My 5 year old waterdragon has suddenly taken ill. He was fine yesterday. Noticed him thrashing in cage today and now he is very lethargic and won't move much at all and rarely opens his eyes. I tried putting him in his pool and he won't even attempt to swim. He has the right lights and heat and has always been very healthy. I live on the prairies with no herp vets nearby and the local vet doesn't have a clue what to do. Any help will be appreciated.

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ld waterdragon has suddenly taken ill. He was fine yesterday. Noticed him thrashing in cage today and now

Off top of head, without being able to examine it... with no changes in environment or companionship (other animals/reptiles)...

Is it having trouble breathing? If sounds like a respiratory illness. So, have your vet give it antibiotics. Then, make sure it gets plenty of natural sunlight (if warm enough). The lights are great, but they aren't 100%.

Thanks for the reply. It has now been almost 2 weeks and he is doing better. He had no indication of trouble breathing. Have noticed he is not as adept at catching his crickets as he was before. Almost seems like he is off balance while he is trying to eat. Would love to put him in the sunshine but live on the prairies in Canada and don't see sunshine till July...lol.

Have you checked that you are keeping your water dragon at the correct temperature? Day time temperature should be 84F to 88F (28.9C to 31.1C), with a basking spot of 90F to 95F (32.2 C to 35C). Night time temperature should be 75F to 80F (23.9C to 26.7C). If the temperature is too high, water dragons do not eat well, dehydrate and become lethargic.

MY WATER DRAGON HAS STARTED OPENING ITS MOUTH EVERY SO OFTEN IS THIS A SIGN OF BREATHING PROBLEMS. SECOND SHOULD WATER DRAGONS BE TAKEN IN FOR ANNUAL CHECK UPS