Reptile & Amphibian Forums

His name is Drago and will be the first Water Dragon in the family of Lizards at our home.

My wife adopted him from Petco. She was told he had a genetic defect. His back legs are splayed out and upward and we noticed a few kinks in his tail. He seems very active and can run like the dickens using his two front legs. All he has been fed were crickets, my wife is giving him collard greens and endive with summer squash finely chopped for the little guy. His body length is approximately 6-7". He gets around very well, but my wife was afraid of MBD, to me it looks like his back was broke at one time?. If we give him small crickets they will be dusted with calcium powder.

Any thoughts on the little guy would be appreciated.

Thanks Bob and Michelle
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The deformities that you are describing are not likely genetic. They occur when the eggs have been incubated at too high a temperature. The leg thing can also occur as a result of bad husbantry. If the only heat source a baby is kept on is a heat rock or undertank heater, they will splay themselves out to absorb the most heat, and in a very short time the tendons that hold their hips in place loosen and strech creating the deformed look you described. Removing the base heat in favor of a radiant heat source with keep it from getting worse, and in time you will see some improvement. A calcium deficiency can also cause similar deformities.

His name is Drago and will be the first Water Dragon in the family of Lizards at our home.
Well, hurray to your wife for saving yet another dragon from Petco. I got my waterdragon from Petco.... they had an expired UVB light on them and he had pretty extensive damage from MBD. I would say first and foremost... take him to a vet. They can do x-rays and give you some great liquid calcium supplements to feed your dragon on a regular basis... atleast until he is strong again. If you can't afford a 200 vet bill... (who can?) You might speak with a vet about prescribing this liquid calcium supplement and pay just the medication fee. Make sure to calcium dust your crickets every single time (calcuim without D3!). And I would put as much UVB on that baby as possible. You need a light that is going to cover as much of your enclosure as possible. I have 2 48" bulbs on Jake. He can heal, but his bones will probably heal awkwardly. There is no splinting a dragon with that much damage. It is good that he is active and eating, that is a great sign. Its also great if you can get him to eat veggies... Jake will have nothing to do with them. Give him veggies as frequently as he will eat them. It sounds like... unfornately... the little guy shouldnt be climbing as much as you can prevent it... until you're relatively usre the bones have had time to heal. It is difficult, tho. I would keep him in a enclosure that he can get high up in, with minimal climbing. Jake has a tree with a winding staircase all the way to the top. I know not everyone can do this... but you want to eliminate as much stress as possible until he's had a chance to get some calcium into his system and plenty of UVB. You can give him all the Ca you want but without UVB... its nothing.

I hope this helps somewhat. Please feel free to contact me for any additional information. If the little guy is active, eating, and drinking, there is plenty of HOPE to go around. If his tail is kinked it will probably fall off, but don't rush that. My mom's baby CWD was adopted from Petsmart, and his tail was popped off too. With time that'll heal quickly.
Don't be fooled by calcium drops for the water bowl, these are only good if the dragon drinks from his water soon after they are put in the water, and only add a minimal amount of calcium to their diet.

Hope that helped some, sorry for the long post.

Taniamc@gmail.com
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~~Tania~~
Jake (Chinese Water Dragon)
Peter (House Gecko)
Mosley (Maltese Shi Tzu Mix)
RIP Mary (House Gecko)

I agree with everthing mentioned above accept using a vitamin suppliment without D3. Natural UVB light creates vitamin D3 synthesis in the skin and doesn't create more then what is needed. That why its highly recomended as the best way to get D3. That being said Artifical UVB is not as effective as sunlight. The lights do a poor job of reproducing this range and need to be within 12 inches of the animal to be effective, also you have to get a meter check that the light is producing UVB range, even the best bulbs will cease to do so after three to six months, and need to be replaced. Dependence on artifical lighting for vitamin D3 synthesis is the number one cause of MBD. Used correctly they can work, but supplimenting with dietary D3 is proven to be more reliable. The one thing you have to watch out for is Phosphorus,for calcium absorption it needs to be in a ration of 2:1 Calcium to phosphorus. In most diets the problem is not that there is too little calcium but to much phosphorus, such is the case when feeding crickets. the idea behind supplimenting calcium is to raise the calcium levels higher then the phosphorus levels, so its counter productive to have a calcium suppliment that contains phosphorus as well.

Also, Vegitable really aren't a necessary part of their diet. They may on rare occasion eat a bit of fruit, but most don't eat any vegitables at all. Pinkies and fuzzies are probably the best balanced foods. Until they get big enough to eat them, zoophobas, and silkworms are best, crickets are suitable only if heavily coated in a vitamin/calcium supplimented.

Doh, when I said D3 I meant to say Phos. (yay for multitasking)
Sorry about that.

Rick -- Wanna recommend some good CWD readings? I've turned the internet and Tricia's site upside down.
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~~Tania~~
Jake (Chinese Water Dragon)
Peter (House Gecko)
Mosley (Maltese Shi Tzu Mix)
RIP Mary (House Gecko)