Hard lump on leg! Comments please

Kingofnobbys has answered everything perfectly, so there isn't much I can add except that since he's so small and young (How old is he?) the most important thing that you can do for him is buying him a very good UVB light, either a Mercury Vapor Bulb (MVB), which is an all-in-one bulb that supplies both adequate UVB for a beardie and his heat, or the other option in Australia that is the absolute best option available is an Arcadia 12% or 14% UVB, but it must be the long, flourescent tube version and then a matching flourescent tube fixture in the same length as the tube. Arcadia UVB tubes are the best bearded dragon UVB lights available, I wish they sold them here in the U.S., but we have Reptisun UVB tubes which are very close in quality. A good piece of advice is NEVER buy any bulb that is a "coil" bulb, not for UVB or for basking, because #1 none of them produce adequate UVB light for a bearded dragon, and #2 they all seem to cause serious eye and skin issues. So just avoid all "coil" bulbs. Period.

Once you get whichever UVB light you're choosing, make sure that it is within the correct distance of the main basking spot based on which light you buy. We can help you with that once you tell us which one you buy. Also, make sure that the new UVB light is right alongside the basking light and both are overtop of his main basking spot, at the correct distance from it for the UVB. These practices will ensure that he's getting the correct and adequate UVB light that he needs every day to be able to digest his food, make vitamin D3, and absorb all of his nutrition, including his Calcium, which will stop any developing MBD and get him back on track with his growth and prevent and stunting. ****Be sure to replace his UVB tube/bulb according to what the directions for that bulb are, it's going to need replaced at least once a year, some are every 6 months, because they stop emitting UVB light even though they still turn on and emit light.**""

Since he's young and will do most of his growing during his first year of life, getting the correct UVB light placed at the correct distance (unobstructed by any clear plastic cover that may come on the light fixture and is covering the bulb for safety, remove it if the fixture you buy has one!) and getting all 3 of his Temperature zones within the correct ranges listed above by Kingofnobbys, and feeding him at least 2 feeding sessions per day, 3 sessions is preferred, of live, quality feeder insects, dusted with Calcium and multivitamins, each session lasting 10-15 minutes where he's allowed to eat as many live insects as he wants, as well as offering him fresh greens from the list above. Following all of these instructions will get him back on track and allow him to grow to his full potential without any Calcium deficiencies.

EllenD he was born in January 2017 apparently but I definitely do not trust the shop that I got him after all the whack information they gave to me
Vet booked for this afternoon for his injury and purchasing new lighting as soon as I can

When you buy your new UV bulb or tube (T8 or T5HO) , please keep in mind the following stuff that shops WONT TELL YOU.
Many Chain Petshops sell their own brand , they buy in bulk and simply rebox .
Bands of UV lights (compact coils, T8, T5HO and neodymium coated basking globes and mercury vapour globes) to avoid are Zilla, All Living Things, Reptile-One, Nat Geo , and Natural Selections from Reptile Direct in Sydney which are these : .

These are ALL cheap Chinese clones made very cheaply using very poor quality quartz glass and cheap phosphors ==> very poor UV spectrum produced including UVC and bad parts of the UVB band.

They will harm your dragon's eyes and will not be good for them long term, also it's been my experience with Reptile One and Natural Selections that they a so poorly made they will often die inside a few weeks of being first turned on , if not as soon as they turned on.

Brands of compacts that are very good are : Exo Terra , Zoo Med & Arcadia.
Brands of T8 tubes that are very good are Exo Terra and Arcadia.
Brands of T5HO tubes & MVB globes that are very good are Exo Terra , Zoo Med & Arcadia.
I'm not a fan of neodymium coated (UVA) basking globes.

Best way to install a UVB compact coil is in a horizontal format in something like an ExoTerra NanoHood , these will help spread the UVA & UVB over a larger area , this is the arrangement I use for my 100L beardie rearing tubs see : viewtopic.php?f=34&t=233480.

I've had excellent results with two batches of beardies ( Rex and Puff , then Peppa & Toothless ) using 26W UVB200 globes in NanoHoods as the UVA & UVB sources for each , see my blog thread about them viewtopic.php?f=6&t=221328&start=255 ( WARNING VERY LONG , lots of photos and lots thread tangents ! but you'll get some good hints and tips therein ).

I am sending best wishes and lots of good vibes to little Nardo , I've heard some good reports over the years about the vet you mentioned (from what I gather he's one the best around).

Any news on Nardo's sore / injured leg ?

How'd he go in surgery ?

Just got home from Vet, I am a very fast paced person and he was next level
Says he has calcium deficiency and incorrect heating, he is NOT going to x-ray him, going to give him vitamin and calcium injections, check his poop, and keep him for a while. Total $300.

-Said that red bulb is fine for basking and can leave on overnight and will not irritate eyes, did say to put wire encasing around
-Get a UVB tube, he did not specify brand and nothing about Wattage just that needs to be 300mm distance... there was no reception there so could not show charts linked on this page, he didn't want a bar of it anyway
-Laughed at UVA
-Gave me good set up for mealworms with Wombaroo (said they are not fatty and not parasitic), no dusted crickets as just mealworms ok

-Going to get rid of glass tank and look for new enclosure, also purchase temp gun/borrow from work if I can, thermostat will arrive Friday.

