Brumation?

Hello!

I believe my beardie is going through brumation at the moment and I had some questions regarding it. A little info about why I believe it's brumation...

I live in Canada and so we are getting our winter cold. Fred terrarium temps at night are dropping (Bought a CHE to help). He is sleeping a lot more and eating a lot less. He seems healthy, poops are normal, when I put him in his basking spot he's actively looking around, etc. I know his temps are good and he's getting sufficient UVB and calcium with D3.

One thing that is a little odd is I believe he is a little young for brumation but I've read online it isn't unheard of. He is about 7 months old. About 13 inches in length and 180grams.

Onto the questions...
Should I still be attempting to feed him regularly?
Should I be moving him to his basking spot if he is cold to the touch?
Should I be touching him at all during this period?
How long does it generally last?
If he is barely eating right now, should I be concerned about MBD from lack of calcium?

Thanks!

Yeah he is a little young for brumation but if everything else is OK I'd just let him do his thing. Which UVB light are you using and how far is it from the basking site? What are the surface temps across your tank? Keep offering food on a regular basis and keep his lighting on a regular summer cycle (about 14hrs on). As long as his basking area is easily accessible I'd let him do what he wants. I would also keep close track of his weight. Setting up a weight chart in a spreadsheet will help detect weight drops which could indicate illness. When they brumate they slow their metabolism so their weight stays relatively stable. My dragon was in brumation for about 3 months and lost only about 4% body weight.

CooperDragon":1z1jguof said:

Yeah he is a little young for brumation but if everything else is OK I'd just let him do his thing. Which UVB light are you using and how far is it from the basking site? What are the surface temps across your tank? Keep offering food on a regular basis and keep his lighting on a regular summer cycle (about 14hrs on). As long as his basking area is easily accessible I'd let him do what he wants. I would also keep close track of his weight. Setting up a weight chart in a spreadsheet will help detect weight drops which could indicate illness. When they brumate they slow their metabolism so their weight stays relatively stable. My dragon was in brumation for about 3 months and lost only about 4% body weight.

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UVB is Reptisun 10.0 T5 bulb less than 6 months old

Surface temp of basking spot is anywhere from 100 - 105f. Ambient temp of cool side is 75ish. Night temps were dropping to 60f but using CHE they're around 70f now.

Light cycle is 8am Lights on and 9:30 lights off.

Only concern about basking area is that a month and a bit ago I built him a ramp/platform and he seems to still not be used to the idea that the ramp leads to the basking spot. Occasionally I'll see him go up, but more often than not he doesn't. I don't know whether to attribute that to this "Brumation" phase he has going on or if he just doesn't understand.

I recently purchased a scale so I will be tracking his weight to ensure he doesn't drop drastically.

Pics attached to see him and his setup.

He looks nice and healthy, so that's encouraging. Such a cool orange color! The basking spot is a bit out of the way and the ramp may be a little too steep. They are pretty good climbers but you might want to try making some adjustments and see how he responds. Maybe try lowering the basking area or offering a flatter basking spot like a stone or flat piece of wood and see how that goes. They all tend to have individual preferences so it may take some trial and error to get it just how he likes it.

CooperDragon":1gz3iasz said:

He looks nice and healthy, so that's encouraging. Such a cool orange color! The basking spot is a bit out of the way and the ramp may be a little too steep. They are pretty good climbers but you might want to try making some adjustments and see how he responds. Maybe try lowering the basking area or offering a flatter basking spot like a stone or flat piece of wood and see how that goes. They all tend to have individual preferences so it may take some trial and error to get it just how he likes it.

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Glad to know he looks healthy! As for the colour, I spent a bit extra to get the nice colours on him from a local breeder. I figured the ramp wasn't too steep considering he used to climb his foam back wall which is 90 degrees. I can attempt to lower it a bit and maybe try a flatter basking spot as well.

He's never really been a great eater, having different eating problems almost bi weekly. (All of a sudden disliking calcium powder, no longer likes crickets, refusing phoenix worms after eating them no problem for 2 months, and now not really eating ANYTHING including butterworms, supers, crickets, hornworms, etc)

Like usual I am just a concerned beardie parent and want to make sure he's healthy. When should I be considering a vet visit? If he starts to lose weight?

I definitely understand the worry that comes with caring for these guys. They can be tough to figure out sometimes. I'd start tracking his weight and yeah if you see it start to trend downward (look at the longer term trend rather than individual stats) then a vet visit is probably warranted. If you have an experienced reptile vet in the area it's good to have wellness visits done too. This allows you to build a relationship with a vet, makes your dragon familiar to them, and allows for baseline readings which makes it easier to detect and treat illness down the line if needed.

