Remember Fat Lucy's egg removal? See the dark colored and misshapen ones? Those had started to decay and rot in her belly.
Then there were Skye's eggs. See how they were all orange and round?
Stella (like Fat Lucy & Skye) had ovum develop in her ovaries, but, for some reason, they never dropped into her oviducts and down into her lower belly to be laid. Over time, her eggs rotted and became a toxic mess inside of her. The eggs mutated into one large mess that wasn't distinguishable on an ultrasound.
This leads to the question-- could her death have been prevented? My best answer is "I don't know." Stella had laid eggs before, but stopped. That's totally normal. A yearly check up might have allowed a vet to feel eggs/lumps with his fingers. I say "might" because my vet felt Stormy & Fatty Patty for eggs and felt none. Three days later, Fatty Patty laid 11 eggs after arriving at her her new home. Two weeks later, Stormy laid 18 eggs at her new home.
If you have only a one or a few beardies, I highly recommend yearly exams with an experienced reptile vet. At least every other year, have a full blood panel done. Because Nubs is my beardie and because he had such a rough beginning, I had a blood test done last year. It came back normal and now I have a base line to compare things too in the future.
Reptiles hide their illness very well. Knowing your reptile's habits will help you spot changes in behavior more easily. Budgeting in a yearly exam and blood work (around $200 to $300 for both) can help insure your beardie stays healthy.
