new juv beardie ?? living without uvb but healthy ?

i am beyond terrified.

i'm like, 15 years old and i've been working for a while and decided that i'd finally saved up for a lizard and bought one from a lady looking for a new home. at the time i was looking at him he was really small and looked super healthy ! the lady said to give her a while and she'd hold him for me as well as supply all the needed bulbs and some food. I was beyond happy ! i went to go pick him up, and she gave me the tank, the lizard, some things to decorate (i had purchased some thing in the mail and was waiting for them to show bfore i finished up the tank) and then... a basking light.

at the time i thought it was normal, i was just so so happy to get him and hold him. he was super active ! he was jumping all over the place and eating.

i get home and realize the lady never included the uvb. she never mentioned the uvb. he'd been living 2 months without it, and however many months before i asked to hold him in her care without it. i was so, so scared when i began looking up the effects more carefully.

i'm buying the uvb as soon as possible, hopefully within the next 1-3 days. ASAP. the thing is-

he's so, so active. he has a hugge appetite. he runs around and hops and basks in his light and is never sluggish or slow. he's actually super fast, and loves hoping from pillow to pillow on my bed. he curled up with me and slept around the proper time while i heated up his cage for the night with his basking light. i'm just so worried, will something happen in the future. (i'll be bringing him outside for the next few days for uvb in case i don't get the light as soon as i hope). i'd seen videos of him before i got him- two months ago. he's exactly the same ! running around his cage, growing like a weed. he's been given all the proper suppliments (she gave me a bag of each as well so i know he's been eating them) but no uvb ??? how, how did this go unnoticed ? will he be ok ?

what im really confused on is- the woman showed us her adult she's been caring for since it was a baby and it didn't seem to look unhealthy ? no sign of a bone disease or crooked limbs/jaw/spine etc. HOW

You can never trust anything told to you by the prior owner . First lesson learnt.

Need much more information and details on your beardie's setup and your husbandry otherwise we can't even hazard a guess.

Here's my Cheat Sheet :
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=234738&p=1806050#p1806050

If you work through it methodically , the chances are their are likely a lot of issues that need to be tweeked or changed and they will pop right out at you, if you can give very detailed answers we will then be in a position to offer help.
Is impossible to help you if you don't provide thorough details .

It may prove necessary to involve a reptile vet if your bearded dragon has serious health issues.

Are you in a position to afford to take him to a good reptile vet ?
... I think this is necessary .

You need to have your bearded dragon checked by a vet to check for the serious conditions that are caused by little or no exposure to ADEQUATE UVA and UVB for a long time, he needs both !

The vet needs to be a reptile vet as general and exotics vets are not qualified to handle reptile health. THIS IS A MATTER OF HIGH PRIORITY if you are correct tbat it's had no UV for an extended period.
here is a list of reptile vets : viewtopic.php?f=45&t=234369&p=1803862&hilit=melissa#p1803862

You need to show your parents this thread and convince them your bearded dragon is more than likely sick even if he's not showing this obviously to you (they are very good at hiding it when they ill , and when they show they are ill , it's often too late to save them and they can go downhill very fast (essentially dead within a few hours of showing any symptoms).

On the matter of UV : IT IS MANDATORY for a bearded dragon to remain healthy and live. NO IFFS NO BUTS.

Hi there....if he is active, eating and looks good then just get him on track with a proper uvb bulb and good calcium supplementation now and he should be fine. If he's not acting sick he doesn't need a vet, the vet will only recommend the things he needs that you are already addressing. Getting him in the sun will hold over his uvb needs until the bulb comes in. Never put him out in a glass tank though, you can use a large, clear plastic tote with branches for climbing like I have in my picture here, but it MUST be positioned near a tree or something that casts mottled shade over it so he doesn't over heat.

https://www.beardeddragon.org/media/29895/full

https://www.beardeddragon.org/media/29981/full

I can't comment on the previous owner's adult dragon, they must have been taking it outdoors all
along and never mentioned it. And her adult dragon may not have deformities but if it didn't get adequate uvb it may have been very unhealthy without looking so visibly .

THANK you for the advice and tips. I went out today and got supplies for my baby and pimped out his old, ugly, not healthy cage.

Currently I have a 75 watt eco terra basking light ? It came with him so I'm assuming that's what's kept him alive for so long. (idk if you can tell in the pic, but im p sure he's like 6' away?? is this too close? might b}
Went out and got the reptisun 10.0 18 inch for his new 20 gallon. It's inside of an aquarium type rig but it fit and is working perfectly fine! I'm sorry to say it's sitting on top of the screen but I didn't have the required material to place inside. Will get on that.

https://i.imgur.com/byyn2LE.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/z8QVZ0g.jpg
Sorry everything's so dark it was 8 when I finished.

I placed him inside and (to be expected) he gave me puppy eyes due to the fact I'd just given him a whole new home. I knew he'd be a little stressed out but I hope he's alright. Gave him some strawberry and collard greens and he immediantly hopped over and devoured a huge chunk of it. Once he was done he froze, then hopped over and is now basking under his light on his new branch. About to feed him his dinner of crickets (or maybe I should just dust a few mealworms and have that instead as a treat?) thinking of having him snuggle with me at bedtime when I turn off his lights so his tank warms up a bit more and then I'll turn it all off and put him to bed.

krisspt":1fvpsxfj said:

THANK you for the advice and tips. I went out today and got supplies for my baby and pimped out his old, ugly, not healthy cage.

