Sweet Bugsy

I'm sad to report that Bugsy lost his battle today. :( He was too sick and too weak. 

Sweet Bugsy will be buried under my apple tree with my other precious ones. 

Bad News for Bugsy

Bugsy has been sickly since he returned to me last month. When he showed no improvement after 8 antibiotic shots, I took him back to my vet.

On Monday, Dr Folland took a blood sample on Bugsy but the results were "unremarkable." Today I took Bugsy back for an X-ray and the results were not good. 

It appears Bugsy has abscesses in his lungs-- pockets of pus & infected tissue embedded into the lining of the lungs. There is no treatment; its terminal. 

This was Bugsy after the X-ray. He was SO mad. 

I'm waiting for the results of a second test they did. It will show the abscesses more clearly. And then we can decide what to do next. :( 

Bugsy Update

Mr Bugsy continues to baffle my vet and I with his behavior. He acts very sick; he's not eating or drinking on his own; he sleeps all day and is still pooping blood.

Yesterday he went to the vet for a checkup. He's had 8 antibiotic shots for a respiratory infection, but still has coughing spells. His breathing was clear and easy for my vet. So we got a blood sample. 

His blood test results were "unremarkable" and don't do much (anything) to explain what's wrong. Or why he poops blood. His fecal tests are clear. 

Tomorrow I will take in all my sicklies and Bugsy will get an X-ray. Maybe that will show something. 

There's no other obvious reason for him to be so lethargic and not eating. Just like there's no obvious reason for MuShu to not be pooping. She'll probably get an X-Ray too. Roscoe has to get the tip of his tail amputated too. It's going to be an expensive visit. 

a Mini Donation Campaign for Roscoe & Friends

I've debated doing this and even now I'm agonizing over creating another GoFundMe campaign but my rescue is stretched past its financial limits right now. Between Roscoe, MuShu, and Bugsy-- and now the dying monitor-- I am not bringing in enough money through my Etsy shop to pay for all the vet bills I'm sticking on my credit card last week and this week. I've even been selling off stuff in an attempt to make extra money.

Will you consider helping me? Either through PayPal (link on the side bar of the blog) or through this GoFundMe link. Even a couple dollars will help make sure I am not so wiped out that by this week's vet bills that I can no longer take in rescues.

gofundme.com/zt9s2ss

Quick Update

Of my 3 sicklies, Roscoe is doing the best. He's such a sweetheart.

Bugsy still has fluid in his lungs and blood when he poops. 

MuShu has stopped pooping all together and actually started throwing up today. :( That is very bad. Her intestines are not working normally since her prolapse was fixed. Back to the vet we go. 

Critical Care Mornings

Once or twice a day I force feed my 3 sickly beardies: MuShu, Bugsy, and Roscoe. Bugsy and MuShu are both sick and not eating well on their own so they get the morning Critical Care (CC). Roscoe gets it twice a day plus a dose of calcium syrup.

I mix the CC with homemade Pedialyte for extra hydration. Each beardie has their own syringe. 

MuShu and Bugsy hate me pushing the syringes in their mouth and fight me. Roscoe doesn't fight but I have to be really careful since his bones are so fragile. 

He hates the calcium syrup so I usually give him some water to flush it out. 

He's got a cute tongue! 

The Sick Room

My bedroom has become the "Hospital Ward" for my rescue. 

Here's an Update on my Sicklies: 

----------------------------------------

Turbo is doing okay. He has good days and bad days. The swelling in his arm & spine has slowed. On good days, he eats and is active. On bad days, he doesn't want to be pet and he sleeps all day. This pic shows how he sleeps. It's adorable!! 

---------------------------

Bugsy is not doing well. He's on antibiotic shots but he still sounds like a whoopee cushion sometimes when he breathes. He stopped eating too so I started force feeding him today. He just mostly sleeps a lot. 

--------------------------------

MuShu is still having a hard time with her guts. I'm waiting to make sure she can poop normally after such a major prolapse. Some days she's really lethargic and hardly moves; other days she's very alert. It's just a slow recovery process. And she still won't eat on her own so I'm force feeding her too. 

--------------------------------

Roscoe is now the newest member in the ward. His tank is where Ginny's tank used to be. He's got a long hard road ahead, but I expect him to eventually recover. His whole cage is covered with polar fleece so he can't get his nails stuck and everything is low so he can't fall off. 

Sicklies Update

Ginny got her final approval from the vet on Monday. Her wound looks great and is healing nicely. She's starting to shed and has put on 40+ grams.

Next week, Ginny will be traveling to her new forever home in Florida to her new momma Linda who is beyond excited. Ginny will have a good, good life there. 

Bugsy is doing better on antibiotics but still struggles with his pnemonia. It'll take all 3 weeks (and maybe more) to get him completely better. At night, he lives to snuggle on my shoulder. 

It wasn't such a good day for Turbo. He got up, basked in the sun for a bit, and then went back to his "bed." He didn't eat and when I got near him, he bobbed his head at me. :( 

Poor Turbo. He's been doing okay lately and I tend to forget that he's so sick. Then days like today remind me that he won't be with me long. 

Bugsy rescue 62.2

Bugsy came back to me today. It was a bittersweet time. It's obvious that his owner has adored him and cared for him, but he knew his schedule was changing and he'd have no time for Bugsy.

Bugsy is healthy & beautiful now! He is very sweet too. It'll be easy to find him a good home. 

Tiger & Bugsy-- these two could be twins

Tiger has been in our family for months now-- and won't ever leave because my daughter has latched onto him, and Bugsy came last week. They are about the same size and same temperament. They even have similar patterns with different coloring.

I had to wait until they were both asleep in their blankies to take a picture because they would NOT like each other one bit.

Bugsy, rescue number 62

Bugsy came to me in a strange sort of way. I was trying to find a bigger tank for Fido and I saw an ad online for a juvenile beardie with an 80 gallon tank. That's great, I thought. I'll buy the set up and swap the beardie for a 40. So I got in my car and drove 30 minutes north through rush hour to pick it up.

The second I pulled up to the curb, I knew I was in trouble. It was only a 40 gallon tank. Blast! I did NOT need another 40! But I got out anyways and looked at the beardie. Poor thing had never ever had a UVB in all his 9 months of life. His eyes were goopy and he didn't look good. 

And because I am a sucker :) for beardies, I bought it anyways. Now I had three iguanas and a 7 beardies. Oy bay! 

On the way home, Bugsy pooped and had blood in his stool. Uh oh. 

I got him home and started to clean out his eyes and he started gasping for breath. Double uh oh. 

I had a 40 gallon (that I didn't need) and a juvenile beardie with MBD, an eye infection, a respiratory infection, and blood in his stool. I had a bit of an emotional meltdown. I was tired and hungry and overwhelmed. And I still didn't have a big tank for Fido. 

Add caption

Bugsy started antibiotic injections that night but I wasn't sure if he'd make it through the night. He did. I gave him a squirt of calcium in his mouth and put him in the sunshine for two days in a row. 

The first day, he hardly moved at all, but he loved the sunshine

The second day he started to move some

Bugsy went to the vet yesterday and got a clean bill of health. He has two more injections to go and should be completely recovered soon. He has a great UVB light and plenty of chances for sunshine. He eats like a pig and loves to swaddled in a blankie at night. 

So while I wasn't planning on taking this guy on, I'm glad I did. He can live healthy & happy with someone soon. Plus, he's got amazing colors.