GavTheCham
New Member
I think I ever only made a thread once asking for advice on my veiled, Gavin, that ended up with MBD. I've been wanting to do this a while, I just haven't had time.
I thought I would post an update and maybe get any more suggestions/advice anyone has. I have no problems with it and I'm still beating myself up for not knowing better and letting it get as bad as it did.
I tried to change as much as I could as far as husbandry, supplements and diet once I saw how bad the MBD really was and after some advice from some of you awesome people.
I moved him from his viv to a smaller tub, kind of thing, so that he wouldn't climb because even with his fractured/broken legs he was still trying. Which made me cry and we even talked about euthanasia just because I hated seeing him like that. However, Mr. Gavin was/is a stinking fighter. He still had his bad attitude and still tried to bite us, which we used as an advantage and stuck food in his mouth whenever it opened up to bite. That's the reason we didn't go through with euthanasia, he was still fighting. He did lose some weight, though and I'm trying to fatten him back up. (Any advice on that will be great.)
He spent over a month in his container. There was a point he couldn't even move, so we built a sort of contraption to keep him suspended, but lowered enough so that he could still grip branches. He still had a strong grip throughout his whole ordeal. Also, his feces/urates were surprisingly normal whenever he would eat.
A few weeks ago, we put him back in his screened viv, threw some crickets in there and they were gone within minutes. He still had a hard time moving around, and his tongue didn't shoot out as far, but he got them. Happy about that, but still hand feeding because I'm worried about his tongue not going back in. I know he'll never be 100% better, but he's getting there.
Soo, a few days ago after work I went to check on him and the little dude was gone. After 10 minutes of freaking out and searching the room, I finally found him behind a vacuum. I guess that was a sign that he needed to go back into his viv.
He is getting stronger now and gaining better control of his legs, his back legs were really in bad shape. He's still recovering and we're probably not even close to a little normality, but, like I said, he's getting there.
I purchased the arcadia lights/fixtures from light your reptiles, and ordered silk worms and we've also got liquid calcium.
I won't post many pictures because I'm planning on saving them until he is fully recovered, which I know won't be 100%. Then, I will post pics of the journey that I wish we could have avoided completely. While I've never broken any bones, I have pretty crappy joints and have a shoulder that's pretty useless at the moment, needless to say, I've grown even more fond of Gavin since everything happened.
I still do have a couple of questions:
I know a varied diet is the best staple diet, but what are the best ones for now to try to fatten him up and still give him the nutrients he needs?
The arcadia lights came with a mesh/screen on the UVB bulb that says to leave it on there. Will that mesh plus the screen top prevent the right amount of UVB from reaching him? Should he be getting 6% or 12%. Also, can I still have an additional heat lamp? Or would it be too much?
Would vine-like live plants be the best for his enclosure? I've been looking at the pothos and was thinking of getting one to try it out. Right now he's got fake plants. We're still working on filling up his enclosure more. I was thinking if I could find a plant with decent vines I'd wrap them around more sticks. He seems to like it so far. He is moving around a lot more.
Again, any further advice or suggestions will be appreciated.
I thought I would post an update and maybe get any more suggestions/advice anyone has. I have no problems with it and I'm still beating myself up for not knowing better and letting it get as bad as it did.
I tried to change as much as I could as far as husbandry, supplements and diet once I saw how bad the MBD really was and after some advice from some of you awesome people.
I moved him from his viv to a smaller tub, kind of thing, so that he wouldn't climb because even with his fractured/broken legs he was still trying. Which made me cry and we even talked about euthanasia just because I hated seeing him like that. However, Mr. Gavin was/is a stinking fighter. He still had his bad attitude and still tried to bite us, which we used as an advantage and stuck food in his mouth whenever it opened up to bite. That's the reason we didn't go through with euthanasia, he was still fighting. He did lose some weight, though and I'm trying to fatten him back up. (Any advice on that will be great.)
He spent over a month in his container. There was a point he couldn't even move, so we built a sort of contraption to keep him suspended, but lowered enough so that he could still grip branches. He still had a strong grip throughout his whole ordeal. Also, his feces/urates were surprisingly normal whenever he would eat.
A few weeks ago, we put him back in his screened viv, threw some crickets in there and they were gone within minutes. He still had a hard time moving around, and his tongue didn't shoot out as far, but he got them. Happy about that, but still hand feeding because I'm worried about his tongue not going back in. I know he'll never be 100% better, but he's getting there.
Soo, a few days ago after work I went to check on him and the little dude was gone. After 10 minutes of freaking out and searching the room, I finally found him behind a vacuum. I guess that was a sign that he needed to go back into his viv.
He is getting stronger now and gaining better control of his legs, his back legs were really in bad shape. He's still recovering and we're probably not even close to a little normality, but, like I said, he's getting there.
I purchased the arcadia lights/fixtures from light your reptiles, and ordered silk worms and we've also got liquid calcium.
I won't post many pictures because I'm planning on saving them until he is fully recovered, which I know won't be 100%. Then, I will post pics of the journey that I wish we could have avoided completely. While I've never broken any bones, I have pretty crappy joints and have a shoulder that's pretty useless at the moment, needless to say, I've grown even more fond of Gavin since everything happened.
I still do have a couple of questions:
I know a varied diet is the best staple diet, but what are the best ones for now to try to fatten him up and still give him the nutrients he needs?
The arcadia lights came with a mesh/screen on the UVB bulb that says to leave it on there. Will that mesh plus the screen top prevent the right amount of UVB from reaching him? Should he be getting 6% or 12%. Also, can I still have an additional heat lamp? Or would it be too much?
Would vine-like live plants be the best for his enclosure? I've been looking at the pothos and was thinking of getting one to try it out. Right now he's got fake plants. We're still working on filling up his enclosure more. I was thinking if I could find a plant with decent vines I'd wrap them around more sticks. He seems to like it so far. He is moving around a lot more.
Again, any further advice or suggestions will be appreciated.
