Rescue Bearded Dragon

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ecayir

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My friend got a bearded dragon when it was 1 year old and has had it for about a year. It was malnourished and had no lighting when he got it. Immediately he bought a uvb bulb and heat light, but the heat was still not adequate a year later the friend called me about the beardie saying his lights went out over 1 month ago and I took him in yesterday. (I have other lizards and had kept bearded dragons successfully in the past) The first day I had him I put on the lights (exo terra 150 uvb 13watt) and a 100 watt day heat lamp. I offered crickets the first day and he devoured them. The next day he pooped 3 times and I offered veggies. He didn't eat those but he wasn't interested in crickets either. I wanted to see if there are any steps to take to get this poor dragon back to health as quickly as possible.
 

ecayir

Member
Original Poster
How do I post a photo. The beardie is very skinny to the point that his skin on his back is wrinkly
 

SpacialCoogs

Sub-Adult Member
he's going to need proper lighting and nutrition. Can he move around well? Are you using calcium supplements or dusting his crickets?
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Hi there, it's good that he's in a good home now and can get some nutrition in him. It's important to go easy on the insect feedings, too much can shock his system and seriously damage his kidneys. Hydration is very important, so if he's not freaked out by a bath, put him in about 3" of lukewarm water for 10 minutes and dribble water on his snout. Or you can just drip the water on his snout while he's in his tank. Make sure not to get him wet too late , pat him dry so he can stay warm. Offer him shredded greens like turnip, mustard, collard and only a few bugs a day at first. Nothing too big until he's strong + his system can handle it.
 

ecayir

Member
Original Poster
AHBD":3mflyst6 said:
Hi there, it's good that he's in a good home now and can get some nutrition in him. It's important to go easy on the insect feedings, too much can shock his system and seriously damage his kidneys. Hydration is very important, so if he's not freaked out by a bath, put him in about 3" of lukewarm water for 10 minutes and dribble water on his snout. Or you can just drip the water on his snout while he's in his tank. Make sure not to get him wet too late , pat him dry so he can stay warm. Offer him shredded greens like turnip, mustard, collard and only a few bugs a day at first. Nothing too big until he's strong + his system can handle it.


I have one more question...I have the beardie in my room and I turned off his basking and uvb light at around 7:30pm so he got around 12 hours. Which I'm sure is enough but in the evening I like to relax in my room with the room's light on will this disturb his sleep schedule?
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
A good light schedule should be about 14 hours in the summer. And the light in your room might bother him if it's on for hours, you might cover the tank with a blanket or dark towel.
 

ecayir

Member
Original Poster
AHBD":2d4sbyj1 said:
A good light schedule should be about 14 hours in the summer. And the light in your room might bother him if it's on for hours, you might cover the tank with a blanket or dark towel.

I think I may have shocked his system with too many insects so soon. When I first got him I didn't know about easing them back into a normal diet. The reason I think this is the case is because he ate very well the first day of having him and the second day and today he is refusing to eat. If this is the case would squash babyfood help fatten him up without overdoing it too soon?
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Yes, offer the squash and add extra water to it. You can't really rush to put weight on him, it has to come gradually. A starving person or animal needs to have smaller meals before they can handle large volumes of food, and it just can't be done real fast, the goal is to get healthy, slow and steady. Avoid fatty foods like mealworms + waxworms , that would be like offering a starving person pizza and pie just to get weight on them. There is some nutritional value but it's heavy on fat.
 
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