dragunlady
New member
I have a 40 gallon tank for my male BD. On his basking side I use either a 75W UVB red bulb from reptisun, or the 100W UVB bulb from reptisun. In addition, on the basking side, we have a 100W UVA coil bulb from reptisun. On the other side of his tank we have an 100W arcadia strip. The substrate is tile. We have a log he basks on, a hammock, and a tunnel in his viv (which he rarely goes inside).
I adopted him from my older sister who no longer wanted to care for him, so I'm not exactly sure how old he is. My guess is he's more or less one years old.
Lately he has been acting very bratty. He CONSTANTLY glass surfs when he's inside his cage and pushes around his tunnel and food and water dish. EVERYTIME he's in his viv he glass surfs, has a black beard, and wants to get out. He's been doing this for about almost a week now.
Also, the reason why we switch between the red bulb and the other regular UVB bulb is because whenever we use the regular bulb, he is able to see is reflection. Whenever he sees his reflection inside the viv he immediately turns black, tries to fight his reflection, and glass surfs.
I'm at a loss for what to do. We have covered the glass on his basking side with paper in order so that he cannot see his reflection on that side, but sometimes the UVA light from the arcadia strip causes him to see his reflection on the cool side. We even use the red bulb in order to prevent him from seeing his reflection, but he has STILL BEEN GLASS SURFING EVERYDAY EVERY TIME WE PUT HIM IN HIS CAGE TO BASK. I'm worried about his health because he doesn't want to spend any time in his cage, and isnt getting sufficient heat and light. On the other hand, I don't want him to somehow get hurt by leaving him in his cage and letting him go crazy glass surfing and running and jumping around like a maniac.
In addition, he has been getting a black beard everyday. When we give in and take him out of his cage, he runs around the house black bearded and head bobbing at absolutely nothing. He always runs to the mirror to try to see and fight his reflection, hissing and all.
SO, I have a couple questions and concerns.
1. How can we get him to stay in his viv without glass surfing and fighting himself?
2. Am I the only owner who has a problem with the reflections the lights give off inside the viv?
3. I see others who do not even cover the glass sides of the viv, whereas I covered everything except the front side and he STILL fights himself. How do others avoid this and have good BDs that stay in their cage under bright light with no problems?
4. Is all this black bearding and stress bad for his health?
5. Is he going through BD puberty which can explain his behavior?
6. I'm going on a two day trip and he will need to be in his cage the entire
7. He hasn't been eating much for the past month or so (he had coccidia, but we treated him with medicine from the vet..he's all clear now). Should his lack of appetite be a concern?
PLEASE HELP!
I adopted him from my older sister who no longer wanted to care for him, so I'm not exactly sure how old he is. My guess is he's more or less one years old.
Lately he has been acting very bratty. He CONSTANTLY glass surfs when he's inside his cage and pushes around his tunnel and food and water dish. EVERYTIME he's in his viv he glass surfs, has a black beard, and wants to get out. He's been doing this for about almost a week now.
Also, the reason why we switch between the red bulb and the other regular UVB bulb is because whenever we use the regular bulb, he is able to see is reflection. Whenever he sees his reflection inside the viv he immediately turns black, tries to fight his reflection, and glass surfs.
I'm at a loss for what to do. We have covered the glass on his basking side with paper in order so that he cannot see his reflection on that side, but sometimes the UVA light from the arcadia strip causes him to see his reflection on the cool side. We even use the red bulb in order to prevent him from seeing his reflection, but he has STILL BEEN GLASS SURFING EVERYDAY EVERY TIME WE PUT HIM IN HIS CAGE TO BASK. I'm worried about his health because he doesn't want to spend any time in his cage, and isnt getting sufficient heat and light. On the other hand, I don't want him to somehow get hurt by leaving him in his cage and letting him go crazy glass surfing and running and jumping around like a maniac.
In addition, he has been getting a black beard everyday. When we give in and take him out of his cage, he runs around the house black bearded and head bobbing at absolutely nothing. He always runs to the mirror to try to see and fight his reflection, hissing and all.
SO, I have a couple questions and concerns.
1. How can we get him to stay in his viv without glass surfing and fighting himself?
2. Am I the only owner who has a problem with the reflections the lights give off inside the viv?
3. I see others who do not even cover the glass sides of the viv, whereas I covered everything except the front side and he STILL fights himself. How do others avoid this and have good BDs that stay in their cage under bright light with no problems?
4. Is all this black bearding and stress bad for his health?
5. Is he going through BD puberty which can explain his behavior?
6. I'm going on a two day trip and he will need to be in his cage the entire
7. He hasn't been eating much for the past month or so (he had coccidia, but we treated him with medicine from the vet..he's all clear now). Should his lack of appetite be a concern?
PLEASE HELP!