Juvenile Beardie not eating

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Jazel28

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Hello there I just got my beardie Pheonix on Sunday January 27th from PetSmart I know I know not the wisest choice he was only there for 3 days before I purchased him and none of the other pet stores around me had beardies I believe him to be 8 weeks old or maybe a little older he is very small maybe 5 or 6 inches long from snout to tail he is a fancy bearded dragon which I guess means that he has different color than most of the others breeds ? We got him an 20gallon terrarium from a pet store here in our mall and decorated it dessert themed he seems to be doing ok but I’m somewhat concerned because today marks the 4th day in a row that he has not eaten . I feed him live feed which has so far included meal worms , wax worms , & crickets dusted in D3 calcium powder for the first few days he ate I wouldn’t say a lot but at least was eating from what I hear these guys are supposed to eat 20 to 30 crickets a day as juveniles he maybe it’s 3 to 4 meal worms a day and hasn’t seemed really that interested in crickets at all he ate a couple in the beginning when he first got here but that’s it . I also tried to feed him leafy greens beardie bites some mango food processed and some food processed carrot he has not been interested in any of it though I do you keep trying every day I make him something with some variety to see if he will eat but today is the fourth day in a row that he has just stayed on his basking rock . I’m pretty concerned even though I know he is a reptile and can go long periods of time without eating I have never been in a situation where an animal will not eat it’s really stressing me out i’ve done a lot of research on this website as well as YouTube videos and different things to combat any of the reasons he possibly may not be eating . It is winter here in California and it has been much colder than it normally is but inside his terrarium on the warm side it’s between 100 and 110° and the cool side is between 77 and 80 The light that came with his set up is a combination basking and UVB light we also have a temp gun to check the temperatures frequently to make sure that he is in a comfortable environment . I know they have stress from relocation and I’m thinking that might be what the problem is but he’s been with us for a little bit now and I would have thought that he might come out of that . I have already found in exotic pet vet that I want to take him in next week for just to make sure there’s nothing more wrong any advice would really be appreciated I know that juveniles rarely make it to adulthood and I don’t want that to be the case with this guy we really love him and I’m trying everything to make this work and make him happy . Here is a picture of his set up as well as him I said I’m on top of his food bowl to get them to see what’s in it but again not interested .
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Welcome to the forum-- first he probably has relocation stress - at least he is eating- second the 20 gallon terrarium he will very quickly out grow- like fast- I would recommend getting him into a larger tank like soon- either a 40 gallon or my strong recommendation is a 4x2x2- that is the enclosure he really needs - and will need at least by a year - the 40 gallon or 50 he can go into now- but that 20 gallon is too small - the lighting that you have doesnt sound good either - if you look on the left side of this page under articles husbandry and care is a list of things that he / she should have --- please read the info sheets for the beardies it can answer a lot of your questions and so can alot of people on this board-- lighting is crucial to their well being - it controls their digestive and growing - not having the proper lighting can cause a lot of health problems down the road --- the pic never came thru --- go to top of page click on user image up load -- down load pics -- go to reply at top of message box click on XIMG -- pics will post --- if you have any more questions please ask -- we are here to help you and your little guy

Karrie
 

Jazel28

Member
Original Poster
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Yes he has an All in one that came with his Exo Terra terrarium here is a picture of the bulb that he has it’s an All in one basking / UVB sorry I’m trying to figure out how to put the image in give me a sec
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Is it a coil ? All in one meaning the basking and UVB are the same bulb? Not good -- he needs a Reptisun 10.0 T5 or T8 T5 is better - or a Arcadia 10.0 T5 -- that is crucial - most of the "kits" they sell are no good - alot of the stuff you cant use - like bearded dragon pellets-- sand - the combo bulbs -- so you need to invest some money for your little guy if you want him to be healthy and live --- the tank the lighting - you can put in a household bulb to replace the UVB thats there - the basking bulb is probably ok as long as its keeping your temps where they need to be--- you should invest in a Infrared Temp gun to get accurate temps - they can be purchased from Walmart or Home Depot for like $10 --- did you get any kind of advice from the place you bought him from?

Karrie
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
What is the wattage of your Solar Glo? That will produce enough UVB at a certain distance from the bulb but it's difficult to keep the bulb at the right distance for UVB output and still get proper temperatures across the enclosure which is why using a T5 tube for UVB is recommended. You can set the tube at the right distance and then adjust the basking light separately to get the proper temperature gradient.
 

Jazel28

Member
Original Poster
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It is not a coil it is like you said ALL one bulb and I agree it’s prob why he is not eating I took him to the vet today and she said he is in good health and she taught me how to force feed him if need be today would have been the 5th day in a row he hadn’t eaten but I used a tiny syringe and gave him a ground up meal worm grasshopper carrot leafy green smoothie so he is going to bed tonight with a full happy lizard belly . I ordered per your recommendation a separate bulb to put in place of this crappy one that came with his kit I got him a 75w basking bulb just for basking . I also ordered him a reptisun 10.0 24inch bulb that I am going to mount in his terrarium under the mesh so that he has that UVB going to him at all times and running pretty much the length of his tank I know he will need a new tank before the year is up and I’m good with that but right now he is only 5 inches long so he seems to have enough space at the moment even if he will quickly outgrow . Regarding the temp gun I have one of those as well I use it frequently to make sure the basking spot is staying between 100 and 110° and the cool side is staying between 75 and 80°Here is a picture of him he is so cute even though he was not happy (black beard) after being fed by syringe that won’t be an All the time thing I’m hoping once we get his lighting fixed things will improve greatly !
 

Jazel28

Member
Original Poster
The wattage of the solar glow was 150watts which I think is way way too high because your right Cooper Dragon it made it really hard with the crappy all in one bulb to make sure he was getting enough UVB while also keeping the temps not too too hot by having the light to close to him ah well live and learn I ordered a reptisun 10.0 UVB 24inch that I’m going to be mounting inside his terrarium under the mesh and a separate 75 watt basking bulb that’s on the way he is doing a lot better tonight though I had to force feed him unfortunately not pleasant for him I’m sure at least he ate tonight today was going on the 5th day in a row he would have not eaten !
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
I hate that you are having to force feed him to me that doesnt sound good -- what are you feeding him?
Karrie
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
The 160w should be producing adequate UVB between about 12-16 inches above the main basking area. Overall I think it's best that you're replacing it with a tube so you can adjust heat more easily as I mentioned. Once you have lighting all set up properly I think that will help his appetite. You can save the Solar Glo for when he's older and if you have an area with no other pets you can set it up as a portable basking light for time outside of the tank. I'd avoid this while he's still so small though.
 
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