Beardie seems constipated!

[RhiannonJade]

HI
I'm having troubles with my 4 - 5 month bearded dragon. For about 3 weeks he has been pooping very irregular. I first noticed it when one day he had a very hard time pooping and was straining to get it out. I gave him a warm bath but he still wouldn't go. The next day after feeding him some sweet potato baby food and Olive oil he went. It was very hard and very large. Since then he hasn't been pooping everyday like he normally does. it's only every 3 -4 days. he has also been hiding in his cave all the time which I had previously posted about. When I do take him out to eat he usually tries to run and hide in a dark place ie under the couch. Since this behavior has been for a while I decided to take him to the vet. They did a xray and could see no signs of blockage. Now they want me to do a blood test for $230. I took him home and he pooped. It was very watery and dark colored but I think that is because I had fed him some berries the day before.

My set up is as follows: I have a 40 gallon tank. His basking spot is about 102 degrees, read with a digital prob thermometer. I have a 10. reptisun UVB tube. He is on repticarpet. I recently took out his water dish because the humidity was a bit too high. He is fed as many crickets as he can eat twice a day and they are dusted with calcium. He has had a fecal test done when I first got him in February and came back clean.

I had also been feeding him Zoo-Med Natural Juvenile Bearded Dragon Food. I have since stopped feeding it to him because I was worried that is whats causing his problems.

Since the blood test is a lot of money I wanted to see if any one else had any suggestions.

Thanks!

 

[kcarello]

Sorry to hear your baby is having problems. Since your temps seem good, and you have proper uvb lighting, and there is no sign of blockage,,,I am at a loss. You should pm Drache613. She is excellent with dragons and they're problems, if anyone can help, it will be her.
Good luck,
Kelly

 

[carlisv]

I'm wondering if it may be the calcium. He only needs one feeding per day dusted, and I've heard that an excess of calcium can cause constipation. Are his urates softish, or hard as rocks? Hard as rocks means either too much calcium or not enough water, or both.

You didn't mention baths. If he's not getting enough water he can get constipated too. Since he's a sluggish pooper, like my Richard, you might try increasing the frequency of his baths to 3 or 4 a week, or teaching him to drink out of a water dropper so you can give him a drink every day. I've heard of teaching beardies to drink out of a dish, but haven't had any luck with mine. Richard drinks 10-12 ml of water almost every night dripped on his nose out of a water dropper. That has helped his bathroom habits a lot.

Good luck!

 

[RhiannonJade]

Oh I never thought about the too much calcium!

Yeah his poop was hard the first time he strained to go. I will try that. He went yesterday so hopefully he will be good to go soon!

Thanks for the suggestion!

 

[jeanscott]

I just had the exact same problem with my new beardie... I was so worried he was under calcium-ed I may have overdone it.... Poo'ed ok the first couple days then nothing for a week. Today FINALLY went and had a very hard piece in it. I bathed him every day, rubbed his tummy and nothing. (I posted under health forum and no one responded) this is some good insight! SO thank you for helping me too....

 

[RhiannonJade]

Hi Everyone.

My beardie hasn't improved. Although he is pooping, it is very irregular and the last time he pooped it kinda looked like snot... He is lethargic and wants to hide all the time, I did a watch and wait approach since my last vet bill was $200 and I couldn't afford another one but now I think it is time for him to go. I am taking his poop in tomorrow to get checked for worms or anything that could be causing his problems. I have since taken out his hide out of his cage cause he was hiding so much I was worried he wasn't getting the UVB he needed.

Any other suggestions for getting him eating his crickets again would be really appreciated.

 

[kcarello]

It really sounds like you need to have a fecal done on him to make sure he doesn't have any parasites.