Sick Beardie

Hello, first time beardie owner and I’ve been having a heck of a time raising my small fellow. He was purchased from a pet smart in the end of July. He was about 1-2 months old when purchased. He was housed with another bearded dragon of same age from the same store for a temporary period of time before getting the enclosure he’s currently in. He appeared healthy and was eating crickets and meal worms and occasional kale here and there but wasn’t very fond of them.

We got him his new enclosure about 3 weeks ago: unknowingly we got him the multi-item setup from the store thinking that would have been okay for him. He’s currently in a 20 gallon tank with all natural sand substrate, the uvb is 5.0 uvb reptisun in a terrarium hood and the dual coil white and red lamp that come with the set. He was doing well with the move and enclosure, he was eating crickets fine but still wasn’t very interested in his greens. All his food is dusted in calcium and multivitamins and didn’t seem to have any hydration issues. About 2 weeks ago I had been told that I could feed him superworms not looking into the fact that he might had been too young to do so. I also bought some mustard greens to switch them up to see if he might like that better and might be interested in them. He started eating some of the greens and REALLY enjoyed the superworms. He was eating so many I couldn’t believe it. I was worried that because they were so big that maybe he was having digestion issues but was urinating and pooping like normal. He appeared to be doing fine and had shed so I wasn’t too concerned about it. After a couple days of eating the greens and superworms he had started to get a lighter brown running poop and urine was runny as well but mostly solid. He did that a couple times through out the day, but the next day he seemed especially bloated and very unwell. I had given him a bath to help and see if it would help his stomach but when placing him back on his log he squirted out his urinate and it came out in a big runny glob. About 3 hours later he pooped again and it was completely solid and looked like undigested superworms. Now today, I had straw fed him some water because he isn’t interested in eating at all, pooped once today and it was still irregular, solidified but still looked like a piece of undigested superworms in there, unfortunately usually he has a beautiful light tarnish/brown color with some orange specks but now he’s turned almost completely orange and his chin and neck are black. He has stress patterns on his stomach and only would eat one cricket today. I’ve been constantly reading this site and posts from others to see if there’s anything I can immediately do to help him which would be to change out the sand and the lights I have for him. I didn’t know purchasing the setup for him that I have wouldn’t have been suitable for him. Ignorance on my behalf I know. I just need help to figure out what my best options are for my beardie ?

Hi. I'm sorry your baby is having issues. No superworms until he is bigger. Try Phoenix worms. Also the set up needs to be way improved. The lights he has are wrong. He needs a reptisun 10.0 5t long tube. No colored bulbs and a bright white basking light with a temp gun or a digital thermometer with a wire probe. Also the sand needs to go. It can cause impaction. No loose substrate. Paper towels and non adhesive shelf liner work for now then you can do tiles. He also needs a way bigger tank. 40 gal breeder at least.

Hi there,

Lots of issues stem from improper lighting and temps, even if they take awhile to show up.

I wouuld strongly suggest changing out that UVB coil bulb for a reptisun 10.0 long tube. The coil bulbs are not very strong at all, they need to be very close to the dragon to be effective. And the 5.0 tube is even weaker. Half the strength!
You'd be amazed at what a difference getting the proper lighting can have on your dragon and it's health.
Proper temperatures play a massive role in their health too. Including their digestion. What are the temps in your tank? Specifically the basking surface temp and the cool side?
And what are you using to measure these temperatures?

The red bulb shouldn't be used either. Dragons require darkness at night. If you need to add heat at night you will want to use a ceramic heat emitter. But you only need to add heat at night if temps in your house drop below 60 or 65.

He is probably too young to be eating full grown supers.
Changes in diets can sometimes cause poo issues. And if he was eating a ton of a new bug, it definitely could have upset his tummy. Supers are quite addicting and they will eat a ton of them if allowed. Best to offer only smaller supers, or other insects. A varied diet is the key to good health, so ideally you should be offering a mixture of different bugs if you can.

Would you be able to post up a picture of your buddy?

-Brandon

The temperature is gauged by the stick that comes with the setup which also I know is inaccurate and not a proper way of determining the temperatures of the enclosure in the cool area it’s usually 75-80 and the basking area is anywhere between 100-105 is what it reads.But considering that it’s unreliable I’m not 100% sure. I feel terrible that I went into this not knowing these things but have been constantly researching everything I can to fix this. I won’t be able to change out the enclosure and get the proper lighting and such for him until Friday probably. Is he going to be okay until then? The whole underside of his chin is black and his neck is black. I tried to get a picture but I didn’t want to bother him as he is really sleepy and seems to be really stressed out because of the poops he’s been having.

That's great that you will be able to get the lights by friday. Try to pick up a digital thermometer with probe end too. It should be less than 10 bucks. Then we can check your temps

Can you take him outside for some natural sunlight until friday? That would help a lot I'm sure.

-Brandon

I can definitely take him outside quite a bit until Friday. Does he appear to be healthy otherwise? I want to do the best that I can to make sure he’s healthy and I really appreciate all the help and advice. His hands and feet are stained orange because of the sand that came with the box so I switched it out to what’s in there but will be switching to the liners for his new area. Since he hasn’t been interested in eating and seems pretty lethargic how often should I be trying to feed and mist him with water? Because of how stressed out he is I try not to bother him as much as I need to because he just seems so uncomfortable ?

