Not basking, Looking out glass.

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Notta

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For the last 2 days my baby beardie (7 in long so I'd say 2 months) has been sitting on the floor looking out the tank glass: https://ibb.co/w6gdM6C (Couldn't figure out the image tool) . When you get close and tap it he goes alert but then a minute later goes back to having his eyes half open / sleeping. He eats, he poops, he drinks, idk whats wrong. My best guess could be that hes on the floor and getting stressed by things above him. My desk his right next to my computer desk which I use way to often, and whenever I look at him or move my hands or feet in a weird way he just stares and doesnt move till I have been still long enough. This mainly happens when I look at him. But I find this odd because he doesnt resist being picked up or pet at all, and will even hand feed sometimes. Occasionally he will go to bask but not for very long, and most of the time it's only half on the basking rock. I'm really worried about him. If you guys know whats wrong or need more info I'm more than happy to provide it.
 

Notta

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This is his tank setup : https://ibb.co/Pxt3M8V . It's a 40 gallon breeder. For the lighting I use a reptisun 24 inch tube that outputs 10.0 uvb. For the basking bulb I don't know which it is. It's a blue bulb that gets his basking spots to around 100-112 degrees at the highest spots. At first I thought this behavior was caused by his reflection so I used the box his tank came in and cut it up to make tank backgrounds. His food bowl is just the right size for him, and his water bowl is large enough for him to swim and kept as far from the heating lamp as possible. Since I live in Florida and can't get dubia roaches I bought 1000 1/4 inch crickets that I dust every other feeding with calcium and d3 dust, put them all in a box and set him in the box for around 10 minutes. while I figured out where to buy discoids (He ate all of his food in the first day and my pet store ran out of crickets so he had to eat mealworms). In his food bowl every other day I put kale, carrots, acorn squash, and blue berries, all cut up into small enough pieces for him to eat. He loves the kale but not anything else really. Again if you need more info I'm more than happy to provide it.
 

Notta

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Update: I put him ontop of a moving bin so hes about 2 ft off the floor now and while its still very soon it seems to be helping.
 

CooperDragon

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He might just be curious about what's going on beyond the glass. Do you give him time outside of the tank? He may enjoy a (supervised) roam around the room or some time sitting in a window sill to look outside.
 

CooperDragon

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The term stress marks is misleading. The dark lines are common among younger dragons and fade as they get older. They lighten and darken their skin to absorb heat/light or reflect it. It can sometimes indicate mood, but is more often a response to temperature and light.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Please get rid of the blue bulb--- he needs a bright white basking bulb --- colored bulbs hurts their eyes and can cause long term damage ---
Karrie
 

Notta

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Original Poster
While the bulb was blue the light that came out didn't look blue at all (if that makes sense) but I did switch it out with a new Repti Basking Spot Lamp 75 watt. I think it could have been a lack of uva but I'm still not sure... The light this bulb lets out is reddish orangish but I read a lot of forums where people use this along with the uvb bulb I have and it's worked very well for them so I hope it's fine.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Bulbs in tank should white --- no color or off color ---
Which UVB light should I use?
The best UVB light is a ReptiSun 10.0 fluorescent tube HO (Or Arcardia 12% in the UK). Compact or coil bulbs do not emit the proper amount of UVB light for a bearded dragon, and should not be used. Other brands, such as the Zilla Desert Series and ReptiGlo have been known to cause eye problems and other health issues with bearded dragons, and should be avoided. The reason that some UVB lights (Zilla, ReptiGlo, coils/compacts, ect.) are considered dangerous is because the wavelength of UVB that they emit is shorter and more intense than the wavelength of the "safe" lights (ReptiSun, Arcadia). UVB lights should be replaced every 6 months. The T5’s are a strong bulb and only need to be replaced once a year – the T 8 every 6 months--- where as the T 8 are not as strong—they need to be placed inside the tank the T 5 10.0 bulb approx 10-11 inches from basking spot – the T 8 approx 8-10 inches from basking spot—the cover needs to be off the bulb for full effect of the UVB rays-- please change out those bulbs --- it is crucial to their over all health and behavior----
Karrie
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
I think you said you did the get tank off the floor right? Can he get up under his UVB --- from the way the pic looks it doesnt look like he can? He needs to be able to be 10-11 inches from the basking spot -- the mesh on the screen is it a fine mesh?
Karrie
 

Notta

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Original Poster
https://ibb.co/VWcHRCx <-- thats what the mesh looks like, I don't think its fine and its metal. He can get around 8-10 inches from it (I have a basking log that will be here but it's out of stock, should allow him to get much closer if needed, doesnt get here till after the 14th though.) Also while he's having this behavior he still eats perfectly fine and poops once - twice a day, I made sure the poop didn's show signs of worms, its green / brown, had the white, holds its shape so I think that part is fine, I try to get him to drink water but he eats a lot of kale and I make sure his crickets are watered so I think hes getting enough through all that stuff. Also I know when they are two months old, which him being 7 and a half inches long puts him at around that age, you are supposed to let him eat as much as he can in like a 10 minute period correct? Because after his feedings he looks so fat, like wide and heavy. Also sometimes he opens and closes his mouth kind like hes popping his lips if he were a person and occasionally flairs his beard while doing so, I don't know if that has anything to do with this, just trying to include as many details as possible. (Also I know kale isn't supposed to be a staple but my walmart for some reason doesn't have collard greens)
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Notta":3qx9py57 said:
https://ibb.co/VWcHRCx <-- thats what the mesh looks like, I don't think its fine and its metal. He can get around 8-10 inches from it (I have a basking log that will be here but it's out of stock, should allow him to get much closer if needed, doesnt get here till after the 14th though.) Also while he's having this behavior he still eats perfectly fine and poops once - twice a day, I made sure the poop didn's show signs of worms, its green / brown, had the white, holds its shape so I think that part is fine, I try to get him to drink water but he eats a lot of kale and I make sure his crickets are watered so I think hes getting enough through all that stuff. Also I know when they are two months old, which him being 7 and a half inches long puts him at around that age, you are supposed to let him eat as much as he can in like a 10 minute period correct? Because after his feedings he looks so fat, like wide and heavy. Also sometimes he opens and closes his mouth kind like hes popping his lips if he were a person and occasionally flairs his beard while doing so, I don't know if that has anything to do with this, just trying to include as many details as possible. (Also I know kale isn't supposed to be a staple but my walmart for some reason doesn't have collard greens)
That is fine mesh --- he does need to be able to get under the UVB approx 10-11 inches from it so if you can move one of the rocks under it so he can get under it --- or can you take the screen off and use a clamp for your basking light and put the UVB vertical over the tank instead of the horizontal the way its going now till your other basking log comes --- please offer him other greens besides kale I have heard pros and cons on kale and I really dont know what to believe so I dont feed mine kale at all ---- he gets mustard collard and turnip greens - squash yellow zucchini - fruit apples blueberries raspberries strawberries --- NO citrus --- that is true about the crickets but I would be dusting them every feeding ---
Karrie
 

Notta

Member
Original Poster
Also if you look at the first set of pics when he does bask its most often on the lower peice of cardboard or on the rock, hes rarely on the top of high spot. Do you think I should maybe remove the vines and put the lower piece on top of the stack so that he can get closer to the uvb? also I have a cat and it really wouldnt be safe for him with the screen off
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Ok no screen off -- yes move the plants --- he needs to be able to sit directly under that UVB--- what size is the tank ? I guess I would get the UVB in the tank ---- you can use these for fastening it
command Velcro fasteners- picture hanging wire – plastic zip ties-- here is a pic of someones tank
97951-2515040147.jpg
Karrie
 
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