Sick Caiman Lizard

[chelvis]

Hey everyone I could really use some happy thoughts my way. My little boy has been acting very odd lately and it has me worried. We are going into the vet today (2 hour journey).

What has been going on. Saturday he was normal, seemed a little lethargic bit nothing unusual after eating a large meal. His bulb had burnt out so I replaced it, it seemed brighter then the last one but thought nothing of it. Sunday morning his eyes were closed, I figured the bulb had been too bright so I shut it off for the day. Yesterday he had his head tilted and one eye closed. I figured he wanted to keep his good eye up so that he could see. By yesterday evening it got to the point that his head was tilted at 90 degrees and he kept curling his head back. He is extremely lethargic. None of this adds up to what I have seen with what in humans would be called snow blindness or temp over exposure of UV to the eyes. It does not add up to urological as he can right himself and has feeling and full movement in his legs and tail. I am concern with a head injury but all the cage furniture is the same and he has been supervised on all his free roaming time. If it is a head injury I am worried this could be it for Bacardi as he does not seem to be doing well and I don't want to cause him pain.

Depending what time we get back I will post an update, otherwise it may have to wait till morning.

 

[teguboy77]

Sorry to here the bad news,hope he gets better real fast.You take great care of all ur animals good luck.

 

[dragonmetalhead]

Kodo and I will keep our fingers crossed for Bacardi. Here's wishing him all the best.

 

[Minion]

I've been a lurker on this site for well over a year and while I've never posted anything I browse the site quite often. I've become incredibly fond of Bacardi and you've actually sparked my interested in owning a caiman lizard of my own one day. I'm really hoping whatever's going on is nothing that can't be fixed! Good luck and I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for you.

 

[Miles Dad]

Hope he starts getting better. Do you have a good reptile vet nearby??

 

[Murkve]

My condolences. He's a beautiful and unique animal. I sincerely hope he recovers from whatever is ailing him.

 

[Thelegendofcharlie]

My best wishes for Bacardi.
I hope all is well.
Keep us posted.

 

[Vince]

I hope for the best for you and Bacardi

 

[Aardbark]

My heart goes out to you as well. Bacardi is an amazing animal and a good friend. I hope he gets well very soon.

 

[Bntegus]

you said you are driving 2 hours i hope you are going to tom greek good luck.

 

[chelvis]

Thank you all for the kind words. I went to a reptile specialty vet who was recommended by the UC Davis Vet hospital. Here is a brief update on what is going on, sadly it is not good news.


Bacardi Update:

Yesterday was an emotional rollercoaster ride, and the next few days/weeks do not look like they will be any easier.

On arrival at the vet Bacardi started to perk up and was trying to get out of his carrier. Putting him on the exam table his head was still at a 90 degree angle and he was bending his head left back against his body. The vets looked him over as well as go over his enclosure set-up. His diagnosis was the possibility of two different issues one is a brain infection or tumor which would be a fatal condition the other a possibility is an inner ear infection that has brought on vestibular disease which could be treated and he may recover. According to the vet reptiles do not recover well from either. I was shocked when he told me that he had seen two other caiman lizards brought in with similar symptoms. My heart sank when he said that both passed away and it was on necropsy that he found the brain inflammation. There was some hope in the fact that Bacardi was in much better body condition then the other two cases and that he was still very responsive to stimuli (pain reception and self orientating himself). This made the vet think that it could be vestibular disease and he thought it would be worth trying antibiotic injections over the course of a month. In his 23 years of reptile medicine he has a few head tilts and only about 4 turned out to be vestibular brought on by an inner ear infection, they could have been treated if they had been in better overall health. The only other thing he said we can do is to do an MRI to see if there is a tumor or infection, he did not think it would be wise from a money perspective to do so.

No blood work was done, there is really nothing to compare it too and an ear or brain infection would not be obvious from the blood work.

When I asked how this could happen he said it’s most likely the pool I have. I thought a filter was good enough but as he pointed out the fecal matter collected bacteria and is not removed from the water. On top of the fact that he was an import he could have been harboring this for his whole life.

For now he is kept on towels so that he can get around easier, a shallow pool so he does not drown and a humidifier to keep him comfortable. He still has his spunk right now which is why I did not put him down today and I am truly hoping that in three weeks he will show some improvement. It’s hard to believe that this could be the end of what seemed like the perfect lizard.

This morning he was more responsive, using his tongue more and he was able to hold his head out straight but still at an angle. It’s hard to see him like this and part of me wonders if it’s cruel to do so. The vet said that the condition is not painful just confusing for the animal, the same thing was said about my old dog when she got vestibular and a wolf at the center that had it. He has also said that it takes the brain a few days or weeks to have the visual sense take over for the vestibular system. I am really hinging my hopes on this being treatable and that in a few weeks I will see improvement. Its ever present in the back of my mind that he may not get better, I just have to watch the signs: seizures, laying on his back, head bobbing, paralysis or open mouth breathing; any of those would indicate that he is getting worse.

Sorry there are no pictures right now. It’s hard to take pictures when he is like this, even harder to see them on the computer. Once I know for sure what is going on I will post them to let others know what to look for.

 

[HeatherN]

im so sorry, i hope he keeps that spunk up, i think everyone would be so sad to see him go. at least they don't think he's in pain.

 

[Thelegendofcharlie]

Thats all hard to hear. i (like quite a few others apperently) have been a secret Bacardi admirer.
Im sorry youre both having to go through this and i really hope this has a happy ending. Please keep us posted.

 

[TegusRawsome80]

I'm really sorry this is happening to you. Pet illnesses are never easy and I hope he makes it through it. The fact that multiple other caiman lizards came in for it makes me wonder if it isn't caused by environment in one way or another.

 

[Rhetoric]

My heart goes out to you two. I saw this thread had been updated earlier but I knew it would be hard to read. I hope he starts to improve. it's obvious that you care for him a great deal.

 

[Logie_Bear]

I am so sorry to hear bacardi is sick. You both will be in my thoughts today and I hope he recovers.

Just to clarify, when you say it May be from bacteria in the pool- do you mean a swimming pool or a pool in the enclosure?

 

[chelvis]

When I say pool, I mean a pool in his enclosure not a swimming pool.

No new news today, but thank you all for your support. I did not that Bacardi had such a following both on here and on facebook. First home injection of antibiotics will be tomorrow morning; wish me luck I have done injections of bears, tigers, wolves and hamsters but this will be the first reptile unassisted.

 

[RobK.]

sorry man , i know what your going through . i lost sleep when my rhino was down .

 

[laurarfl]

I'm so sorry, Chelvis, hope all goes well. I had to give my ig injections when he was a little rescue. It was OK if you've done canines. A football hold works well with the head tucked under the arm. Please keep us updated.

 

[yulyani]

chelvis how is Bacardi doing....?
I cross my fingers for him...all of my lizards also...

I know you are very worry about him...I hope the vets there can help him.

Sometimes reptiles they are getting better very slowly....just the way they get sick,....and I am sure you will never loose hope and keep tryn the best