I made a mistake with Nova my bearded dragon

#beardeddragon #reptile #reptiles
When I noticed the orange spots on my bearded dragon, Nova, I should have just immediately consulted the vet. Because I was not familiar with iridophoromas in bearded dragons, the thought did not even cross my mind. My only familiarity with iridophoromas is in lemon frost leopard geckos, which is something they're born with due to their morph. Because they have visible tumors from an early age and because it is morph-related, I didn't even think to wonder if the orange spots were pigment cells that could also cause cancer. I will use this failure on my end to be more aware of any color changes, however minimal, to my reptiles. And I hope you take my mistake and avoid it yourself.
Here is a research article about iridophoromas in reptiles, specifically lemon frost leopard geckos as they have been studied more heavily: journals.plos....
Here is my video about nova for those who missed it: • my bearded dragon died
Here is a link to Florida's Wildest Animal Rescue's post about the bearded dragon, Chester: / clwbl6nrjmj
BLACK SOLDIER FLY LARVAE (affiliate link):
Eco Flys ecoflys.com/?r...
USE CODE JESSICASANIMALFRIENDS FOR 10% OFF
SUPERWORMS (affiliate link): www.ovipost.co...
USE CODE JESSICASANIMALFRIENDS FOR 10% OFF YOUR FIRST PURCHASE
COOL REPTILE ENCLOSURES (affiliate links):
Zen Habitats www.zenhabitats...
Custom Reptile Habitats customreptileh...
All American Cages allamericancag...
AMAZON AFFILIATE SHOP:
www.amazon.com...
REALLY COOL REPTILE SHOES BY ZILLA FOOTWEAR (affiliate link)
zillafootwear....
WAYS TO SUPPORT MY ANIMAL FRIENDS:
Patreon: / jessicasanimalfriends
Merch: teespring.com/...
Donate: paypal.me/jess...
Amazon Wishlist: www.amazon.com...
WHERE TO FIND MY ANIMAL FRIENDS:
Instagram: / jessicasanimalfriends
Facebook: / jessicasanimalfriends
Tik Tok: jessicasanimalfriends
WHERE TO FIND ME:
Side KZbin Channel: / justjessica
Instagram: / jessicafennen
Twitter: / jessicafennen
CONTACT:
I am available by email here: [e-mail]
I am available through Instagram DMs (@ jessicasanimalfriends)
If you have questions about your pets, the best place to reach me is on Patreon, as I get direct notifications whenever I get a DM

[@JessicasAnimalFriends]

Please see the description for additional resources.

[@mellewedin8221]

Legit in all fairness the way you are describing this, I wouldn't have thought twice. I would have thought well they are aging maybe they it's that, it has to be. Like you said they where small dots that where not concerning looking cancer has a funny way of working. So plz stop beating yourself up girl. It's what my dad always called a hard lesson. He always told me some of life's lessons are really going to burn, and some will not so much. But now, making ppl aware of cancer and how real it is for reptiles and amphibians, is how Nova can still help ppl. It would fuel me to want to learn more about it and what signs to look for. Which will be doing with my turtle and Pac-Man frogs along with my African Dwarf Frogs.

[@leopardgeckotalk]

To be fair usually when animals have cancer they’ll not eat, lose weight, be lethargic, so other than the spots you couldn’t have really known. Don’t be too hard on yourself. You always provide the best for your pets 💕

[@stephravin8597]

It’s normal to go back and pick apart every would’ve could’ve should’ve- all we can do is learn and do our best the next time. I’m so very sorry for how you’re hurting, but try not to be so hard on yourself. It seems like you’re a great caretaker of these little friends of ours 💜

[@giuliagiuly6169]

This is similar to what happened to my HypoTrans Orange bearded dragon last month. One day I noticed she had this white discoloured patch on her head, I thought she needed to shed but it looked kinda suspicious because it was just this white regular shaped spot on her head, near the neck area. Vet told me it looked like she was pre shed. One day I come home from university just to find her laying under her basking spot, lifeless. Necropsy was done by another vet. Turns out that discoloration was a cancerous formation that silently spread to her brain and possibly caused a fatal seizure... This happened in 3 weeks. She was absolutely fine, she was eating, pooping, everything was normal. I'm still heartbroken. I'm sending you the biggest of hugs Jessica. Nova lived the best life she could ever live in your hands! (Deeply sorry for my broken English 🙏)

