Help With Baby Beardie!!

I just got 3 bearded dragons last week at a reptile show and one of the three was a little smaller than the other ones but they were all in the same enclosure. The two bigger ones are like 5 inches and the smaller one is 4 inches. The small bearded dragon, spyro, has been declining in health the past few days, it seems. I have separated him from the other dragons because of this issue, but he hasn't been eating for the past few days. He doesn't really move much at all in the aquarium that i have him in and he just sits there with his eyes closed a lot. Another thing that worries me is the way that he acts when i pick him up to look at him. He always jerks his head back and tries to move by doing that while i am not restraining him at all, he just keeps jerking his head. He also just rolls off of my hand sometimes instead of stepping off. One other behavior that has me concerned is the way that he moves in the cage; when he moves, he doesn't even pick himself up off the ground, he just kind of drags his belly on the ground. The lights and heat in the enclosure are by the book. I am using a reptisun 7.0 and a 100 watt basking lamp with a 109 basking spot. I don't know what is wrong with my dragon and i need help to bring him back to health. I didn't really want to go to the vet with this because of the expense, but if that is what i have to do then i will. PLEASE REPLY!!

Howdy,
I'm sorry to hear you beardie isn't doing so well.
What does his stool look like and does it have a stronger smell then your other beardies feces?
Mel

His stool this morning was a little part brown and more parts white and he had another one shortly after that which seemed to be more of the white and was alot of liquid.

Hey,
I know this may sound a little odd, but was the white part firm or watery? Does his eyes look droopy to you at all?
How long have you had your beadies for?
Mel

The white part was more firm than the brown part and I don't think that his eyes are really droopy. He just has his eyes closed a lot and looks like he is sleeping but his eyes aren't droopy.

Hey,
Hmmm for the moment if he's up why don't you try giving him a warm bath and see how he reacts.
Mel

Hey,
You said you just got your beardies...but how long have you had them for?

I've had them for about a week and a half now, but i think that they are about a month old, because they were all about 3.5-4.5 inches when i got them.

Hey,
Did you try giving him a bath or is he asleep?
Mel

haven't tried yet, been busy

ok, i tried to give him a warm bath, but he wasn't able to keep his head out of the water. I only had about a 1/8" of water in the little dish, but he couldn't keep his head up. He pooped right away when he was in the water and it was all white with no brown so i don't know if that means anything. He was freaking out first thing i put him in the water because he couldn't keep his head above the water so he just started thrashing and then it seemed like he was out of energy when i picked him back up.

The basking lamp that i have has a hot point of about 109 and is about 14" from the basking spot and the reptisun 7.0 UVB lights are about 16-18" from the substrate. I made a custom enclosure and have them mounted on the ceiling of the cage. Are those close enough to get the beardies enough UVB if not, then will it make a difference if i get a 10.0 bulb?

I think that he is barely hangin on, but hopefully he makes it through the night. I gave him some baby food/pedialyte/calcium mixture to make sure that he is getting some of his fluids back and I think that he drank a lot of it. I just don't know what to do at this point! Another thing that may be a problem or may be the problem is impaction because i was holding him and he pooped on me but it was a little bit of dierea and white stuff, but it looked like it was really hard to get out and i was feeling his underside and it seemed to be a little hard so i dont know...

Hey,
I'm so sorry I haven't gotten a chance to respond back last night, I had a huge paper to finish. How's he doing this morning?
If you have the funds at this point I would really suggest taking him to the vets. I'm thinking your beardie has some sort of parasite. I know it can get expensive, but you might end up needing meds.
What makes you think he has impaction? What did he eat? Just to be safe with the possibility of impaction, put him in warm water and rub the spot where it is hard very gently. You need to hold up his head in the water or else he will get water in his eyes. That's probably why he was freaking.
Does he have a bump on his spine?
We'll help you get through this.
Mel

Hi,

I just read through your posts quickly, the thing that jumps out at me is you said you have a Repti-sun 7.0. The thing is that there is no such thing as a repti-sun 7.0 - there is a 10.0 and a 5.0. I think the only one that comes in the 7.0 is the ESU which is not a good bulb at all. These bulbs have been know to cause the exact problems you are having.

As he needs to be able to get within 6-8 inches of the UVB.

What are you using to take your temps?

If you are concerned about impaction, baths will help but you may also want to pick up some sugar free apple sauce, some mineral oil and needless syringe. Mix a drop of the mineral oil in with a spoon full of apple sauce and use the syringe to drop a little bit on his nose.

What kind of substrate is he on?
What was he on prior to these problems?