Beardie Cranes neck 90 degrees and refuses to eat

My daughters beardie is about 6 months old and 2 days ago refused to eat. At first he was eating mealworms and crickets, then he would only take crickets, and now nothing. He shows no interest at all. Just stares like he's focused on nothing and bends his head back 90 degrees. He'll sit for hours with his head bent 90 degrees, like he's staring straight up. And occassionally he'll inexplicably try to climb the walls of his enclosure, at which time he falls off and tries again (like he's delirious). Does any of this ring a bell? He has a proper UVB light source, a heat lamp for basking (temp varies from 95 F to 80 F top to bottom), a hot rock, plenty of water, and I supply Kale and fruit daily (non of which he eats either). He was pooping when he was eating so I don't suspect impaction. Ideas?

it could be beginning to want to brumate, they stop eating when this happens. Does he avoid the heat lamp? Try cooling one side of the tank more and seeing if he generally goes there. i recommend reading this http://www.exclusivedragons.com/Brumation.html

No he doesn't appear to prefer the cooler areas. He's usually either on the hot rock or on a vine under the UVB lamp. When he decides to climb he invariably falls off and frequently lands on his back like he's dizzy. He may roll over several times before he snaps out of it. But so far he always end up sitting on a vine with his head at 90 degrees. Still no food of any kind.

dose he have a neck injury, or does he just do that from time to time?

I seem to have figured out from reading other posts that he's having seizures, and they seem to be predominantly caused by calcium deficiency. A lot of posts complain about certain types of bulbs not providing the UVB they claim, so I'll try putting him in the sun outside tomorrow. If that perks him up and he eats, then I'll have a clue.

you need to be giving him a multivitamin mix and calcium with D3: calcium daily, vitamin mix every other day or few days. has that not been the case?

I've been giving him Fluker's Repta-Calcium, but apparantly he's not been getting enough UVB to process it. I've also read that if they're not getting enough UVB, the calcium can build up and become toxic so that might be contributing. By the way, thanks for the replies Kevincease!

your welcome, I hope its okay and you don't have to deal with too many problems. make sure there is D3 in the calcium, it help them absorb it properly.

Hello,

What type & brand of UVB light do you use, is it a flourescent tube bulb or a compact or coil light? How old is the light?
How often do you give supplements such as the calcium?
No the calcium wont become toxic, it will just become useless & become excreted. If he is not getting any UVB then he can't absorb calcium properly or synthesize D3 either. It is the D3 that can sometimes become toxic if used in excess. Also, vitamin A can become toxic as well, in larger amounts.
Stargazing or balance issues can be caused by hypocalcemia & other nutritional deficiencies.
The basking temps should be 95-110 & should be measured by a digital probe or a temp gun. The cool side should be 78-82.


Tracie

The light fixture is a Zilla Mini Reptile Fixture with twin 9W Desert 50 compact UVB lamps which are supposed to be effective up to a foot away, but the enclosure I built is more vertical than horizontal (not an aquarium) so his proximity to the lamp is dependent on how high he climbs up the vines. I put the basking lamp right next to the UVB lamp to encourage exposure but I suspect it's not good enough. I've also read in here that compact bulbs don't work very well (i.e. don't produce the UVB they claim).

When he was still eating I fed him twice a day and gave Repta-Calcium with D3 on crickets or mealworms during the evening feeding every day. Temp at the top of the enclosure near the lamps is around 100 degrees, 80 near the bottom measured with a digital thermometer.

I hope the outside exposure helps!

I've also heard allot lately that compact lamps lead to eye problems and abnormal eating. I think this could be your problem. You should consider replacing your compact with a tube lighting system immediately. apparently it gives off inconsistent amounts of UVA and UVB, someone online here mentioned that it would be like if we were staring into the sun, and It had solar flares shooting radiation at us in inconsistent amounts.

Hey,
Yes, you wan to get rid of that compact bulb as soon as possible. Actually you might even want to turn it off. The bulb you want is a ReptiSUN 10. Make sure it is the strip and not the compact. NOT A ReptiGOL <-- NO!!!!! BAD!! Sorry I know that seems slightly obnoxious but those bulbs are just plain awful.
You really need to get a new bulb right away. I'm sure that will help somewhat.
Can answer some questions please?
How big is your enclosure?
How many times a week do you use the calcuim dust?
What insects do you feed him and how many?
What type of veggies and fruit do you offer?
Mel

Tried to find one at Petsmart today but they only had ReptiGol. Will try Petco tomorrow.

Enclosure is about 20 X 20 X 4 feet tall with multiple basking shelves and lights at top. Temp ranges from 105 at top to 80 at bottom.

I had been dusting once a day (feeding twice a day) when he was eating (going on 3 days ago).

He was eating mealworms and crickets mostly. 5 or 6 twice a day.

Was also feeding Kale and carrots finely chopped.

5-6 crickets a day? I would suggest more like 30-60 crickets a day.