[@JessicasAnimalFriends]

Oh my gosh I’m so sorry for your loss

[@lindsayschmidt2177]

I’m so sorry about your beardie. I’m sure she had a wonderful life with you. ❤️

[@devent10n]

I'm so sorry for your loss. For what it's worth, your English is actually very easy to read, and I wouldn't have ever guessed that it was written by someone who wasn't confident in their ability. Give yourself more credit :)

[@valentinesolko4039]

I'm sorry this happened. Thank you for being a wonderful pet owner. Ps your English is better than a lot of people who primarily speak it ;) you're fine!

[@lindsayschmidt2177]

It isn’t your fault. Color changes are normal as reptiles grow and orange isn’t an odd color to see on a bearded dragon. You did all you could for her when you noticed the spots and I’m sure you gave her a wonderful life for the time she was here. It’s very obvious how much you loved her and how much you love and care for your other animals. Take care of yourself, and try not to be too hard on yourself. Sending you love and well wishes. ❤️

[@odakotarose]

I'm gonna quote another of my favorite youtubers, mamadoctorjones, and say "we do what we can with the information we have at the time". sometimes animals are really good at masking symptoms until the very end, and you didn't have any reason to immediately jump to a worst case scenario until you got new info. I am hearing a lot more about animals not living as long because of genetic issues, so it wouldn't surprise me. one thing I do know is that Nova had the best possible care and was loved to the end, you absolutely do right by your animals.

[@JessicasAnimalFriends]

Oh I like her channel too ❤️

[@donnamunday6749]

Love her 💜

[@duckheadbob]

I don't think you should've known better here, I think you did the absolute best anyone could have. Cancer as almost everyone knows here, is that great equalizer, one of the biggest challenges and mysteries we face in our own bodies. We have such difficulty In identifying symptoms of cancer in our own bodies that we know and intrinsically understand far better than are reptile counter parts. Coupled with the fact that you're right, Beardies do tend to have some color changes as they mature (like many reptiles) and I don't think there's any facet of this you should put blame on yourself for. It's incredibly sad you lost Nova, I feel for you, but you can still view this in a positive perspective: You gave Nova such a wonderful life full of love and attention that so many animals on this planet need and never get. You were a hugely positive impact on her life and there is NO question about that. And while Nova's passing is sad, through your spirit and dedication to the hobby, her life can be serve as a learning experience for all of us, so we can all better care for our loved animals. At every step of this you have been a positive force for both Nova and for the reptile community at large, not being able to save Nova from cancer (something modern scientists and doctors still cannot easily do for us), will never change that.

[@houndgirl7365]

Thoughts: Paradoxing can occur in beardies later in life. This malignant cancer that you bring up is indeed fascinating, but one can't just assume that that's what was going on unless testing occurs to definitively say if the scale babies death was caused by this illness. Genetics are complex and honestly even as a retired vet tech I personally wouldn't have been alerted to such pigment changes because it can and does happen (my brain would assume it was incomplete dominance in the zero or something like that). This info you shared is important to know and for that you honored Nova's memory! Don't beat yourself up your reaction and how you dealt with it makes sense. Take time to self care and just mourn.

[@JessicasAnimalFriends]

Thank you for this insightful comment!

[@silurtenr.3309]

My cat died of spleen cancer at 2.5 years old. Trust me when I tell you that sometimes there’s truly nothing you can do for them. I hope this bring you some comfort in knowing you did absolutely everything right for Nova and gave her the best life she could have had. Don't blame yourself❤

[@JessicasAnimalFriends]

I’m so sorry for your loss

[@Dayisnear]

So sorry for your loss ❤ but agreed with other commentors, it’s as you said, a untreatable form and just know that you’ve done great by Nova while she was in your care 💕 It sucks when we loose our companions prematurably and it is okay to grieve! Also, it is good of you to talk about it here so we get awareness going about it! 💕

[@t.mahoney9817]

