... but you have to devote to following them. My vets have told me that they are surprised Dexter keeps on snapping back, but I tell them it is just b/c I follow their direction carefully!

I hope this is helpful. Eve and Wwwwwells are both great resources on here... I have learned a lot from them, especially a lot of communication from Eve.

Good luck!!
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JIM aka jakeleolizard

1 Collared Lizard -Dexter- DOB 4/23/03
1 Beagle/Pug mix -Teagan- DOB 11/26/03

he has been sent to a vet in another city who does specialize in herps.
as far as his lighting, i know i was kind of vague by saying ubv, i actually use mercury vapor bulbs.
i have had the collared for about 2 years.
i also keep 3 iguanas, max who is the oldest of the three he is four years old and 5 ft long.
argentina who is 3 years old and is 3 ft long.
brazil who is a year old who is 2 1/2 ft long.
all are in very good health.

Awesome. You probably don't have him back yet then huh? Or did you drive? There is definitely a diff in a vet who specializes in them and one who doesn't. I am surprised they even looked at him since they weren't specialized, but I am probably spoiled by being in Chicago and being close to some great vets.. If you ever have questions, please feel free to email me. I can at least tell you what I have had to do in my situation.
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JIM aka jakeleolizard

1 Collared Lizard -Dexter- DOB 4/23/03
1 Beagle/Pug mix -Teagan- DOB 11/26/03

You are begining to spout out ALL sorts of important information, you have learned/experienced.

Thats GREAT , I have just learned a boatload from your post.
The learning is on a continued basis, care and problems arise and change constantly.

Thanks for talking of our communications :0) I have enjoyed them, and hearing all along of Dexters progress, thanks to your (dedication to him)

You are now giving BACK to everyone, ALL you have learned and experienced. Thats what happens here. :0)

The collareds being such wonderful little lizards and pets MAKE us WANT to keep learning (and Enjoying it too )

** I learned so very much in the 5 or so years I have been here, from Will, Johne , Brock, and many others. And from all my collareds, they teach me from day to day!

Its very rewarding to help someone who may be new to these little beauties. I'm Honored to help in any way I can.

And also feel a sence of "Confidence" and Special Bond, to all my friends here, that if I need help, which I do many times, I have it in a HEARTBEAT !

Plus the most important fact , I have to be nice , so they PUT up with all my picture taking, ehehhehehehe !

Need some pics of Dexter !
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PHEve / Eve

Thanks Eve... not sure why I never really talked before about my vet visits... I guess a lot of it is time... I check this out at lunch typically, but often so busy that I can't... I do feel like I have learned quite a bit, but there is still sooooooo much to learn. I mean... look at the temp thing... poor little guy was just too darned hot... I wish I would have known about the temp guns... they are a "must" in my book now... I can read specific temps in specific areas of his tank... I've cooled it off... now just have the 160w MV Flood and 50w basking (instead of a 150w). Turned off the undertank heat during day. I got one of those ESU Reptile power centers that has a timer on it that controls 4 outlets and has four constant. That way, I no longer have so many stinking timers on a power strip.. haha. When the two daytime lights go on, the night light and undertank heat go off... and vice versa... I will end up weaning him off the heat at night I think... will see how he does... I also completely revamped his tank yesterday... I think it is pretty sweet now... all sorts of temps.. and places to climb and hide.

Yeah... I travel to different places and if I could stop spending money on that... I would get a digital camera.. haha..I should just borrow one from someone to just get a pic up... I really would like to show you his tank and Dexter, the stud, himself! haha.
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JIM aka jakeleolizard

1 Collared Lizard -Dexter- DOB 4/23/03
1 Beagle/Pug mix -Teagan- DOB 11/26/03

what is the temperature of his basking spot? it needs to be closer to 100 degrees or he may not be digesting and doing all that stuff properly
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vonnie
***There is no pleasure in having nothing to do; the fun is in having lots to do and not doing it. Mary Wilson Little ***