EllenD":1yeu0lti said:I would ignore the vet at this point, it's sounds like he's straining to poop and he can't, and if they end up wanting to put him on medication for parasites it can start a downward spiral that never ends well. And it sounds like this vet is probably an "exotics" vet that doesn't know what they're talking about, based on what you're describing. First let's start by posting some photos of him, and his entire enclosure and lights. That will help us determine any husbandry issues that are causing him to have digestion or bowel issues.
What has his daily diet been since you brought him home? How often are you dusting his live insects with calcium and then also with a multivitamin?
What size is his tank/enclosure? (Gallons or Dimensions)
What type of Substrate do you have in the bottom of his tank/enclosure? (Tile, Paper Towels, Carpet, Sand, Calcium Sand, Crushed Walnut Shells, etc.)
Exactly what UVB light do you have? Please list the brand, model/wattage/strength (if it's a tube the strength will be either T8 or T5), and then the type of UVB light it is, meaning is it a long tube (at least 18"), a compact bulb (like a regular light bulb), a coil bulb (like a regular light bulb but spiral/coiled), or a Mercury Vapor Bulb (all-in-one UVB and heat/light bulb)? Is the UVB light on top of a mesh lid to the tank, or obstructed by anything else? (If it's a long tube, does the long tube fixture that it's in have any type of clear, plastic cover on it that is covering the UVB tube)? And how far away (in inches) is the UVB light from his basking spot/platform?
What type of thermometer are you using to measure his temperature zones?
What is the Basking Spot Surface Temperature? Hot Side Ambient (air) Temperature? Cool Side Ambient (air) Temperature?
What color is his Basking Bulb? (white, red, blue, purple, etc.) What wattage is his Basking Bulb?
How many hours each day do you leave both his UVB light and his Basking Bulb on?
Usually bowel impactions in young babies that are a couple of months old have to do with either a loose substrate being in the bottom of their tank, improper temperatures inside the tank (specifically the Basking Spot Surface Temperature), or an inadequate, improper daily diet.
Have you tried putting him in a warm bath for 15-20 minutes to see if this helps him to poop?
Thank you so much replying! Will do!I will get rid of the superworms. When he threw up he did throw up superworms.I hope so too.We have grown so attached to him and want the best for him. After his bath he was a little more active just a little though. He moved to his usual basking spot and then to his sleeping spot.AHBD":2srqp1lz said:Just a quick reply, Ellen or someone else will ad more suggestions but stop the superworms ASAP. That's most likely the exact reason he's impacted. Hopefully he'll pass it soon.
Beautiful set up by the way.
Hello.Yes, I will be releasing the superworms outside and not feeding him that anymore. The thermometers are just stick on. Thank you for the information. We will be going to our local reptile store to find the items you have recommended.Drache613":2ukd00bx said:Hello,
Yes, discontinue the superworms, he is too young to pass them through very well. Try some
calcium/phoenix worms or butterworms, instead. Small silkworms are great also. Do you
use roaches or crickets for him?
The Reptiglo UVB light you have is a compact/coil light which wont put off enough exposure
for him. Try to upgrade to a long tube bulb, such as the Reptisun 10 or the Arcadia D3 12 or
14% either one.
The thermometer you have, is it the round stick on type I see mounted on the inside of the
tank or do you also have a digital probe too? His temperatures are probably off some, too if
you are using the round analogue type of thermometer. The digital probes are much more
accurate for measuring the temperatures.
Let us know how he is doing.
Tracie
EllenD":217rmxov said:Yes, no Superworms until he's much larger/older, they really shouldn't have them until they are at least 12-14" long..
You've got several issues that are causing him to be impacted...DO NOT GIVE HIM ANY MEDICATIONS IF THE VET GAVE THEM TO YOU, HE DOESN'T NEED THEM AND THE WILL ONLY MAKE HIM WORSE!!! His impactions are related to lighting, temps, and diet, not illness or parasites/infections.
A 10 gallon tank is too small to keep a dragon in, even a small baby, because you cannot get proper temps inside one, it's impossible. You are using only stick-on thermometers on each side, which only read Ambient/Air temperatures, so you have a serious temperature gradient issue due to the size of the tank...
Here's the problem: You're getting a temperature of over 100 degrees on the Hot Side of his tank, but it's being read on a stick-on thermometer, meaning that it's an Ambient/Air temperature, not a Surface temperature, which can only be read by either a Temp Gun or a Digital Probe Thermometer.
The Basking Spot Surface Temperature should be between 105-110 degrees for a baby/juvenile, and between 100-105 for an adult over a year or so old...but this is the SURFACE TEMP of his basking spot/platform, not the surrounding Air Temperature on the Hot Side of the tank...
The HOT SIDE AMBIENT (air) TEMPERATURE for any dragon should be between 88-93 degrees max...THIS IS THE TEMPERATURE RANGE THAT HIS TANK IS READING AT OVER 100 DEGREES!!! FAR TOO HOT!!!
And the COOL SIDE AMBIENT (air) TEMP should be between 75-80 degrees, which is fine by your reading of 80 degrees.
So here's the problem: His Basking Spot Surface Temperature is going to be much hotter than the surround Hot Side Ambient Temp, which you're reading as being in the 100's...this is dehydrating him, and causing him to be lethargic and not hungry I'm sure. I can tell by his photo he's tired and dehydrated...
