Help! Baby Beardie Not Eating

[allusiontoanillusion]

Hi, I got my baby bearded dragon, Maleficent, a little over a week ago (11 days to be specific) and since getting her she's been very inconsistent with her eating habits. She has a basking spot, hide, big enough tank, UVB light, heat lamp, reptile carpet instead of sand, etc - everything that I was told to give her during my research. But I simply can't get her to eat!

Generally, she'll only eat a cricket a day and ignore any others. Very occasionally she'll eat about four in one day but refuse more. I've tried feeding her in a different location instead of her tank as I've seen people suggest that but it doesn't seem to help. She just ignores the crickets as they crawl around. I always keep kale (and sometimes a little bit of carrot) in her food bowl just in case she wants some along with a few pellets of Fluker's Buffet Blend for Juvenile Dragons but she doesn't seem to touch it. She's quite active though so it doesn't seem like she's sick.

Originally I was chalking this up to relocation stress but it's been over a week and there's not been any change in behavior. I'm just not sure if relocation stress would last this long. If anyone has any suggestions for what I could try, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks!

 

[GoneForLunch]

Well relocation stress can last longer than 11 days. Some dragons take a week and some may take 2-3 weeks. Just keep persistently giving food. Try and keep a schedule, to keep some routine going for your beardie. Make sure basking temps are 100-110 for babies, and 100-105 for adults. Cool side, is mid 70s-80s and all that. If your dragon doesn't want to eat, then she probably just isn't hungry at the moment. Make sure to offer a salad (but most babies will not eat salad) and feed live feeders 2-3x a day. Give them 10-15 minutes to eat all they want. Some live feeders other than crickets that you could try are things like dubia roaches and phoenix worms.

As long as you keep a schedule, and try and gain trust of your dragon while making her feel safe and at home, then she should come around sooner than later. I don't think if she appears healthy and active that it would be anything other than some stress from her new home. Try wrapping the tank with some background material (if you don't have any, use some Christmas wrapping paper or even just paper towel works) and leave 1 side open. This makes them feel more secure because they can't be seen (and see out) of every wall.

 

[allusiontoanillusion]

Thanks so much! I'll definitely keep to a schedule (as much as I can as a college student) and find some background material for the tank. Hopefully that helps her feel more at home. She seems to trust me - at least enough to curl up and fall asleep on my chest most nights - so hopefully she only needs a little more time before she starts eating normally. Again, thanks for the help. Now I can spend my time studying for finals instead of worrying about whether or not I'm doing something wrong.

 

[ancapper]

You could also shake the daylights out of the crickets and drop em one by one. Weak ones are easy for shy eaters

 

[allusiontoanillusion]

So instead of slowly getting better, things seem to have gotten worse in terms of Mal's appetite. Since posting the first time (five days ago) she hasn't eaten anything. She's still active and alert - frequently exploring her tank and running around like a mad woman when I let her out - but I don't know if it's worth it for me to look into her maybe being sick.

She did just shed and I know that can sometimes put them off eating but she seemingly stopped shedding about four days ago and her appetite still hasn't returned whatsoever. I offer her food routinely three times a day and she either just watches them crawl around or, if I attempt to hand feed her, closes her eyes and ignores it. I've been leaving a salad in her food bowl but it always remains untouched so it's not like she's ignoring insects in favor of greens. I've checked the temps on the hot side of her tank to make sure she's been able to digest properly and they're more than fine.

Basically, I'm wondering if this is something I should just wait for her to move past or if I should be taking this development more seriously.

 

[CooperDragon]

If she's alert and active, that's a good sign. Can you post some photos of her? What kind of UVB light are you using and how far is it from her highest basking area?

 

[SDragons]

It took my little guy a while to adjust to eating as well. I found it took a couple of weeks to get into a good feeding system.

For us, the following helped... All great tips from fellow beardie owners on this board.
- having the lights turned on 1.5 hours before feeding in the am... Lights on less than 1.5 hours resulted in him not eating
- feeding 1 cricket at a time was less overwhelming for our BD so he ate more
- feeding in his tank, not a separate container which we originally tried to use with no luck
- be consistent with feeding in the same place at the same time each feeding
- they all eat, you just have to relax because it will happened..... Easier said than done

Best of luck.

 

[allusiontoanillusion]

Thanks, everyone. Currently I have the Exo Terra Reptile UVB150 as her source of UVB and the closest she can get to it is about five inches away. Besides the lack of appetite, she still seems quite healthy. Here are some pictures of the little lady taken today for reference.

 

[CooperDragon]

The uvb150 puts out a decent amount of uvb between about 6-8". They are pretty intense up close though so I wouldn't bring it any closer than you have it and provide shade areas away from the uvb that are still pretty warm.

 

[allusiontoanillusion]

Just to give everyone who was kind enough to offer advice an update, Maleficent has passed away. She continued to not eat and for the past two days she'd been very lethargic - not even moving around when I let her out. Tonight I came home to find her dead in one of her hides. Thanks to everyone who offered advice. You guys helped me give her a good few weeks.

 

[CooperDragon]

I'm so sorry to hear this =(. It's an awful feeling to lose a dragon buddy. You gave her a good home and it sounds like she must have been suffering from an illness all along starting before you brought her home.

 

[SDragons]

I am so very sorry for your loss.