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I believe my Chinese WD could be impacted. I came home for Thanksgiving break and my brother,who's 22 years old and was taking care of my wd, reported that he had not eaten a substantial amount in the last few weeks. I expected a skinny lizard, but to my surprise his belly appeared quite full and almost bloated, and his jowels also appeared swollen. Other than that, he looks normal, decent skin color, eyes looked alright, etc. I've tried warm soaks and am contemplating a vet visit(never gone before). anyone know any other possible treatments that either I could do or the vet would? Other ailments? By the way, his diet consists largely of young mice and dusted superworms. Substrate is a tightly packed soil. temps are fine.
Thanks for you help

Swollen jowels and bloated belly are consistant with a calcium inbalance. Generally the jowels become swollen as a result of the effects on the thyroid. The belly is usually swollen when protien absorbtion fails. expressing the the belly will result in a clear egg-white looking substance. Take him to a vet and have his calcium levels checked, MBD is fatal if allowed to continue much beyond this point.

Rick, you never cease to amaze with your knowledge! How do you know all this stuff????

Ten years working in local petstores, 27 years keeping herps of all kinds. Wow, basically, I damn old!

Lol!

Thanks for the info, Rick. Anyway to determine if a calcium imbalance is caused by low or high levels? I can't imagine he'd be suffering from a deficiency, as his diet consisted of whole food animals(mostly juvenile mice). Honestly, a vet visit is unrealistic until mid-December given the fact that I'm at school and there are no exotics vets near my home. I really do care about this animal, but do you think there's a chance the animal could recover without the help of a vet?

Thanks for the info, Rick. Anyway to determine if a calcium imbalance is caused by low or high levels? I can't imagine he'd be suffering from a deficiency, as his diet consisted of whole food animals(mostly juvenile mice). Honestly, a vet visit is unrealistic until mid-December given the fact that I'm at school and there are no exotics vets near my home. I really do care about this animal, but do you think there's a chance he could recover without the help of a vet?

Have you checked for parasites yet??? I live in a small town, no reptile vets readily available, and a 45 min drive (and $$) didn't fix Charlie. Any vet can do a fecal, just ask. I did, cost $12 and showed he DID have parasites!!!

The presence of parasites alone is not enough to say that they are the cause of the problem. All herps carry a parasite load. You want to go to a vet that can recognize if the parasite load is at dangerous levels and needs to be treated, also, a parasite problem is usually a secondary symptom that is brought on by stress. Usually when acclimating to a new environment, but can also be caused by other health problems. The problem above sound very much like Primary hyperparathyroidism, which is a form of MBD and is caused by too much calcium in the diet, too little or other health issues disrupting calcium metabolism. The symptoms described above,swelling under the jaw, bloating, and no bowel movements, are advanced symptoms, kindney failure may have already occurred and he may be beyond treatment. It is very unlikely that he will survive without treatment. If you deworm him the stress on his kidneys may already be too great and it could prove fatal. Have a Vet check his blood calcium levels immediately, if you plan on saving him.