Calcium shots not working 4 tegu with MBD

[dragonqueen4]

So my tegu Trooper, who has MBD has been getting calcium shots everyday, .3 - .4ml each time. He has his mercury vapor bulb about 15" away with nothing to filter it and a 10.0 tube bulb. basking temp or about 103.
He had an xray today and his bones are still very thin and he is still having trouble walking. The vet says from some reason he is just not taking to the calcium and if it doesnt turn around soon he will have to be euthanized. Any ideas what would keep a tegu from absorbing the calcium? Why arent the shots working for him??

 

[jmiles50]

Dang, I thought that little dude was getting better I used to work for a few reptile vets, so I can make some calls if no one else on here can find an answer for ya :!:

 

[ashesc212]

Have you had a blood test done and checked his ionized calcium levels? Maybe he is not receiving enough calcium or possibly too much.

Also - how long has he been receiving calcium injections?

 

[dragonqueen4]

Thanks jmiles50, any help would be greatly appreciated.

A blood test was done a few weeks ago, and the vet said his calcium levels were good. He has been getting the shots for a bit over a month now. Maybe .3ml a day isnt enough. I know tegus need more than the average lizard right? I am going to increase it and if that doesnt work I guess there is nothing left to do

 

[MMRR - jif]

I have a 2 year old Tegu in worse condition than yours with MBD. Her bloodwork came back looking good also but I had been supplementing for several weeks before the blood was drawn so the good test results were not a surprise. This little Tegu's toes don't even show up in the xrays. She is being tube fed Oxbow Critical Care and is also receiving injected Ca and supportive fluids.

Can you please elaborate on the type of Ca being injected and the concentration. I will try to get you an accurate dosage. It can take a very long time to see improvement in these animals once the disease progresses to this point. Don't give up just yet!n

 

[dragonqueen4]

Thank you for replying, finally theres some hope for my little guy. I am sorry to hear about your tegu. I hope she gets better. I cant believe her toes didnt show.
I am using calcium gluconate injection USP 10% 1g/10ml - thats whats on the bottle. I give him between 0.3 and 0.4 ml a day into his tail. However, Sam from reptilekings.com told me tonight that the MVB Im using is no good. Its a solar glo by exo terra. So I just ordered a powersun MVB and a ZooMed 10.0 strip bulb online tonight.
Im not going to give up on him (or her!) yet. If he makes it do you think he will grow, or will he not get any bigger than he is now?
Thanks for your help

 

[dragonqueen4]

Do you have any pics or videos of your tegu, just so I can compare her to mine?

 

[MMRR - jif]

Take a look at he linked thread, post #5, and you'll see the little girl that we are working with. No real change yet after almost 6 weeks of treatment.

http://www.tegutalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=541&start=0

 

[dragonqueen4]

Ohhh, thats her, I saw this video before, poor thing. Is she able to walk at all? 6 weeks is a long time.. does it usually take that long? What is the dosage of calcium you give her? I am afraid I am going to overdose my tegu.. I give him about .6ml a day now.