Hey, so I was given a BD, almost 2 weeks ago. He's been getting stress marks whilst he's in his viv but enjoys jumping on me when I open the door (I know I've been handling him too much whilst he's tried settling in but that's because he wasn't moving to his food bowl on his own) he's happy exploring the viv too though and the stress marks the last 2 days have faded to almost non existent so I think that means he's settling in. Right after I got him, he went through a shed, so he wasn't eating as much as I'd expect and I think a portion of his tail is still shedding however, my concern is that one day he'll eat a good amount (yesterday roughly 30 small crickets and about 20 calciworms) and then today, he's not eating at all, like a few worms and possibly a cricket. I'm wondering if there's anything I need to improve in his setup and I know I've made mistakes as a new owner, reading as many caresheets as possible but there's so much contradicting advice out there that I thought it was just best to suck it up and ask here.
How old is your dragon?
10 weeks
How long have you had your dragon?
2 weeks
How long is your dragon?
about 9"
What is the sex of your dragon?
Unknown
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in?
A big corner one, about 100 gallons.
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank?
Repti carpet
Do you use UVB lights?
Yes
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb?
Tube
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)?
Arcadia, 12% UVB
How old is your UVB bulb?
About a month but only been on the last 2 weeks
How close can your dragon get to the UVB?
about a ft away (12 inches) I'm getting a reflector tomorrow so the drop off of UVB isn't as severe
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage? Is it a white or colored bulb?
uhm white coloured I guess, 150 watt.
What are the basking temps?
43C
What is the cool side temp?
27C (although he doesn't pop to the cool part very often, he just hides in the shade around the back of a log near the basking spot)
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun?
Temp gun with an infrared 'guide' for measuring the object directly under the basking spot
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps?
the object under the basking spot ;p
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad?
No
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific.
Crickets, calciworms, and veg (a mix of spring greens, kale, squash, pepper, rocket, broccoli some mango occasionally as a treat but he's not very interested in any of it, so I feed it to the crickets at night) I tried him with some dubias but he's not all that interested and I'm going to introduce him to locusts soon (if that's alright?)
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)?
Morning for veg and insects, I leave the veg in there all day and then it really depends on whether he eats or not, if he doesn't eat in the morning (about an hour after his lights come on at so around 10am) I attempt to feed him more frequently, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. If he's eating well, I'll feed him at like 10am, 3pm and 7pm (2 hours before his bed time)
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
Yes
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them?
I was using a calcium supplement but discovered yesterday that I need calcium with D3 so I've ordered a better one and it's on it's way (should be here tomorrow) I will be using it 7 days a week for the calcium and 2 for the vitamin.
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)?
Yes...god yes. xD
Do you bath your dragon? How often?
No, well not really, I bathed him once whilst he was shedding but he wasn't that distressed during the process and I gave him a small water dish he could sit in if he needed to.
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath?
No but I live in quite a humid country so I don't want to give him respiratory problems.
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done?
Nope but I know where the dragon came from and it hasn't been in contact with dragons that could have possibly had any parasites or mites or anything (a friend rescued a dragon, they didn't tell her it was pregnant, she'd already been treated for all of the ailments she had had and ended up laying a clutch of eggs) but if there's something else I should test for, by all means please let me know!
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon?
Nope
How old is your dragon?
10 weeks
How long have you had your dragon?
2 weeks
How long is your dragon?
about 9"
What is the sex of your dragon?
Unknown
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in?
A big corner one, about 100 gallons.
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank?
Repti carpet
Do you use UVB lights?
Yes
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb?
Tube
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)?
Arcadia, 12% UVB
How old is your UVB bulb?
About a month but only been on the last 2 weeks
How close can your dragon get to the UVB?
about a ft away (12 inches) I'm getting a reflector tomorrow so the drop off of UVB isn't as severe
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage? Is it a white or colored bulb?
uhm white coloured I guess, 150 watt.
What are the basking temps?
43C
What is the cool side temp?
27C (although he doesn't pop to the cool part very often, he just hides in the shade around the back of a log near the basking spot)
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun?
Temp gun with an infrared 'guide' for measuring the object directly under the basking spot
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps?
the object under the basking spot ;p
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad?
No
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific.
Crickets, calciworms, and veg (a mix of spring greens, kale, squash, pepper, rocket, broccoli some mango occasionally as a treat but he's not very interested in any of it, so I feed it to the crickets at night) I tried him with some dubias but he's not all that interested and I'm going to introduce him to locusts soon (if that's alright?)
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)?
Morning for veg and insects, I leave the veg in there all day and then it really depends on whether he eats or not, if he doesn't eat in the morning (about an hour after his lights come on at so around 10am) I attempt to feed him more frequently, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. If he's eating well, I'll feed him at like 10am, 3pm and 7pm (2 hours before his bed time)
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
Yes
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them?
I was using a calcium supplement but discovered yesterday that I need calcium with D3 so I've ordered a better one and it's on it's way (should be here tomorrow) I will be using it 7 days a week for the calcium and 2 for the vitamin.
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)?
Yes...god yes. xD
Do you bath your dragon? How often?
No, well not really, I bathed him once whilst he was shedding but he wasn't that distressed during the process and I gave him a small water dish he could sit in if he needed to.
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath?
No but I live in quite a humid country so I don't want to give him respiratory problems.
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done?
Nope but I know where the dragon came from and it hasn't been in contact with dragons that could have possibly had any parasites or mites or anything (a friend rescued a dragon, they didn't tell her it was pregnant, she'd already been treated for all of the ailments she had had and ended up laying a clutch of eggs) but if there's something else I should test for, by all means please let me know!
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon?
Nope
Your set up sounds perfect
