Beardie Cranes neck 90 degrees and refuses to eat

Thanks to everyone for the information. Unfortunately, I can't mount the bulb horizontally because it won't fit. This is not your cheap glass aquarium. It's a custom made enclosure about 20 X 20 X 48 and the 24" bulb will not fit at the top. And even if it did there's no guarantee he will be directly under it. Normally, he would be basking on a vine, but right now climbing is not his thing (as you can imagine). If I mount it vertically he gets UVB at most levels and it fits. Any beardie is capable of staring at the bulb whether its on top or not. I don't see any other way to do it.

kvwillia":b5c19 said:

Thanks to everyone for the information. Unfortunately, I can't mount the bulb horizontally because it won't fit. This is not your cheap glass aquarium. It's a custom made enclosure about 20 X 20 X 48 and the 24" bulb will not fit at the top. And even if it did there's no guarantee he will be directly under it. Normally, he would be basking on a vine, but right now climbing is not his thing (as you can imagine). If I mount it vertically he gets UVB at most levels and it fits. Any beardie is capable of staring at the bulb whether its on top or not. I don't see any other way to do it.

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Most beardies aren't going to/don't stare straight up in the air at the bulbs. It needs to be horizontal. There has to be some way to modify your cage, if not then you need to get another tank and set one up the right way. You really dont have a choice because the health of your beardie is at stake.

Can you get a dome lamp and set it on top of the viv? If you use a Mercury Vapor Bulb those go in about 10" Diam Dome lamp. These types of bulbs are areally great.

I had the same thought, but the UV from the Mercury Vapor lamps is so intense it can hurt your beardie if they're closer than about 10" (at least that's what the manufacturers say), and he could climb to within that distance easily. It would fit, but my funds are not unlimited and I already purchased the Retpisun.

Thanks again to everyone for all of the advice.

you can totally take that other lighting back, most pet stores are really good about that. Ive even taken stuff back that I have used and didnt liek or work out, as long as you keep the receipts (sp? so bad!) If you get a wire clamp lamp the merc bulbs set a few extra inchs up in the fixture. Could you move the talls branch down a little bit?

Unfortunately, the ballast kit for the flourescent was ordered thru Fosters and Smith so returning is not so easy. And the Merc bulb would have to be ordered too, so another week minimum down the drain. I was relying on outside time to get by while setting things up, but we've had 3 straight days of overcast cold rain and everyone said to turn off the Zilla, so he's basically getting nothing now. I'll figure something out.

as long as he is getting heat and light from a regular household bulb he will be ok for a week or a little more till you get the lighting figured out. I know it is frusterating with getting the right set up. I ordered about 8 differant CHE before I finally got one that worked properly. Then I had to keep switching the lamps around in the fixtures. The fixture was making the bulb arc at the top so it melted the top of the heater. Thankfully they just sent me new ones before I sent the old ones back. Then I had a few that were not the right wattage (too low). It took me like 4 months to finally send them back. :roll: I ended up having to use a red heat bulb to the tank for a week or so untill i could get a new one. And then poor Judah didnt want to poo properly because the heat was not quite right. Man what a nightmare. I feel your pain. sorry to go into a rant there. But they are pretty resilant little guys. Even on dreary days if you let him hang out in a window for a little while there is still some UV that come through the clouds.

Thanks for the advice Judah'sHuman. I hope in his current condition he can wait for Fedex. I've managed to get him to lick fruit baby food laced with a Calcium supplement from my finger several times a day, but that's all he'll eat. He's pooped several times, so I don't suspect impaction. Between the change in lighting and calcium supplement we'll see what happens.

First of all, do not feed the beardie fruit. Too much citrus is NOT good for them. Try other greens...mine doesn't like kale too much. He likes collard greens, mustard greens and yellow squash--she LOVES the squash.

Second, DO NOT give the beardie meal worms. If they are not chewed correctly, they can still be alive in their stomachs and eat away their insides!!! True!!!!

Try Wax worms....they are like candy to beardies and are really fatty and will put a little weight on him! Let us know!

what do yo mean jstar? Fruit is just fine in moderation! I feen judah apples & pear a few times a week as treats. Apples, Berries,Pinnapple, Melons and Citrus are all fine in moderation. If your baby is not eatting, babyfood apples sauce is a good thing to get them to start eating again. No not every day, you gotta mix up it up with veggies, but lets not give people the wrong idea especially if if have one that is not eating anything.

Thanks to everyone for replying! I'm familiar with the wide range of opinions in here and how contradictory they can be so I don't take any one as the "law". Almost every website I have visited lists fruit as a staple food, including the ones sponsored by DVM's. What is everyone else's experience?

Hello,

Fruits are fine, but no citrus. It is too acidic for their systems. Fruit should only be given 1-2 times per week due to the sugar content it has in it. They don't need too much sugar because they naturally have higher blood sugar anyway.
Plus, aren't they sweet enough already? :lol:
How are things going for you today?

Tracie

JStarr":2d52a said:

Second, DO NOT give the beardie meal worms. If they are not chewed correctly, they can still be alive in their stomachs and eat away their insides!!! True!!!!

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This actually isn't true. This used to be said about superworms, but their stomach acid kills the worms, so no need to worry. :wink:

Diane is right. It is a total myth that mealworms or superworms can eath through a beardie's insides. Even if the beardie swallows them alive, their stomach acid will kill them instantly once they are in their digestive tract!

However, all of the above members who've posted are correct when they state that mealworms definitely not a good food choice for them. They have almost no nutritional value for a beardie, and because they have such a hard shell, and very little meat on them, they do definitely present an impaction risk.