Re: Kidney damage - long-term care

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Posted by T and Q on June 08, 1999 at 08:58:01:

In Reply to: Re: Kidney damage - long-term care posted by BabyHerp on June 07, 1999 at 19:29:48:

Hi. I don't have the hang of posting here yet.
Please set me straight if I make mistakes.

Gina asked for more info about Q. Here it is:

Q's illness is my fault. Having him since
iglet-hood, I used outdated books and pet store
advice to determine his care. My biggest mistake
was animal protein. I fed him crickets once a
week during his first year and a scrambled egg
(or two) weekly after that. Other mistakes:
his diet was passable, but not great; he never got
real sun; I didn't change his UVB tube often
enough; his humidity was too low; he wasn't well
socialized; never had a blood screen, etc.

Q became very lethargic about seven months ago.
He'd just lie in the coolest part of his enclosure.
He'd barely eat. No poop. No urates. A blood
test revealed very high phosphorus and a biopsy
revealed moderate kidney damage. Q was put on
Prednisone (steroid), and Alternagel (phosphorus
blocker), and NeoCalglucon (calcium). I also began
force-feeding him baby food and electrolyte/water
solution. After a couple of months, I began force-
feeding him solid foods as well.

Q responded well to the medications and his phos.
level came down, but he developed other problems.
Thrashing in the vet's incubator, Q damaged his
tail. The vet removed a foot and a half of tail
non-surgically. Infection set in and Q lost another
six inches of tail surgically. Two runs of antibiotics
later, his white count was still inexplicably high.
Q, in his weakened state, also fell from his basking
spot and broke a rear leg.

There were many times when we wondered if Q was
going to make it.

After four very rough months, Q began to improve.
Today, Q seems like a normal, healthy ig. His
Phos. level is very low, his calcium level is
high. In the next couple of weeks we'll do another
screen to check his white count level. His leg
is healed and his tail is starting to regenerate,
to his vet's surprise. He still gets Alternagel,
NeoCal and force-fed liquids before his nightly
bath.

So, what's my question? I'd like to know if there
are other igs out there living with kidney damage
and what works in the way of long-term care.

Thanks!

T & Q

P.S. Sorry for the long post!

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Comments:
: Hi. I don't have the hang of posting here yet. : Please set me straight if I make mistakes. : Gina asked for more info about Q. Here it is: : Q's illness is my fault. Having him since : iglet-hood, I used outdated books and pet store : advice to determine his care. My biggest mistake : was animal protein. I fed him crickets once a : week during his first year and a scrambled egg : (or two) weekly after that. Other mistakes: : his diet was passable, but not great; he never got : real sun; I didn't change his UVB tube often : enough; his humidity was too low; he wasn't well : socialized; never had a blood screen, etc. : Q became very lethargic about seven months ago. : He'd just lie in the coolest part of his enclosure. : He'd barely eat. No poop. No urates. A blood : test revealed very high phosphorus and a biopsy : revealed moderate kidney damage. Q was put on : Prednisone (steroid), and Alternagel (phosphorus : blocker), and NeoCalglucon (calcium). I also began : force-feeding him baby food and electrolyte/water : solution. After a couple of months, I began force- : feeding him solid foods as well. : Q responded well to the medications and his phos. : level came down, but he developed other problems. : Thrashing in the vet's incubator, Q damaged his : tail. The vet removed a foot and a half of tail : non-surgically. Infection set in and Q lost another : six inches of tail surgically. Two runs of antibiotics : later, his white count was still inexplicably high. : Q, in his weakened state, also fell from his basking : spot and broke a rear leg. : There were many times when we wondered if Q was : going to make it. : After four very rough months, Q began to improve. : Today, Q seems like a normal, healthy ig. His : Phos. level is very low, his calcium level is : high. In the next couple of weeks we'll do another : screen to check his white count level. His leg : is healed and his tail is starting to regenerate, : to his vet's surprise. He still gets Alternagel, : NeoCal and force-fed liquids before his nightly : bath. : So, what's my question? I'd like to know if there : are other igs out there living with kidney damage : and what works in the way of long-term care. : Thanks! : T & Q : P.S. Sorry for the long post! :

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