Well, I’m a wreck. Days are bleeding into one another and they’re going too quickly. Lil’ Murph’s been going nearly everywhere with me. He doesn’t like long car rides, but he turns to stay on me sometimes when I attempt to place him in his enclosure, and occasional turns and walks to the door for me to take him out and hold him. We want to be together so much that he is tolerating the road trips.
People seem drawn to him when they meet him. Sure, he’s exotic, but for some, there seems to be something else. He’s been seen via video chat by strangers in India. He made them happy.
He’s been called sweet, handsome, – and pretty, actually. He’s been asked about by a couple of people who speak little to no English, asked by two others what type of lizard he is, touched by about eight strangers, and two people have inquired about Lizardplanet.com in the past two weeks.
I told Lil’ Murph that even when he doesn’t feel good, he has his charisma!
Some moments, his eyes are bulging (not in the normal way that beardies occasionally do), and other times, they are sunken in a bit. A few days ago, they were so sunken that I was destroyed and managed to call one place to get a cremation cost quote along with the clay foot and hand prints people can get. It’s closer than the trusted family/company that cared for our beloved Copper, but their crematory is not in-house. I’m not having him transported and trust they leave him to be at rest how I feel is right. I will make the very long drive to the trustworthy people if need be.
*We are adding a lot of detail here in case what Murph is experiencing, what doctors have said, and that which my research has uncovered may help another sweet lizard somewhere.
Lil’ Murph is now soaking every day, even though sunken eyes can mean dehydration, I don’t see how he can possibly be dehydrated after all the fluids he’s been getting, it’s something else. But we are soaking anyway and receiving a little liquid daily, including with the milk thistle powder that I’ve been adding to his water (it’s good for his liver and more). The vet helped me get the proper powder to water ratio when I called to see if she could send a prescription for more pain medicine to the local cat/dog vet office (This can be done if the medicine is something they have in stock for the species of animals they care for). His bottle did not contain the month’s worth I was told it would. We have some more just in time. It’s about $34 more than the first partial bottle given us, but whatever.
Murph’s vet said it’s great that I’m giving milk thistle to him because it’s good for the liver, which I discovered in my own research and was left wondering why she didn’t suggest it since she informed me she uses a liquid version for other patients. She spent a lot of time with me over the phone, though, as we looked up the brand I ordered and did the math. I told her that I weighed him on the 8th, and if my scales were correct, he was at 1 lb., 2.5 oz. This helped to determine the amount needed to obtain what is believed to be the ideal amount of silymarin, the liver protecting agent in milk thistle. He has lost a little weight, and it’s noticeable when I hold him and the few more skin folds he has on his back.
Today, his chin is a little dark. This isn’t good. But his left eye isn’t bulging so bad that I thought it may pop. I don’t know why the fluid is draining well finally, but I am so grateful it is one less thing he is fighting nonstop.
The top of his head has been pale, practically white (odd and not good), but he’s gotten his color and markings back a few days ago.
He went so many days without eating, then finally ate five days later! He went 9 days without a poo, and finally went yesterday! It looks overall healthy. The bee pollen I ordered finally arrived, so I put that in his milk thistle water, along with a pinch of Himalayan salt and a dash of sugar (2 things suggested when making homemade electrolytes for reptiles). Yesterday, Murph had 14 bites of apple and 5 bites of green/yellow bell pepper from our yard!
As you can see, Lil’ Murph’s chin is dark (although my awful camera isn’t capturing it well), but also, the rest of him has been as well the past 2 days, which is odd. Bearded dragons will darken their color to absorb more of the sun’s rays, but he is like this inside a well. His eyes are open most of the time, which is good. In watching his eyes, his mind is sharp, and he is observant and thinking as always.
In case you’re wondering, bee pollen is healthy for humans and lizards, and is collected in a way that does not harm the bees. See what it can do for different reptiles here:
I am not going to show the photo of the day his eyes were so sunken that I thought it was our final day together (Oct.8th). Murph is not to be seen that way. But below you will see some before and after photos from when you can tell he doesn’t feel well, to when his determination kicks in and he declared, I am alive and loved, and I love it all back!
When he looks great, I believe in miracles. When he looks weakened from fighting, I have terrible things to say about the order of things and the unfairness… of situations.
There are many homeless reptiles in shelters who could enjoy human interaction, mental stimulation, and homes. These places may need lighting and enclosures, donations of time or monies, and most of all, homes for these angels. Please don’t support breeders.
We are quite consumed with health issues and more here. We may be nearly checked out here, but plan to share updates and check in on what others are up to.
“Give me Lizardry or give me Death!”
♥️Murph & Dawn
LizardPlanet.com 
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