andrea46":wc0x0ogz said:I've had Spike for about 7 months now. His tank is lined with that green carpet or the brown one, that lays flat on the bottom. His ambient temp. is 84 degrees. He has one side his basking rock with just the basking light for heat and the other side is his reptisun10.0 uvb desert light. He used to be on his rock for heat but with the new desert light he gets on his log and stays there pretty much all day. Is that good? Spike's cage is only 20 gal. but I'm buying a 40 or 50 gal. this coming week.andrea
andrea46":1gdjgpug said:Ok. so the reptisun isn't that great of a light then? I will put them on one side as much as possible and why do I do this? Back to my original question about his beard being puffed out and his stomach bigger than normal. Does this have anything to do with what your asking me?andrea
I don't think I know how to respond correctly I always hit the post reply instead o the quote. I did answer your question though somewhere out therediamc":2mzpdo41 said:I guess we were posting at the same time. Could you answer the questions about the thermometer? That's good that you took him outside and that you are giving him squash. What greens do you offer him? Have you had a fecal checked for parasites? How often are you dusting with calcium and vitamins? Are the crickets no larger than the space between his eyes?
I have had him for about 6 months now. He was bought straight from the store. His tail has always been darker at least half way down to the tip.diamc":b3502pl4 said:That's good that you're using a digital with a probe. What are the basking and cool side temps? You need to place the probe right under the basking light so that it is touching the basking surface then wait about 45 min for the temp to stop rising before getting the final reading. Then you do the same thing on the cool side.
If his poop is hard, it sounds like he needs to be bathed more. If he's not digesting properly because the temps are off, that would/could cause the bloated belly. It's also not a good idea to give him a lot of fruit. Here's a site that shows the best foods to feed: http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html Even though he's really not eating greens much yet, it's still a good idea to offer fresh ones daily in case he does decide to nibble on them.
The darkened tail could be that he is uncomfortable from the bloated belly or that part of the tail is getting ready to shed. They also puff out their beards from time to time, especially in the morning but his being puffed almost continuously could be concerning. Make sure that the crickets are no larger than the space between his eyes.
When you give him a bath tomorrow, gently massage his right side from armpit to vent area and if you feel a hardened area, massage gently in a circular motion trying to move it closer to his vent so he can pass it.
How long have you had him? Is it possible he was on a loose substrate like sand or something before and could be impacted?
He gets about 15 to 20 crickets every day. I've had him since November. and he was maybe 6 weeks old. So am I right about his age?I also have a slimline desert 50 uvb T8 fluorescent bulb, should I use that instead of the reptisun?diamc":3ims5ep6 said:I suggest rechecking the temps tomorrow, having a fecal checked soon. How old is the fluorescent UVB?
He sounds kinda small for a 7 mo old at 10 1/2 inches. How many crickets is he eating daily?