Pale with black beard and tail

Hi I'm new to the forum
I have a male adult Beardie about 4-6 years old (not sure exactly because he's a rescue) I woke up this morning and he was really pale however his beard and tail are black. I'm did a bit of a google to see why this may be but i'm not sure if I should be worried or not because there were so many possibilities. I have had him for almost 2 years now and nothing like this has happened. The first few days I brought him home he was really pale but we put that down as stress and after a few days of being with us he was fine. Nothing has changed recently so i'm not sure whats wrong. He still seem normal personality and behaviour wise its just his colour I'm a bit worried about. Any ideas?...

Hi there welcome to the forum!

How long have you had your guy now?

So he woke up like that?
How has he been acting lately? Anything seem off or has he been acting normal?

Could something have scared him or did he get too cold over night?

We can go over your setup with you too to rule out any possible environmental issues if you'd like.

-Brandon

Thanks for you reply,

I've had him for about 2 years

Yes, I just woke up and he was like that. He was fine before I went to sleep. This will be the second day that.

He's acting like his normal self and i've had him out and played with him like normal and he's fine.

I don't think anything could have scared him. he's pretty laid back and the only time he showed signs of fear or discomfort was when I first took him home 2 years ago and after the next day he made himself at home.

It hasn't been any colder than usual and the humidity hasn't changed

If he seems fine now and hasn't been black boarding anymore he is probably fine

So he's back to his normal self now?

-Brandon

No his behaviour hasn't changed he still has a black tail and black beard

Hello,

Can you review his tank setup with us, such as the type/brand of UVB, temperatures, the
supplementation & foods for him?
Did this just come on suddenly also? Could he possibly have ingested a toxic insect of
some type perhaps?
If you can post some pictures for us, that would be great. Pictures of your dragon, along with
his tank setup would be terrific.

Tracie

60 wat Exo terra ceramic heat emitter
13 wat Exo terra Repti Glo 10.0 UVB
Basking spot is usually around 39 and 40c
The side of the enclosure furthest away for the heat is about 27-30c
Humidity is usually around 38

Yes it did come on suddenly

I feed him a salad every second day with things like bok choy, pak choy, alfalfa, Kale, Cabbage, carrot, broccoli. I change it up a bit so one day he may have pak choy, Cabbage and Carrot and the next he may have bok choy, broccoli and carrot.

Everything gets washed and cut up and i'll occasionally put a vitamin supplement on it.

Every month he gets some large crickets which I get from my local Pet Domain. They get supplemented with calcium dust and I just give him as many as he wants.

He also has lizard food pallets because before I got him thats all his diet constituted of. Now that he's getting salad he tends to to want the pallets as much. I did find that the pallets made him poop a lot more so If he hasn't pooped in a while and i'm starting to get worries i'll just give him some more pallets and it works every time.

I no longer keep a water disk in with him because like most beardies he didn't recognize the still water

He gets a warm bath once every second week.

I don't think he could have come into contact with any toxic insects because his tank is kept really clean and I only feed him crickets from the pet shop.

I am unable to send any photos as I am at my dads house and he lives at my mums house. I'll be back there later this week.

I would replace this 13 wat Exo terra Repti Glo 10.0 UVB w/ one of these
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-- ASAP--
Cabbage, broccoli are not real good foods to feed a lot here is a website for nutrition
http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html
The black beard is not good and he is in distress or pain---
Karrie

Thank for the help. Unfortunately he died this morning

Im sorry

-Brandon