Bearded dragon very dehydrated won’t drink water HELP!

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Lisscruz797

New member
I have a bearded dragon that’s about a year old, I struggled to make her consume water. I would spray her and she never drank water so I started misting her food and I wouldn’t leave water inside her tank to avoid too much moisture. Recently she’s been very lethargic and wrinkly she stopped eating and I gave her some water yesterday that she drank smoothly. She is still very dehydrated I’m scared she is gonna die and as much as I try I can’t get her to drink water. I’ve been using a syringe but i can’t get her to open her mouth. I can’t afford a vet and I’m scared she doesn’t have a lot of time, can someone please advice me on how to hydrate her?!
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Hi there, how long has it been since she was eating ? If you can,post some pics of your girl. Also of her set up + list the exact type + brand of lights you have. Here's how to post pics :
https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Then use the XIMG to upload them

You can offer water via syringe or eyedropper, mix a wee bit of natural fruit juice like grape or apple but nothing citrus.
 

Beardeddtagonlover

Hatchling Member
Dragons can't see water or non moving things buy a syringe and give water that way,also if you move the water in the town they will drink I tested it today my 3 month beardie drank also the skin color changes when they get some water you have to aid him to drink
 

Drache613

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hello,

Sorry your girl is so dehydrated. Has she recently laid any eggs or been ill which has caused
her to be so dehydrated?
Do you have any pictures of her we could see to look at her physical condition?
Will she not take water from a dropper or syringe very well, by dripping it onto her snout?
Can you review your tank setup such as the type/brand of UVB, supplementation schedule,
feeding & temperatures so we can be sure everything is all correct.
Is she eating anything? Let us know how she is doing.

Tracie
 

Lisscruz797

New member
Original Poster
I’ll try to post some pictures later because I am not at home right now but I have her in a, I believe 50 gallon tank, it’s one of the bigger ones, she has an all in one bulb. I believe she’s about a year old.I managed to give her water the day before yesterday. She drank a lot with the syringe and relaxed afterward. That day she gave a cucumber slice a few bites but she hasn’t tried eating anymore, her skin is very wrinkly. I’ve been trying to give her water through a syringe but she won’t take any, I gave her a bath hoping she’d drink. I’ve only had her a little bit over 2 months so I don’t know how she likes to drink water. Before she got sick I would spray her, put food in her water but she fishes out the food and won’t drink water. I’ve tried so many ways of getting her to drink water but then I heard that they get their water through what they eat so I would mist her food but apparently that wasn’t good enough. My problem right now is getting her to at least drink water or find a different way to hydrate her.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Pictures will be immensely helpful. One thing to keep in mind is that an underweight lizard is going to be wrinkly, so her being wrinkly is probably from a long time with sub-standard care, her previous owner may not have provided enough protein and if the light is not putting out enough heat and uvb that will cause a loss of appetite. So what you may see as dehydration may be a combination of lack of food AND water.

The fact that she drank a syringe full a couple of days ago is great, just offer it to her every few days. And if the lighting is a problem then once you get that fixed she should perk up. If she's eating veggies, that's good. Use greens like collard, turnip, mustard, kale, endive, dandelion as well as squash, sweet peppers, green beans.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Aside from being a bit thin and dehydrated she is not bad at all, no where near death. The sand may be a problem, some dragons eat it [ intentionally or accidentally ] and can become impacted. And please post pics of her entire set up including lights, if they are not strong enough uvb it will affect her appetite + cause lethargy + other problems. What type of uvb do you have ?
 

Lisscruz797

New member
Original Poster
Sorry I haven’t replied, I got very busy but she doesn’t seem to be getting better. I vacuumed out all the sand and I don’t have the best set up for her. She seems more energized but her skin is still very wrinkly and she’s thin. I have another bearded dragon and he’s also having issues, he’s very bloated and only “pooped” hard white urate. They need to eat their veggies but they don’t and i might have to consider finding a better home. ?
 

Eteda

Member
Liss
it took me 3 weeks to figure out my beardies water thingy and it was just last night. I kept rearranging his vivurium every night until I finally put his water dish under his heat light. I let it heat up all morning until about 12 pm. the second I put him in it he drank as if he hadn't water for days even though the night befor I soaked him 15 minutes in the sink.
the same thing happened tonight. i put him in it and he drank really good again. I have also resorted to tube feeding him the repti-boost because he wont eat. but I did get him to eat one waxworm today.
I took the temperature of the water while he was was in it and it was 100.5 believe it or not. I was amazed. He doesn't want cold water. go figure. He soaks about 30-45 minutes. he has to spin around to get his tail in. I have to get him a bigger dish. He does have a smaller water dish on the other side of the enclosure that has cold water just in case. mainly just to ease my mind.
So try offering your beardie warm water 95 degrees or so and see if that will help. Mine seams to use it to warm up in and turns brightly colored when he's in the warm water. streaches out and naps even. Ill try and post pictures.
 
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