Meet Rex the bearded dragon. Rex's owner noticed he was straining a lot but couldn't poo and he was off his food. He came in to see vet Becky who was concerned Rex may have swallowed some of the gravel from his vivarium as his tummy was very hard and swollen.
Becky took an X-ray which confirmed her suspicion that Rex had an impaction making him unwell.
An impaction happens when food or substrate (the material on the floor of a vivarium) are too big to pass and therefore build up within the gut and cause a blockage.
Mild impactions can be relieved with medication but more serious impactions like Rex's need surgery to correct the problem.
Vet Sophie operated on Rex to remove the build up of a lot of food and gravel in his intestine. As soon as he was awake from his operation he already looked much more comfortable.
When Rex came back in a week later for a check up he looked much brighter and happier. He was eating more normally and had pooed which was great news! Rex has made a brilliant recovery, and we will see him back after 6 weeks to take his skin stitches out.This is much longer than in dogs and cats because reptiles heal much more slowly.
