Help!!! Bearded dragon will not eat!!

[Aajvell93]

I've had my dragon for about three weeks now. He's still a juvenile, maybe around 4 months. He is very friendly and has a proper set up. I have him in a 40 gallon with heat and UVB. The warm side is 95-110 with shade and cool side 80-85 also with more shade. And he has carpet. I have been offering him crickets which I feed kale and dust with calcium, and a mixture of collard greens, kale, and mustard green lantern also dusted with calcium. He is refusing all food offered to him and has been like this since day one. His behavior is abnormal as one day he is lifeless. Will move from hot side to cold side but that is about it. But, then the next day I throw him some crickets and he will run around and eat maybe 2. He has had a major weight loss and is very skinny and is really starting to concern me. Yesterday I tried to feed him some squash baby food and he did lick some off of his lips for me. Not much, but some. Does anyone have any suggestions on getting him to eat?

 

[AHBD]

Hi there,can you post pics of him + his set up ? To post pics, load them to photobucket, then copy/paste the img here. What exact type + brand of lights are you using. ? That can make a difference in activity + appetite.

 

[Aajvell93]

Hi there,can you post pics of him + his set up ? To post pics, load them to photobucket, then copy/paste the img here. What exact type + brand of lights are you using. ? That can make a difference in activity + appetite.

I will post a picture of him and his setup when I get home. He has a reptisun 10.0 UVB bulb and a 100 watt heating bulb (honestly not sure of brand, but not a cheap one. I purchased his lights the day I got him so they shouldn't be bad already I wouldn't think.

 

[Aajvell93]

Hi there,can you post pics of him + his set up ? To post pics, load them to photobucket, then copy/paste the img here. What exact type + brand of lights are you using. ? That can make a difference in activity + appetite.

 

[AHBD]

Does he spend any time at the top end of his basking log, or at least part way up ? If not he may not be getting much UVB . You have the compact or coil bulb, which can put out decent UVB in a small area but may he may not be getting enough. Also the stick on thermometers can be off by a good 10 or more degrees and it may actually be hotter than the reading.

It's good that he licked a bit of the squash baby food, keep offering that and try some chicken as well, but check to be sure it's very low sodium. Add water to the mixture because he looks a bit dehydrated as well. You can even offer straight water via syringe.

 

[Aajvell93]

Does he spend any time at the top end of his basking log, or at least part way up ? If not he may not be getting much UVB . You have the compact or coil bulb, which can put out decent UVB in a small area but may he may not be getting enough. Also the stick on thermometers can be off by a good 10 or more degrees and it may actually be hotter than the reading.

It's good that he licked a bit of the squash baby food, keep offering that and try some chicken as well, but check to be sure it's very low sodium. Add water to the mixture because he looks a bit dehydrated as well. You can even offer straight water via syringe.

Up until the last couple days he actually spent most of his time basking in the heat. The past two days he has been spending a majority of his time under his rock. I will take him out to try and feed him but he refuses. I put him back and he goes back under his rock. I am wondering if he is trying to go into brumation? He has been showing all of the signs of it. I take him out a few times a day and he will kick it up. I will give him a good bath tomorrow and see how he does.
Today he had eaten a couple crickets, pooed, then went back under his rock.

 

[Aajvell93]

Update: pretty sure dehydration was the issue. I picked up some pedialyte last night (the clear kind) and gave him a warm bath. He seemed to have more energy. This morning I bathed him again and afterwards I took some squash baby food with some calcium and was able to get him to eat a decent amount of that.

 

[AHBD]

O.K., that's great that he had a drink and some squash. I meant to get back to you sooner to mention that babies never brumate.....if they hide or become lethargic it's always due to stress or illness. Hydration comes from the baby food as well, so just put a few extra drops of water and see how she does. Glad to hear that she looks a little better....hydration is very important for baby beardies.

 

[Kashki]

Did your dragon return to normal eating habits? Mine is about the same age and is having the exact same issue!

 

[Aajvell93]

Did your dragon return to normal eating habits? Mine is about the same age and is having the exact same issue!

Unfortunately he did not and I ended up losing him

 

[AHBD]

Aw, I'm so sorry that he didn't make it. How sad for you, I know you wanted to help the little guy. I was really pulling for him, hoping he'd make a turn around. Please accept my sympathy.

 

[Kashki]

Did your dragon return to normal eating habits? Mine is about the same age and is having the exact same issue!

Unfortunately he did not and I ended up losing him

I am so sorry to hear that

This is very worrying to me as my little guy is in the exact same boat now. After hearing your terrible news I've booked him into the best reptile vet in my state. With any luck she can work out what is wrong with him before it's too late.

