My Bearded Dragon Vinny is not doing well at all. I rescued him early 2020 from a pet store that had no knowledge on dragons. He was around 3 months, he had 3 different kinds of parasites, dead bugs stuck to his scales. He was living in filth. I didn’t have much money but I took one look at him and knew he needed me as much as I needed him. My best friend passed away late 2019 and Vinny has been my escape from that, my support, the only thing that’s keeping me going. I don’t know what I’d do without him. When I bought him home for the first time he was severely underweight, we were also fighting his parasites off and during that time and I thought I was going to lose him. But we fought through it and he came out stronger than ever. We were okay for a few months and he was thriving!
Coming onto the end of 2020 Vinny fell ill again, this time it’s hit him harder than before. It’s been roughly 3 months and he’s still no better, he’s just getting worse. He’s so defeated, he can barely lift his head, he barely Keeps his eyes open, his fat pads are sinking… he’s got no fight left in him. I have to physically move him to his heat to keep warm because he will not move himself. I’ve spent thousands on him within the time I’ve had him and now it’s coming to the point where I cannot afford anymore, but it’s also at the point where he needs treatment the most. He refuses to eat and take water, so I’ve resulted to syringe feeding slurries with calcium and he will eat the occasional blueberry here and there to give him the nutrients he needs, force feeding is usually the outcome. Since owning him he’s needed so many vet visits for constant treatments of parasites with antibiotics, wellness checks, X-rays.
Unfortunately I have been out of work this entire time, I’ve been applying for so many jobs and none have come through leaving me with little to nothing. Vinny started to black beard constantly two days ago and he’s never done that, that’s one of the signs of discomfort in dragons. His stomach is hard and bloated, his liver is enlarged and has more fatty tissue around it, If this doesn’t improve he’s at risk of fatty liver disease, his lack of eating isn’t helping this situation. He has dislocated 2 congeal vertebrae (tail) and he has several dislocated toes which are extremely painful for him, stiff swollen joints, he’s losing weight rapidly, he also has kyphosis too which is a new issue. I don’t know what I can do anymore, I’ve done all I can but I’m running out of options.
Vinny is my everything, he is my emotional support animal for my many mental health issues, I’m no good at asking for help, but I can’t be without Vinny and I need help.