Basking trouble

[angrycheeto]

Hi, I just got a new beardie a few days ago and he's not particularly enthusiastic about basking? He mostly lays in a corner on the cold end and doesn't sleep but looks around, rather, while laying down with his legs all stretched out. His colors turn dark because he's too cold and I fear it's going to mess with his digestion? I give him an hour or two to get up each morning but he just lays there awake but not moving, so I pick him up and put him on the basking spot, which helps and he'll bask for a little while, and perk up a bit. He usually puts himself to bed very early too (4+ hours before the lights go out).


How old is your dragon? 6-8ish months
How long have you had your dragon? 4 days
How long is your dragon? 13 inches
What is the sex of your dragon? male
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in? 36x18x16
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank? Just the tank bottom/sometimes paper towel. Looking for tile to put there.
Do you use UVB lights? Yes
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb? Florescent Tube
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)? Reptisun 10.0 T8
How old is your UVB bulb? 2 days
How close can your dragon get to the UVB? 6-8 inches
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage? Is it a white or colored bulb? clear incandescent 150watt bulb.
What are the basking temps? 103-105
What is the cool side temp? 83ish
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun? Digital Infrared Temp gun
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps? Directly below the lamp
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad? No
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific. Crickets, turnip greens, sweet potato, bell peppers, etc
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)? I try to feed twice a day, the first time in the morning offering greens, the second in the afternoon offering crickets
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc? Yes
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them? Rep-Cal w/ D3, Herptivite. Every feeding I dust with Calcium
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)? So far once a day
Do you bath your dragon? How often? Try for once a day to every other day.
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath? Yes, but he doesn't really drink from it nor the bath.
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done? Not yet
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon? No

 

[Tonja]

You have had him for 4 days and he may be going through relocation stress. Your setup looks great. Only thing I would change is his calcium intake. Dust lightly with calcium 5 times per week one feeding per day for those 5 days and the other two days dust with a vitamin one feeding per those two days. Back to relocation stress, usually a beardie will go through this when they are located to a new environment. I would give him a few more days. Also he needs to get within 6-8 inches from the UVB. You can put it on the back wall of your tank inside with 3M hooks or heavy duty Velcro which is what I use with no problems. Make sure the basking light is not colored but a bright white placed close to the uvb. I use a clear GE household bulb in 75 watts for a 40 gallon tank. Please don't use any coils or compacts as this can affect their eyes. No lights at night since light, even red can disturb their sleep patterns. If the temps fall below 65 on the cool side where he sleeps you can get a ceramic heat emitter to use, it puts out heat but no light. Just keep putting him on his basking spot even if he stays there for a short time, its better than no time basking. I got 18 6x6 inch tiles from home depot for both my tanks at just over 20.00. Make sure they aren't smooth but have a texture as this will help them grip a bit, not slide around and can trim their sharp nails as they walk across it. I would line the bottom of the tank with paper towels for now or newspaper. I know you said you do sometimes. Hope this helps.