CooperDragon":sn30vnsv said:

I definitely understand the worry that comes with caring for these guys. They can be tough to figure out sometimes. I'd start tracking his weight and yeah if you see it start to trend downward (look at the longer term trend rather than individual stats) then a vet visit is probably warranted. If you have an experienced reptile vet in the area it's good to have wellness visits done too. This allows you to build a relationship with a vet, makes your dragon familiar to them, and allows for baseline readings which makes it easier to detect and treat illness down the line if needed.

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Awesome! As usual thank you for the advice.

Hi there, I agree with Cooper, that's a beautiful boy. And I agree with you that the ramp is actually keeping him from basking. I see these more + more in the forums but they do lead to confusion and some beardie actually become lethargic because they don't get up where the heat + uvb are. A much better option is a good old large basking log. Beardies naturally climb + cling to them. You might consider replacing the ramp with a log or propping a large log up to it alongside the ramp. Block off the empty cave under the platform or he will start to spend too much time there. But I'd personally get rid of the platform.

AHBD":jzryzdpn said:

Hi there, I agree with Cooper, that's a beautiful boy. And I agree with you that the ramp is actually keeping him from basking. I see these more + more in the forums but they do lead to confusion and some beardie actually become lethargic because they don't get up where the heat + uvb are. A much better option is a good old large basking log. Beardies naturally climb + cling to them. You might consider replacing the ramp with a log or propping a large log up to it alongside the ramp. Block off the empty cave under the platform or he will start to spend too much time there. But I'd personally get rid of the platform.

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The reason I built the platform is due to me not being able to find ANYTHING to get him close enough to the light to bask. If you have a link to something that might suit better please drop me a link so I can take a look at it. As far as the empty area underneath the platform, that is generally where he spends the majority of his time which is concerning.

That's a 36x18x18'' enclosure? You can adjust the lighting to be more powerful and effective at a greater distance as needed. I have mine set up with a T5 UVB light and a 90w PAR38 halogen flood light for basking which is set above the tank on an adjustable stand. It provides basking temps from about 25'' above the floor of the tank. That allows me to keep the basking areas lower (which is both good and bad, but works in my case).

CooperDragon":30mc4uuq said:

That's a 36x18x18'' enclosure? You can adjust the lighting to be more powerful and effective at a greater distance as needed. I have mine set up with a T5 UVB light and a 90w PAR38 halogen flood light for basking which is set above the tank on an adjustable stand. It provides basking temps from about 25'' above the floor of the tank. That allows me to keep the basking areas lower (which is both good and bad, but works in my case).

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That 90w PAR38 halogen flood light provides enough heat at the basking spot? Not only is that significantly less expensive than the bulbs I buy, but it is also more effective as well if that can get the basking temps to 100f+. From 14ish inches, my basking surface temps were only getting to around 90-95f with the 100w Exo Terra Intense basking spot light. Is the wood log you have just a random piece from outside?

Yeah the flat driftwood he likes to sit on is about 18'' below the bulb and it's sitting between 105-112 at the moment.

The half log is an XL habba hut. The rock is hollow underneath but very heavy from the pet store, as is the bridge. The two pieces of driftwood I picked up on the beach.

CooperDragon":3o0lo7vx said:

Yeah the flat driftwood he likes to sit on is about 18'' below the bulb and it's sitting between 105-112 at the moment.

The half log is an XL habba hut. The rock is hollow underneath but very heavy from the pet store, as is the bridge. The two pieces of driftwood I picked up on the beach.

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I hate to change around his viv AGAIN but if that's the best for him then it must be done. Unfortunately our beaches are covered in snow right now so I'll have to figure something else out. The driftwood is wedged in the corner by that rock I take it?

As an option for now... Would it be possible to just use the ramp I made for the platform as the basking spot and wedge that in the corner until I can get my hands on driftwood? (obviously at a less steep angle)

Yeah it's propped up against the corner and the weight of the rock holds it in place. The other one rests on the habba hut and against the first log and is kind of wedged in place a bit.

I think just lowering your platform and using a stronger bulb should do the job. Maybe cut the height in half which will make it a less steep angle to get to and will still provide a cozy hide underneath.

CooperDragon":37jukntt said:

Yeah it's propped up against the corner and the weight of the rock holds it in place. The other one rests on the habba hut and against the first log and is kind of wedged in place a bit.

I think just lowering your platform and using a stronger bulb should do the job. Maybe cut the height in half which will make it a less steep angle to get to and will still provide a cozy hide underneath.

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Alright... hopefully last questions so I can stop bugging you... I see there are different kinds of the PAR38 flood lights. Is there a specific one I should be using? I know not to use coloured ones but otherwise just figuring out the wattage?

AHBD mentioned that my beardie may spend too much time under the platform. Would it likely be a good idea to make it smaller so there is less area underneath? I don't know if that would help. it's currently almost half the length of the viv.