My car blew up this morning and had no sleep last night so was a bit teary, if anyone has any comments I will assure to ask him.
Missing lil boy already but just want him to be okay

Gee it , you've having a rough run .... Nardo gets hurt , then the car dies ....

Woobaroo is good stuff , not impressed with the mealworms advise though, I'd substitute BSF maggots and maybe small (1 inch size silkworms) - they have natural anti-inflamatory enzymes in them (from LiveFoods , see link already supplied) , much better feeder insect than mealworms).

Added ::: Mostly the issue with mealworms is the hard to digest exoskeleton (impaction risk) , mealworms , BSF maggots and silkworms are all similar fat content see

BSF maggots (calciworms) and silkworms win out on the Ca/P ratios , and silkworms have beneficial enzymes in them.

Edit ::: The injections ... a quick way to boost the calcium and vits in his bloodstream , the mealworms are easy to find everywhere , whereas calciworms (BSF maggots) & silkworms are harder to find and you need to be in the know here in Australia to get them.

Red light at night .... we usually advise against these, the glow is visible and is likely to disturb sleep, I guess give it a go, can always change it out for a ceramic heat emitter if it's cold enough overnight in the house to warrant it ( my memory FAR SE QLD on the coast is it's lovely at night in late August and September (T-shirts and shorts at night) last time I visited the area about this time of the year.

I take it he thinks the swelling was due to a soft-tissue injury / bluising where the stick hit him .... No x-rays .... I'd request them anyway .... to be sure and get a good idea of his bone density, I know it takes a while to warm up their xray machine and if very busy they'd rather not bother.

$300 is NOT TOO BAD , would have a bit more if he needed surgery to pin and reset the leg .

I don't mind $300, hoping for a swift recovery. Concerned about his housing though so gives me some time to and perfect it, looking into classifieds, and order some more bugs, as don't ever want to ask Pet Shops for assistance again. Will see how he reacts to treatment and decide on x-ray. Vet asked if he was a dwarf, may be runt?

Vet gives regular updates and said they are going to post him on Facebook for me <3

Nardo":1qsoz4im said:

I don't mind $300, hoping for a swift recovery. Concerned about his housing though so gives me some time to and perfect it, looking into classifieds, and order some more bugs, as don't ever want to ask Pet Shops for assistance again. Will see how he reacts to treatment and decide on x-ray. Vet asked if he was a dwarf, may be runt?

<<< GumTree often have secondhand timber vivs (4ft x 2ft x 2ft with sliding doors on the front) , if you or hubby are handy , a good viv is an easy weekend project using 3/4 inch plywood and Cowdroy plastic sliding glass door tracks is the standard : https://cowdroy.com.au/product/p02624-plastic-track-set . these are available direct from Cowdroy or can be found at Bunnings.
Some places on Ebay sell flatpacked vivs made from MDF.

Vet gives regular updates and said they are going to post him on Facebook for me <3

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Is a possibility that he's a runt (because he's had to share a display enclosure / bin or what ever the breeder kept him in prior to selling him the petshop and then in the shop , he was likely dominated by other hatchlings and his larger more voracious siblings (this can lead to failure to thrive/grow).

But if you post a photo of his head from above it , we can compare with the head shape and crown spikes formations for centrals, easterns, pygmies (rankins/ lawsons/ blacksoil) beardies. Those three are the most likely species in the hobby in the eastern states. All are great pets.
Here is how you can tell :

I'd like to suggest that you pop in to visit your dragon while he's being kept. I think that the stress from being in a strangle place with other animals all around, plus being injected daily [ usually somewhat painful ] may be very hard on him. Plus you have a right to see how the baby is set up. So far some [ or a lot ] of this vet's advice seems not so great.....a red light is NEVER used be experienced owners + breeders. Do we enjoy being in a room with a red light on all day ? No, neither do diurnal reptiles.

Mealworms are O.K, they're not a good staple but are not the " death sentence or junk food " as some people claim, but for a sick lizard with probable MBD, the BSFL is a better food item, but they still need to be dusted with calcium + D3 . Some mealworms, definitely dusted in calcium powder are O.K in small amounts. Crickets that are disabled or dizzy [ shaking them hard in a jar to weaken them ] will do as well.

Xrays would determine for sure if there's a break, not sure why the vet is skipping that. Does he regularly see pet beardies ? I would be surprised if the dragon improves while being kept there....I hope he does and if so I think it would be against the odds. But DO go in for a visit to see how he's doing and take pics of his set up in the clinic.

Oh, and the baby's pics are there in the first few posts....it's a central beardie , pogons vitticeps.. The chart there is really not reliable, many beardies have different shaped heads, and these change quite a bit as they grow. Compare a baby central [ p. vitticeps ] with that chart and you'd think it was a nullarbor or minor. There's no way to remotely tell what type of a baby dragon you had comparing it to that chart. Even adults vary greatly....not all my adult males [ which I've owned many ] look like the one in the chart.

