HELP! Beardie cannot seem to eat right and keeps falling asl

[KTan]

Hi, I'm new to the forum and owning bearded dragons.

We adopted two beardies from an irresponsible friend of a friend, but have gotten all the equipment sites and pet stores we've visited to ask about their care. When we got them, they were around the same size but the little one (around 7 weeks) has not seemed to grow- she was getting bullied by the male (around 9 weeks) so we bought a bigger aquarium and put a screen in between them. She has always been sleepy but she keeps falling asleep during eating and cannot seem to eat live food. She does run around sometimes and glass dance but never really eats. We thought it was just the bigger one, Max, bullying her but she's still not eating. When we feed her mini mealworms, she'll grab them (assuming she doesn't drop them right away) but then just fall asleep and leave them hanging out of her mouth.

The medium mealworms she didn't seem to be able to eat so we got her wax worms but she ended up getting very constipated and when she finally had a bowel movement, the mealworm was still only half digested (after four days). Could her jaw be broken?

We're looking for a vet in the area right now- as the only one we've found so far had a very dirty and disgusting dingy office...with dead fish in a bowl near the reception. So...suffice to say we won't be taking them there.

Please excuse my ignorance and please help- we may not be able to get to the vet until tomorrow or later tonight. I've fallen in love with these guys and am very worried.

 

[diamc]

Hi there, welcome to the forum. It sounds like your little beardie does have some health issues going on. Could you fill us in on your setup? What brand & type of UVB are you using, what are the basking & cool side temps, what type of thermometer are you using, have you been keeping them well hydrated, if so, how & how often, what type of substrate do you have on the bottom of the tank, is your basking bulb a white or colored bulb, what is the wattage of the basking bulb? How long have you had them? Are you using calcium & vitamins supplements, if so, how often? Sorry for all the pictures, but we need to rule some things out first.

Can you post a picture of the beardie that isn't doing well?

 

[KTan]

Hi Diane, and thanks so so much for answering my post.

Could you fill us in on your setup? What brand & type of UVB are you using

We have a 20 gallon aquarium that is a foot high, 3 feet long, and 1 foot and a half deep. The wood and mesh divider is set for 2 feet for the large one, Max, and a foot for the small one, Lien. Each have a hidearock, basking branch, tree, water dish, and food bowl. Above the divider is a fluker's 5.5" clamp lamp with a Heat Go Infared Heat bulb of 75 watts and a zoo-med reptisun terrarium hood with a 10.0 UVB bulb. We had been using a R-Zilla desert series 50 (with 50 microwatts uvb at 12") but the owner of the pet shop where we got our two pet rats (always quick to help with anything) said that that was not giving them enough light and was not a very good uvb hood (if I'm using the right terminology). So we switched it shortly after I wrote the post and went to go see if he could help us out.

what are the basking & cool side temps

The basking side of each is 86 degrees and the cool side is 73.

what type of thermometer are you using

two fluker's brand thermo-hygrometers on each side of the tank

have you been keeping them well hydrated, if so, how & how often,

we spray them every few days since Max has been growing quite a bit and Lien looked like she was about to shed and we fill their pools with cold, filtered water in the morning and at night

what type of substrate do you have on the bottom of the tank

we have the vita-sand with calcium that their previous owner gave us a bag of

is your basking bulb a white or colored bulb

colored red and the other 'daytime' uvb one is white,

what is the wattage of the basking bulb?

the infrared is 75 watts

How long have you had them?

A week and a half

Are you using calcium & vitamins supplements, if so, how often?

Yes, we use Repashy Superfoods Bearded Dragon Calcium Plus on their meal worms (which are gut fed) and sometimes their fresh veggies and fruits. We also feed them Rep-Cal Juvenile Bearded Dragon Food-Growth Formula with fruit that are like pellets.

As for the picture, when I can find my digital camera, I will upload a picture right away.

Again thank you very much.

 

[H31d1]

hello, sorry to hear your having problems, just a few things that i noticed that you definately need to change, ill write it out in steps.
1. your basking temps are out, generally they need to be around 100-110F. this is needed in order for your beardies to be able to digest their food properly.
2. you said your basking bulb is a red one? its best to use a white basking bulb as it is easier on the eyes. you can use a common house bulb light.
3. i would take the sand out asap. it can cause them to become impacted. if your using calci-sand then it encourages the dragon to lick the sand it then hardens in their tummys almost like cement which causes the impactation. for now you can use paper towels. others use non adhesive liner, repti carpet or tiles. its completely your choice.

to keep your dragon hydrated you can give them baths. fill the water so its just under the armpits. the water should be luke warm. dont worry if they dont drink the water, they can take in water through their vent. oh and never leave them unattended whilst bathing.

i hope this helps. i wish you the best of luck!
Heidi

 

[KTan]

Thanks Heidi! We'll make sure to adjust their heat, bulb, and substrate.

We've been giving them them both calcium baths and they seem to love it.

Lien also seems to be doing much better (going on her own, eating more) since we changed the light. She has also not been falling asleep as much.

I was wondering if we could put calcium in their spritzer as well?

Thanks again so much to both of you for your help!

 

[gulfbrzdawn]

Hello,

Glad to hear Lien is doing much better since you have made some changes. There are a few more things I would like to help you with also.

You mentioned having a 20 gallon tank with a screen divider. I would recommend you getting another tank, so that they each have their own. I'm not sure what your set up is like, but do they each have their own basking spot? They do need to both have a basking spot. If you were to give them each their own basking spot with two 75W bulbs......150 watts would be too hot for that size tank. There is also no way to manage a coolside for each.
The other thing I wanted to mention is with the screen divider, the smaller one can still become stressed just by seeing the larger one.

I believe the previous poster told you about the basking temps being between 105-110 and you need a coolside of 80-85. The temperatures play a vital role in the health and well being of your dragon. Measuring the temps accurately is important. The best way to get the most accurate temps is with either a digital thermometer with a long wire and probe or a temperature gun. You need to be able to get the temps directly on their basking spots. There is a great digital thermometer at Walmart for $12, it is the AcuRite and it can be found in the home thermometer section.

The mini mealworms are okay to feed a baby beardie, but any mealworm larger than that may cause impaction(which you noticed when you fed her the medium size). You can also feed crickets or Phoenix worms. Always be careful that their live feeders are no bigger than the space between their eyes.
Here is a great list of foods to feed your beardies http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html

As for your calcium question(I answered that on your other post). You only need to dust their live feeders with Calcium 5 x a week(one feeding a day) and a Multivitamin 3 x a week(one feeding a day).

Someone else mentioned baths...very good for keeping your beardies hydrated. Putting water in their viv is not recommended, especially when very small, due to accidental drowning and the water will also raise the humidity in the tank.

Hope this helps!

 

[KTan]

Hi Dawn! Thanks for answering my questions.

We have an extra Fluker's lamp and uvb lamp and the original 10 gallon tank we got them in so I'll see if separating them helps her out.

Thanks for the other tips as well!

 

[KTan]

Thanks again to everyone who helped me out!

Thanks to everyone's suggestions about temperature/substrate/etc- We've made a lot of changes and Lien is doing WAY better and has lost almost all her stress spots and is basking and eating more. She's even been chasing and eating crickets. She still hasn't shed yet, but we've found a vet so we should get an appointment and have everything figured out and fixed up soon.

Thanks again!

 

[diamc]

That's great that Lien is doing so much better, wonderful news to hear. Thanks for making some changes and listening to the suggestions. Makes it all worthwhile. :wink:

 

[gulfbrzdawn]

Glad to hear Lien is doing better.
Let us know if there is anything else we can do for you.