First Beardie EVER

[idcouple]

Hi everyone, this is Mortamie and Ivy with our new lil dragon, Cappy. (Don't ask lol). We got him from a pet store that has been in business for years and years and is run by a man who knows a lot about a lot. He didn't seem to know much in the way of dragons, though. Cappy was in a 5 gallon tank with a desk light about 12 inches over his head and a water bowl full of fecal matter. The owner said he had been feeding the baby 3 adult crickets a day. Right away, we knew we had to take him home. From all the research we had been doing, this baby was in danger of compaction and malnutrition from not being able to digest the food (too hard exoskeletons and not enough heat). His enclosure was cool to the touch, he was laying there with eyes closed, and he hardly moved, even when he was picked up. He does, however, have all of his claws, fingers and toes, and his tail is in perfect condition. Cappy's color is not as bright as is first was when we saw him a week ago, though.

He was molting a little, so, when we got him home, warmed up, and fed 3 small, calcium-covered crickets, we put him in his water dish. Not 30 mins later and his hind end is now molting. He still sits with his eyes mostly closed ... should we be worried?

Also! The dealer said he was a hybrid: a high-collar leatherback. Now, he does look like a leatherback, from what few pictures we have seen, but we're not sure about this "high-collar" business. Does anyone with more experience have an idea? After he settles in a few days, we will post more pics.

We have had him for literally 90 minutes as I write this post. The temp is between 95 and 100, though leaning more to the 95, near the top of his 20 gal. tank. We just have paper towels down for substrate, at the moment.

 

[idcouple]

We just noticed that when he defecated there was wet fecal matter and a puddle of what looks like water. Is this normal or is he sick or what?

 

[nbrinkley15]

I'm new to the beardie mommy thing, too. So it may be better to wait for someone more experienced to help, but as far as I know the poo should be moist and in some cases there is a bit of liquid b/c beardies don't have a separate apparatus to urinate like we do. They are like birds in that way. An abundance of liquid could just be the result of the beardie ingesting a lot water. If there is white in the poo it's just urates and is normal. If you are truly worried, I would take a stool sample to a local vet who deals with exotics just to make certain that your beardie is parasite free.. it would actually be a good idea considering the condition you described him to be in at the pet store. I would bump up those temps up to 110 in the basking area. Paper towels are actually perfect substrate for baby beardies... you can just take it out on cleaning day and toss it. The breeder I bought from uses shelve liners (the kind with a little texture for traction). Good luck with your new addition!

 

[morphmom]

I would take a stool sample to a local vet who deals with exotics just to make certain that your beardie is parasite free.. it would actually be a good idea considering the condition you described him to be in at the pet store. I would bump up those temps up to 110 in the basking area. Paper towels are actually perfect substrate for baby beardies

All great advice. The messy messes are probably due to relocation stress but ALL beardies should be checked for parasites. :wink: I still use paper towel for my adult but there are many options. Tile, shelf liner, repti carpet and so on. The idea is to make sure they're not on loose bedding. What kind of UVB bulb are you using? Most of us use the repti sun 10.0 tube light as others can cause health issues. Welcome to our world. Don't ever be afraid to ask questions :wink:

 

[wilddanny88]

Great that you rescued him! I was just about to ask you if he was a leatherback but then I read your post! VERY colorful! Both morphmom and nbrinkley15 gave you great information. Welcome to BD.org! Soon you will be stressing over the smallest things like the rest of us weirdos! :roll: lol

 

[idcouple]

We are getting very worried. This dragon is more than lethargic. It doesn't move unless we pick it up. At first it would move sparingly, and now it just lays there with its eyes closed. Sometimes its sides don't even move to prove its breathing unless you stroke him, and even then that doesn't work all the time. Should we take him back to the dealer? He is looking pretty weak, and we don't know how to care for him in this state. Advice?

 

[ynevar]

I would definitely take the little one to the vet. The cost for a fecal and a check is not too much. I could be wrong but my guess is that he has some parasites and that needs to be addressed right away.

I would also use paper towel, that is a great suggestion.

I took in 2 little dragons that arrived mangled to the pet store, missing limbs etc. They also had coccidia, which I did not know... so after a while of not growing, I took them to the vet and low and behold.

So, first thing would be to get the little one to the vet. My babies are growing (THANK GOODNESS) there is a LIGHT at the end of the tunnel and although it takes a lot of work, the baby will so appreciate all you do.

I am sure that being in a much better location than he was is helping, even though you don't feel like it it is. If he has a parasite the treatment will hopefully kick in quickly and the baby can get to absorbing good nutrition and growing again!

I am guessing the pooh is also smelly?

I wouldn't take him back to the dealer, who had him in those horrible conditions that got him to this point in the first place... So take a breath, you have a lot of people willing to help you out but the first step is take him to the vet.

Until then, I'd maybe try a warm bath, he may be dehydrated. Temp should be like you would give to a baby. Just a few minutes soak might help him. Also if you have a medicine syringe you can give him some bottled water and drip it on his nose and hopefully he'll lick it off. If you don't have a syringe, just put a drop of water on there with your finger (bottled water) and put it on his nose.

Let us know how he is doing. I hope one of the more experienced folk will chime in too. I am no expert but I do care---my babies have captured my heart and I know how scary it is when they are not doing well.

 

[idcouple]

The bath worked After about 15 mins he quirked right up, so I rewarmed the water and let him sit some more. I'm not sure if he drank any, though his jaw was working. I now have a new problem ... I saw a tiny red mite running around the cage. How can I get rid or him? Is the mite from my animal or the crickets?


He is molting very heavily right now ... will this change his behavior? Should it be changing mine?

 

[ynevar]

How is your lil guy doing? I'll go check your post on the other thread, did you see any more mites?

 

[idcouple]

He/she is doing better now.. He still won't eat alot. not sure if this has to do with him molting. but other then that he has gotten fatter which I think is a good sign he has way more energy now though

 

[ynevar]

I don't know if you took him/her to the vet. If you can get a fecal check done I'd highly recommend it. I wish I did that from the onset with my babies. I am sure they had coccidia when I got them. I think the stress of their injuries (missing limbs from cagemates either at the breeder or en route to the pet store) caused the coccidia to flourish in their stressed out system. My lil guys are almost done with their parasite treatment now and are growing, which is a big relief. I wish I had done the fecal check from the get go, and had realized enough about it to do so.

At the very least if you get a clear result then you have that sigh of relief to breathe! It could be why he/she is not eating as much. Youngsters, once over relocation stress should be voracious little eaters. I guess I was concerned when I read about the watery pooh. That was a sign that my little guys had, the watery pooh. I am so glad that he/she has perked up and that you were able to rescue him/her from such awful conditions.

 

[ynevar]

It totally could be the molt too, how is the poo doing, still watery? If it smells very bad then that is another indication that it might be a parasite.

 

[idcouple]

Pooh is wet but not watery now. He has had several bowel movements, so that's a good sign, I'm supposing. I'm not sure why, but he isn't big on "hunting". It might just be a personality thing. He can see the crickets moving and follows them with his eyes, but doen't give chase.

 

[idcouple]

So, our Bonnie A.K.A. "Stinker" (for not wanting to eat) is 7-9 weeks old. We got a hold of the dealer and did some math. She is now about 5 inches or so. Is she small for her age?

 

[wilddanny88]

Here is a growth chart. http://www.dachiu.com/beardeddragoncare/growthcharts.html Is he doing any better? You could make a separate post in the health section for those issues. More people would see it.