Not eating

[Poppys]

What can I do to get my baby to eat? I have been having him about 3 weeks..and never has been a huge eater. Not sure of age but if I had to guess I would say 2 months old. I offer variety of veggies every day..plus different types of insects. I just got in an order of small BSFL and he will not touch them...what can I do? Do I just wait it out?
Temps are good, I just replaced coil UVB wuth repti sun 10.0 tube. Any advice is welcome..this is stressing me out!!

[KarrieRee]

What is the tube you got? A T 5 or a T 8 ? It is common to not eat a lot but they should be eating something --- lets get the UVB situated and the basking temps correct--- how are you taking basking temps NO stick ons and what are they ? they should be 105-110 taken w/ a digital probe thermometer
Karrie

[Poppys]

T5 with 10.0 bulb. Temp in basking spot is between 105-110 with digital thermometer. He seems to take the repti boost from the 1ml syringe ok. I don’t know if I should continue doing this if wait for him to eat in his own.

[KarrieRee]

The screen on your tank is a fine mesh or wide hole type? And where is the T 5?
Karrie

[Poppys]

It’s fine mesh, I have it on top cover about 3/4 of tank. I still have coil bulb, should I use both?
ETA..he is still pooping on a daily basis..

[KarrieRee]

Please ditch the coil UVB its doing more harm than good ---- the UVB needs to go inside the tank - the screen is blocking 30% of the rays ---- here are some ways to hang - 3 M command Velcro fasteners- picture hanging wire – long plastic zip ties-- fishing line -- potted plant wire hangers-- I use this it works great you will need to cut them into strips its like a Velcro strap https://www.homedepot.com/p/GE-15-ft-Ca ... /304220195
https://www.showmecables.com/panduit-tt ... gImZ_D_BwE
Get your fixture inside the tank then take a piece of decor and place it directly underneath it approx 12-15 inches -- watch his behavior after getting it into the tank
Karrie

[Poppys]

Is it ok to put T5 fixture with 10.0 bulb inside tank? I bought this specifically because it say can work on top of tank. I did not buy the T8 fixture for this reason.

[KarrieRee]

Since your screen is a fine mesh it does need to go inside the tank -- all T 8's need to go inside the tank regardless ---- that bulb is not strong enough --- w/ your screen being a fine mesh it does need to go inside if the screen had been a wide hole type it could of gone on top
Karrie

[Poppys]

Ok, I just don’t want him to be exposed to to many UVB rays. I could cut the screen fir the light to go through or replace it with the wider screen. Do you think that would work?

[KarrieRee]

Yes just have your UVB directly above and 12-15 inches - he will be fine -- if you use wider screen and have it sit on top then it needs to be 8-10 inches directly above the basking decor
Karrie

[Poppys]

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge with me. I truly appreciate it. Will try that and see if his appetite pick up.
When I put the BSFL our for him he just looks at them for a bit and the runs away. I have also tried hand feeding and feeding a I a different enclosure but it did not seem to help...maybe because of UVB light setup? I would never have guessed that the lighting affected appetite so much.

[KarrieRee]

Yes the UVB synethsizes the calcium absorption- if they aren't getting the UVB rays to do that they won't eat-- that and basking temps need to be correct- those two things are the MOST IMPORTANT things in the tank
Karrie

[Poppys]

Checking in today to say that moving light seems to have made a difference! Eating much better today.
I am so glad you were here to help me out. Thanks again Karrie!

[KarrieRee]

Ok good glad to hear keep an eye on him hopefully that will make a difference now
Karrie

[Poppys]

Hiya, just any other quick update..dragon is more active and eating better. I shared this information about the fine screen mesh blocking the UVB (using t5 hood and 10.0 bulb) in a bearded dragon group. (This is where I had originally learned about the setup). Well of course they are telling me it’s fine, and that is way too powerful to go under screen no matter distances etc. all I can say is I am glad that I came here and asked, and followed your instructions, my beardie is better for it. If anyone else is reading there is A LOT of misinformation out there!
Thank you Karrie for helping me out.