Metabolic bone disease is one of the most common diseases that can affect your exotic lizard. Unfortunately, some dragon owners are unable to provide the required amount of calcium or UVB light to their pets which results in calcium deficiency and soft bones. There is no single cause that can be blamed solely for metabolic bone disease.
When you decide to bring a Chinese water dragon home, your pet needs an adequate supply of calcium and vitamin D to maintain strong and healthy bones. Most experts recommend calcium supplements in about every alternate feed to prevent the deficiency of calcium.
Your pet can suffer from MBD even if you feed insects and food dusted with calcium and vitamin powder. This is more likely if your dragon has inadequate exposure to UVB light. Water dragons can suffer from bone deformities and fractures because the calcium you provide cannot be metabolized. You need to make sure your pet receives the required amount of sunlight or UBV light to absorb dietary calcium.
For best results you need to use fluorescent light tubes that work in the range of 290 to 310 nm. This is the ideal region for UVB rays. If your pet suffers from metabolic bone disease, it will show jerky movements especially when walking.
You can observe tremors and muscle twitch even when your pet remains still. As the disease progresses further, your pet will show more painful signs such as swelling of the limbs and jaw, bumps in the vertebral column and softening of the bones. In severe cases of metabolic bone disease, your pet is barely able to move around in the enclosure. It will spend most of its time on the ground which is strange because Chinese water dragons are arboreal creatures.
If the calcium levels drop further, your pet can die to cardiac failure. It is important that you maintain an ideal balance of calcium and phosphorus in your pet’s diet. You should contact a specialized reptile pet the moment you observe the signs of metabolic bone disease. Remember excessive calcium can also be harmful for your pet so make sure you don’t overdo calcium supplements but give the amount your pet actually needs. You should never treat metabolic bone disease on your own because your pet’s life depends on it. It is better you leave the task for the professionals to handle.
