Hello,
How do you figure that the compacts & coils give out sufficient
UVB light emissions? You are kidding, right? The only decent one is the Arcadia D3 which still had a 43% decline rate in 3 months, which if you look at the stats is pretty poor. Compacts & coils put a terrible glare on their eyes & produce uneven lighting of the UVB emissions as well. These dangerous compacts & coils had incorrect phosphor combinations on them which was a complete disaster with their products, while others were just plain poor & not good for anything other than being used to just simply brighten up the tank, that is it.
Look at these charts:
This first chart is only including the Arcadia D3, just read what Dr. Baines has to say about compacts.
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/compactlamps.htm
Note the ESU super coil light:
http://www.russiantortoise.org/uvb.htm
Last of all, most of the compact & coils from Reptisun 5 & 10 were horribly dangerous:
Please read this report:
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/phototherapyphosphor.htm
Compare with the flourescent tube bulb results:
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/fluorescenttuberesults.htm
I am not even including the results from the mercury vapor bulbs because they are superior over these bulbs that it isn't even worth mentioning.
So do your homework regarding these lights & search this forum as you will find tons of dragon owners who have used compact or coil lights that have had terrible problems from eye problems to metabolic bone disease. Just because you have not had any trouble with yours, doesn't mean that you will not in the future. You have just been lucky thus far, as the compacts & coils do not provide adequate UVB emissions when compared to the flourescent tubes or the mercury vapor bulbs. They are cheap, & ineffective & I do not recommend them. If you kept a gravid female under those lights it would be ineffective for giving her the well needed UVB exposure for her to keep up her 25 Hydroxy levels while being stressed with egg laying because she wouldn't absorb her calcium very well. There have been numerous cases with those problems on this forum, too.
You are missing the point of the problem here. If you are using a compact or coil light, bright white light must be provided in order to allow the pupil to constrict properly especially if you are keeping the compact or coil light at 5-6 inches. That can damage their cornea. The idea is to allow very little light into the eye area which protects the cornea & pupil. If not enough bright light is being used, that is when it becomes hazardous. There is plenty of research with the compacts & coils that you have not found. The eye problems have nothing to do with inbreeding, & everything to do with lighting. Placing the lights that close to any reptile is hazardous & it is simply not the reptiles fault, they are only trying to get what little UVB that light is emitting anyway. Most of these problems are the fault of the new owner not knowing about the light, or not having the husbandry correct in the first place. Though it is not the fault of new keepers either when they are told inaccurate information either by a petstore worker or breeder who has no idea, either. We are all here to learn & to help each other out.
Going out in the desert is not hard on their eyes at all. It is their natural habitat & are designed for that type of lighting & heat. The light spectrum is MUCH brighter than ANY compact or coil light. Thus, that will easily allow the pupil to constrict which allows LESS light into the eye avoiding cornea damage.
What you do not realize is that they may not immediately show metabolic bone disease with inadequate UVB lighting. As reptiles have unique metabolisms, some may utilize calcium more quickly than others leaving some with problems while others tend to deal with it better. We are seeing tremendous problems with metabolic bone disease which is a direct problem to UVB exposure. They simply cannot absorb calcium & other vitamins properly without UVB exposure.
I for one, do not want my reptiles to just exist under a light that barely puts out uW10cm2 when the sun puts out average uW250cm2 or more. The 25 hydroxy levels can only be maintained at adequate levels for so long, until they will begin to experience any problems. Yes, not all show problems, but some may get by for years, only to all of the sudden show tremendous problems "all of the sudden" or "out of nowhere". Nothing is usually "out of nowhere" when it comes to UVB exposure. If they have not had it for years, then, try exposing them to a decent light, & I will guarantee you that within 24 hours, you will have a completely different behavior from that dragon. It makes a night & day difference.
As far as self inflicted biting, all cases we have seen have been directly related to poor UVB exposure as well as hypocalcemia problems & were resolved when the husbandry was corrected. I believe that they are all intelligent, they are just poorly understood as most do not spend the time to get to know their true language.
No use in arguing my points on UVB. Most everyone on this board is a huge advocate of UVB & has done their homework & research when it comes to the compacts & coils. A large majority of people on here have had alot of trouble with them, as well, & do not recommend them.
So, please do not undermine our knowledge & our opportunity to educate new members on topics that we have all studied & worked so hard on to research when you clearly have just a basic understanding of these lights.
Tracie