Beardie hiding in cave

[Rebek1992]

Hi, we got our first bearded dragon about 3/4 weeks ago now she is about 1 year old. For the first week she was ok eating twice a day up to about 12 black crickets and basking a bit.
Since then she has taken to hiding in her cave (I think all day but we are out at work Monday to Friday) some days she does not eat other days she is quite keen to eat when I am home from work but then does not bask after eating goes back in her cave. When she is out for small bit of time she is active enough.
We have a 75W heat lamp on for 12 hours a day and a UV lamp on for the same amount of time. We leave veggies in her tank all day.
I wonder if she is still a bit stressed out as we have maybe handled her too much or I am worried something might be wrong.
Has anyone got any advice or had the same sort of thing?
Thanks

 

[DaisyDragon123]

Some of her behavior sounds like a seasonal slowdown, maybe trying to brumate. She's a year old so she is at the brumation age. She is also at a age where female reproductive problems may arise that make then act "off". If she has not been seen by a vet recently now would be a good time. Your best bet is to find a qualified exotic vet that has experience with reptiles. She will need to be checked for parasites and given a full body exam. Make sure your temps are correct. There are caresheets on the home page of this site that explain proper habitat, lighting, feeding etc. so I won't repost all that info here.