Asleep too early?! So worried

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Blueal92

Member
Hi all,
I just wanted to ask a question about my 2-3 month old bearded dragon named Jax.
I have had him now 13 days and when I first got him I set all my lights (uv, basking and natural) on a timer to 8am-8pm as this is what the pet store had him on. However over the last week he started bedding down at 7pm so we changed his lights to 7am-7pm thinking it would help him but now he is going to sleep anywhere from 5pm. He seems active during the day, it takes him a while to come around in the morning so he won’t eat until about 10.30 onwards. He had started shedding the day before he came home with us and has shed a little but I can’t see anymore peeling skin to suggest he is still shedding. He has been a fussy eater since the day he came home. He wouldn’t eat the size 3 hoppers he was on apparently in the store, I think they seemed too big for him, so for a week he ate a total of 7 wax worms, he will now eat brown crickets in size 3 and a big salad eater but he is still only eating between 5 and 20 crickets per day and only then in a feeding box rather than his viv. His basking area is anywhere between 41C and 43C but mostly at the far end of 42C, his cooler end is always bang on 29.8C. He is on nutrabol and calcium powder on alternating days. He is hydrated as he poops on schedule in the same place every day with wee in it plus he adores having baths occasionally and splashes about in his water bowl everyday. I also weigh him everyday because he wasn’t eating he was 17g when I got him but now is 25g and has held that weight for 2 days.

So my question is am I doing something wrong as to why he is sleeping earlier or do I need to adjust his light timers in winter(I am in the UK) as I’ve heard conflicting things about 12-14 hours a day in summer and 10-12 in winter. I’m just so worried about my little man! I’ve had adult beardies before but this is my first baby.

So sorry for long post thank you to anyone who can help.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Hi there, can you post pics of your baby, of the enclosure and also the size of the crickets ?
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Blueal92":36xx9mbr said:
Hi all,
I just wanted to ask a question about my 2-3 month old bearded dragon named Jax.
I have had him now 13 days and when I first got him I set all my lights (uv, basking and natural) on a timer to 8am-8pm as this is what the pet store had him on.
>>> for starters , a 12 hr photocycle is NOT adequate , it's telling Jax it's winter , see this :
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=236209&p=1815777#p1815777
…. bump it up to at least 15 hrs ( I run a 16 hrs photoperiod year round for my beardies and skinks).


However over the last week he started bedding down at 7pm so we changed his lights to 7am-7pm thinking it would help him but now he is going to sleep anywhere from 5pm. He seems active during the day, it takes him a while to come around in the morning so he won’t eat until about 10.30 onwards.
<<< he's waking with the sun, but isn't warm enough to feel hungry for a few hours , set your timer to turn on the lights at 6am , he'll be well and truly warmed up by 9am and should be ready for brekky .
He had started shedding the day before he came home with us and has shed a little but I can’t see anymore peeling skin to suggest he is still shedding. He has been a fussy eater since the day he came home. He wouldn’t eat the size 3 hoppers he was on apparently in the store, I think they seemed too big for him, so for a week he ate a total of 7 wax worms, he will now eat brown crickets in size 3 and a big salad eater but he is still only eating between 5 and 20 crickets per day and only then in a feeding box rather than his viv. His basking area is anywhere between 41C and 43C but mostly at the far end of 42C, his cooler end is always bang on 29.8C. He is on nutrabol and calcium powder on alternating days. He is hydrated as he poops on schedule in the same place every day with wee in it plus he adores having baths occasionally and splashes about in his water bowl everyday. I also weigh him everyday because he wasn’t eating he was 17g when I got him but now is 25g and has held that weight for 2 days.
My policy with young / growing lizards is to weigh them at the same time once a week , too much fluctuation if you weigh them daily.

So my question is am I doing something wrong as to why he is sleeping earlier or do I need to adjust his light timers in winter(I am in the UK) as I’ve heard conflicting things about 12-14 hours a day in summer and 10-12 in winter. I’m just so worried about my little man! I’ve had adult beardies before but this is my first baby.
<<<< well when you look at the charts I've provided it'll give you a good handle on summer and winter daylight hours in their natural range .
Jax is a hatchling so he's going to be better off kept on a long photoperiod , gives him more time to stay warm and metabolise his food and will discourage him from going into brumation.

Breeders believe a slowdown / period of brumation over winter increases the fertility of bearded dragons , there in no reason for a dragon to brumate when it's a companion pet.

Can you show us the lighting setup
can you tell us exactly what your lighting is (basking globe, UVB source) / brands, W, %UVB and distance from basking spot and from floor of tank.

Is he sharing the tank ?
Can he see another reptile ?

So sorry for long post thank you to anyone who can help.
 

Blueal92

Member
Original Poster
Hi thank you for your response,

Jax is the only reptile we have so he is solitary and I would never breed him so he would be the only one.

