3 month old not very active

[khale1206]

Hello,
My fiance and I are new beardie owners. We got Brax from Petco and according to what they are saying he should be about 3 months old, however he seems a bit small compared to some of these sites online and I believe that he may be a bit younger. Brax does not seem to do much at all. He spends a lot of time in a plastic tree that we have on the cool side of his viv, instead of the warm side where there is a branch and hammock. He does spend some time in the warm time, but he really seems to love his tree. He eats normally, at least we believe. We have him eating about 10 small crickets a day that are dusted with a supplement from Repashy Superfoods called Bearded Dragon Calcium Plus. He also gets mustard greens in his bowl daily and seems to like those. He also eats about 5-10 waxworms a day and these really seem to be his favorite. Since we got him about three weeks ago, his tail has shed once but as far as we saw, that is the only part of his body. When that happened, he also had some loose skin that pulled from his nostril (was not attached at all), and that has happened once more since then. That was about a week and a half ago. I was not sure if this was normal.
My main concern, however, is the fact that he does not seem to do much. When I take him out he clearly enjoys it most of the time. he likes to sleep on my hand and when we go toward his tank he backs away. He is friendly but does seem to favor me more than my fiance. Another question that I had was whether they usually bond to one person more than any others. My fiance does try to socialize with him but Brax just doesnt seem as comfortable with him.
When I feed him crickets I put him in a seperate tank. I didnt do this to begin with but he gets a.d.d. and the crickets have too many places to hide in his viv. Even in the small 12x12 tank that I put him in to feed, the crickets have to come within an inch or two to his head before he will go after them. Is it normal for them to be lazy?
I see pctures of them being so active and aware of you and their other surroundings, but he seems to just sit there in his tank unless I actually put my hand in. I know that he must be moving around at some point as the food is disappearing, but not much.
Also, he only poops once every few days or so. Is that normal?
Please help!
Kaylyn

 

[khale1206]

Figured I would post some pictures of our little guy as well.

This is Brax on one of his darkest days. he started to do this after being with us for about a week. It has not been nearly that dark lately, but he does go back and forth between that and his beautiful tan.

This is Brax's favorite position to sleep in. Hard to believe that it is the same beardie as the first picture.

I actually caught him sleeping this way too... haha

"Uh oh... They have spotted me"

 

[beardie parents]

He's adorable! I love pics of their strange sleeping ways. That last pic belongs in an ongoing thread called "fall asleep any way" or something like that, it's a great thread and a lot of funny pics.

 

[Chirple]

He is cute and the sleeping habits are normal.

I would be concerned about the food. The wax worms are not very good for them, they are like candy bars - so I would feed only a couple a week.

For the crickets, the little ones eat 3 times a day as much as they can eat in 15 minutes. You're looking at way more than 10 crickets a day ! 10 a day will not be enough to grow. Once he's up to a normal amount of food, you can expect to see poop every day.

What UVB light do you have ? What is the temperature on the hot side and such ? What do you have to measure temperatures ? A bad UVB is probably the #1 problem that new owners have, along with being told the wrong things about what they eat ! It is a HUGE difference to see when they get a good one and immediately perk up. This might not be your problem, but it's a common cause of lethargy, so throwing it out there.


How is the feeding tank set up ? Sometimes if it's glass they can be too distracted to want to eat - seeing lots of cool places to explore or their reflections. A lot of people tape newspaper to the outside of the feeding tank for this reason, so they don't get distracted ! Since their reflections can stress them out, it's also good to have a "background" on the sides of the tank (as well as the back), I couldn't tell if you did or not.

O, and also, how does he get water ? Do you baths, mist, or something else ?

My guy has gotten stressed out at various times, but so far there has always been a reason. First, he was being stressed out by his reflection. Then, after he was treated for pinworms, his appetite realllly increased and he was stressed out until I started feeding him more. Even now, if he doesn't get enough food, he will turn dark until I feed him more.

 

[khale1206]

He is cute and the sleeping habits are normal.

I would be concerned about the food. The wax worms are not very good for them, they are like candy bars - so I would feed only a couple a week.I was not aware of this. the pet store told me they were better than mealworms because they have no exoskeleton.

For the crickets, the little ones eat 3 times a day as much as they can eat in 15 minutes. You're looking at way more than 10 crickets a day ! 10 a day will not be enough to grow. Once he's up to a normal amount of food, you can expect to see poop every day. I will definitely increase the number of times that we feed

What UVB light do you have ? It is a Zilla 20 Watt (and it says Desert 50 under that). I also have an under the tank heating pad and have repticarpet. I have put my hand on it and it is just warm so I know that he can not get burned. What is the temperature on the hot side and such ? The hot side is 95ish and the cool side isabout 80. I have added a picture at the bottom of the viv as well as aa picture of the feeding tank that I just news-papered. What do you have to measure temperatures ? The thermometer is the one that came with the viv, a Zilla round one. I am going to go to Walmart today to get a probe one. A bad UVB is probably the #1 problem that new owners have, along with being told the wrong things about what they eat ! It is a HUGE difference to see when they get a good one and immediately perk up. This might not be your problem, but it's a common cause of lethargy, so throwing it out there.