 

[Aajvell93]

Did your dragon return to normal eating habits? Mine is about the same age and is having the exact same issue!

Unfortunately he did not and I ended up losing him

I am so sorry to hear that

This is very worrying to me as my little guy is in the exact same boat now. After hearing your terrible news I've booked him into the best reptile vet in my state. With any luck she can work out what is wrong with him before it's too late.

That is the smartest thing to do is getting him to the vet. That is where I went wrong with him, and it makes me feel terrible. How soon is his appointment? Could you post a picture of him?

How is your cage set up? Once I lost him, before going to adopt another I did a lot of research and figured out several things I had done wrong that could have had an effect on his condition.

Keep me updated on him please!! Hopefully you can find out his issue and get him back on the right track!!

 

[Kashki]

That is the smartest thing to do is getting him to the vet. That is where I went wrong with him, and it makes me feel terrible. How soon is his appointment? Could you post a picture of him?

How is your cage set up? Once I lost him, before going to adopt another I did a lot of research and figured out several things I had done wrong that could have had an effect on his condition.

Keep me updated on him please!! Hopefully you can find out his issue and get him back on the right track!!

Believe it or not this is the second time he's going to have gone in. The first reptile vet did a number of tests and found no problem. Put it down to the stress of moving terrarium. That was a week ago and he's still not eaten on his own. The vet I am seeing now is very expensive but very experienced in dragons so fingers crossed she'll know what's going on. I see her Thursday as that's the only day she works at a vet instead of at the zoo.
I have manually opened his mouth and fed him a handful of crickets though, but other than that he hasn't eaten anything on his own in over 2 weeks

I can attach a couple of images for you.

http://oi60.tinypic.com/9a71x3.jpg
http://oi57.tinypic.com/2wf5jdd.jpg
This image may not show it well, but there is a UVB 10.0 light mounted on the inside.

From what I can tell his conditions are perfect (I even live in the state of Australia that these guys are from so temperatures/humidity aren't difficult to maintain). He spends 30 minutes a day outside at least.
I should also mention that my dragon is very active. He's always on the move and rarely hides (sleeps in the open most nights too). Strange that he should have so much energy when he doesn't eat anything.

If you notice anything that you think might be the cause of this behavior, please let me know!

 

[Aajvell93]

That is the smartest thing to do is getting him to the vet. That is where I went wrong with him, and it makes me feel terrible. How soon is his appointment? Could you post a picture of him?

How is your cage set up? Once I lost him, before going to adopt another I did a lot of research and figured out several things I had done wrong that could have had an effect on his condition.

Keep me updated on him please!! Hopefully you can find out his issue and get him back on the right track!!

Believe it or not this is the second time he's going to have gone in. The first reptile vet did a number of tests and found no problem. Put it down to the stress of moving terrarium. That was a week ago and he's still not eaten on his own. The vet I am seeing now is very expensive but very experienced in dragons so fingers crossed she'll know what's going on. I see her Thursday as that's the only day she works at a vet instead of at the zoo.
I have manually opened his mouth and fed him a handful of crickets though, but other than that he hasn't eaten anything on his own in over 2 weeks

I can attach a couple of images for you.

http://oi60.tinypic.com/9a71x3.jpg
http://oi57.tinypic.com/2wf5jdd.jpg
This image may not show it well, but there is a UVB 10.0 light mounted on the inside.

From what I can tell his conditions are perfect (I even live in the state of Australia that these guys are from so temperatures/humidity aren't difficult to maintain). He spends 30 minutes a day outside at least.
I should also mention that my dragon is very active. He's always on the move and rarely hides (sleeps in the open most nights too). Strange that he should have so much energy when he doesn't eat anything.

If you notice anything that you think might be the cause of this behavior, please let me know!

There are so many things that could cause a beardie to not eat, so the first and best thing to do is get him to a vet to make sure he doesn't have parasites or an impaction. (Speaking of that, how did the visit go?)

Is he able to move his legs okay? If he ate something that was too big it could cause him to be paralyzed. Which could also stop him from eating.

What kind of UVB bulb do you have? Brand? Is it a tube bulb? How long have you had that bulb?

Obviously each dragon is different, but I wouldn't think moving the cage would have too much of an effect. I am currently out of town for a few days so I moved Zeus into my bedroom from the living room to keep him away from the cats. The person taking care of him has let me know that he is still eating like a hog and still very active.
What is the temp of his basking spot?
Do you bathe him regularly? Try pinching his skin very lightly between your fingers. If it snaps back he's good, if it stays up longer he is dehydrated and needs water. I notice in the picture he has some wrinkles just like bingo had, may need some water.
How long have you had him?

I am sorry about the wait, I meant to get back sooner and forgot!! Really hope he is doing well and excited for an update!