Basking with Mouth Open?

[czuber]

As of late my beardie has been on his basking perch with his mouth open stretching to the light. Is this a way to regulate heat or body temp. Or is he saying More food please?

Thanks.

 

[Onlymediocre]

Its called gaping, and yes its to regulate heat.. Tho if hes stretching to the light.. like star gazing? That is also a sign of a URI I believe, so you may want to check your humidity in there and watch for any other URI signs.

 

[czuber]

Upper Respiratory infection? I will check out other symptoms. Thanks

 

[czuber]

With the weather turning cooler I am struggling to keep my tank above 85 I moved the light inside the tank to give more direct heat. Maybe I need a secondary light?

 

[snazzyglasses]

Your viv looks really nice! if you're worried about humidity, moving the water dish to the cool side of the tank will help.

And a second light with even a regular bulb should be fine! I have my big guy in a 40 gallon breeder and I've found that, in addition to the dome fixture with a basking bulb in it, a second dome with a regular 40W incandescent bulb adds a bit of light and raises the temp on his cool side by a few degrees so they're in the recommended range. Which is good since it's getting pretty cold here too lol

 

[czuber]

Thanks I will make some changes this weekend.