Experienced owners - is this normal?

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alikate

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Had my rescue Beardie since January this year. He was ‘donated’ to me as his previous owners had lost interest some years ago & finally got to the stage where he was almost skeletal & has a bit of MBD/arthritis.
I took him on as I couldn’t bear the thought of him being neglected - you may remember me posting about him way back in January. He’s around 10 years old. Small for an adult male. Came to me in a glass tank around 2ft by 1ft. With a heat mat & old UVB coil type lamp.
He’s now in a 4 x 2ft viv. Arcadia UVB strip light T5 12%. 75w basking lamp. His temps are 38 in basking. 28 hot end. 20/21 cool end. Eats well, has put on masses of weight. Shed for the first time in years a couple of months ago. Has baths regularly, in the beginning with added ReptoBoost to get him healthy. Poo normal. Was checked by a vet when I first took him on. Vet was happy that with a bit of TLC, he would be a happy dragon again.
My question is this - some days, he’s absolutely frantic in his tank. So active that I’m scared he’s going to do himself an injury (having questionable MBD issues/arthritis). He literally throws himself off his logs & hammock. Glass surfs like he’s being chased by monsters. Other days, he’s as chill as chill can be. I feel that this is not normal. Do you agree?
He basks quite happily & heats up beautifully, then off he goes on his frantic mission. I take him out the tank & can barely hold him as he’s jumping around so much.
I let him run around the house but he often just goes to the patio window & starts glass surfing there.
He has a run in the garden & gets out when the temperature outside allows.
I hate seeing him so frantic :-(. And he must be stressing himself out. Other days he basks all day & doesn’t move a muscle.
I wonder sometimes, could he be too warm? Having never been kept in a proper Viv before? With inadequate heat & light? He doesn’t go to the cool end very often unless it’s nighttime & he’s ready for sleeping. I just can’t understand it. The reason I wonder about the heat is because I’ve tried periodically turning his heat lamp off - just to try. I know this cools him down so he will naturally be less active, but he just seems happier when it’s not as hot. Has any body more experienced got any suggestions?
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
It sounds like hes got spring fever-- is this happening all the time or just recently? Could be the temp in the tank is too warm -- have you tried getting it lower instead of just shutting it off?
Karrie
 

alikate

Member
Original Poster
Hi Karrie - thanks for reply. He used to do it every now & then. And I guessed it was just his way of saying ‘hey, lemme out!’ So I did. But recently it’s been more often than not. Sometimes most days in a week. But once he’s out he’s going bananas & trying to throw himself off me!!
I’ve not tried a different wattage of bulb yet, but that’s a good shout. Am I right in saying I can use a normal household bulb with a lower wattage for basking? I have a ceramic bulb fitting for the viv but I guess that can be used with any bulb.
He’s an ‘old’ Dragon & I feel he should be enjoying his retirement ? not throwing his old arthritic joints around the place. He’ll put his hip out next! ??
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
You can try the house hold bulb and see what kind of temps you get out of it --- whatever the temp is now trying lowering it maybe 5 degrees and see if it makes a difference in his behavior he may not like it the temp hes at now--- you can always go back to what it is now but try the degree lower and see what happens - lighting plays a big role in their behavior
Karrie
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Hi there, you don't need to change the bulb his temps. are fine, 38C is like 100F. He may just be getting used to his newly minted health + strength and since this whole life is new he's not quite sure what to do with himself. It all sounds pretty normal. Of course some dragons can act frantic for a number of reasons and we don't always know. Whatever you do, don't let him know that you practically called him an " old geezer ", he wouldn't appreciate that you know. ! :lol:
 
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