found a sick beardie, neep help

[benzychik]

i will post some pictures as soon as i get a camera but he is doing ok i will post something soon

 

[beardie osk]

That's great...................... we all will be looking forward to your beardies progress and pics!

 

[diamc]

Good to hear that he has improved. Yes, pictures would certainly be welcomed.

 

[Drache613]

Hello Mercedes,

Great, I am looking forward to seeing pictures.

Tracie

 

[benzychik]

I also had a question about the lighting, do i only need the uvb 8.0 or do i need an additional source of lighting? i read somewthing the other day the said he could become lethargic if he had only the uvb, is this true, i dont remember where i read it but i was curoius if i should do something about it?

 

[ilovepeanut]

How horrible that someone just let their beardie go. Who in their right mind would do something like that.
I'm glad you were able to find him and took him in. I'm sure he's a lot happier now that he has someone to care and love him.
I'd love to see some pics!

 

[vickson420]

I also had a question about the lighting, do i only need the uvb 8.0 or do i need an additional source of lighting? i read somewthing the other day the said he could become lethargic if he had only the uvb, is this true, i dont remember where i read it but i was curoius if i should do something about it?

Hi yes generally you need 2 lights one linear flourescent uvb(no heat get emittied from this) and a bright white basking bulb for heat(non uvb) a regular household bulb will do but remember you need specific temps as well.The basking surfae should be 95-105F and the cool end should be around 75F but no higher then 80F.This should be measured wit a digital probe thermometer as tose stick on ones dont cut it.The only way around this is to use a Mercury vapor Bulb which is both uvb and heat but your tank must be 40 breeder and there is distance requirement although they are the best uvb source IMO.

 

[benzychik]

none of the local petstores have any of the worms i need so if i order phoenix worms or any of the others(butter, silk, goliath or horn) how many should i order? what would be the easiest to take care of and keep alive because i have to order alot since it is not local.

 

[benzychik]

never mind i think i found it, butter wroms arent too expensive and i can get them in 50 count, how many of these should i feed him a day? the page said they were very high in calcium and i dont want to over feed him calcium. i got the repcal calcium D3 no phosphorous and the herptivite, how many times should i dust the butterworms with this?

 

[ArdorAndZeal1]

phoenix are the most nutritious, butters are great but they are high in fat

supers are good combo of nutritious and economical... big tho so make sure the dragon is old enough

 

[K9KidsLove]

Hi...I know you are probably thinking you are never going to get this right!! Hang in there. It is definitely worth it.

Do not feed superworms til your dragon is 16" long. They have a history of causing impactions in dragons smaller than that.

You can order your Phoenix worms at Phoenixworms .com.

Do you know how old your fluorescent bulb is? If it is over 6 months old, it needs replacing. The best is to get a MVB (Mercury Vapor Bulb) which is a bit pricey, but lasts a year. The Megaray is best MVB & can be ordered from Reptileuv.com. Or, the T-Rex Active UV Heat is a good MVB. These have heat & light in one bulb. A less expensive choice that is nearly as good is to get the ReptiSun 10 long fluorescent tube (not a coil or a compact) and a regular household white (not colored) bulb...probably a 60 watt...depends on what the temp is in your house. You can get a clamp lamp in Walmart for the heat light. If your ReptiGlo 8 that you have now is a long fluorescent tube you can use the fixture it is in. They need replacing every 6 months. You wil need to put the heat/basking light right beside the ReptiSun 10 (UVB) on one end of the tank. The UVB needs to be 6"-8" from your dragon's basking spot.

You can order your ReptiSun 10 long fluorescent tube on Petmountain.com for about $20.
Good luck
Patsy

 

[ArdorAndZeal1]

you love your BD and thats important!!!!! I will help with guidance however I can and BD.org is a great community!!!!!

 

[benzychik]

Hey everyone, here are some pictures. on the left shoulder i think he may have an indent like someone stepped on him, maybe something is broken i dont know, i took marley up to the local petstore and looked at a healthy fat beardie and they have a "bump" in the same place on both sides. So im not sure if it is a bump on the right shoulder or if it is something else on the left. I did not have a good enough camera to zoom in on his scab, it hasnt changed at all since i got him but should i put neosporan on it or bactrin or what? On his front right foot there is a knoby knuckle, could it be the start of MBD? Also at his bottom section his ribs dont line up, should i be worried about this? [img]http://i430.photobucket.com/albums/qq24/benzychik89/marley1-1.jpg[/img] [img]http://i430.photobucket.com/albums/qq24/benzychik89/marley2-1.jpg[/img] [img]http://i430.photobucket.com/albums/qq24/benzychik89/DSC03099.jpg[/img] [img]http://i430.photobucket.com/albums/qq24/benzychik89/DSC03085.jpg[/img] [img]http://i430.photobucket.com/albums/qq24/benzychik89/marley5.jpg[/img] [img]http://i430.photobucket.com/albums/qq24/benzychik89/marley3.jpg[/img] [img]http://i430.photobucket.com/albums/qq24/benzychik89/DSC03140.jpg[/img]

 

[ilovepeanut]

Awww, poor thing!! That makes me so sad that someone let him go. The poor guy is merely skin and bones.

He's so lucky to have you to take care of him. I'm sure with some extra food and love he'll be feeling better in no time. Best of luck to you.

 

[ArdorAndZeal1]

BD.org how to feed sick beardie with syringe:
http://www.beardeddragon.org/forums/viewtopic.php?p=695202
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picture of repta-aid, provided from same forum
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753955
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credit: alseides of http://community.livejournal.com/herpers/1801674.html

a really good mix my vet said to use for forcefeeding/putting on the calories is
1 part chicken babyfood
1 part veggie/fruit babyfood
enough pedialyte to make it a slurry that'll go into a syringe
sprinkle of calcium powder

feed twice a day. It makes their poop look weird but it helps them gain weight.

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you can use an eyedropper after blending your nutritious slurry
and heres a link for a small syringe
http://www.petstore.com/ps_ViewItem...view-idProduct-LX00484-idCategory-BDFOBR.html

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personally Repta-Aid is a good way to go, because it comes with a nice small syringe with a lil plastic tube that can fit into the corner of the BD's mouth and onto the tongue.