We have adjusted his timer so it goes off earlier to get him ready for breakfast. It goes on around the time our heating comes on as it's considerable cooler here for us so it will be for him and that helps bring his temps up sooner. Which we have found he is ready earlier and earlier for breakfast.

If we adjust it to 16hrs would that help him stay awake longer or is there anything we can do to help him with that?

Here is his cage we got from the pet store with all the dimensions and details on the lights and strengths in the lights. We have added the decoration accessories. The store we got him from had him on wood chips we put in the reptile carpet but he just won't walk on it so he spent days without going down for water or salad so we are gradually changing him from the chips to the carpet.
Today he has surprised us as the most he's eaten in one day is 28 crickets today he's had 47 which is amazing to see.

This is the viv:

https://www.vivexotic.co.uk/products/species/bearded-dragon/vivexotic-bearded-dragon-starter-kit-oak.html

And I will upload pictures of his tank and Jax.

Thank you again for helping



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101618-2001015735.jpg
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kingofnobbys":1zuh2jjx said:
Blueal92":1zuh2jjx said:
Hi all,
I just wanted to ask a question about my 2-3 month old bearded dragon named Jax.
I have had him now 13 days and when I first got him I set all my lights (uv, basking and natural) on a timer to 8am-8pm as this is what the pet store had him on.
>>> for starters , a 12 hr photocycle is NOT adequate , it's telling Jax it's winter , see this :
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=236209&p=1815777#p1815777
…. bump it up to at least 15 hrs ( I run a 16 hrs photoperiod year round for my beardies and skinks).


However over the last week he started bedding down at 7pm so we changed his lights to 7am-7pm thinking it would help him but now he is going to sleep anywhere from 5pm. He seems active during the day, it takes him a while to come around in the morning so he won’t eat until about 10.30 onwards.
<<< he's waking with the sun, but isn't warm enough to feel hungry for a few hours , set your timer to turn on the lights at 6am , he'll be well and truly warmed up by 9am and should be ready for brekky .
He had started shedding the day before he came home with us and has shed a little but I can’t see anymore peeling skin to suggest he is still shedding. He has been a fussy eater since the day he came home. He wouldn’t eat the size 3 hoppers he was on apparently in the store, I think they seemed too big for him, so for a week he ate a total of 7 wax worms, he will now eat brown crickets in size 3 and a big salad eater but he is still only eating between 5 and 20 crickets per day and only then in a feeding box rather than his viv. His basking area is anywhere between 41C and 43C but mostly at the far end of 42C, his cooler end is always bang on 29.8C. He is on nutrabol and calcium powder on alternating days. He is hydrated as he poops on schedule in the same place every day with wee in it plus he adores having baths occasionally and splashes about in his water bowl everyday. I also weigh him everyday because he wasn’t eating he was 17g when I got him but now is 25g and has held that weight for 2 days.
My policy with young / growing lizards is to weigh them at the same time once a week , too much fluctuation if you weigh them daily.

So my question is am I doing something wrong as to why he is sleeping earlier or do I need to adjust his light timers in winter(I am in the UK) as I’ve heard conflicting things about 12-14 hours a day in summer and 10-12 in winter. I’m just so worried about my little man! I’ve had adult beardies before but this is my first baby.
<<<< well when you look at the charts I've provided it'll give you a good handle on summer and winter daylight hours in their natural range .
Jax is a hatchling so he's going to be better off kept on a long photoperiod , gives him more time to stay warm and metabolise his food and will discourage him from going into brumation.

Breeders believe a slowdown / period of brumation over winter increases the fertility of bearded dragons , there in no reason for a dragon to brumate when it's a companion pet.

Can you show us the lighting setup
can you tell us exactly what your lighting is (basking globe, UVB source) / brands, W, %UVB and distance from basking spot and from floor of tank.

Is he sharing the tank ?
Can he see another reptile ?

So sorry for long post thank you to anyone who can help.
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Blueal92":bth2y77b said:
Hi thank you for your response,

Jax is the only reptile we have so he is solitary and I would never breed him so he would be the only one.

We have adjusted his timer so it goes off earlier to get him ready for breakfast. It goes on around the time our heating comes on as it's considerable cooler here for us so it will be for him and that helps bring his temps up sooner. Which we have found he is ready earlier and earlier for breakfast.

If we adjust it to 16hrs would that help him stay awake longer or is there anything we can do to help him with that? <<<< Works with all my skinks and beardies and I've been doing the 16hr photoperiod year round for nearly 10 yrs now , they do like to have siesta most afternoons but are back up basking later.

Here is his cage we got from the pet store with all the dimensions and details on the lights and strengths in the lights. We have added the decoration accessories. The store we got him from had him on wood chips we put in the reptile carpet but he just won't walk on it so he spent days without going down for water or salad so we are gradually changing him from the chips to the carpet.
Today he has surprised us as the most he's eaten in one day is 28 crickets today he's had 47 which is amazing to see.

