BULGING EYES

[rambo220]

Hi I have a 2 year old bearded dragon who is about 18 inches long. He is recently developed a illness that I believe is a respirtory infection. I have heard him wheeze some nights but not all the time. His eyes during the day sometimes bulge out of his head and it almost gives me a heart attack every time. He also hiccups alot during the day. I am very worried about him. His enclosure is a 40 gallon tank but i am tommorow going to petsmart and buyin him the biggest terrarium they have. His substrate is ground walnut shells witch i am skeptical of. For his heating light I use a normal 100 Watt light bulb. Is this ok? For his UVB light I use a Exotherra Repti-Glo 10.0 bulb not the tube. At the hot end of his tank (where he stays most of the day) it gets about 92 degrees. At night i use a under heating pad and the temps stay around 70-75 degrees. He still has a pretty hearty appetite. I feed him about 4 large crickets a day witch i dust 3x a week in calcium powder. He is also fed mustard greens, squash and

 

[rambo220]

(sorry got cut off) Anyways he is also fed mustard greens, squash and carrots daily but it seems he only likes the greens. He has fresh water in a bowl but never drinks it so i bathe him and mist his veggies daily to get water in him. Any suggestions at all would be very helpful to make him well again. Thank you

 

[zebraflavencs]

Hold up ! Instead of buying a larger viv, I would get him to a vet for a check up instead. A 40 is large enough.
Let us know how the dragon is doing ! RI is nothing to mess with.
Also, you say you have a reptiglo and it isn't a tube? Does this mean a compact ?
Either way, turn it off, and get a reptiSun 10.0. This is the best tube on the market and if you go to Petmountain.com you can get it for $20.
Also, the UTH is a BAAAD idea... Dragons can not feel heat from beneath them, remove the heating pad and unless temps fall below 60*F at night, don't worry about heating.
I hope this helps out !
Janie.

 

[rambo220]

Ok. How much does a vet cost normally for a check up? Is their any medicine i could buy from a pet store or something? Im think it might be lung worms too. As for the uvb light i will switch immediately. Is my heating light ok though?

 

[zebraflavencs]

It varies, vet to vet. You will need either an exotics vet that has experience with dragons, or a herp vet with same experience. I know there is a listing of all vets in the USA, so maybe someone can get that for you, or you can google it.
Hope this helps out !
Janie.

 

[rambo220]

ok thank you

 

[zebraflavencs]

You are quite welcome !
Keep us posted !
Hugs and prayers !
Janie.

 

[vickson420]

Hello
How is your beardies today?Did you get him to the vet?
First I have to say I agree that you need to ditch the reptiglo 10 coil/compact immediately and get a linear reptiSUN 10.0 as the tank size is adequate at the moment.Also please get the walnut substrate out f the tank it holds humidity and bacteria and can cause impaction.Since your beardie is already having respiratory issues its not a good idea to have the humidity raised or exposing him to the bacteria issues.As for the heat bulb any ordinary household bulb or reptile basking bulb will work fine providing you get the correct temps from it.Do you have a digital thermometer w/ a probe or an infared temp gun?If not I suggest you get one immediately as another main cause for an RI is low temps and the sticky or dial type thermometers are inaccurate and dont measure the temps where needed.The goal temp is 95-105F(110F for babies) on the actual basking SURFACE with the tamos grading down to 75-80F on the cool end of the tank.At is age he should be eating about 50 crix per week and you can give them everyday or scheduled on and off days its up to you but veggies should be offered daily which you are doing and he should be eating more greens then anything else.Are you dusting his feeders with calcium and vitamins?If so how often and what type are you using?