Back from the Vet..Surgery Tomorrow :(

[dragonqueen4]

I just got home from the vet with Trooper to have his swollen vent checked on and to hopefully leave with some antibiotics.
However.....
things didnt go according to the plan. My vet took an xray and lodged right in his abdomon is a big rock. Im pretty sure I know what this is... about a month ago I put a human vitamin in his food, thinking this was a great idea to help him get stronger with his MBD.
Well, that mistake is gonna cost me about 500$ :doh
Either that, or euthanization. But, because this is my fault, I feel it is my responsibility to fix it.
Plus, the vet said his bones looked a little stronger on the xray and his toe twitching has stopped. If his MBD is getting better I cant give up on him now.

When I get a copy of the xray I will post the pic!!

 

[ashesc212]

So is it an actual rock or some sort of hard, rock-like impaction?

I hope the surgery is a success and I will be sending positive vibes to you and Trooper!

 

[Beasty]

Was it Centrum by chance you gave it? Those don't digest. This was found by a plumber that found them everywhere and curiously had them analyzed to find they were Centrum multivitamins. How bout that? So, if you're taking those throw them out, they don't digest and you get nothing from them.

I'd say $500 is way steep to pull that out if that's all it is...and it should have passed. Did they try probing or anything for it? Sounds like your vet is taking you for a ride or knows nothing about reptiles.

 

[dragonqueen4]

It wasnt centrum, it was a shoppers brand and small and white.. when he had his xray 2 weeks ago it didnt show up all he could see was what looked like little bits of grit in his stomach. but now its a huge rock like object. Funny thing is, i havent given him anything since then.. so its very strange.

500 is a lot of money just to open him up and remove it. He said theres no way he will pass it, I saw the pic and it was huge. like the size of my pinky nail. i just dont understand why it wouldnt of showed in his last xray.

 

[Beasty]

Interesting. Well did this condition arise after you started taking him outside? Could it actually be a rock?

 

[dragonqueen4]

The funny thing is ... hes been showing all these symptoms since i had him for his first xray 2-3 weeks ago and ive only had him outside this past 3 days. He hasnt eaten since then, hes been bloated and his vent was pink and swollen at the time.. but my vet never said anything about those symptoms.. just gave him an enema then took an xray and said his xray showed there was nothing left, just little pieces of grit.
I dont know if this grit (which i assumed was pieces of the vitamin) compacted together and formed this rock. I emailed my vet and asked for a copy of the first xray because I find this all too strange why it wouldnt show in the first xray. He hasnt eaten anything solid since then.
If I go ahead with the surgery as planned I guess my questions will be answered tmw.
Someone in another forum said an impaction like this could form out of nowhere just because of his health problems?? i dont know how thats possible

 

[Red Earth Exotics]

would a pill actually show up on an x-ray?

 

[RehabRalphy]

would a pill actually show up on an x-ray?

I do believe so. It may not be an obvious shape, but there will be a distinct dark or light object in the stomach. Or a faded shape. I want to see the xrays if you ever get them onto an email.

Its possibly the fragments didnt digest in the stomach. Could be caused by several things. IE: Stress, temperature of enclosure, and the pill itself.

 

[Tux]

When an animal is in poor health it becomes harder for their digestive system to function properly depending on the health issue although I do feel stress can be a factor so yes it is possible. With that being said I would also think something would need to be eaten to see such issues....I'm a little confused on your timeline to be honest. A pill may or may not show on an x-ray it depends how much of it as been digested (the mass of the pill)

 

[dragonqueen4]

It was about 4 weeks ago that I put a vitamin pill in his food. About a week after that I knew he was impacted, so I took him to the vet. The vet gave him an enema and he pooped twice and both times it was really hard. The vet then took an xray to see if he got it all. The xray showed that everything was clear, except for a few small pieces of grit, which the vet assumed was pieces of bone. I on the other hand figured, this must be remenants of the pill.

I took Trooper home assuming he was all better, but his vent stayed puffy and he kept releasing a smelly fluid and wouldnt eat anything. I thought it must of been an infection, so I took him back to the vet this morning. He had an xray, and this is when the big bright white rock looking object showed lodged in his abdomen. It cant be food, because he hasnt eaten anything solid in 2 weeks.


Heres what someone else told me
"gall stones form from regular body secretions, kidney stones form usually from high precipitates in the excretions from the kidneys, neither from something swallowed. If your tegu was already impacted before, it is likely there was significant backup of gut contents and that gut motility was already compromised. With gut motility already reduced, there's a good chance that material already present could start reacting (chemically, mechanically) to form a mass, which could further get impacted. This is just one scenario, there could be others. "

 

[crimsonrazac]

Good luck to you and trooper!

 

[MMRR - jif]

Unfortunately the little tegu in the video had to be euthanized this past Saturday after suffering a seizure. She had shown no improvement in her condition even though her bloodwork was fairly normal. She was to be necropsied today or tomorrow so we'll see if that shows anything remarkable. I'm truly saddened by this. I have successfully rehabbed animals in similar condition and she was such a sweet tegu.

 

[dragonqueen4]

Ohhh nooo So sorry to hear. Thats so sad. I feel your pain :hug
Its really too bad she didnt get better, I guess she was too far gone. Let us know if you find out anymore information about her condition. It seems that tegus with MBD are very hard to treat as opposed to other lizards.

I just heard from my vet and hes going to send the xray to some specialists and see what they say, and then hopefully do surgery on Thursday. Heres what he said
"The stone in question was not on his earlier rad.(the xray from 3 weeks ago). There is a small gall stone in both pictures, but very tiny. There is no renal calcification in either rad."

So my tegu has a small gall stone, what does this mean?

 

[GunnasGal]

it may be that what ever vitamin you fed your tegu he could not digest properly and it has a build up of calcim around it. this happens with some foods my friends bearded dragon cannot be fed spinach etc as calcium sticks to high protein things making it undigestable im not sure but think this can happen in tegus too.... i no you arent meant to feed certain things to tegus due to these sorts of problems
i hope your tegu gets better though

 

[ZEKE]

any update about how the surgery today went?

 

[dragonqueen4]

Surgery is postponed until Thursday because my vet was going to send the xray to some specialists today. I will let you know what happens!!!

 

[crimsonrazac]

Surgery is postponed until Thursday because my vet was going to send the xray to some specialists today. I will let you know what happens!!!

Keep us updated! I really hope trooper gets well.

 

[ashesc212]

Did Trooper have surgery today?

 

[dragonqueen4]

Surgery Today was a Success

Thanks to everyone who though of Trooper and wished him well!!

Surgery went ahead today. Just got the call!! Trooper is ok.. it was a rock in his intestine, so it had to be cut open and removed. Also, he was blocked solid.. extremely constipated, due to the MBD. But.. good news, hes awake and doing good!

So, I have to be extra careful with him and monitor him very closely to make sure he goes to the bathroom, and if not I will need to bring him in right away to catch it early. My vet said, we will start him on oxbow critical care and a liquid calcium and as his bones get stronger his muscles should start contracting normally again.

He will also be taking baytril. Not so sure if this is the best antibiotic for him?

Any tips or advice on the special care I should give him in relation to the "after surgery" care?

 

[ZEKE]

thats great news! im so glad to hear that the surgery went well!