9-10 Month Old Beardie Only pooping once a week with help

[BazziTheBeardie]

So my bearded dragon around 4 weeks ago hadnt went to the bathroom for a while,eventually he went and i thought he would go back to regularly pooping,instead he has continued to only poop once a week,not by himself though i have to give him olive oil and honey then a warm bath. I need tips. His Uvb Is 10.0 Zoomed Desert Bulb 26 Watt And he has a 150w basking spot,his basking is 100-110 and his cool side is 85-90. He eats calcium dusted dubia roaches every other day and gets salads of mustard,collard,& turnip greens daily. He doesnt really eat his greens though. Any tips on what could be going on with his bathroom schedule would be appreciated thanks! EDIT: He is also lazy and lethargic.

 

[KarrieRee]

My recommendation is get rid of the UVB your have -- here is some info for that
Which UVB light should I use?
The best UVB light is a ReptiSun 10.0 fluorescent tube HO (Or Arcardia 12% in the UK). Compact or coil bulbs do not emit the proper amount of UVB light for a bearded dragon, and should not be used. Other brands, such as the Zilla Desert Series and ReptiGlo have been known to cause eye problems and other health issues with bearded dragons, and should be avoided. The reason that some UVB lights (Zilla, ReptiGlo, coils/compacts, ect.) are considered dangerous is because the wavelength of UVB that they emit is shorter and more intense than the wavelength of the "safe" lights (ReptiSun, Arcadia).
UVB lights should be replaced every 6 months. The T5’s are a strong bulb and only need to be replaced once a year – the T 8 every 6 months--- where as the T 8 are not as strong—they need to be placed inside the tank the T 5 10.0 bulb approx 10-11 inches from basking spot – the T 8 approx 8-10 inches from basking spot—the cover needs to be off the bulb for full effect of the UVB rays-- Brands to DEFINITELY ADVOID buying are as follows :
Nomoy Pet,
Zilla,
All Living Things,
Reptile-One,
URS,
MegaRay Brand,
CrawlMiracle,
Nat Geo ,
Sparkzoo reptispar,
Repti-Zoo ,
NatAll of which are cheap Chinese clones made very cheaply using very poor quality quartz glass and cheap phosphors and next to no quality control or no meaningful quality control ==> very poor UV spectrum produced including UVC and bad parts of the UVB band --- these will harm your pet.ura
domestic fittings for T8 and T5 tubes are fine PROVIDED the tube is not covered == the cover will stop all UV.
>>> a slip on reflector or use of a reflector hood is an excellent investment as it will focus and essentially double the UVA and UVB seen by the beardie , and no UVA or UVB will be wasted by radiating to areas inaccessible to the beardie
So the lethargic thing going on is lack of UVB is my guess--- being he is still a baby keep offering him greens his main diet at this point is bugs --- they usually start eating more vegies around a yr or so --
Karrie

 

[BazziTheBeardie]

My recommendation is get rid of the UVB your have -- here is some info for that
Which UVB light should I use?
The best UVB light is a ReptiSun 10.0 fluorescent tube HO (Or Arcardia 12% in the UK). Compact or coil bulbs do not emit the proper amount of UVB light for a bearded dragon, and should not be used. Other brands, such as the Zilla Desert Series and ReptiGlo have been known to cause eye problems and other health issues with bearded dragons, and should be avoided. The reason that some UVB lights (Zilla, ReptiGlo, coils/compacts, ect.) are considered dangerous is because the wavelength of UVB that they emit is shorter and more intense than the wavelength of the "safe" lights (ReptiSun, Arcadia).
UVB lights should be replaced every 6 months. The T5’s are a strong bulb and only need to be replaced once a year – the T 8 every 6 months--- where as the T 8 are not as strong—they need to be placed inside the tank the T 5 10.0 bulb approx 10-11 inches from basking spot – the T 8 approx 8-10 inches from basking spot—the cover needs to be off the bulb for full effect of the UVB rays-- Brands to DEFINITELY ADVOID buying are as follows :
Nomoy Pet,
Zilla,
All Living Things,
Reptile-One,
URS,
MegaRay Brand,
CrawlMiracle,
Nat Geo ,
Sparkzoo reptispar,
Repti-Zoo ,
NatAll of which are cheap Chinese clones made very cheaply using very poor quality quartz glass and cheap phosphors and next to no quality control or no meaningful quality control ==> very poor UV spectrum produced including UVC and bad parts of the UVB band --- these will harm your pet.ura
domestic fittings for T8 and T5 tubes are fine PROVIDED the tube is not covered == the cover will stop all UV.
>>> a slip on reflector or use of a reflector hood is an excellent investment as it will focus and essentially double the UVA and UVB seen by the beardie , and no UVA or UVB will be wasted by radiating to areas inaccessible to the beardie
So the lethargic thing going on is lack of UVB is my guess--- being he is still a baby keep offering him greens his main diet at this point is bugs --- they usually start eating more vegies around a yr or so --
Karrie