He looks healthy from what I can see but I agree getting him off the sand and even on paper towels for now would be better- I am assuming your getting a bigger tank ? The bigger the better I dont know what size your going to but what ever you get try and get one w/ front doors- it makes it a lot easier to handle them and take care of the tank --- you can look on FB marketwatch and craigslist just make sure you sanitize the tank real good first --- or you can always ask for recommendations for new tanks from people here as well--- the lighting in the tank should take away the black beard I am hoping -- and the red bulb is not good either as suggested --- keep an eye on his poops -- if the are good and formed and have white urate he is hydrated --- if hes not shedding I would mist him maybe 2 times a week - watch and see if he licks the water off his nose - if he does keep giving him water that way they will keep drinking it off the nose if hes thirsty-- keep us posted on him-- and please no more advice from the pet store -- the people there dont have a clue about taking care of beardies - unless they actually own one themselves and even then it is skeptical - you can always ask if they have one and for how long--
Karrie

Good Morning all, Severous is awake now and is currently at his normal color. He still seems to be a bit under the weather as he is usually very active once waking up but just doesn't seem to be interested in much. I've been keeping a close eye on him to watch his behaviors. I plan to take the sand out today and get him out in the sun as much as possible so he gets those rays in hopes that helps. I do plan to get him a bigger tank. Can I use the dual fixture I already have for the basking bulb and put a Che in the otherside? I know I will need one because I live in Minnesota and the temperatures at night are dropping very low here already. I don't have an issue purchasing separate fixtures for them, I just was curious if I could use what I already have to save some cash (if not it's totally fine I don't have an issue with purchasing new ones) I've also been reading to not place the lights directly on the screen of the tank, but in the picture for the recommended setup on this site it looks like they're directly on there. What should I use for clamps or something to hold the lights on so it isn't directly on top of the tank. Or since I will have the proper lights for it is it okay to set them on top?

Also if someone can help me with this question, in the pictures above it shows his tail being somewhat discolored from the rest of his body. It looks as though he needs to shed his tail but I haven't seen any progression of the shedding process for this, I plan to give him another bath today to help soak him to promote shedding there but I'm confused if it's actually him preparing to shed or if its something else. The tip of his tail is flaking but it's been like that since the last time he shed which was about a week ago.

The dual dome could be used I believe for the CHE just make sure its rated for the bulb - I use a 100 watt CHE in the winter for my tanks - but they are in separate domes - so I have 3 domes on top of my tank one for a basking a CHE and a reg dome for a household bulb 60 watt for extra lighting on the cool side of tank - the UVB is mounted inside the tank directly to the screen at top as I have a Arcadia 14% bulb in that hood - as far as the mounting of your UVB depends on what you get for a bulb - T5 's are mounted inside the tank if your tank is 24' or above -basking spot needs to be 12-15 inches - or if the tank is not that high it can sit on top of screen w/ no cover over bulb being exposed - again 12-15 inches from basking spot - for a T 8 it needs to be inside tank approx 6-8 inches from basking spot again cover off bulb being exposed ---- domes usually come w/ clamps - let us know what size your tank is and we can better help you w/ the lighting
Karrie

When I go to get the lights I was planning on using what’s listed in the “what to get” Forum from this site. I planned to get him a 40 gal tank with the reptisun 10.0 uvb light and then using the dual coil for the basking side since I already have that fixture I won’t be able to use it for anything else so I’ll use that, and a Che for the the winter months, a temp gun, and then a light and fixture for the cool side. I planned to get the non-adhesive liners for his tank, and some new food dishes. I have a hammock to place in there as well for when I get the new tank and will be purchasing a new backdrop as well.

Update on physical behaviors/appearance: his color is maintaining fine and the black on his chin and neck are still absent, he’s still pretty sleepy and he ate very minimally but he did eat a couple crickets this morning. Even though the appetite he has is small. I’m happy to see he is at least eating something. No BM yet this morning.

No coil UVB please!!!! You need a tube UVB-- the lights you need are a bright white basking bulb that keeps his temps 95-105-- the che for winter and the tube uvb- the T 5 can go on top of screen or the T 8 inside tank 6-8 inches from basking--- I would actually look for a bigger tank than the 40 --- if you could look on FB marketplace or Craigslist for a larger tank one w/ front doors-- they are the easiest for maintaining etc--- it would need to be sanitized good +- the tail is just taking it's time to shed- it will get there-- don't bath him too much as it can cause RI--
Karrie

On this website, when clicking on the reptisun 10.0 it isn't a coil light and is a tube and is mounted inside the tank. The basking light, che, and cool lights are all in separate fixtures placed on top, and uvb mounted inside which is what I had planned to do. I'll do my best to find an open door terrarium for him, I looked online and a 40g open door terrarium alone is almost 200$ and I cant afford that on top of getting new lights and everything else for him especially when I just spent the equivalent of that on a setup I'm no longer going to be using. So if I can find one cheaper on craigslist or on the facebook marketplace I definitely will be doing that and sanitizing it, but unfortunately if I can't find one then I will have to stick with just a larger terrarium with the screen for basic need until I can afford an open door terrarium for him, which wouldn't be too long from now where I would be able to get it for him. I just need to get him into something else for now that is moderately basic that will supply him what he needs until I can get a different one.

I understand - well get your lights first as planned- you can transfer those to your new tank and he needs that asap to keep his health up - his tank size can wait- you can always take him out of tank for a few hrs per day - and paper towels can work or if you have a couple pieces of tile along w/ paper towels or even a dish towel on one side too--
Karrie