Currently I have a 75 watt eco terra basking light ? It came with him so I'm assuming that's what's kept him alive for so long. (idk if you can tell in the pic, but im p sure he's like 6' away?? is this too close? might b}
<<<< Neodymium basking globes only provide UVA and light and some heat .... he's not had any UVB which is very serious .... definitely needs a vet to check his bone density and for early stage MBD .


Went out and got the reptisun 10.0 18 inch for his new 20 gallon. It's inside of an aquarium type rig but it fit and is working perfectly fine! I'm sorry to say it's sitting on top of the screen but I didn't have the required material to place inside. Will get on that.
<<<< 20 gallon is tiny even for a rearing viv , wont be comfortable for long in that .


https://i.imgur.com/byyn2LE.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/z8QVZ0g.jpg
Sorry everything's so dark it was 8 when I finished.

I placed him inside and (to be expected) he gave me puppy eyes due to the fact I'd just given him a whole new home. I knew he'd be a little stressed out but I hope he's alright. Gave him some strawberry and collard greens and he immediantly hopped over and devoured a huge chunk of it. Once he was done he froze, then hopped over and is now basking under his light on his new branch. About to feed him his dinner of crickets (or maybe I should just dust a few mealworms and have that instead as a treat?) thinking of having him snuggle with me at bedtime when I turn off his lights so his tank warms up a bit more and then I'll turn it all off and put him to bed.

Click to expand...

Need a domestic plug in (in-line) light timer , set and forget to control lights on and lights off (for basking globe and UV tube. Need a day cycle of at least 14-15 hrs , I run my lights via a timer so they come on automatically at 6am and turn off at 10pm.

Hello,

I'm glad that you went ahead & got a Reptisun 10 tube bulb. Is it mounted on top of the screen
or underneath of it?
How often do you plan on supplementing him with calcium? He will need it 4-5 days per week,
to help maintain his bones & while he is growing.
He should be just fine with lighting no w & a better home.

Tracie

I hear you on the 20 gallon- it's still a huge upgrade from the 10 he came in. I have a reptile specialist nearby, thanks to checking the link you sent and I'm gonna see if I get get him in soon ! Again my parents aren't covering anything and I have a low end job so I was hoping to wait a few days until I get my next paycheck to cover any additional costs I can't foresee.

Also that's actually when I've been turning his stuff on and off, only an hour off. I get up at 7 and turn off at 10, but I'll look into a timer in case of human error.

I dust his crickets (dubias coming soon) on most meals, give or take a few (or that's my sceduale anyways)

And it's outside the screen right now but I'm planning to fit it inside with some hooks soon- I just wanna get as much uvb as I can in at the moment even if it's on the screen.

Update: after a good hour under his basking light + uvb he explored every nook and cranny of his cage ( I don't think he understands hides yet, or ever had one. I'll show him he has a log one soon) I dusted and fed him quite a few crickets, I was frightened at first because I thought he wasn't eating over devouring his salad but in reality he was busy looking at my hand and didn't realize I dropped the first cricket in until it hopped on his head. Then he was... lightning fast hunter with all his food. He passed out at bed time under his basking branch.

That's great that you've made some upgrades already, good for you. Looks like he DOES have a hearty appetite, and what a bonus that he likes his veggies ! He will grow very quickly and need a larger tank as mentioned so if you keep on the lookout for a good used large terrarium or tank for him you can start saving now or look at the DIY here and have the experience of building one.

BTW,is the 20 gallon tank a long or a tall ? With a 20 long it would be O.K. to have the Reptisun bulb on top if you have the screen with the larger holes, since it's a short tank. Can you post a shot of the full tank and one of the screen ? The 20 tall is too high for very much uvb to travel down in to the tank effectively except if you had one very tall basking spot. Are you able to get him in the sun a few times a week ? That can make up for any lack of good uvb. I've raised baby beardies since the 90's and if they are given what they need before showing any signs of MBD then they do fine.

No need to rush to a vet and he doesn't need a bone density test at all, even if he began to exhibit any signs of MBD you would just need more uvb and calcium.....that's it. As Drache613 stated, you're doing what needs to be done.

it is indeed the 20L ! the mesh is actually kinda small but if need be i can always make an opening for the bulb to get in while staying safe. he's doing well this morning, a little bit of wall surfer but i expect it's because of all the new stuff (and he regularly fights his own reflection)
as i type im pretty sure he's about to poop- his tummy is p big and he's looking around the middle of his cage for a new spot (he only pooped in one spot in his old tank.

the only thing im kinda worried about is his basking spot- it isn't very flat ( i took a pic ). is this alright ? when he's basking he sits right on top ( his upper half on the higher area) i just wanted to make sure it isn't too bad for him. he climbed up there rather well seeing as he's never had a high basking spot before.
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/222547852054757377/338062982301089792/image.jpg
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/222547852054757377/338062978136014848/image.jpg
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/222547852054757377/338062964076838912/image.jpg

The mesh is not the super small screen that is like what we have on our windows, that type you have is the kind that lets more uvb through than the fly type screen. And the basking log is a very nice one, beardies love to climb on those types of wood pieces so it should suit him fine.

update - he took a loooooooong time drinking from the sink today promptly before getting in the water ... and pooping. it was mostly solid until it broke and half and like ... TMI WARNING : totally like broke and half and multiple vaguely looking leaves came out. awesome. he's now chomping down on some more food. he seems to be doing well ! im happy

Sounds like a real chow hound. Be sure that his temps. are high enough [ around 105 ] in the basking spot for good digestion.