He is at the point where he doesnt need too many bugs hes almost 20" head to tail and is pretty big. The uvb is something ive been asking my parents about but they dont want to get it. Im more worried about his problem with going to the bathroom right now.The uvb is going to be upgraded the next time it needs changed (4-5) Months as it is a newer bulb.

 

[KarrieRee]

Ok in 4-5 months your beardie is going to be sick---- the UVB is crucial to his health and over all behavior--- he will start to develop MBD --- unless you can get him outside in the direct sun every day for 15 minutes he will be fine-- but it has to be everyday for 15 minutes --- they need to be able to sit under their UVB proper UVB for at least 4 hrs --- his eating will only get worse as he wont be able to process the nutrients in his food -- that is what the UVB does --- can you post a pic of the UVB you have please
Karrie

 

[BazziTheBeardie]

Ok in 4-5 months your beardie is going to be sick---- the UVB is crucial to his health and over all behavior--- he will start to develop MBD --- unless you can get him outside in the direct sun every day for 15 minutes he will be fine-- but it has to be everyday for 15 minutes --- they need to be able to sit under their UVB proper UVB for at least 4 hrs --- his eating will only get worse as he wont be able to process the nutrients in his food -- that is what the UVB does --- can you post a pic of the UVB you have please
Karrie

I dont know how to upload a photo but i can tell you exactly what bulb it is
Reptisun 10.0 Florescent bulb
He has been fine for the 9 months ive had him since last august. Its been more recent that hes been lethargic inside his tank and has been a bit worse with pooping. He gets all the vitamins he needs and will not grow mbd.

 

[KarrieRee]

Go to user image uploader-- at top of page-- download pics-- click reply on top of message box click XIMG-- pics should post-- let page refresh ck to see if pics posted--- so the UVB is a tube---where is it in tank or on top of screen?
Karrie

 

[Claudiusx]

What are you using to measure your temperatures?
Your reptisun is along tube right? Or is it a compact coil?

-Brandon

 

[kingofnobbys]

Other questions for you :

What is the substrate in your dragon's tank ?

What are the measurements of your tank ( L x W x D ) ?

Is the UV source ontop a mesh lid ?

How far from the UV source to the basking spot ?

I'm concerned about that 110 degF mentioned. How are you measuring this ?

 

[kingofnobbys]

My recommendation is get rid of the UVB your have -- here is some info for that
Which UVB light should I use?
The best UVB light is a ReptiSun 10.0 fluorescent tube HO (Or Arcardia 12% in the UK). Compact or coil bulbs do not emit the proper amount of UVB light for a bearded dragon, and should not be used. Other brands, such as the Zilla Desert Series and ReptiGlo have been known to cause eye problems and other health issues with bearded dragons, and should be avoided. The reason that some UVB lights (Zilla, ReptiGlo, coils/compacts, ect.) are considered dangerous is because the wavelength of UVB that they emit is shorter and more intense than the wavelength of the "safe" lights (ReptiSun, Arcadia).
UVB lights should be replaced every 6 months. The T5’s are a strong bulb and only need to be replaced once a year – the T 8 every 6 months--- where as the T 8 are not as strong—they need to be placed inside the tank the T 5 10.0 bulb approx 10-11 inches from basking spot – the T 8 approx 8-10 inches from basking spot—the cover needs to be off the bulb for full effect of the UVB rays-- Brands to DEFINITELY ADVOID buying are as follows :
Nomoy Pet,
Zilla,
All Living Things,
Reptile-One,
URS,
MegaRay Brand,
CrawlMiracle,
Nat Geo ,
Sparkzoo reptispar,
Repti-Zoo ,
NatAll of which are cheap Chinese clones made very cheaply using very poor quality quartz glass and cheap phosphors and next to no quality control or no meaningful quality control ==> very poor UV spectrum produced including UVC and bad parts of the UVB band --- these will harm your pet.ura
domestic fittings for T8 and T5 tubes are fine PROVIDED the tube is not covered == the cover will stop all UV.
>>> a slip on reflector or use of a reflector hood is an excellent investment as it will focus and essentially double the UVA and UVB seen by the beardie , and no UVA or UVB will be wasted by radiating to areas inaccessible to the beardie
So the lethargic thing going on is lack of UVB is my guess--- being he is still a baby keep offering him greens his main diet at this point is bugs --- they usually start eating more vegies around a yr or so --
Karrie