How is the feeding tank set up ? Sometimes if it's glass they can be too distracted to want to eat - seeing lots of cool places to explore or their reflections. A lot of people tape newspaper to the outside of the feeding tank for this reason, so they don't get distracted ! I applied the newspaper, thank you!! Since their reflections can stress them out, it's also good to have a "background" on the sides of the tank (as well as the back), I couldn't tell if you did or not. I do have a background on the tank. The adhesive that I applied it with was some "HD" adhesive and it makes the rocks and sticks look so real. I think that is why sometimes he actually jumps at the glass or stands and tries to climb it. Either he is trying to get onto one of the things in the picture, or hes crazy.

O, and also, how does he get water ? Do you baths, mist, or something else ? I bath him once a day if the schedule allows. If not I make sure to at least mist him down.

My guy has gotten stressed out at various times, but so far there has always been a reason. First, he was being stressed out by his reflection. Then, after he was treated for pinworms, his appetite realllly increased and he was stressed out until I started feeding him more. Even now, if he doesn't get enough food, he will turn dark until I feed him more.

He seems to be more tan when he is getting more food so I am already seeing a bit of an improvement.
Any ideas as far as bonding to one person more than others?

 

[mama]

How hot is his basking spot?? If the basking spot isn't hot enough (100-110F range for juveniles),then they can't digest their food properly. Once I got my basking temp up then my little guy started eating more. Also, maybe try dubia roaches as a feeder my little man had only eaten crickets and when we got him wouldn't eat that many so I got some roaches and he went crazy for them.

With handling it takes persistence. Some have put an article of their clothing in the tank and close to the beardie while they are sleeping. Then the beardie will be used to that persons smell.

 

[khale1206]

The basking spot says that it is over 120. I have to get a real thermometer though and do not necessarily believe that. The thing is, he spends most of his time on the cool side. There are times when we will come out and see him on the stick, but for the most part he is in his tree on the cool side. I have attached a picture of his tank and feeding tank as I realized that I didnt in my last post.

 

[Coliosis]

He could be hiding on the cool side to get away from the Zilla UVB light. You should look into getting a reptisun 10.0, makes a world or difference!

 

[bunnyrut]

the coil bulb is not good. it is bad for bearded dragon's eyes.

the reptisun 10.0 tube is the most recommended. it has to be the 10.0 (not the 5.0 which is for tropical)

if it is too hot you need to raise the light. i recommend a stand for the lights http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11147204 so you can adjust the height and be able to get into the viv easier. if he can't climb out leave the top off the viv, the screen blocks most of the UVB.

if you get the tube you can put it inside the viv, allowing you to keep the screen on. just use 3M hooks or industrial strength velcro to attach it.

do you have a Ceramic Heat Emitter (CHE) for night time? they can see all kinds of light, so if you have the red or blue bulb it will keep him awake. but do note, you only need to have one if the temp of the tank falls below 70 degrees at night. the undertank heater should only be used if the temps are too low, you might want to turn it off and see how it affects the temps. i don't need to use it, but they come in handy if you are breeding roaches or crickets.

bonding depends on your dragon. my male seems more attached to me, but my female loves anyone who feeds her.
bath time, feeding time, holding, and even shedding is when you get to bond. get a soft-bristled toothbrush for when he is shedding. you can gently rub him to 'scratch' the shedding areas. Mr Dargon loves the toothbrush, and Tasty Treat tried to eat it in the beginning. now she flattens her back out while i brush her.

stick to crickets (no bigger than the space between his eyes), phoenix worms (also known as reptiworms), and/or silkworms while he is still tiny. (small hornworms are good, but they grow really fast and get as long as your finger)
check out the for sale section here for feeders, there are some great deals.

 

[khale1206]

I was told that the coil was better. I will definitely get the 10.0 instead. I have also been using the red light at night so I will stop this since I know for sure that the temp will not drop below 70. I will certainly look into ordering some other worms as well. He seems to only want to eat about 15 crickets a day. Not sure if it is just because he is not used to getting very many, but I will continue to try three times a day. In the morning he always has about 10 or 12 and then in the afternoon about 4. In the evening he doesnt seem very interested. I am going to try earlier as well though to see if that makes a difference. right now it is about 3 hours before lights out.
Thanks to everyone for your advice!!!
I am willing to learn everything I can from all of the experienced beardie lovers on this site as my Fiance and I love him like our child!!!
Kaylyn

 

[bunnyrut]

search these forums and ask all the questions you want.

go to the beardie tales section and share stories about your baby.

and everyone here loves to see pictures so don't be shy!!