Beardie closing eyes and not pooping well!!!

[Ashleyk]

ok well proper placement and distance is crucial

This is his setup

 

[KarrieRee]

This is his setup

Ok its a wide holed so make sure you have a piece of basking decor directly under it 8-10 inches --- how has his behavior been since setting it up?

 

[KarrieRee]

Please take the probe and set it on the spot where he sits to bask --- that too is very important you dont need to leave it there but I would spot check about once a week

 

[Ashleyk]

Please take the probe and set it on the spot where he sits to bask --- that too is very important you dont need to leave it there but I would spot check about once a week

Normally I have the probe on his basking spot and it tends to be around 102 degrees f. Since setting it up, he was acting normal and eating fine. However, I set it up right before I left for vacation and when I got back he had started acting somewhat strange. I also just added some new aspects to his enclosure. Since then, he has not been as interested in catching his own bugs. He gets excited when he sees them and will eat them when I put them right in front of his face but I used to just dump crickets in there and he would run at them. He also does not seem as interested in his salad. He has also recently started cage surfing and running around his tank. I am not sure if this is due to him feeling better and having more energy due to the better uvb or if he was stressed because of the new tank decor. He was also having the pooping problem and recently he has been closing his eyes when I hold him and every once and a while he closes his eyes in his tank but only for 5 seconds.

 

[Ashleyk]

Hello!!!! Checking back in. Gordon (my about 1 1/2 year old bearded dragon has been acting weird for about a month now. I originally thought it was because I changed his uvb and added some new aspects to the enclosure which could have possibly stressed him out. However, I think Gordon is actually a girl. The more I read up on symptoms, the more it could seem like Gordon is trying to lay eggs? He started suddenly being very active. Running around the enclosure, glass surfing etc. however, his interest in food started to go down. He used to run over when I put his salad in there but now he doesn’t. I also can’t dump crickets in there anymore because he will just watch them run away instead of freaking out and catching them like normal. I have to hold them in front of his face. Then, about 2 days ago, he found a hiding spot on the cool side of the enclosure and has been staying there and not moving much. I also noticed Gordon digging inside of his hiding spot but it was only for less than a minute. The more I look up symptoms of being gravid, the more the symptoms start to make sense. He was also having irregular bowel movements a while ago such as going much more often and being watery. Could Gordon be a girl???? Is she trying to lay eggs or egg bound?????

 

[Ashleyk]

Hello!!!! Checking back in. Gordon (my about 1 1/2 year old bearded dragon has been acting weird for about a month now. I originally thought it was because I changed his uvb and added some new aspects to the enclosure which could have possibly stressed him out. However, I think Gordon is actually a girl. The more I read up on symptoms, the more it could seem like Gordon is trying to lay eggs? He started suddenly being very active. Running around the enclosure, glass surfing etc. however, his interest in food started to go down. He used to run over when I put his salad in there but now he doesn’t. I also can’t dump crickets in there anymore because he will just watch them run away instead of freaking out and catching them like normal. I have to hold them in front of his face. Then, about 2 days ago, he found a hiding spot on the cool side of the enclosure and has been staying there and not moving much. I also noticed Gordon digging inside of his hiding spot but it was only for less than a minute. The more I look up symptoms of being gravid, the more the symptoms start to make sense. He was also having irregular bowel movements a while ago such as going much more often and being watery. Could Gordon be a girl???? Is she trying to lay eggs or egg bound?????

Also, I have tried but I can not tell either the tail trick if he is a girl or a boy but I called the pet store where I got him and they said most of the reptiles they sell are going to be girls. I also felt Gordon’s stomach and can not feel an “marble like” bumps.

 

[KarrieRee]

Also, I have tried but I can not tell either the tail trick if he is a girl or a boy but I called the pet store where I got him and they said most of the reptiles they sell are going to be girls. I also felt Gordon’s stomach and can not feel an “marble like” bumps.

@AHBD

 

[Badwolfe]

any chance you can flip up Gordans tail so we can take a look and try to identify his sex. Also take a pic of his vent and inner thighs of his back legs because if he is male the femoral pores should be quite visible by now

Other thing you can try if you have someone to help is shine a bright torch (even a phone torch) through his tail and get a helper to take a picture from underneath the tail showing the light passing through. The light shining through the tail shoul be bright enough to illuminate the hemipenes if he is male

You want to try and achieve this with the torchlight:

 

[Ashleyk]

any chance you can flip up Gordans tail so we can take a look and try to identify his sex. Also take a pic of his vent and inner thighs of his back legs because if he is male the femoral pores should be quite visible by now

Other thing you can try if you have someone to help is shine a bright torch (even a phone torch) through his tail and get a helper to take a picture from underneath the tail showing the light passing through. The light shining through the tail shoul be bright enough to illuminate the hemipenes if he is male

You want to try and achieve this with the torchlight:

View attachment 66921

 

[Ashleyk]

These are the best I could get

 

[KarrieRee]

These are the best I could get

I do believe it is female ---
@AHBD

 

[Ashleyk]

This is Gordon from today (wanted to show what he looks like and how he was acting)

 

[Badwolfe]

These are the best I could get

Yep going off the torch photograph 'Gordan' is definitely female

Your 'he' is in fact a 'she'

 

[Ashleyk]

Yep going off the torch photograph 'Gordan' is definitely female

So based on the symptoms, could SHE be trying to lay eggs? Or should I continue to go on my wild research journey that I’ve been on for the past month to see why the temperament and personality changed suddenly? She hasn’t shed since around august and has been doing a weird eye thing recently. Closing one eye or both. Her interest in food went down but at the same time she was running around her enclosure like crazy for a while. You can see this in the video attached (maybe she was doing this since she was trying to find a place to lay eggs?)

 

[Badwolfe]

So based on the symptoms, could SHE be trying to lay eggs? Or should I continue to go on my wild research journey that I’ve been on for the past month to see why the temperament and personality changed suddenly? She hasn’t shed since around august and has been doing a weird eye thing recently. Closing one eye or both. Her interest in food went down but at the same time she was running around her enclosure like crazy for a while. You can see this in the video attached (maybe she was doing this since she was trying to find a place to lay eggs?)

To be honest from the video she doesn't actually seem that restless and if this behaviour has been going on for a month its highly doubtful that its related to laying eggs. The fact you can't feel anything inside her either sort of confirms this.

The slightly loose droppings could definitely be connected to the UVB wearing out and now that you have replaced it it could take a month or two for the digestion to get back to normal. Also like suggested earlier dont feed her for the last two hours of the day of her heating cycle. She will need those two hours to get the digestion process well under way. Try not to overfeed anything in the salad with too high of a water content too for a couple of weeks.

The searching and digging and lowered appetite could also be the onset of a partial brumation.

As long as she doesn't stop eating altogether and maintains her weight I'd just keep an eye on her for the time being but obviously if she does start losing weight get her to a vets for a check up.

In all fairness she looks in good condition in both of those videos and actually mistakes a piece of fluff for food in one so her appetite seems ok at the moment