Extremely picky baby beardie

Neshira

New member
Beardie name(s)
Trogdor
Hey, thanks for stopping by and hopefully offering some advice. I'm pulling my hair out here! I'm a herpetologist, I've got a master's in animal science and have been raising reptiles (mostly snakes) for over 20 years....but one little beardie is confusing the heck out of me.

A friend of mine "rescued" him from petco (bought) for my birthday and dropped this baby off. I wasn't there to choose so my friend picked the runt which as we know is the worst one to choose when picking a bearded dragon baby. I love him already though so oh well! His name is Trogdor and he's incredibly sweet and settling in very well aside from one minor concern: He's losing weight and doesn't seem to be eating much.

His siblings still at the petco are all much larger than him now but he's remained fairly close to the size I got him at almost two weeks ago. He's eating, just not very much and won't touch mealworms or crickets. The petco he was at feeds mealworms to their babies (I know, ew) so I tried those hoping they'd work even though they're not ideal. He actively avoids them. He'll munch on a little bit of romaine, kale, spinach, basil, or other greens. He won't touch any of the prepackaged food I've tried or crickets.

Other than not growing as fast as expected he seems healthy enough. He's curious, active, basks appropriately, drinks water both misted on him and even from a dish. He sleeps well and he's not losing weight alarmingly, he's just not gaining it if that makes sense.

He's approximately 8 inches from nose tip to tail tip and though I keep referring to him as a "he" I haven't actually sexed him since he's so young.

His setup is sufficient if a little large for his age (though I know full well I'll need to upgrade again in a year if he grows like other beardies).
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Hey, thanks for stopping by and hopefully offering some advice. I'm pulling my hair out here! I'm a herpetologist, I've got a master's in animal science and have been raising reptiles (mostly snakes) for over 20 years....but one little beardie is confusing the heck out of me.

A friend of mine "rescued" him from petco (bought) for my birthday and dropped this baby off. I wasn't there to choose so my friend picked the runt which as we know is the worst one to choose when picking a bearded dragon baby. I love him already though so oh well! His name is Trogdor and he's incredibly sweet and settling in very well aside from one minor concern: He's losing weight and doesn't seem to be eating much.

His siblings still at the petco are all much larger than him now but he's remained fairly close to the size I got him at almost two weeks ago. He's eating, just not very much and won't touch mealworms or crickets. The petco he was at feeds mealworms to their babies (I know, ew) so I tried those hoping they'd work even though they're not ideal. He actively avoids them. He'll munch on a little bit of romaine, kale, spinach, basil, or other greens. He won't touch any of the prepackaged food I've tried or crickets.

Other than not growing as fast as expected he seems healthy enough. He's curious, active, basks appropriately, drinks water both misted on him and even from a dish. He sleeps well and he's not losing weight alarmingly, he's just not gaining it if that makes sense.

He's approximately 8 inches from nose tip to tail tip and though I keep referring to him as a "he" I haven't actually sexed him since he's so young.

His setup is sufficient if a little large for his age (though I know full well I'll need to upgrade again in a year if he grows like other beardies).
Please go over the surface basking temps-- how are you taking them? Stick ons are inaccurate - uvb coil or long tube fixture-- your little guy is going thru relocation stress- as long as he's eating a little that's good if he stops that's not good - please no more mealworms-- please order some nutri grubs and some dubias - go by the chart on their website www.dubiaroaches.com order the size no bigger than the space between the eyes-- nutri grubs I would get medium they are a great staple feeder for babies- but we need to keep him eating-- so that is where the uvb and surface basking temps come in - that needs to be up to par
 

