Hello, I recently rescued a bearded dragon from a friend. They ignored it and never took care of it, so of course, there will be some issues. He has a bump on his bicep on his arm, he moves his head a lot back and forth ( not head bobbing ), he walks, but shivers, and he doesn’t want to eat. He also has a bump on his tail close to his genitals. Can someone help me out? We don’t know his age, but he’s 17 inches. I’m buying a 10.0 UVB Light for him and rearranging his tank so he can get heat and UVB. Anything else I’m missing or any answers to the problems I’m having with him. Also, whenever I grab him, he’s stomach goes flat, and you can feel he is skinny and not fat.
Hi Lucas, good for you trying to help the poor dragon ! Most if not all of the problems are related to calcium deficiency + lack of uvb. The lumps on his tail are likely from fractures that heal over by the body depositing available calcium there. The head jerking + body shivering are also calcium + vitamin deficiency. It's good that you're getting a uvb bulb, did you get one yet and can you post a pic of the entire set up ? To get him to eat try some Fluker's Reptaboost [ from pet store] ASAP and if you don't have calcium powder with D3 get some of that right away as well. Mix a tiny pinch of it with the Reptaboost supplement and use a syringe to drip it on his mouth or very gently wiggle it in the side of his mouth. Those are a few things to do right away. You can also take a feeder insect, squish it until the guts come out one end and rub it lightly on his snout to see if that gets him to eat it.
Hi Lucas, good for you trying to help the poor dragon ! Most if not all of the problems are related to calcium deficiency + lack of uvb. The lumps on his tail are likely from fractures that heal over by the body depositing available calcium there. The head jerking + body shivering are also calcium + vitamin deficiency. It's good that you're getting a uvb bulb, did you get one yet and can you post a pic of the entire set up ? To get him to eat try some Fluker's Reptaboost [ from pet store] ASAP and if you don't have calcium powder with D3 get some of that right away as well. Mix a tiny pinch of it with the Reptaboost supplement and use a syringe to drip it on his mouth or very gently wiggle it in the side of his mouth. Those are a few things to do right away. You can also take a feeder insect, squish it until the guts come out one end and rub it lightly on his snout to see if that gets him to eat it.
Thank you so much for your help! The light is supposed to come December 8. I take him outside to get natural light and UVB. I also have all the supplements and am getting probiotics and bee pollen! I’ll update you whenever I get the things!
The thing is, I’m a child. I don’t have much money, but care for my animals a lot. I can’t let my Bearded Dragon die. I can’t afford the one you are recommending me. I’m sorry. Anything else?
Lucas you mentioned that you were taking him out in the sun. Is it warm enough where you live to continue ? What type of enclosure did you take him out in ? That would solve your uvb problem.
Lucas you mentioned that you were taking him out in the sun. Is it warm enough where you live to continue ? What type of enclosure did you take him out in ? That would solve your uvb problem.
It’s really cold in the morning where I am. I live in Florida, so sometimes in the afternoon, it gets a bit warm. He goes to the door all the time after I take him out though. I put him in a glass enclosure, and sometimes I just let him explore, but check on him all the time.
Ok then get this fixture a 18" zilla most pet stores carry them then get this bulb Reptisun 10.0 T 8 bulb--- it's going to be better than that coil-- the fixture will come w/ a bulb but it's not real good - the Reptisun is way better- I think the fixture is around $40 you might find it cheaper on line
Karrie
As long as the temps are warm, I'd keep taking him outside. When I adopted Charlie, I didn't know about the coil lights being inadequate and didn't find this forum right away either. He lives at the library I work at so one of the things I did with him to create a bond was taking him out to play in the sun whenever it was warm enough. One of the mods said that is probably how we were able to avoid MBD developing. I'm in South Dakota and I'm jealous of your temperatures!