I happened to be visiting my moms school when I heard that one of the teachers had a new class pet from the district, a bearded dragon. Being a dragon owner myself I immediately went to go see it. What I ended up seeing broke my heart. Hugh is a full grown bearded dragon in a cage about half the size of the MINIMUM that they need to be comfortable. He was being fed which isn’t the most nutritional insect, and he had only a coil light and a red light. 

Coil lights- meant to supply UVB but do not supply nearly enough for proper growth and development. Using these can result in MBD. The proper lighting would be a UVB tube which they did not have.

Red lights- provide zero benefits to bearded dragons. Colored bulbs can hurt their eyes and don’t provide enough heat for digestion, growth, and happiness.

Not having proper heat or UVB is why I am here asking to get him proper medical care. I, and many other experienced reptile owners, suspect he has MBD and mouth rot.

MBD- a condition that occurs when bearded dragons are not given the proper uvb and D3 in their setup. Uvb is needed for proper bone health and when they are not getting enough, their bones can start to become brittle, deteriorate, break, and deform. It is extremely painful and fatal if not treated. If Hugh has MBD he is in a lot of pain and being a class pet is not the environment he needs to be in when trying to get the nutrients he needs. Being moved from class to class and from kid to kid is miserable for any pet but incredibly miserable for a pet that has his medical condition. 

Mouth rot- a bacterial infection of the mouth. Can be caused by improper housing and stress. The immune system is weakened which allows infections to take over. Their mouth will start to swell, bleed, crust over, and peel. It needs to be treated before it causes more pain and internal issues.

As you can see, if Hugh has either or both of these, he’s in a lot of pain. I went to bring this to the attention of the people that own him (CFISD) and so far I have gotten nothing but them saying their vets would know if anything if wrong with him. They apparently have vets and vet techs that constantly care for them but if that is the case then why is this animal so sick? Why are their setups so wrong and improper? I went to them first to try to help and be civil but I won’t let this animal suffer anymore in order for them to parade it around in classrooms. All I want is to be able to take Hugh to a vet that could help him, at my expense, and see if we can get him the care he needs. 

https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/bearded-dragons-diseases