Beardie Barely Eating!

[lianad23]

I bought a baby bearded dragon about 18 days ago and was told he was approximately 6 to 8 weeks old at the time. When I first got him he would eat about 6 crickets in the morning and another 6 at night. Then he started eating approximately 10 to 12 crickets at each meal. For the last few days he's only been eating 3 or 4 crickets at each meal. I went to my local reptile store and was told to try leaving him some meal worms as a snack during the day. He's been eating about 7 to 8 meal worms during the day but still won't eat more crickets. I switched him back to tiny crickets since he seemed to be afraid of the small sized ones at Petsmart. I've also noticed that he's extra wrinkly which I read is a sign of dehydration. He doesn't have any water in his terrarium as it raises the humidity but I do bathe him every day and drop water on/in front of his head. He tends to start lapping up water when I do that but only every other day or so. I'm beginning to worry that something might be wrong with him. He didn't do well for the first 9 or 10 days I had him then he got better and now he's gotten worse than he was when I first got him. I did notice that he was shedding almost immediately after I got him so I assumed that played a role in his behavior.

 

[diamc]

Hi, I'm sorry to hear that your beardie isn't eating much. It's good that you're giving him frequent baths and offering oral fluids.

Could you fill us in on the type of thermometer you're using? Is it a digital strip, round gauge (dial), digital thermometer with a long wire & probe end or a temperature gun? Where exactly are you taking the temps?

Also, what brand & type of UVB are you using? How often are you dusting with calcium & vitamins?

Sorry for all the questions but it's important that we rule things out so we can try to help get him straightened out.

 

[lianad23]

I have a Zoo Med digital thermometer with a long wire and probe that's reading between 104 and 109 degrees in his basking spot. He doesn't usually leave that spot so I have to remove his grapevine to feed him. The rest of his terrarium is about 85 degrees. I take the temps on the glass closest to the basking spot and then on the cool side as well. He's currently in a 40 gallon tank that I have divided in half to make him a little more comfortable. I dust the crickets with vitamins twice a week and with calcium with d3 every other day (I was doing it every day but the people at the reptile shop said I should only do it every other day). The UVB I have for him right now is the ReptiSun 10.0 UVB Mini Compact (http://www.thatpetplace.com/zoo-med-reptisun-10-0-uvb-mini-compact-lamp-13w?ne_ppc_id=1463&ne_key_id=27470930&gclid=CJWOmdC2ycICFSxk7AodOm8ACw).

 

[diamc]

That's good that you're using a digital probe thermometer. The most important temp you need to know is the basking SURFACE temp and in order to get that, you have to place the probe right on the basking spot (touching it) for 45 min to an hr until the temp stops rising. If you're getting readings of 104 to 109 on the glass, then the basking surface temp is even higher. To check the cool side temp, you place the probe end way over on the bottom of the cool side and wait the required amount of time there. The cool side should be in the 78 to 82 range in order to allow for proper thermo-regulating which is very important. Is the grapevine the basking spot or are you using a log? What wattage is your basking bulb and is it a bright white bulb?

Good that you divided the tank in half for now to help him adjust better.

Since he's a baby, you should be dusting the feeders with calcium 5 days a wk but only on one feeding a day. Then, dust the feeders with vitamins the other 2 days a wk but again, only on one feeding a day. A baby needs to be offered all the feeders he wants to eat 2 to 3 times a day in about a 10 to 15 min time frame.

I suspect the compact bulb is the reason for the loss of appetite. I would recommend changing the UVB light from the compact to the Reptisun 10 tube bulb for a better UVB emission as the compact/coil bulbs have been known to cause eye issues or contribute to lethargic behavior. They do not emit very good UVB wavelengths & some have been harmful rays. The wavelengths are not conducive to D3 synthesis. Bet you will notice a big difference when you get the recommended bulb.

 

[wisser4]

He is probably fine if he is eating mealworms however, i heard that mealworms can cause impaction. Look upvideos on how to treat it and that might help



experience: 1 beardie that is a baby