Mustashio
Juvie Member
Hello!
I'm brand new to this beardie adventure, and so far I am loving it! My only concern is, I have read up and researched this pet almost too much, but I am not sure what I should be looking for in terms of normal behavior and healthy activity.
Mustachio (Tashi for short) is approx 2-3 months old, about 6in long and we have had him in a 30x12x12 tank with an Exo-Terra Solar Glo 125w Mercury vapor light. Temps on warm side are at a steady 100-105 degrees, and my husband took a laser thermometer and the wood on his basking spot gets to around 120 degrees, though he usually likes to bask under a branch. Cool side is steady at 80degrees and have an underpad heater on the cool side under his hide (where he rarely ever goes). Substrate is reptile carpet.
We have had him for about 2 weeks at home now, and he seems to differ from day to day. He will voraciously eat 5-8 small crickets (dusted of course) about 2x a day, although I have been bad about trying to get it to a schedule. On occasion though he will turn up his nose at even crickets--one day he let them walk right in front of him and over his back and he didn't even flinch! Then next day, back to normal. He will also eat mealworms, about 4-5 every other day or so. He's not particularly fond of them as much as he is the crickets though. I have also heard conflicting things about feeding mealworms to babies. I make sure they are not too big for him (space between his eyes in length only). His back shed about 1 week ago, and he is clearly working on his head shed but it is slow going. He loves it when I put a drop of water on my finger and rub it into his head. Almost puts him to sleep! But the VEGI's! He is not having any of them! I know they don't eat much vegi's this young, but he doesn't eat any of them! Fresh or freeze dried, doesn't matter! Poops about once a day and still has cricket appetite, but I'm just worried he'll start to get picky! We try to handle him for short periods of time, like just a few minutes, every day.
Then over the last few days he has been walking really funny. Almost like he is drunk. Banging into things, bending backwards to look at something and then will fall over completely. Occasionally he slides off his branch/climb although that area is not far from the ground. He is very wobbly on his feet, and that is completely new. (At least I can say he wasn't doing that when we brought him home 2 weeks ago.) I know he is still a baby, and maybe I'm being too paranoid, but I'd rather know for sure. I did take some video of him wobbling about, but I don't know how to get it onto this forum since this is my first time posting.
So I guess my questions are these...
1. Should I worry about the anti-vegi issues?
2. Are meal worms a no-no?
3. Could the head shed have anything to do with his inconsistent appetite?
4. Is the wobble walking and falling over normal for a baby or am I just being paranoid since all the eating/pooping habits appear to be normal?
Sorry this is so long, but I would rather be over paranoid, than miss something important about Mustashio's health. Thanks in advance!
Jill
I'm brand new to this beardie adventure, and so far I am loving it! My only concern is, I have read up and researched this pet almost too much, but I am not sure what I should be looking for in terms of normal behavior and healthy activity.
Mustachio (Tashi for short) is approx 2-3 months old, about 6in long and we have had him in a 30x12x12 tank with an Exo-Terra Solar Glo 125w Mercury vapor light. Temps on warm side are at a steady 100-105 degrees, and my husband took a laser thermometer and the wood on his basking spot gets to around 120 degrees, though he usually likes to bask under a branch. Cool side is steady at 80degrees and have an underpad heater on the cool side under his hide (where he rarely ever goes). Substrate is reptile carpet.
We have had him for about 2 weeks at home now, and he seems to differ from day to day. He will voraciously eat 5-8 small crickets (dusted of course) about 2x a day, although I have been bad about trying to get it to a schedule. On occasion though he will turn up his nose at even crickets--one day he let them walk right in front of him and over his back and he didn't even flinch! Then next day, back to normal. He will also eat mealworms, about 4-5 every other day or so. He's not particularly fond of them as much as he is the crickets though. I have also heard conflicting things about feeding mealworms to babies. I make sure they are not too big for him (space between his eyes in length only). His back shed about 1 week ago, and he is clearly working on his head shed but it is slow going. He loves it when I put a drop of water on my finger and rub it into his head. Almost puts him to sleep! But the VEGI's! He is not having any of them! I know they don't eat much vegi's this young, but he doesn't eat any of them! Fresh or freeze dried, doesn't matter! Poops about once a day and still has cricket appetite, but I'm just worried he'll start to get picky! We try to handle him for short periods of time, like just a few minutes, every day.
Then over the last few days he has been walking really funny. Almost like he is drunk. Banging into things, bending backwards to look at something and then will fall over completely. Occasionally he slides off his branch/climb although that area is not far from the ground. He is very wobbly on his feet, and that is completely new. (At least I can say he wasn't doing that when we brought him home 2 weeks ago.) I know he is still a baby, and maybe I'm being too paranoid, but I'd rather know for sure. I did take some video of him wobbling about, but I don't know how to get it onto this forum since this is my first time posting.
So I guess my questions are these...
1. Should I worry about the anti-vegi issues?
2. Are meal worms a no-no?
3. Could the head shed have anything to do with his inconsistent appetite?
4. Is the wobble walking and falling over normal for a baby or am I just being paranoid since all the eating/pooping habits appear to be normal?
Sorry this is so long, but I would rather be over paranoid, than miss something important about Mustashio's health. Thanks in advance!
Jill