You need to get him a larger tank ASAP, a 40 Gallon Breeder Tank is going to be needed by the time he's 6 months old, but at least a 20 Gallon LONG tank is going to be required to get his Basking Spot Surface Temp and his Hot Side Ambient temps within the correct ranges...I'd just get the 40 Gallon Breeder Tank now, but if that's not possible (YOU NEED TO GET HIM A PROPER UVB LIGHT IMMEDIATELY, ALONG WITH A FIXTURE FOR IT, THIS IS NOT OPTIONAL), you can actually use a large, plastic tub, like the kind you buy at Walmart for him in the meantime. Either way, you need to either raise the Basking Bulb up, or better yet, for that size of tank, you need to just buy a lower wattage of Bright-White colored Basking Bulb, and no "Coiled" bulbs ever, not for any of his lights, they can cause serious eye and neurological damage...you can either buy a bright-white colored, Reptile Specialty Basking Bulb, or you can buy a regular, Halogen Indoor Flood Bulb, the Par38 kind that you can buy at Lowes, Home Depot, Tractor Supply, etc. It obviously needs to be lower wattage than the bulb you have now..
You also must spend $10 on a Digital Probe Thermometer, because right now you have no way at all to measure his Basking Spot Surface Temp...They cost $10 at any Petco or Petsmart, and have a Probe on a wire that you can place directly on his Basking Spot/platform, let lay there for at least 20-30 minutes, then read. This is the only way to get a Basking Spot Surface Temp, which needs to be between 105-110 degrees, and THEN the surrounding Hot Side Air Temp needs to be between 88-93 degrees, right now it's about 10 or more degrees too hot...so that's a major issue....
The second major issue is the UVB light, and this is a very serious issue, as he will not have any appetite, nor would he be able to absorb any nutrition from his food even if he was eating, nor from his supplements....Compact and Coil bulb UVB lights are just far too weak for Desert Reptiles, specifically Bearded Dragons, and they only cause severe Calcium Deficiency and MBD. Then it's on top of a mesh lid, which is blocking almost half of the UVB light emitted by the already far-too-weak UVB bulb, so the bottom line is that he's getting pretty much no UVB or UVA light right now, nor has he since he has been under that UVB light...
Bearded Dragons need a long, fluorescent UVB tube and matching tube fixture with a reflector. It's not optional. There are two different strengths of UVB tubes: the much weaker T8, and the much stronger T5...I highly recommend the stronger T5 UVB tube, as it is not only much, much better for him, but it will save you money as it only needs replaced once a year, the T8 tubes must be replaced every 6 months...
The weaker T8 UVB tubes cannot sit on top of the mesh lid either, they aren't strong enough to penetrate adequate UVB or UVA light to your dragon on the other side of the mesh. They have to be strapped to the underside of the mesh using long zip ties, wire, twine, shoelaces, etc. They also must be within at least 6" of his basking spot/platform, and replaced every 6 months, as they have a very fast UVB decay rate, and at 6 months they no longer emit any UVB light.
In contrast, the much stronger T5 UVB tubes are good for 12 months before needing replaced, and are strong enough to sit on top of the mesh lid, just as long as they are within 10-11" of his basking spot/platform. This is what most experienced Beardie owners and Breeders use, and we have no issues like this at all because of using the correct UVB lights...It's not your fault, the pet shop employees certainly have no idea what they're talking about (usually), and if you bought any type of Bearded Dragon "Kit" then that's why you got all the wrong stuff...but the UVB tube is crucial.
The best place to buy a UVB tube and tube fixture is on Amazon.com, it's the cheapest place and has fast, free shipping. T5 UVB tubes are hard to find in pet shops, most tubes are only the weaker T8 tubes, but even if you find a T5 tube in a pet shop it will cost you a fortune.
You want to buy either a Reptisun 10.0 or an Aracadia brand UVB tube (DO NOT BUY A REPTISUN 5.0 TUBE, ONLY 10.0, AS 5.0 ARE ONLY 5% UVB LIGHT, FOR TROPICAL REPTILES)...
A 22" Reptisun 10.0 T5HO UVB tube costs about $24 on Amazon.com shipped, while they also sell a 24" T5-rated (good for up to 24 watts) tube fixture that has a reflector included for around $28 shipped. So for around $50 you can buy one of the best UVB tubes available for him..
Please avoid the UVB tube brands Zilla, All Living Things, ReptileOne, Trixie, and pretty much any others besides Reptisun 10.0 and Arcadia, as these other brands all emit harmful light rays that always seem to cause eye damage, blindness, and neurological damage...
We also have an extra 75w bulb same brand and same type. We exchanged it and put it on a clamp lamp and took the mesh of. We are currently going everywhere to find a 40 gallon tank and other essentials too.EllenD":36fpew6b said:LOL, I just noticed that you already have the exact type of basking bulb I recommended, it's just way too high a wattage for a 10 gallon tank, for reference a 40 gallon breeder tank usually takes a 100 watt basking bulb over the hot side of the tank to achieve adequate temps, so that's just how hot it is in her tank right now..I'd say a 75 watt max, maybe even a 65 watt halogen indoor flood bulb (a very common wattage of halogen indoor flood bulb, available at Walmart, Tractor Supply, Home Depot, Lowes, and even at any Dollar Tree, they sell a 65 watt Par38 Indoor Flood Bulb, that's probably what you want, a 100 watt is far too hot, unless you do go and buy her a 40 gallon Breeder tank now, then you probably already have the correct Basking Bulb for that tank)
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