I am so sorry it was Nova’s time to go. I know you will miss her terribly & you are wonderful about educating others when it comes to reptile care. But PLEASE do not blame yourself. You are the one who offered these incredible creatures a significantly longer & more comfortable life. You are very intelligent, but also human -forgive yourself too. 🙏💕🙏 Not only are you teaching adults & kids how to properly care for reptiles but when you share the hardships as well, it will better prepare owners how to handle that part too. (Emotionally & physically) Please never stop teaching Jessica! I look forward to seeing how far you take your passion! Blessings to you & your entire family! 🙏🦎🐸🌿💚

[@_mortiam]

There's two sides of this. You mentioned it, but I want to point that out. Yes, it doesn't generally hurt to check things out. However, there's the other side of making oneself crazy like, "OMG, THERE'S A TINY LITTLE SPECK! WHAT IF IT'S CANCER?". It's also important to stay calm and reasonable about it.

[@leslieann4909]

We don't know what we don't know. Period. And when we know better we do better. You sharing this may help someone. Like you said you couldn't have changed it in the end. Be kind to yourself. You love your babies and it's obvious you take good care of them.

[@amandashenefield4072]

My heart hurts for you love, but be confident in the fact that Nova had an amazing life with you and I'm sure she was so spoiled! Thank you for making this video, it was the reminder I needed to be more attentive to little differences I notice in my scale babies, I have bad anxiety so I'm one to brush things off and maybe downplay a little so I don't freak myself out and give myself a panic attack. The fact that you are using your grief and trauma to help others really shows how much you care and what an amazing person and pet momma you really are! ❤❤

[@stanwee]

my first beardie passed from an incredibly malicious stomach tumor, so i absolutely understand your grief. i was never given too much info on his care before we got him, and i had overthought every single thing about how this happened. the tumor was incurable and we didn’t know until i found him passed in his hammock. he had a stomach infection due to that and we thought that was it. don’t beat up yourself about not knowing this, there are so many things that affect beardies and especially different morphs. i wish you the best in your healing process, and all the best if you decide to get more or to take in more beardies. im a year or so into my mourning process, but i have a new baby who has been helping keep me less lonely. i hope your current animals keep you company in this hurtful time.

[@lukebrehm1986]

My wife has wanted a bearded dragon for ever. Love the enthusiasm for reptile pets.

[@stinnje]

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that a decent amount of vets wouldn't have thought to biopsy the orange spots either. Like you said, iridophoromas are rare in beardies. No matter how educated we are, we can never know every obscure illness out there or plan for every possibility even though our anxiety brains want to. There will always be things beyond our control no matter how hard we try and how hard we love our pets. Nature is chaotic by nature. (And I have heard the same things about bearded dragons being less healthy/robust overall, due to irresponsible breeding.) Please be kind to yourself.

[@kricket8801]

I found your channel from your tree frogs eating your fingers lmao

[@DriaTarian]

Thank you for sharing even though this is a hard time and a difficult subject. I admire how responsible you strive to be with your platform and your down to earth attitude. Try not to let this drag you too far down. Self-blame is a hard thing to shake when new information is thrown in your face and you feel like you've missed something that you now think should have been obvious to you then. You know you provided excellent care. Nova had an awesome life with you. No one who regularly watches your content could think otherwise. Please practice some self-care. Be good to yourself, but if that is too hard at the moment try to go to someone who loves you and let them be good to you until you can. ^_^

[@lorrifrogget911]

Dear Jessica, I’m so sorry for your loss. Perhaps your transparency about this painful event will be of use. I think this might be a very relevant video to me. My 3 y/o beardie is not a special morph, he looks normal and was originally purchased from a PetSmart (not by me.) I had noticed about a year ago that he has a bright orange spot above his hip and recently noticed one near the back of his head and just thought they were like cool little random beauty marks. Also the long spikes on the beard under his ear and on the side have been turning a bright pale orange in the past couple of months, but that is a symmetrical color change on both sides of his head/beard. I might bring it up to my vet at his appointment in a couple of weeks, but I’m not certain whether it would be worth it to biopsy it since literally nothing would change in his care and he is otherwise happy and healthy I’m the kind of person who likes to know everything ahead of time, but I’m already emotionally hanging by a thread and worrying may be more than I could take right now. I’ll have to think about it. But thank you so much for bringing it to my and your audience’s attention. It can’t be said enough: you are literally the best thing to ever happen in the lives of these little creatures. You are grieving, and that is important right now. But (spoiler) doing good in the world can have its down side, too, unfortunately. This ordeal has helped widen the scope of a great compassionate endeavor. Your ability to care for, love, and nurture so passionately is a blessing that can heal. You are a healer. These critters couldn’t be luckier than to be in your care, no matter what may come. You are not at fault for their passing. You made their living more comfortable. Thank you so much for all you’ve done. I hope you can continue to do more. 🌺 I am so sorry for your loss, and I share your grief.