This is the viv:

https://www.vivexotic.co.uk/products/species/bearded-dragon/vivexotic-bearded-dragon-starter-kit-oak.html

And I will upload pictures of his tank and Jax.

Thank you again for helping



101620-1521781488.jpg

>>> I VERY STRONGLY SUGGEST you remove the wood chips (they are good for going on garden beds , but are extremely hazardous to a dragon, who risks a very serious impaction if it swallows any (he will get bigger very fast and soon those chips will be easy swallowed but next to impossible to pass with his poo).


Also the fake (plastic) leafy stuff is a risk.... bearded dragons have been know to try to eat fake green leaves , and if the pieces bitten off are not digestable , and can't be passed , this is another impaction risk.
I found this out the hard way …. Peppa promptly started trying to eat fake green leaves attached to her fake stone grotto in her rearing tub , about the same as your's fortunately I was home and watching and saw this and was able intercede before any damage was done by immediately removing her grotto and removing all fake green leafy stuff attached to it (used a box cutter blade and a chisel).



101618-6456418368.jpg
101618-5040946887.jpg
101620-3275417858.jpg
101627-7674121130.jpg
101627-2814736180.jpg
101618-865137233.jpg
101618-2001015735.jpg
101618-3810271537.jpg
101628-5566448588.jpg

Other than those two issues , the tank and set up looks OK .



kingofnobbys":bth2y77b said:
Blueal92":bth2y77b said:
Hi all,
I just wanted to ask a question about my 2-3 month old bearded dragon named Jax.
I have had him now 13 days and when I first got him I set all my lights (uv, basking and natural) on a timer to 8am-8pm as this is what the pet store had him on.
>>> for starters , a 12 hr photocycle is NOT adequate , it's telling Jax it's winter , see this :
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=236209&p=1815777#p1815777
…. bump it up to at least 15 hrs ( I run a 16 hrs photoperiod year round for my beardies and skinks).


However over the last week he started bedding down at 7pm so we changed his lights to 7am-7pm thinking it would help him but now he is going to sleep anywhere from 5pm. He seems active during the day, it takes him a while to come around in the morning so he won’t eat until about 10.30 onwards.
<<< he's waking with the sun, but isn't warm enough to feel hungry for a few hours , set your timer to turn on the lights at 6am , he'll be well and truly warmed up by 9am and should be ready for brekky .
He had started shedding the day before he came home with us and has shed a little but I can’t see anymore peeling skin to suggest he is still shedding. He has been a fussy eater since the day he came home. He wouldn’t eat the size 3 hoppers he was on apparently in the store, I think they seemed too big for him, so for a week he ate a total of 7 wax worms, he will now eat brown crickets in size 3 and a big salad eater but he is still only eating between 5 and 20 crickets per day and only then in a feeding box rather than his viv. His basking area is anywhere between 41C and 43C but mostly at the far end of 42C, his cooler end is always bang on 29.8C. He is on nutrabol and calcium powder on alternating days. He is hydrated as he poops on schedule in the same place every day with wee in it plus he adores having baths occasionally and splashes about in his water bowl everyday. I also weigh him everyday because he wasn’t eating he was 17g when I got him but now is 25g and has held that weight for 2 days.
My policy with young / growing lizards is to weigh them at the same time once a week , too much fluctuation if you weigh them daily.

So my question is am I doing something wrong as to why he is sleeping earlier or do I need to adjust his light timers in winter(I am in the UK) as I’ve heard conflicting things about 12-14 hours a day in summer and 10-12 in winter. I’m just so worried about my little man! I’ve had adult beardies before but this is my first baby.
<<<< well when you look at the charts I've provided it'll give you a good handle on summer and winter daylight hours in their natural range .
Jax is a hatchling so he's going to be better off kept on a long photoperiod , gives him more time to stay warm and metabolise his food and will discourage him from going into brumation.

Breeders believe a slowdown / period of brumation over winter increases the fertility of bearded dragons , there in no reason for a dragon to brumate when it's a companion pet.

Can you show us the lighting setup
can you tell us exactly what your lighting is (basking globe, UVB source) / brands, W, %UVB and distance from basking spot and from floor of tank.

Is he sharing the tank ?
Can he see another reptile ?

So sorry for long post thank you to anyone who can help.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Jax is a little cutie, and yes it would be good to bump his light cycle up to about 14 hrs. a day. I raised many clutches of babies right from the egg and they don't need more than 14.


I thought you would have one of those huge vivs, I've seen the posters from the U.K almost all have the same one. It's a decent tank but can be overwhelmingly large for a baby, harder to keep track of how much they actually bask near the heat + uvb.

Good to hear that he's eating more, be sure to keep the chips out of his tank, those can cause very serious impaction.
 
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