HELP?? 6 week old baby Bearded Dragon "River"

[NatashaDawn]

Hello, I purchased my bearded dragon River on March 11th, 2013 and brought "her" home. Placed her inside her 10gal tank, with a basking side at around 95-100 degrees, offered her fresh water, fresh vegetation, and powder crickets daily. She has eaten in total about 15-18 crickets, no veg/fruit. The issue is that she has not defecated or urinated since I got her. Not once. I have her on ECO Carpet so I would not miss it. I gave her a 15m warm "bath" today, but no luck. She did however drink plenty of water during that time. She is still chasing crickets, basking a lot, and seems fine, but should I be worried? ***First time beardie owner*** :?

 

[w0554096]

Hi there, and congradulations on your first beardie.
It's not unusual for beardies to go off of their routines for the first week or two in a new home. We call it relocation stress. However, there could be something with your husbandry that needs to be rectified. A few things that I can think off off the bat is temperatures and UVB.
Also, have you only give her 15 crickets, or has that been all that she will take?
A baby beardie should be getting 2-3 meals per day, and as much and they can eat in 10-15 minutes.
Could you answer these questions so that we can see if it's an enclosure issue?
Also, don't worry about urination. Beardie's have 3 parts to their poop- urates (white part), disgested matter, and a liquid portion. They don't pee.
How old is your dragon?
How long have you had your dragon?
How long is your dragon?
What is the sex of your dragon?
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in?
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank?
Do you use UVB lights?
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb?
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)?
How old is your UVB bulb?
How close can your dragon get to the UVB, and where is the UVB bulb located?
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage? Is it a white or colored bulb?
Di you have any type of night time heat source (ceramic heat emitter, colored bulb, etc)?
How long are lights on each day?
What are the basking temps?
What is the cool side temp?
What is the night time temp?
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun?
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps?
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad?
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific.
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)?
How many live feeders do you offer at time?
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them?
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)?
Do you bathe your dragon? How often?
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath?
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done?
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon?

 

[NatashaDawn]

Thanks so much. Today River did defecate. I appreciate the info on the 'urination' concept. I have read several care sheets and never really read anything about the defecation matter. I offer her 5-8 crickets 3 times a day for as long as she wants them. I am starting a dubia colony today..I am happy for that just 3 days of dealing with crickets and I am happy to only have to deal with them as treats now. They keep eating my eco carpet... no signs of it yet, but I still see them chewing on it. Even when I gut load them with fresh fruits and vegetables.... not to mention the occasional one that hides away and then later bites her... she tail whips them and doesnt stand for it, but still. And even the baby crickets die quite fast. I just purchased 2 dozen yesterday and have them in a ventilated enclosure, with plenty of food and hydration and hiding... still over 8 have died. Not to mention casualties when trying to capture them with the tongs. I did not buy a cricket keeper because I knew I was starting a dubia colony. Well I appreciate your input and concern very much. The only thing I am lacking is the uvb bulb, but I was just waiting for payday today. I also covered her 3 other sides last night and can tell the difference in her comfort level. I still can not get her to even go near the veggies and fruits though. Offering a chopped mixture of collard greens, tomato, parsnip, tiny bit of green bell pepper, strawberries, and green grapes. I am also powdering all her crickets with Rep-Cal with D3 and powdering slightly the crickets food with it as well. Is that too much for a 6 week old?

 

[w0554096]

Don't worry, it's not too much for a baby. Baby beardies don't generally eat their salads, but it's good to keep offering just in case. She'll probably start picking at them when she's a bit older and not so stressed out.
Make sure you purchase either a ReptiSUN 10.0 or an Arcadia 12% UVB bulb, as those are the only two that are good.
There are some MVB bulbs that are also considered safe, but you'd have to do some research on them first, as I'm not sure what brands are good and which aren't.
Here's a link to a really good nutritional feeding chart.
http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html

 

[NatashaDawn]

I really appreciate it