[@JessicasAnimalFriends]

I’m glad that my video could help at least one person, it’s so hard to say if a random orange spot is just coloration change or something more. I wish you the very best luck

[@unsweetanxietea]

I'm deeply sorry for your loss and I know the feeling of wanting to blame yourself. You're very mindful for taking self accountability that your pet passed. It's really unfortunate things like this happen it is out of your control though. Just like animals we also as people pass unexpectedly and it's just the natural experience of life. Like others are saying don't be so hard on yourself you don't have to explain, you definitely tried everything you could and took care of them to the best of your abilities. This is really good information to know and I'm really glad you've shared. I own two bearded dragons and although they're not the same morph I honestly never would've thought of cancer either and I don't think I've heard anyone talk about it much in reptiles besides symptoms where it's heavily present. Definitely needs to be shared more! 💝

[@Midwest_Lizard_Mom]

You're an awesome keeper and educator. I would have never known about enigma syndrome or the lemon frost morph issues if it weren't for you. When I bought my last reptile i did a lot of research on the breeder to make sure they were ethical. Thanks for providing info now on an issue beardies can have. I have a zero morph, so now I know what to do and what it could be. Don't be hard on yourself. This was beyond your control.

[@kristiegittings7519]

Omg I’m so sorry to hear this! Our beardie has a red/orange spot 😮

[@diam0ndh34rt]

I like your videos with the frogs eating your fingers, it's so cute 😍😂

[@Genevieve.anne.]

I know saying this won't change it but don't blame yourself. You didn't know it wasn't ok. If you knew then you would have 100% done everything you can to help. It is good to make sure you learned from your mistakes as well. Although I still don't think this is your fault.. Big hugs to you. Healing isn't linear. ♡

[@Bekz715]

Don't beat yourself up. Owners and vets can miss things. It took almost a year for my vet to even come up with ideas as to what was causing my dog to be sick. We even had specialists taking care of her. By the time they finally had an idea of what was causing it, her quality of life was just too far gone. So we didn't pursue it any further. I do appreciate the education on this. I have a witblits and will definitely watch his coloring. Poor guy has enough issues from past owners lack of care.

[@JessicasAnimalFriends]

I’m sorry to hear about your dog :(

[@Bekz715]

@@JessicasAnimalFriends Thank you so much. It's definitely hard losing your furry and scaley babies.

[@Geckslove]

Im so sorry for what happened. Im just new to youc channel bec of my leo gecko. I know the pain. When i lost my dog i got depressed for like 2 continuos years like major depression. But I know i have to stand up again. I need to take care of my other pets. 9 years later here I am still somehow sad. Thinking i shouldve done this and that to save him.. but yeah life must go on.. Im new to leo gecko world and I appreciate all your videos ❤

[@4MPH1B1]

Don’t gotta say sorry we understand things with animals can get super confusing and hard. You don’t need to explain or say sorry we understand and we all feel bad for you we all wish we can do more or learn more it’s.not.your.fault. We can’t do everything right we all have mistakes hope you feel better.

[@nicolascwtchycreatures2504]

Don’t be too hard on yourself, it’s easy now to think back about what you could have done differently, but the truth is there were no signs leading upto her death that indicated she was unwell. We saw that in recent videos of her eating. You couldn’t have known or predicted what was about to happen. From all of your videos I’ve watched, I can see that you care deeply and love all of your pets. You always do the best for them and give them amazing lives. They’re lucky to have you ❤

[@kiscrazyreptiles]

I completely understand having the feeling of it being your own fault and that you could have changed the outcome but please understand it wasn't your own doing. When I've lost pets I've thought " what if I did ___ different " " mabey I should've just ____." Ect ect. We are all trying to improve but you can't greiv properly until you can forgive yourself and know you tried your best and provide amazing care.

