Appetite fluctuations, feeder preferences

Short version: Concerned about juvenile beardie loss of appetite, refusal of usual staples

Detailed version:

Our beardie, Alduîn, is approximately 3 months old and has been with us for 3 weeks. At first we fed him crickets, which he wasn't super excited about and didn't eat many of. After a week we switched to small BSFL and he loved them! He would eat 20-30 per day. Well, we had some store credit at a local pet store and decided to get him some dubia roaches. He went absolutely ballistic and gobbled up all we had (maybe 30?) within 2 days. We have ordered 500 but they won't be here til Friday.

Unfortunately, he's turning his nose up at BSFL now despite how much he seemed to like them before. His intake has gone from 20-30 feeders a day to about 5. He poops every morning and usually at least once more each day, and he seems very well hydrated (some puddles with his urate), but he spends 95% of his time basking, never touches any veggies (collard/mustard/turnip greens, bell pepper, carrots, occasional apple or summer squash), and seems pretty inactive unless we let him run around on the hardwood floors. Out of desperation, we bought a bunch of crickets to try feeding him until the dubias show up, but after one or two he seems to give up -- even if I pull off the crickets' hind legs.

What are your thoughts on the situation and how we might address it? We're probably just being new-parent worry-warts, but perhaps the hivemind can see something we've been missing.

Our setup:


- 40G breeder tank, mesh top (usually not covered)
- Non-adhesive shelf liner "substrate"
- ReptiSun 22" 10.0 HO UVB mounted inside at rear top of tank, ~7" away from primary basking branch
- 150W household incandescent bulb in dome on lamp stand -- I've tried a 75W PAR30 but it didn't seem to get warm enough without being within leaping distance?
- Basking sites range from 100-115°F (37-46°C) depending on exact surface; "stump" and bridge are usually hottest at around 110-115°F (43-46°C) while branch is 100-105°F (37-41°C)
- Ambient tank temperature on hot side is about 95°F (35°C) during the day
- Ambient tank temperature on cool side is about 85°F (29°C) during the day, down to about 75°F (24°C) at night
- Temperatures taken by digital probe and/or Ryobi temp gun (the dial thermometers in the photo are pretty much worthless, not sure why I bother to keep them in there)

Other considerations:
- Lights on at 0630, lights off at 2000; he usually gets restless and falls asleep on couch with us around 1930 (however, noise and lights from kitchen & living room continue until ~2300; we try to keep him covered to protect from light pollution)
(Edited to add: We just took him out at ~1800 to collect leftover feeders and tidy the tank. He immediately burrowed into my partner's pocket and fell asleep. Are we giving him too much light and not enough sleep? Are we keeping him awake by keeping his tank in the same room as the TV where we spend our evenings? Perhaps he's ill?...)
- Daily mistings; baths once or twice weekly
- Weather permitting, ~30 minutes of direct sunlight outside daily (with hide in case he spots a bird or gets too warm)
- Alduîn had nearly full-body shed one week ago; still waiting on his tail to shed
- Despite constant basking, I haven't seen him gape in quite some time but I'm afraid to make the temps any higher...
- Two days ago, doubled the branches and hides in his tank because it seemed quite bare before (possible stress?)
- Seems to be disturbed by his own reflection, so I'm considering trimming the backgrounds and taping them inside the tank rather than outside

Your responses are appreciated!

I would leave the background where they are --- the UVB does it have a reflector on it?
Karrie

Hi there my beardie is also 3 months old. Same thing happened with us. He used to eat BSFL but after starting Dubai’s he wouldn’t eat them anymore. He loves his Dubai’s! Recently started offering just a couple small superworms a week, and he loves those. But they aren’t a good staple just a treat. As far as going to bed early ours does it all the time. I think they know what they need. Ours will go to bed in his hide before we even turn the lights off. We sometimes still have the tv on at night and it doesn’t seem to bother him. So if you took him out in the evening the lack of heat/uvb could prompt him to sleep. When we take ours out in the evening he will usually run around a bit then find somewhere comfy to fall asleep.

Thank you for your responses!

Karrie, the UVB does not have a reflector on it. Since reflectors effectively double the UVB intensity (if I'm understanding this correctly), I'm concerned that adding a reflector inside my 40-gallon tank will make the UV levels dangerously high at the mounting distance of 7" (and would rather not have the bulb outside the tank unless absolutely necessary). Would you be able to elaborate on your thoughts about the background?

Linzloohoo, glad to hear there is at least one other "pet parent" in a similar boat! I appreciate hearing your experiences with your beardie.

If its a T 8 6-8 inches is required -- as of now he is not really getting any UVB - you want it reflected toward him --- the rays are going all over the tank and not helping him - the background should stay on the back of the tank --- I guess you could put it inside but most leave it on the back --- I would be afraid of him trying to eat it --- others can elaborate on that subject
Karrie

Oops, I forgot to mention that it is a T5 HO. My reading suggested that they emit much stronger UVB than T8 (or regular T5), so they should not be as close; is this how you understand it as well?

Yes so its a T 5? So you can put that on top of the tank but you still need a reflector --- so the rays reflect into the tank and on him --- its still sending those UVB rays all over the tank -- that is why the appetite is off --- the basking area for it on top would be 12-15 inches from him
Karrie

Right, it's a T5 which is mounted inside the tank. Am I understanding that you suspect he is not getting enough UVB because the UV index is too low without the reflector?

My concern about a reflector is that my tank is only 16 inches tall, and Alduîn perches/basks on grapevine that is about 7 or 8 inches from the UVB bulb; according to Chart A of this link, adding a reflector to a T5 Reptisun 10.0 without a screen would raise the UV index to dangerous levels within 12 inches. The same chart indicates he should be getting "open sun" levels of UV at his basking spot without the reflector, but that would indicate that UVB underexposure would not be causing his appetite issues. :dontknow:

I would put the UVB on top of screen-- the bulb is strong enough but it needs to be in a hood- that way Ray's are reflected downward- basking should be 12-15 inches for a T 5- w/ a reflector
Karrie

Hi there, while it's true that the light shines differently with a reflector it is still good enough when you have a t5, there are still good rays going downward in to the tank.

Hi there,

Since you are using the t5 at that distance, it will be fine without the reflector

In fact, in most of my tanks I dont use a reflector. They aren't always necessary.

-Brandon

Thank you for your responses!

So after a few days of little eating, we ended up taking Alduîn to our local herp vet just to make sure there wasn't anything serious happening under the hood. The vet said he looked bright-eyed and active, and didn't show any signs of constipation etc. She figured he probably had just gotten overenthusiastic about the dubias and eaten a LOT such that it impacted his appetite for a few days. She instructed us to not even offer food for 24 hours, only water, then reintroduce feeders. We are happy to report that Alduîn scarfed down 15 BSFL for his evening meal!

Once again, our thanks to each of you for helping us troubleshoot (including the lighting).