AHBD":tw09yaxt said:

Oh, and the baby's pics are there in the first few posts....it's a central beardie , pogons vitticeps.. The chart there is really not reliable, many beardies have different shaped heads, and these change quite a bit as they grow. Compare a baby central [ p. vitticeps ] with that chart and you'd think it was a nullarbor or minor. There's no way to remotely tell what type of a baby dragon you had comparing it to that chart. Even adults vary greatly....not all my adult males [ which I've owned many ] look like the one in the chart.

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I'd forgotten all about those photos ....

I agree, chart is more applicable to adults dragons.

I think Nardos more likely 2-3 months old , by his body shape and head shape.' (Something else the pet shop got wrong, or if they are right , an indication of how "well" he was cared for by them).


Here are photos of Toothless and Peppa @ 3 months old :
Toothless

51.1g @ 3 months old
was 20.9g @ 2 months old

Peppa

60.1g @ 3 months old
was 24.6g @ 2 months old.

Peppa & Toothless on their first day with us @ 5 weeks old , Peppa was 13.9g , Toothless was 11g.


if developing properly there is marked change in their body and head shape between 2 and 3 months old which can be seen in my photos above ( young hatchlings have larger head cf their bodies (which makes them look so appealing and comical and goofy)) , which is why I think Nardo is maybe 2 - 3 months old .

Thank you everyone for all of your input! And thank you for the enclosure advice, will have a good search around for the best option.
As mentioned, am very disappointed in Pet Shops advice...Told at purchase he was 5-6 months old and then went back and another said born in Jan, so 8 months old... Love my lil man so hoping he will be ok!
Will post updates

Nardo":q7fiudm4 said:

Thank you everyone for all of your input! And thank you for the enclosure advice, will have a good search around for the best option.
As mentioned, am very disappointed in Pet Shops advice...Told at purchase he was 5-6 months old and then went back and another said born in Jan, so 8 months old... Love my lil man so hoping he will be ok!
Will post updates

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Typical of a petshops , their staff are totally clueless .

Any news from the vet ?

I have no doubt you'll wind up with a wonderful pet who will be your little spiky mate once his leg problem and calcium deficiency is sorted.

If you decide to do a DIYS viv , I recommend using 3/4in thick marine ply (is more moisture resistant) and places like Bunnings and Mr Ply and Wood can supply a sheet (I think the standard is 1.2m x 2.4m which is perfect for one 1.2m x 0.6m x 0.6m viv , all the pieces work out about 1 sheet)
ie TOP + BTM + BACK sheets (1.2 x 0.6) + 2 END PIECES ( 0.6 x 0.6 ) , then all you need is some timber for the front (ie some Fj Pencil Round in 66x11 raw or primed) for above and below the plastic sliding door tracks).
. I know Bunnings will precut a sheet for you to your specifications ( $3 per cut ? ) , all need do is call the local Bunnings' Trade Desk and tell them what you want over the phone or by fax or my email , they'll supply and cut and deliver ( I think $35 to deliver ) , and then all you need do in assemble (glue and screw it all together) and drill some holes for plastic cupboard vents (the round ones (also at Bunnings) and wall vents (also at Bunnings) and of cause the sliding doors (a glasier will cut some 6-6.5mm safety glass to size and flame polish the edges (no sharp edges)).

I've often have Bunnings collect my order for me , I just look up the stuff I want and make a list with the item (line Nos) , and when it's all collected by their special orders department staff, they ask me come and collect it and pay , or they are happy to take my credit card number and deliver to my door. This way I save lots of time and I am risking buying a heap of extra stuff on impulse when I'm in the store.....

Nardo has pinworms and toxicosis, he is doing well so far, Vet is going to phone again on Monday, I really want to go visit him but my lack of car situation isn't fun atm
Ordered temp gun, thermostat arrived, my dad is super handy and is going to make a viv for me but is away until end of Sept so I am going to cover the glass aquarium I have with EVA foam to regulate temps.

4ft glass tank until end of Sept then wooden DIY viv;
What wattage CHE should I get? 60W?
And tossing up between 26W exoterra compact with nano hood or reptisun/arcadia tube and reflector? (can't find reflector for 22" Arcadia T8 http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/182098413905)

Can't wait for him to come home!!

Try AmazingAmazon , they carry t8 and t5HO tubes and reflector hoods to suit in range of lengths.

Can you change your order to a 24W T5HO 12%uvb tube from the T8 version, AmazingAmazon and a few others have the 12%UVB T5HO tube , https://www.amazingamazon.com.au/reptile-t5-uvb-globes.html

This will suit your Arcadia T8 12%UVB , http://www.petshopdirect.com.au/shop/item/reptile-one-t8-light-reflector-24-18watt , though Reptile One UV globes and tubes are rubbish, the reflector hood will be fine even if not as well build as a better brand.