[@SamanthaB293]

I think this is a great video for BD owners. It may be rare but the info needs to be out there! It was nothing you did and I wish you wouldn't blame yourself

[@imjustdoingmybest6236]

my boy has them and i'm devastated. i took him to the vet bc his eye is swollen and they said its likely a tumor or aneurysm. i didn't think anything of the spots either but now i know. i really know. i love him so much and idk what to do.

[@stephravin8597]

So sorry for ur loss ❤️‍🩹

[@nyves104]

please remember that you did the best you could with the information that you had. it will always be hard to lose an animal suddenly, esp when they were acting normal until the very end. be kind to yourself, hindsight may be 20/20 but the present and future are not 💜💜💜💜

[@WolfieDawn]

You do everything right. Everything, ok? You do your best. And that is all we can do.

[@ABCHerping82]

Dear Jessica, Losing a pet can be one of the most difficult things in life. If you read this, I want you to know that sometimes, grief can last.I hope your journey through it is smooth, and I hope you'll be ok Sincerely, Mason

[@idontwantyoutoknowmyname]

Sending positive thoughts to you.

[@GhostRMCF]

Hi, I have a couple of questions: I have a bought a Zoo Med Repti Basking Reptile Spot Lamp bulb and Zoo Med Repti Deep Dome Lamp. R these good for my geckos and also what else do I need to buy to control the temp?

[@ChantalsCritters]

Great information

[@sammicopor]

Cbd and cbg have been known to have cancer fighting properties. If this ever happens again, try some cbd for your pet, it may ease their suffering. Just a suggestion.

[@carriestouffer827]

❤ I wish I had that gecko pretty one with the orange eyes and black body. It’s kind of cute but my parents hate spiders and snakes don’t give me snakes or spiders. Give me a lizard please and I live that pinecone furnace route 577.

[@rdnkenki]

❤️

[@alisaurus8254]

I wonder how u would see the spots on a citrus 🤔

[@asstudio2613]

Здравствуйте😊🙋 Вы красивая 😍💓 девушка. Вас слушать🎧 очень приятно. Я под ✍ся, а вы?

[@teijaflink2226]

Seems like you did nothing wrong, sounds like it was either just bad luck or genetics, that makes me more angry at how irresponsible many reptile breeders are, they care more about looks rather than longetivity and healthy animals, I mean if the lifespans of bearded dragons are getting shorter the fault is on them. Sure it could be just bad luck, I don't think even if every breeders was responsible you can prevent all genetic issues and illnesses. But it must be just heartbreaking to lose her so young but try to not blame yourself. I'm sure too this information is very important to others who have bearded dragons, I'm sure many have not heard about this and what to look for.

[@annascholle9572]

Stop punishing yourself. You reached out to people to ask if they had any idea what the spots were, so you didn't "pay no attention." No one doubts how much you love your animals. Death is a part of pet ownership, and what happened with Nova is terribly sad, but you needn't linger on the "should'ves" and "could'ves." Nova was lucky to have you as a pet parent!

[@kendravoracek3636]

🤎🤎

[@kawaiigoomy3487]

You’re an amazing advocate for the proper care of animals, who is always willing to grow. Please be gentle with yourself, but I understand why it’s hard. ❤️ I’m so very sorry for your loss. Rest In Peace Nova. 🫂 I have unknowingly made a mistake. My old kitty, Shadow, passed away from kidney failure. 😓 Shadow was my best friend throughout childhood, just an amazing kitty that I miss dearly. 💔 The kidney failure might have been due to Lily poisoning, and I beat myself so much about that. 😢 My parents had a Lily, and I did not know just how dangerous they were even after looking it up. I’m still hard on myself about what happened, but I find solstice in warning people about dangerous plants like lilies. I remind myself that I’m always doing what I can to grow as a pet owner. I also remind myself that being cruel to myself is unfair, and it will just put me in an unhealthy mental state. Please be kind to yourself when you can. 🧘

[@JessicasAnimalFriends]

I’m so sorry for your loss ❤️

[@leam89]

Please try and be kind to yourself