Health Problems and Water??

[BeardedDragonLover11]

So I have two questions about my bearded dragons health. Can they get water in their nose, ears, too much in their mouth? Because my bearded dragon went under water on accident during his bath/swim. He was floating then he went under. Of course I picked him up right away and didn't put him back in, but I'm worried. Can they get water in their nose? Will they get pneumonia? Thanks. Another question is that we have a chlorine salt pool, and can he go in there? If I rinse him off with tap water will that be fine? I live in Florida so its pretty humid. I will wait until December and October though. Since we have a heated pool and we can heat it. Its three to seven feet I think, and of COURSE I would watch him. We have floaties and stuff for him to climb on Oh yeah, another question. He is pretty dehydrated. He won't eat very much. I try to force hydrate him, but it never works very well. How do I help that?? Thank you very much. Oh yeah, while I'm here, I put a small plushie in his cage. Can he have that?? Its almost mating season for them, lol. I have a small golf ball that I'm worried to put in there though because he likes to taste everything. Even his "mate's" eyeballs. Lol. So please read the whole thing. The most important things: Can he get water in his nose? And can he swim in our pool?? Thanks!!

BeardedDragonlover11

 

[BeardedDragonLover11]

Oh, yeah. He is a year and two months. Thanks......

 

[AHBD]

Hi there....no on the swimming pool, too much chlorine . :shock: He would only try to get out and it would be easy for him to aspirate some. And they can do the same [ aspirate and choke ] while in the little bath that we provide but it doesn't happen too often. They can get inner ear infection as well, but I'm not sure how often it happens since there aren't many threads about it. If your beardie aspirates water, the best thing to do is tip them head down to let any water drain out. Then you have to watch them to see that they don't start coughing, wheezing, etc over the next few days.

If you think he's dehydrated and he wants to drink while being soaked, that should provide all he needs. Some beardies don't drink while being soaked but you can hydrate them by dripping/sparaying gently on their snout until they drink, for an adult beardie 1-2X a week is good. Just drip, wait + repeat to give him a chance to realize that water is available.

 

[BeardedDragonLover11]

Okay!! Thanks!!

 

[Kashki]

They're generally pretty good at not getting water where it's not meant to go. Just keep an eye on them while they're in water. Make sure any water in their tank isn't deep enough that they could drown if they fall asleep in there.

He can get respiratory infections but isn't likely to get them from a bath (unless you're over-doing it). Incorrect humidity levels (over 50%) or excessive stress are the main contributors.
Do not put him in the pool! Regardless of the chemical issues, the dragons prefer shallow water (if they even like water) and it's often good to have a rock or something they can climb onto for safety. Putting them in a large body of water would likely stress them out.

Get an eyedropper full of water and drip it onto his nose to get him to drink. I also have a water dish that I put near him and spray into, that is generally enough for him to realise that he can drink from it. A bath can help with dehydration too as the water is absorbed into the his vent.
I guess you could put the plushie in, just keep it washed. The golf ball serves no purpose imo.

I'd focus on getting him hydrated and eating before you go all out with this stuff though, make sure he is healthy before you potentially stress him out more

 

[BeardedDragonLover11]

Okay. Thank you. Sometimes (don't call me cruel and an animal abuser) I drop him in the see how he would do. Not the pool. His bath. IF I put him in the pool, and he drank some, or got some in his nose, would he die?? Get a respiratory infection? Anything?? Theres videos called 'bearded dragons taking nice swim in the pool' or 'bearded dragons jump in the pool and start swimming.' So is it okay? Like life or death? He doesn't normally drink the water. He just swims. He knows to swim to me if theres issues, so that shouldn't be a problem. He tries to jump in the water, lol. Thank goodness. I got can o crickets yesterday, and they're full of moisture. He should be okay now. I figured that they would like to roll it around or something? Anyway. Thanks for all of the help!! It is all appreciated. Thanks again,
Bye,

BeardedDragonlover11 :wink: