Beardie only wants to syringe feed

[Weenielord]

I've had Goetta since November 2nd and it's been a whirlwind. He's still a lil baby and he had some pretty gnarly parasites which caused him to stop eating. While being treated I've been syringe feeding him oxbow crit care with a bug slurry to keep him nourished. He's made a tremendous recovery and is doing amazing.

The new challenge is that now he's gotten used to feeding from the syringe and he doesn't want to hunt. I don't want to keep feeding him the crit care slurry but I also don't want to stop if he's not getting the nutrition from hunting bugs.

Is it okay to keep feeding him with the syringe until he willingly starts hunting? Any tips on pushing him to hunt or should I just wait for his little instincts to kick in?

Tank specs:
4x2x2
15-20% humidity
110-105 basking area, hot side 95, cool side 85, nighttime warm side 80 to cool side 70
Reptisun t5 10.0

Also side note, he's not my first beardie. I fully understand basic care. I've just never experienced having to wean a beardie off a bottle lol

 

[KarrieRee]

I've had Goetta since November 2nd and it's been a whirlwind. He's still a lil baby and he had some pretty gnarly parasites which caused him to stop eating. While being treated I've been syringe feeding him oxbow crit care with a bug slurry to keep him nourished. He's made a tremendous recovery and is doing amazing.

The new challenge is that now he's gotten used to feeding from the syringe and he doesn't want to hunt. I don't want to keep feeding him the crit care slurry but I also don't want to stop if he's not getting the nutrition from hunting bugs.

Is it okay to keep feeding him with the syringe until he willingly starts hunting? Any tips on pushing him to hunt or should I just wait for his little instincts to kick in?

Tank specs:
4x2x2
15-20% humidity
110-105 basking area, hot side 95, cool side 85, nighttime warm side 80 to cool side 70
Reptisun t5 10.0

Also side note, he's not my first beardie. I fully understand basic care. I've just never experienced having to wean a beardie off a bottle lol

Is your UVB inside the tank--- if not it should be and it should be directly above the basking decor 12-15 inches --- this might be a reason hes not eating on his own if the UVB is on top of the screen -- they wont eat w/ out proper UVB rays --

 

[xp29]

What insects are you trying to feed him? Beardies are movement motivated hunters. Try offering food that wiggles and moves around, but don't leave crickets in his habitat, if he don't eat them they will start chewing on him. bsfl are good and nutritious, small hornworms or silkworms might entice him to attack also, dubias are good feeders but they tend to sit still and may not attract his attention. I wouldn't give mealworms to a beardie that small nore superworms.

 

[Weenielord]

Is your UVB inside the tank--- if not it should be and it should be directly above the basking decor 12-15 inches --- this might be a reason hes not eating on his own if the UVB is on top of the screen -- they wont eat w/ out proper UVB rays --

Yeah the UVB light is in the proper position.