Baby Beardie won't eat!!!

[TheAnimalLover]

I have recently purchased a 9" beardie. It's been about 2 weeks. He has passed that stage where he has to get used to the cage and all before he eats. Now, his mouth looks SEALED shut. It looks pink where his mouth should open. He won't eat his greens or his live food. He just basks all day. I will get a pic up as soon as I can.

 

[Momomo]

Hi! Has he eaten at all for these 2 weeks? I think it would be helpful if you answer the questions below, then we can rule out any problems associated with improper setup.

How old is your dragon?
How long have you had your dragon?
How long is your dragon?
What is the sex of your dragon?
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in?
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank?
Do you use UVB lights?
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb?
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)?
How old is your UVB bulb?
How close can your dragon get to the UVB?
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage? Is it a white or colored bulb?
What are the basking temps?
What is the cool side temp?
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun?
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps?
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad?
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific.
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)?
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them?
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)?
Do you bath your dragon? How often?
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath?
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done?
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon?

 

[TheAnimalLover]

How old? Unknown (got him from PetSmart)
How long have you had your dragon? A week or two
How long is your dragon? 9 inches
What is the sex of your dragon? Unknown
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in? 20 gallon for now
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank? Repti carpet
Do you use UVB lights? Yes
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb? Compact
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)? Don't remember. Got it at Ace it's a daylight bulb
How old is your UVB bulb? A week or two
How close can your dragon get to the UVB? 8-10 inches
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage? Is it a white or colored bulb? Seperate bulb. GE halogen flood. 50 wattage. Colored
What are the basking temps? 103
What is the cool side temp? 85
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun? Stick on ZooMed
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps? Where he only basks (highest basking point)
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad? No
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific. Collards, mustards, squash, crickets, mealworms (rare), cactus pad...
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)? Everyday: 8:00 am & 5:00 pm
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? Yes (Reptical) calcium without d3
What brand(s)? Reptical
How many days a week do you use each of them? Every other day
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)? Lately, he's not going. :/
Do you bath your dragon? How often? Yes twice a day
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath? Yes. Water dish
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done? No
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon? No

 

[TheAnimalLover]

He stopped eating 2 days ago

 

[TheAnimalLover]

Oh and I just gave him a bath. And...his mouth opened! It seems that he can open it just fine. But it looks like the tip of his toungue is black and his lips are still pink.

 

[TheAnimalLover]

He has had this mouth problem for a few days too. He was with a smaller beardie at PetSmart. He came with the mustache thing, but then the blister formed and he stopped eating.

 

[TheAnimalLover]

Sorry I mistyped a question. I don't bathe him twice a day. He gets baths 3 times a week. And I do gutload.

 

[Momomo]

well your setup is mostly O.K. A couple of things: for the UVB you need to switch to a tube bulb: Reptisun 10.0. Compact bulbs are known to cause health problems. Also, try to get a digital thermometer with a probe (Walmart) because those stick ons are not reliable and I'm thinking if your beardie is basking non-stop, he may be just cold. So get that thermometer and make sure the basking temp is at least 105 degrees. Try changing the things above and let us know the results. As for the mouth blister thing, I have no idea what it is, poor thing Perhaps he/she tried to bite something (e.g. furniture) in the cage and got a scratch? His/her mouth probably hurts that's why he/she is not eating. I've looked at your previous topic where Tracie suggested rubbing some Neosporin to help it heal, have you tried doing this?

 

[TheAnimalLover]

I have not tried that yet. I was busy yesterday and got home at around 12am. I am going to get that today and see how it helps. Thanks for your advice! I will definitly change those things.

 

[TheAnimalLover]

Also, what is the best place to purchase the tube? I don't want to spend too much.

 

[Momomo]

best to get the reptisun online. I got one from ebay before, and just ordered a replacement from beardeddragon.co , also pretty cheap.

Anyways, let us know how your beardie is doing when you try the neosporin!

 

[daner923]

Since you've already been directed to the ReptISun, I won't belabor the point, BUT... you don't currently have any UVB at all. The daylight bulb from a hardware store is NOT the same thing as a UVB light. If the pink and black continues to spread, you should see a vet. Rotting flesh/topical infection in the mouth can spread quickly and be quite lethal. Not trying to scare you, but it might be best to at least locate a vet soon.

 

[Momomo]

Since you've already been directed to the ReptISun, I won't belabor the point, BUT... you don't currently have any UVB at all. The daylight bulb from a hardware store is NOT the same thing as a UVB light. If the pink and black continues to spread, you should see a vet. Rotting flesh/topical infection in the mouth can spread quickly and be quite lethal. Not trying to scare you, but it might be best to at least locate a vet soon.

good catch, I completely missed that point...As soon as I've read compact I thought its one of those Zilla or ReptiGlo compacts, didn't even read the brand. Yes, this means you need to get the ReptiSun ASAP, which means you either need to go to a pet store and get the bulb or order it with the fastest shipping option online (which will probably make it cost the same as in the store). I hope the little guy gets better!!

 

[TheAnimalLover]

Thank you all for your help!! I will purchase the medicine and bulb today. Thanks so much!

 

[TheAnimalLover]

Thanks so much!!! I have purchased a reptisun 10.0 tube and have used the neosporin. His blister thing looks smaller and his mouth if returning to his natural color. Thanks!