Neshira

New member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Trogdor
Please go over the surface basking temps-- how are you taking them? Stick ons are inaccurate - uvb coil or long tube fixture-- your little guy is going thru relocation stress- as long as he's eating a little that's good if he stops that's not good - please no more mealworms-- please order some nutri grubs and some dubias - go by the chart on their website www.dubiaroaches.com order the size no bigger than the space between the eyes-- nutri grubs I would get medium they are a great staple feeder for babies- but we need to keep him eating-- so that is where the uvb and surface basking temps come in - that needs to be up to par
Unfortunately he wouldn't even try the dubais. His temperature is monitored by multiple digital thermometers with sensors as well as 4x daily infared readings and a herpstat like the rest of my reptiles. I know mealworms aren't good for him but that's all they were feeding and that's what he's accustomed to, I've been shelling them for him and he'll eat a little bit when I do that. Nutrigrubs are something I hadn't tried yet so I'll get some of those. His temps and uvb are perfect for a baby dragon, higher than a mature adult would need. Despite him being my first beardie pet I am a herpetologist with 20 years of experience in keeping reptiles. I made sure his habitat is up to par and the only reason I've tried mealworms is because he wouldn't take anything else, as I said I have been shelling them to avoid impaction and they are already smaller than 3/4 of his eye width.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Unfortunately he wouldn't even try the dubais. His temperature is monitored by multiple digital thermometers with sensors as well as 4x daily infared readings and a herpstat like the rest of my reptiles. I know mealworms aren't good for him but that's all they were feeding and that's what he's accustomed to, I've been shelling them for him and he'll eat a little bit when I do that. Nutrigrubs are something I hadn't tried yet so I'll get some of those. His temps and uvb are perfect for a baby dragon, higher than a mature adult would need. Despite him being my first beardie pet I am a herpetologist with 20 years of experience in keeping reptiles. I made sure his habitat is up to par and the only reason I've tried mealworms is because he wouldn't take anything else, as I said I have been shelling them to avoid impaction and they are already smaller than 3/4 of his eye width.
May I please ask what kind of UVB your using? Does your thermometers have probes on them?
 

Neshira

New member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Trogdor
May I please ask what kind of UVB your using? Does your thermometers have probes on them?
Yes they do. Currently I'm using a reptisun long 10.0 alongside the mercury since his habitat is quite large. Yes, the thermometers have probes and keep one on level with the basking spot, one at his level in the warm side, and one at his level on the cool side as well as infrared readings multiple times per day. All of my reptiles also have their temperatures monitored with herpstat controllers. Currently he's still in the quarantine room but in a week he'll be moved to the desert side of my reptile room.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Yes they do. Currently I'm using a reptisun long 10.0 alongside the mercury since his habitat is quite large. Yes, the thermometers have probes and keep one on level with the basking spot, one at his level in the warm side, and one at his level on the cool side as well as infrared readings multiple times per day. All of my reptiles also have their temperatures monitored with herpstat controllers. Currently he's still in the quarantine room but in a week he'll be moved to the desert side of my reptile room.
Is the Reptisun a T 5 or a T 8? Screen plays a role in the UVB exposure -- are you feeding salads? If so I would use the nutri grubs to lure him to the salad bowl
 

RangoRocky

Juvie Member
Photo Comp Winner
Beardie name(s)
Rango Rocky Balboa

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xp29

BD.org Addict
Photo Comp Winner
Beardie name(s)
Zen , Ruby ,Snicker Doodles, Sweet Pea, Sinatra
Have you tried the soft bodied worms?
Hornworms and silkworms are like crack to them. Just be careful once they start eating them it is very gard to get them to eat anything else.
Also i would not recommend feeding the spinach, as an occasional treat maybe but not a staple. Spinach is a calcium binder and calcium is already a top challenge for beardies.
Oh and between the hornworms and silkworms if you can get them silkworms are more nutritious.
Both worms grow at an incredible pace so feed them off quickly if you go that route
 

Neshira

New member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Trogdor
Thank you all so much for your advice!! I've ordered some nutrigrubs but they won't ship to my location for a week. In the meantime I picked up some wax worms and he actually liked them! I'll feed those sparingly until the nutrigrubs arrive.
 

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