4-year old wants to brumate again 4 months out. Any concerns?

[Liapera]

Hi all,

I'm a fairly experienced beardie keeper, but our lady is my first brumating dragon.
She has a weird brumation pattern. She brumates a long time, but she always comes out of it better than before.
She's 4 years old, no issues, healthy weight.
2020: came out 5th jan.
2021: started 21 july, came out 13 october.
2022: Started sometime June, Out of brumation 2nd September.


She's eaten well, nothing at all has indicated to me that she's unhealthy.
Good poops, nothing out of the ordinary besides showing brumation behavior again.
I think she's just realizing that it's not spring, she's seeing almost no sunlight and she's starting to spend most of her time in a half-asleep daze in the cool side and doesn't wish to bask or run around. Just showed her a new order of her bugs, she stared with interest but didn't come out.
This wasn't what she did last year, she stayed up all winter.

She's eaten well the past 4 months she's been up. Do you think there's any harm I'm not thinking of in just trying to let her go to the big sleep again?
I feel uncomfortable about the idea of trying to force her not to brumate. but I'm not sure if that's better at this point due to the timeframes.
Maybe she's just realizing it's winter and wants to go until it's spring?
Let me know if you have any ideas or concerns?

Thank you.

 

[KarrieRee]

Hi all,

I'm a fairly experienced beardie keeper, but our lady is my first brumating dragon.
She has a weird brumation pattern. She brumates a long time, but she always comes out of it better than before.
She's 4 years old, no issues, healthy weight.
2020: came out 5th jan.
2021: started 21 july, came out 13 october.
2022: Started sometime June, Out of brumation 2nd September.


She's eaten well, nothing at all has indicated to me that she's unhealthy.
Good poops, nothing out of the ordinary besides showing brumation behavior again.
I think she's just realizing that it's not spring, she's seeing almost no sunlight and she's starting to spend most of her time in a half-asleep daze in the cool side and doesn't wish to bask or run around. Just showed her a new order of her bugs, she stared with interest but didn't come out.
This wasn't what she did last year, she stayed up all winter.

She's eaten well the past 4 months she's been up. Do you think there's any harm I'm not thinking of in just trying to let her go to the big sleep again?
I feel uncomfortable about the idea of trying to force her not to brumate. but I'm not sure if that's better at this point due to the timeframes.
Maybe she's just realizing it's winter and wants to go until it's spring?
Let me know if you have any ideas or concerns?

Thank you.

Please go over the surface basking temps -- taken w/ a digital probe thermometer and your UVB- is it a long tube fixture and where in the tank is it and how old is the bulb? Usually off temps and UVB will cause brumation behavior and her wanting to brumate so often could be the incorrect temps and UVB but we need to rule this out -- as far as them wanting to brumate so often if these things are on que I am not sure- is she losing weight?

 

[Liapera]

Please go over the surface basking temps -- taken w/ a digital probe thermometer and your UVB- is it a long tube fixture and where in the tank is it and how old is the bulb? Usually off temps and UVB will cause brumation behavior and her wanting to brumate so often could be the incorrect temps and UVB but we need to rule this out -- as far as them wanting to brumate so often if these things are on que I am not sure- is she losing weight?

Hiya!

We have an evo microclimate that keeps the surface basking temp at 39C/102F during the day for 9 hours at the moment. 100 watt, normally runs at about 50%, I lowered it from 40C/104F about two weeks ago when she seemed to be avoiding basking, to see if it was related to her feeling too hot at the higher temps, and to see if she'd bask more. Didn't seem to change anything but she is still staying in the cool side more, but wondering if I need to go lower. Her tank is a Komodo Ecology XXXL around 4x2x3 so it's pretty well insulated wood viv and our house temps have actually been pretty warm.


Only other thing I might try is getting a 75W instead of 100 so that the light is dimmed less at the basking spot.

UVB is an Arcadia T5 12% 850mm tube, flat basking area that she is 15 inches away from vertically. UVB tube is situated in the back right of the tank, inside mounted with reflector, and her basking lamp to the far right alongside it. The cool side has simulated tree shade she can get under, as it's quite a long tube, so we shaded with fake plants at the ceiling to make a better gradient.

We replaced her UVB bulb last April, due to be replaced this April, but with her previous brumation cycle accounted for lack of run time, we assume it will be okay to replace around June.

 

[KarrieRee]

Hiya!

We have an evo microclimate that keeps the surface basking temp at 39C/102F during the day for 9 hours at the moment. 100 watt, normally runs at about 50%, I lowered it from 40C/104F about two weeks ago when she seemed to be avoiding basking, to see if it was related to her feeling too hot at the higher temps, and to see if she'd bask more. Didn't seem to change anything but she is still staying in the cool side more, but wondering if I need to go lower. Her tank is a Komodo Ecology XXXL around 4x2x3 so it's pretty well insulated wood viv and our house temps have actually been pretty warm.


Only other thing I might try is getting a 75W instead of 100 so that the light is dimmed less at the basking spot.

UVB is an Arcadia T5 12% 850mm tube, flat basking area that she is 15 inches away from vertically. UVB tube is situated in the back right of the tank, inside mounted with reflector, and her basking lamp to the far right alongside it. The cool side has simulated tree shade she can get under, as it's quite a long tube, so we shaded with fake plants at the ceiling to make a better gradient.

We replaced her UVB bulb last April, due to be replaced this April, but with her previous brumation cycle accounted for lack of run time, we assume it will be okay to replace around June.

 

[KarrieRee]

Please replace the uvb in approx 10-11 months - try going w/ 95-100 for surface basking temps-- watch the behavior