Advice on Random Violent Behavior?

[jacqui778]

Hello,

I wasn't sure on whether or not to put up this post. My mother told me "No, he's fine" but I decided to do it anyways.

A couple days ago, I came home to find an odd sight-- Reggie was curled up in the corner, limbs tucked under him, dark and with a black beard. Nothing was out of place in his viv as far as I could tell. Curious, because he looked frightened, I slid open the sliding glass door and put my hand in to grab him-- and he bit me! Reggie has NEVER bitten ANYONE, and I can say the same with the black beard that he was flashing me. He was even gaping, and his pupils were really small. I immediately pulled my arm out of his viv and left him be, but whenever I looked over he was still bearding.

Like I said, nothing was out of place in his viv. Nothing had fallen, nothing had moved, the temps were exactly the same. Any ideas or advice on this?

My theory for the moment is that something outside the window scared him. His viv is across from the couch which is under my bedroom window. It's a small room, and has more space lengthwise than widthwise. I think he may have seen a bird or plane? But these things pass by everyday and he's never done this before.

I'll post some of the health questions, you give me your theories/advice.

How old is your dragon? 8 months
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank? Tile
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)? ReptiSun 10.0 fluor. tube
How old is your UVB bulb? Brand spankin new
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage? 150 watt DayGlo bulb
What are the basking temps? 40*
What is the cool side temp? 31*
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad? No
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific. Crickets, Waxies, Collard Greens, whatever scraps he can get (cucumber slice or two, leftover mango chunk, etc.)
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)? Once morning, once evening if he's hungry, waxies whenever he does something treat worthy or I feel like it
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them? Yup. Repti-Cal Powder w/ D3 and no phos. 5x a week, Repti-Vit 2x a week
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)? Yessiree
Do you bath your dragon? How often? Yes, everyday if I can manage, every other day if not
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath? I do, but he doesn't like his water dish
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon? No.
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done? Yes-- being treated for minor amount of pinworms

Help me out here.

What should I do if he does it again? He still won't let me hold him, and doesn't have any visible signs of injury or anything. He can run away, beard, and bob perfectly fine! :x

-- Jacqui

 

[Gaius Marius]

That is strange. You seem to have all of the right stuff that I can see. However, on an unrelated note, I would not bathe your beardie every day or every other day. Once a week or twice should definitely be sufficient unless he is dirty. Because beardies are desert lizards, they should not be exposed to that much water that regularly. It should be okay, except there is a higher chance of Reggie getting a fungal infection if he is over-moist. I would guess that if you haven't seen this kind of behavior before, Reggie may have seen something out of the window as you said. My beardie, Socrates, freaks out too when he sees a plane, bird, or something high that would make a good bird perch. My ohter guess would be that Reggie is growing and becoming more territorial. How often to you handle him? Please do not hesistate to ask any question about your beardie. Some of the people on this board are very helpful and experienced and they are great resources. I believe that it is better to be safe than sorry in terms of my beardie's health.

 

[diamc]

Hi Jacqui, it is very possible that your beardie saw a bird or an airplane outside the window and that set him off.

You mentioned that he is on a medication for pinworms, could you fill us in on the name of it? Are you giving a probiotic along with it?

 

[jacqui778]

Hey guys,

Reggie is on Panacur for the pinworms. I am also giving him the Acidiophiliz (sp) as a probiotic.

Gaius Marius:

I have trained Reggie to go to the bathroom only in the bath. Therefore, I give him a bath everyday, and save myself from the mess of a stinky viv. I assure you he is dried off very well.

My only question is why has he never exhibited this kind of behavior before? I've owned him since around Christmas time (he was my present) and he's always had the viv by the window. He's never freaked out like this because of a plane or bird. He hasn't even done this for the dog next door or the annoying little kids. That's why this is really confusing me!

I guess there is the possibility of him getting hormonal and such, but he seemed honestly frightened of something. I don't know. He's a bit calmer today, and that's my other question: Why has this lasted longer than just a few moments? He's been like this for two days.

-- Jacqui

 

[Gaius Marius]

I have trained Reggie to go to the bathroom only in the bath. Therefore, I give him a bath everyday, and save myself from the mess of a stinky viv. I assure you he is dried off very well.

I understand. I did that with Socrates too. It is easier than cleaning the entire cage.

That is very weird that he was so violent for so long. Maybe you should PM one of the more experienced people on this site and ask if they have ever heard of something like Reggie's behavior. Acidophiliz is a very good probiotic and Socrates had to use both of the meds Reggie is on and I did not notice any change in behavior.
It could be that Reggie is not feeling well from his treatment and has a natural instinct to be defensive. My vet told me to stop handling Socrates all together for a week when Socrates became so ill we all thought he would pass away. It actually seemed to help. Maybe you should limit your handling and any other stressful factors. :?:

 

[morninggrl]

Could he be getting ready to shed? Bowser gets VERY grumpy when she's about to or in the process.

 

[jacqui778]

Could he be getting ready to shed? Bowser gets VERY grumpy when she's about to or in the process.

He just shed over the course of January to February. He doesn't get THIS cranky when shedding, anyways.

Maybe he isn't feeling well, like you said, Gaius Marius. He has some MBD and has been less 'yellow' lately. But he's never done this before. He's doing a bit better today. He let me pet him lightly and ate a waxworm out of my hand. He's been hiding a lot, though.

-- Jacqui

 

[Gaius Marius]

I know what you are talking about when you say "less yellow". I don't know what else to say. He might get over it in a week or two. Give him beardeddragon.org's love. Maybe that will help! :lol:

 

[diamc]

That's good that he acted a bit better today. Is his beard still dark? Are you using a temperature gun or a digital with a probe end to check the temps? The basking temp sounds good at 40 C (104) but the cool side temp is a little high at 31 C which is 87.8 F, it shouldn't be over 85 and 80 (26.6 C) is actually ideal. Is there any way that you can move the basking bulb a little further away from the cool side to help him with thermo-regulating? How far away from the Repti-Sun is he and is the UVB right alongside the basking bulb? Just trying to cover all bases.

It is very possible that he is experiencing puberty too as that can certainly affect their behavior. How many more days does he have to take the antibiotic? Do you give the Acidophiliz right before bed and lay him on a warm rice sock to help it work overnight?