And it should.
This is why EDUCATION IS KEY to owning any pet.
This what happens when people don't care of animals entrusted in their care. This is senseless and wrong.
UPDATE on 12/16/13 at 11:27 am--
I've been on the phone with this little guy's rescuer for the past few hours. I was ready to give up on him when she text me and said he was licking his lips. So I had her dribble water on his nose and he lapped it up. That's when we knew he had some spunk left in him! Hooray! She got in in a Pedialyte bath and soaked him for 10 minutes plus. He was so tired and lethargic that the experience wiped him out. But he drank! He got in lots of nutrients and such. The next step will be to get him to eat some baby food squash or something else bland and pureed. He has a vet visit at 3:45 today.
There are SO many issues to deal with still, but right now it is a matter of triage and he's passed the biggest hurdle-- he's at least drinking on his own.
He didn't have a name so the rescuer is calling him "Steve." :)
Will update more later.
UPDATE on 12/16/13 at 8:00 PM
The rescuer found a couple in her area that rescue & rehabilitate beardies like I do! So they took Steve and have a whole game plan now for what they need to do to keep him alive: fluids, heat, light, and food. I think he has a really good shot at making it now. The rescuer said he perked up a lot just after getting a Pedialyte bath with some fluids & electrolytes.
It's amazing to me how much lizards can go through and still be alive. It blows my mind that he's surviving. As long as the new rescuers go slowly with nutrition, he should be okay. He'll most likely never be full size because he has had such a crappy life the last few months.
The rescuer I've been helping today has all these pictures now as evidence and plans to show them to the principal over the teacher who bought Steve as a classroom pet and then took him home for a couple months. Yes, that's right, the neglecter is a TEACHER!! (GAWK!) But the rescuer will make sure the school administration knows what happened with this school pet so it never, ever, ever happens again. I think the teacher just took him home and forgot about him.
So what do you do to prevent something like this in your world? Make sure YOU have the knowledge you need to care for your animals well and if people talk about their pets, ask about them. Ask to see their pets, offer suggestions (don't be bossy or pushy), but offer suggestions if necessary. Animal cruelty is against the law in most statements so if it comes down to it, call Animal Control and get them involved in bad animal abuse/neglect cases.
WHATEVER YOU DO-- DO SOMETHING! Don't do nothing and assume someone else will take care of it. YOU do it. YOU be the hero that saves a life. You can't save them all, but you can save some. To Steve today, one rescuer made ALL the difference. For Nubs, his rescuer and now owner made all the difference.
UPDATE from 12/19/13-----
Rocky is eating still. He's not FLAT anymore. He's getting color back in his body. He's still got a long road to go, but he's got a fighter's spirit that will keep him alive. Hooray for his dedicated rescuers in Oregon. You can see from his arm how SEVERE his metabolic bone disease is. It's going to take a long time to get his calcium levels back up.
Update on 1/16/14--- For some reason, Rocky's rehab couple have cut off all contact with us. We don't know why or if Rocky is still even alive. There have been multiple attempts to contact them with no response. So I can't update you on him. Sorry. :( We are all attached to the little guy and now we might never know what happened.
