Need Help with Sick Beardie

I have been reading for months but first time to post. A lady gave me her Beardie 2 weeks ago because she could not take care of it. She bought if from a little pet store four months ago and they said it was about a year old. She got it for her son and he lost interest in it, she did not know much except what this pet shop told her. The light she got for him is a Exo terra Solar Glo, UVB 120V.60HZ 125 Watts dated 12/17/19. No basking light or rock just branches. She never turned the light off at night in the four months she had him and only fed him crickets and worms and no veggies, she said that is what they were feeding him but while she had him I told her about veggies and at that time I didn't know about the light.
I have him (not sure of sex) in a 30 long 19 tall that my son had. I am using her solar glo and put in a Exco Terra100 watt intense spot basking bulb which puts his basking rock at 102 with a probe thermometer and the solar glow rock gets to 103 (both are 16 in above rocks, but he stays in the cooler area at 90.
The first day I had him he had a normal poop and I turned off his lights at night and his tank stayed at 69-70 at night, I covered his tank to ensure it would stay above 65. I started feeding him collard greens, mustard greens, and grated squash. I ordered phoenix worms and super worms and dusted with calcium. He has had diarrhea since then (2 weeks) He does not bask after eating or sit on either of the rocks he only stays where its cooler, I have raised his lights and lowered them to see if he would bask but he does not. Today she stopped by as I was cleaning his diarrhea up and told me its from the veggies and I should not feed them to him because she didn't and that is why he has diarrhea. I have tried to explain the importance of veggies but she said he didn't have running poop before. I will get his poop tested when I get my social security check but for now I am so worried about him and how did he survive on crickets and a solar glo mvb on 24 hrs for 4 months and why does he have problems now? Also yesterday he was sleepy all day and I thought maybe brumation. Any help will be appreciated.
I wanted to say I have a 3 month old beardie that I got from craigs list at 4 weeks old and he is doing great.

Poor guy. Unfortunately his situation is fairly common. They are tough and can bounce back from a lot though. I'm glad he found his way to a good home with you. I would set the 125w Solar Glo about 8-12'' above the main basking area to provide the appropriate UVB levels. Then adjust the height of the basking bulb you installed to maintain those temps of about 100-105 on the basking surface.

His diarrhea could be a combination of lighting or relocation or diet adjustment. It's good that you're introducing a balanced diet including lots of veges. He will get used to it eventually. I would focus on keeping him hydrated too. Offer hydrating foods like squash as well as drip some water on his nose to lick up if he wants to. Keeping him hydrated and under good lighting should help him bounce back.

Thank you, I have been giving him squash grated and spray him with water. But is there anything I can do about the diarrhea and is 2 weeks too long for him to have it? I forgot to say how do I get him to bask since he doesn't ever do it, I have moved him on the rock but he doesn't stay. thanks again for your help.

I would give him more time to settle in before worrying about the diarrhea. Just try to keep him hydrated for now to make up for the lost water.

If he isn't basking on his own you can move him but don't be too forceful about it. Make the basking area flat and easy to access to encourage him to use it. You can also try bringing him outside with you and giving him time to bask in natural sunlight if the weather is nice.

The rock is big and flat and I do try to keep moving him. I appreciate your help, it has been so stressful for me and I think with her saying not to give him veggies kinda thru me today, I will keep doing what I am doing, thank you.

Hi Wanda, hopefully he's adjusting to his new diet + added heat. He's going to be a little tired from his previous routine since things weren't proper, esp. keeping the bright bulb on all night. Many adults don't like temps. over 95 so if you have 225 watts on him that's probably too hot. Just use the solar glo, if you need a little more heat just use a plain 40 watt incandescent bulb from Lowe's or Walmart. Does he have a cool side around 78-80 ? If 90 is the coolest area, that's too hot. It is good that he's eating veggies so keep that up, greens are more important than squash.

AHBD":3bndenz4 said:

Hi Wanda, hopefully he's adjusting to his new diet + added heat. He's going to be a little tired from his previous routine since things weren't proper, esp. keeping the bright bulb on all night. Many adults don't like temps. over 95 so if you have 225 watts on him that's probably too hot. Just use the solar glo, if you need a little more heat just use a plain 40 watt incandescent bulb from Lowe's or Walmart. Does he have a cool side around 78-80 ? If 90 is the coolest area, that's too hot. It is good that he's eating veggies so keep that up, greens are more important than squash.

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I used both lights because I couldn't get his rock to stay hot enough but I will try a lower wattage. He eats all his veggies but I added squash to hoping to help with his fluid intake. His cool side is closer to 90 and that is where he stays. thank you, I appreciate your help.

The cool side is a bit too warm, so I agree that the lighting may need to be reduced a bit or a larger space provided. I usually like to see my cool side in the 70-80 range. I like 90s in the area surrounding the main basking spot, and low 100s directly under the basking spot. They each have their own preferences that you can find over time by observing them and you can certainly tweak the lighting to accommodate for their preferences.

CooperDragon":qxhdhort said:

The cool side is a bit too warm, so I agree that the lighting may need to be reduced a bit or a larger space provided. I usually like to see my cool side in the 70-80 range. I like 90s in the area surrounding the main basking spot, and low 100s directly under the basking spot. They each have their own preferences that you can find over time by observing them and you can certainly tweak the lighting to accommodate for their preferences.

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I sure have been trying to get him back to normal, I have read so much my eyes have been hurting. His tank sits right next to my computer and we watch each other all day. My husband talks to him every morning while he drinks his coffee. We are retired so we have time to be with him and I will lower my temps and see how he likes it. I was nervous about posting but with the nice responses I received I feel so much better. Thank you

It's good that you are able to interact with him. That will help his quality of life. They are curious and tend to enjoy being in the center of the action. Please feel free to ask any questions you have and we'll be glad to help you out. I'm looking forward to hearing about his progress too =)

Hi Wanda! Glad that you've taken this beardie on and have given him a great and loving environment. Your diarrhea situation sounds a bit like my brother's baby beardie. I watched her for a couple of days and feed her three different types of greens and she loved them, ate them all up. Well the day after I dropped her back off at my brother's she had ruuuunnnny diarrhea for the day because of all the veg I let her eat. I agree with Cooper, that the runny poos can be put to the side for now, until he's fully settled. But it seems like he's getting the proper hydration that he needs. As far as not basking, he may already be hot from his cool side being 90 and may not feel the need to move under the basking bulb itself. Do you see him open his mouth like he's singing when he's on the cool side of his tank? That usually means they're regulating temperature and cooling themselves down. If so, the temperatures may need to be adjusted some. Cooper and AHBD have way more experience than I with beardies, so I'm just giving you my experience so far with my own beardie and my brother's beardie. Hope all of information and advice is helpful to you!!!!

That was helpful, Its good to know about others experiences. I was just thinking that two weeks was a long time for him to have diarrhea and I was getting really worried, but everyone response's has made me feel better. Right now he is doing the open mouth breathing and I have only seen him do this once, so I will make the changes in lights. thank you