He is at the point where he doesnt need too many bugs hes almost 20" head to tail and is pretty big. The uvb is something ive been asking my parents about but they dont want to get it. Im more worried about his problem with going to the bathroom right now.The uvb is going to be upgraded the next time it needs changed (4-5) Months as it is a newer bulb.

At 10 months old , he still needs two meals of high quality live insects per day + the salad.
I'd keep on two meals per day of bugs until he's about 12 - 15 months old depending on how he's growing and developing.
From about 15 months old their growth rate tends to slow and will plateau at abour 20 months old.

I think the issue with weekly pooing is more dietary and a result of a slower metabolism , so long as he's pooing and it's nicely formed and the whites are white , weekly pooing is not huge issue , providing you can't feel any hard masses in his tummy and he's not on a dangerous particulate substrate that has coursed an obstruction.
Olive oil ( 0.3ml by mouth via syringe ) every two days once he reaches 7 days since his last poo would be my approach.

 

[BazziTheBeardie]

I use one thermometer zoo med strip,and have two zoo med hygrometer/thermometers (not digital),he has a tile substrate. Ill finish answering questions when im back to school. And ill upload pictures

 

[Claudiusx]

I use one thermometer zoo med strip,and have two zoo med hygrometer/thermometers (not digital)

That's probably your problem. Those are wildly inaccurate and plus they have no way to give you your most important temperature, your baking SURFACE temp. You should definitely go get a temp gun or a digital work probe end to check your temperatures.
Beardies being cold blooded, are not able to digest properly if they don't have a basking spot that allows them to heat up enough.
That's why I asked you earlier the type of thermometer. Proper temps are the most important thing for a dragons health.

Get a better thermometer, check your temps, and we can go from there

-Brandon

 

[BazziTheBeardie]

So im going to start giving him roaches every day instead of every other. He poops once a week only if i give him olive oil and honey, if i dont then he wont. I use tile substrate. I plan on getting a digital thermometer as soon as i can. I am going to let him out 25 minutes a day so he can get some natrual uvb. Thanks!

 

[Claudiusx]

The digital thermometers are really cheap now. Like less than $10. This isnt something you should wait on. And natural sunlight isnt going to help with this issue as he needs proper temperatures.

Without proper temperatures no digestion occurs. No digestion means no nutrients being absorbed. No nutrients being absorbed leads to a sickly dragon.

I really hope you will be able to get a thermometer today so we can start working on the issue here. Hopefully if you're lucky the temp wouldn't have been that off, but you dont know until you know and this is something you need to know for the health of your dragon.

Keep us updated.

-Brandon

 

[BazziTheBeardie]

The digital thermometers are really cheap now. Like less than $10. This isnt something you should wait on. And natural sunlight isnt going to help with this issue as he needs proper temperatures.

Without proper temperatures no digestion occurs. No digestion means no nutrients being absorbed. No nutrients being absorbed leads to a sickly dragon.

I really hope you will be able to get a thermometer today so we can start working on the issue here. Hopefully if you're lucky the temp wouldn't have been that off, but you dont know until you know and this is something you need to know for the health of your dragon.

Keep us updated.

-Brandon

im going to order a digital thermometer on amazon prime today! His temps have always been the same since hes been a baby and he used to poop daily.

 

[Claudiusx]

That's great you are ordering it thank you!
There's a chance his temps are ok but like I said, you need to know. It's too important to leave up to faulty equipment.

If the temps end up being ok, we can look into other causes.
It's just that if you hear hoofsteps outside of your window, dont go looking for zebras. If you understand my point.
We gotta start with the basics and work our way from there.

-Brandon