Just rehomed a beardie that didnt seem well cared for, tips?

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Vallium

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Hello, Recently I adopted an older dragon from a family who was giving her away, I was pretty dissappointed at her lack of care, and even though I shouldnt have adopted a potentially sick beardie I figured I could do a better job giving her a better life just by switching up her routine, diet, environment.

She's five years old, they fed her on mealworms and superworms mainly most her life, and grasshoppers if they catch them. The cage setup was pretty ghetto with just a window screen atop an open cage and a single heat lamp.
Im not sure about the bulb Im contemplating replacing it ASAP with a UV-B/UV-A bulb like my other dragon has.

I didnt inspect her all too much, but her scale color seemed very dull, she seemed a bit scrawny, and four a five year old dragon she was not much bigger than my one year old (not sure if that's "normal"?). However, as soon as I brought her home in her new tank setup she stood on her legs right away the way dragons do when they are alert, and when I fed her she took to the dubias I fed her right away, so even if her physical condition seems lacking, behaviorally she seems quite healthy.

Im contemplating taking her to a vet though Ive never taken a reptile to a vet and am not sure what the cost would be for a general checkup.

Do you guys have any experience rehoming older dragons? How long did they live after? Can I expect her to live at least another two years in my care (given that longevity is 5-8 when basic needs are met). I want to give her a good life with what she's got left.
 

Gormagon

Extreme Poster
Dragons live 10 to 15 years and 20 years in rare cases.
To achieve this things have to be right ( aka; lights, heat, diet, substrate and, vivarium size)

I do not know how experienced you are so I'll start by saying, I am glad you found her and, took her in and, I'm sure she is too!
LIGHTING
UVB is super important to their survival. A good quality uvb light "thought they cost a bit more" but are well worth the money. I always recommend an Arcadia 12%D3 or the Reptisun 10.0 T5 HO that is at least 1/2 the length of the viv. A good uvb will provide your dragon with the rays they need to process the nutrients (calcium and vitamins) from their food. Improper uvb will block this process.
UVA is another light source that allows them to see in full spectrum color. They see more colors than we do. It also provides heat (basking bulb).
HEAT
Heat is equally important for body heat and, digestion. Heat gradients across the viv are a must. This allows them to control their body temperature.
Heat ranges should be
Basking Spot ............95° to 105°
Warm End....................90° to 95°
Cool End......................78° to 85°
DIET
In a perfect world an adult dragon's diet "should" consist of 80% veggies and, 20% live bugs but, they will fight you on this. You have to play it tough with them to achieve this with some dragons, bugs should be fed every other day. They can be stubborn at times, lol! Super worms and, meal worms should only be fed as treats if not avoided all together. Good staple bugs are, Dubai Roaches, BSFL, Silkworms and, Crickets.
Veggies are so important and, should be fed daily and kept as fresh as possible. This is where they get most of their vitamins and, hydration. Turnip, mustard and, collard greens are excellent staples, packed full of calcium and vitamins.
SUBSTRATE
Any type of loose substrate should be avoided (sand, calcisand, pebbles, bark chips ect...) Solid substrates are easier to keep clean and, have no impaction risk due to ingestion. Rough textured floor tile, nonadhesive shelf liner, paper towels and, newsprint are best. They do not harbour bacteria and, fungus like loose substrates. But as a last option, repticarpet is acceptable but, it does harbour bacteria and moisture, causing undesirable odors
VIVARIUM SIZE
An adequate space for your dragon is very important as well. They love to explore and, climb along with giving them exercise. The bare bones minimum space for an adult is a 40gl breeder tank, optimum is a 4 x 2 x 2. The more space they have (aka; territory) the happier they are.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Hi there, can you post some pics of her [ full body shots ] as well as your set up ? You got some good advice from Gormagon, and I'll just add to resist the impulse to feed her too many insects right now. Make sure she can handle the change in diet, s few good bugs every day but not more than 4-5 at first. I do use superworms as part of my dragon's diet but not usually more than 4-8 per week. Dubias are definitely a better choice but they must be fed no protein, just a veggie diet because they can develop high levels of uric acid which can , in turn, cause gout in a reptile.

Here's how to post pics :

https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Then use the XIMG to upload them
 

Vallium

Member
Original Poster
Thanks a lot guys! I didnt think I'd get responses fast enough and didnt know how active the forum here was

Thanks for the tips, I'll keep those in mind, I already knew a good bit of that but that's also a comprehensive list. The terrariums are not as perfect as I like however for my main beardie we have one more expensive $40 that provides both UV-A and UV-B and it lasts roughly six months before it needs to be replaced, the brand is Mega Ray Mercury vapor bulb
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00TRI4NPY/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?smid=AZ3IOW8ZC7Q2O&psc=1
I also have a lamp that just produces heat in the middle, the temp is adjustable.

Though i might have to shoot for a 100w instead since a 160w is too much for the 40gal tank she's in.


Anyways, I think I could really use some solid judgement on how she looks so I tried to post some pictures, this is only my second well-cared for dragon (the first when I was a child and my parents didnt help me care for it right because they dont care about that, sadly)

Here's some pics:

90888-3968019905.jpg
90888-7794097033.jpg
90888-8740094904.jpg
90888-2592078275.jpg
90888-4230161519.jpg

From what I can see, her scale colors are dull (dont know if it's just a normal dull brown), her eyelids almost always seem a little glazed unlike my other beardie who's eyes are well open when alert, she's very flat and skinny while my other beardy is round and has a little weight when I hold her. In those comparison photos you can see my one year old on the left is slightly larger and thicker than the five year old on the right, who is scrawnier and her head is less wide.


So professional thoughts? Is she really malnourished for her age or is it normal for five year old beardies to wear with age?

Also first poster says not to feed as much insects since she's an adult but shouldnt it help bulk her up? At the very least Im shooting for every other day if that's the case.


Thanks for anyone who can help!
 

Vallium

Member
Original Poster
Also, I take my beardies out at least once a day to handle and roam, she's taking to it well and running around the room quite a bit. I think this could contribute to her health as well, do you think?
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
She doesn't look horrible but def. has issues.....keep her away from yours since you don't know if this one has anything contagious. The color is just natural color other than the shed that has yet to come off on her hindquarters/tail. Be slow with the insects just so she doesn't overload her system which will need adjusting to the new diet. And offer water dripped on her snout for hydration. Be patient....drip, stop, repeat. Some dragons that are dehydrated don't realize they are getting a drink until after a minute or so, then they begin to lap it up. Is her belly clean or are there spots/poo or anything out of the ordinary ?


The Megaray should be a good bulb, that would work for her.
 

Vallium

Member
Original Poster
Okay, sounds good. Yeah, she isnt super sickly or worse for wear, she just seemed smaller than my beardie and for a five year old I dont know if that was okay. Her belly also seemed fine when I checked, nothing out of the ordinary.

Thanks again
 

Vallium

Member
Original Poster
Guess i will update this since all is well, Reyna seems to be doing well after all. She still is smaller than my own, but she's building fat a little and her coloration seems to be brighter.

I just bought her new UV-A/UV-B bulb but don't have the fixture for it yet, right now she's basking under Rio's lamp while Rio takes a trip out. She's loving it, standing up straight and high to take in the rays. Definitely is showing a lot of improvement in only the few days I've had her. Rio's been a grump around her though, I hope that changes but I guess it's silly to expect otherwise, so no surprise if she doesnt
 
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