Bearded dragon eyes water when eating and fast breathing

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Cheerio

Member
Hi, everyone I am a bit perturbed as to why my dragon when feeding, his eyes tend to water. He has proper lighting, heat and I have fake plants and wooden floor boards and reptile items in his tank non that point to have any particles in the air that can cause irritation. And along with the watery eyes his stomach goes in and out like he is having contractions and sometimes you can hear him breathing hard. I have taken him to the vet. They only diagnosed him with coccidia and is in current treatment. But when asked about his stomach contracting while eating they didn't know. They told me all is good. So I was just wondering if anyone in here has seen your bearded dragon do things similar to mine and if its normal or if a vet has told you otherwise and if so what did you do? Any advice will be appreciated.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
What kind of lighting do you have in the tank and where is it inside the tank or on top of mesh? Do you have any colored bulbs?
Karrie
 

Cheerio

Member
Original Poster
KarrieRee":36r5et5p said:
What kind of lighting do you have in the tank and where is it inside the tank or on top of mesh? Do you have any colored bulbs?
Karrie
There is no colored lights I have a 125wt bulb to bask and a Zoo Med ReptiSun 5.0 UVB T5 HO Lamp, 24 Watts that runs across 2/3 of his tank. and his temps are 110 (hot) and 85 (cool) there's no water in there to cause high moisture and cause respiratory issues. So I am really stumped
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Ok so am I now-- just a suggestion next time you replace the UVB 5.0 get a 10.0 tube - they are a stronger UVB - as far as eyes watering is there a lot of dust ? The 5.0 is on top of screen ? If it is it should be inside the tank as it is not a strong bulb and the screen is filtering out the UVB's rays--the basking bulb is it a bright white bulb or is it have a yellowish tint?
Karrie
 

Cheerio

Member
Original Poster
KarrieRee":3lwlousm said:
Ok so am I now-- just a suggestion next time you replace the UVB 5.0 get a 10.0 tube - they are a stronger UVB - as far as eyes watering is there a lot of dust ? The 5.0 is on top of screen ? If it is it should be inside the tank as it is not a strong bulb and the screen is filtering out the UVB's rays--the basking bulb is it a bright white bulb or is it have a yellowish tint?
Karrie

I just replaced the uvb bulb, like 2 days ago but I'll see how I can move it in my tank or get the 10.0 if all fails. And the basking light is a heat lamp and white. I was recommended to get that from the vet. They told me it was cheaper and worked just as good as the expensive bulbs from the reptile brands. So I got those two for now. Should I change it? Is it not good? But even before I changed the basking light he still had the symptoms. So I don't know.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
its not from the UVB causing the watery eyes - I wanted to know if the basking bulb was white and did not have a yellowish tint - I heard they were not good -- so w/ that being said yes please get the UVB in the tank its gonna benefit him he will get more rays - right now they are being filtered and the 5.0 is more for aquarium -- so w/ that it needs to be approx 8-10 inches from his basking spot- here are some things to hang it w/ command Velcro fasteners- picture hanging wire – plastic zip ties-- some others on here are going to haft to chime in on the watery eyes -- does he have any discharge from his nose ?
Karrie
 

Cheerio

Member
Original Poster
KarrieRee":2duc7lgg said:
its not from the UVB causing the watery eyes - I wanted to know if the basking bulb was white and did not have a yellowish tint - I heard they were not good -- so w/ that being said yes please get the UVB in the tank its gonna benefit him he will get more rays - right now they are being filtered and the 5.0 is more for aquarium -- so w/ that it needs to be approx 8-10 inches from his basking spot- here are some things to hang it w/ command Velcro fasteners- picture hanging wire – plastic zip ties-- some others on here are going to haft to chime in on the watery eyes -- does he have any discharge from his nose ?
Karrie

He has no discharge from his nose. He did just shed his nostrils tho. And the basking light is white/clear and no yellowish tint. And I will try your suggestions on mounting the uvb bulb in the tank thank you!
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
the yellowish tint could be the watering of the eyes - I would change out that bulb to a bright white basking bulb --- no yellow --- see if it clears it up-- I use a Exo Terra 150 watt basking bulb - all white no yellow
Karrie
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Never mind! I just reread post! What are you feeding him?
Karrie
 

sunshinesmomma

New member
Hey did you ever figure out what was happening? My dragon is doing the EXACT same thing. Our set ups sound almost identical. She is perfectly find except when she's eating her eyes get watery and she breathes very heavily. I made a post that has picture but haven't gotten any responses yet.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
That is odd that two dragons are doing the same thing---------what is the substrate in the tanks?
Karrie
 
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