Help - I am not sure what's going on

[mojo505]

My Mojo has been running crazy in her house and banging on the glass - just overall weird behaviors. Now she won't eat. I picked up her hiding spot and found maybe 20 crickets under there. She pooped yesterday normal. Hot side 95- basking 110 cool side 80. She's 10 months. Put in a digging box - hates it. This behavior started suddenly on Sunday. I am no really worried since I am seeing she didn't eat and that's NEVER been a problem

 

[Embee]

Sorry Mojo is quite herself.

What type/brand of UVB are you using, and how old is the bulb? Had a case recently where the UVB was not a great one, and was also quite old (7+ months). Beardie was behaving in much the same manner, and a simple light change made all the difference. Just thought I'd throw that out there, in case.

Hope you find some answers soon.

The best,
Em

 

[jortiz9758]

My Mojo has been running crazy in her house and banging on the glass - just overall weird behaviors. Now she won't eat. I picked up her hiding spot and found maybe 20 crickets under there. She pooped yesterday normal. Hot side 95- basking 110 cool side 80. She's 10 months. Put in a digging box - hates it. This behavior started suddenly on Sunday. I am no really worried since I am seeing she didn't eat and that's NEVER been a problem

How long are you leaving the crickets in the enclosure for? Do not leave any uneaten bugs overnight in his enclosure because, they will chew on your beardie overnight and cause him lots of stress during the day.
I personally feed my beardies outside of the enclosure in a seperate rubbermaid bin.

At 10 months old a digging box or laybox is not necessary. Also as mentioned...what type of UVB are you using for it?

 

[mojo505]

as for the feeding - it's never my intention for her to be sleeping with her food as we were unaware of this issue until i took everything out of her enclosure and sanitized/cleaned/examined all items for problems etc. this girl eats with lightening speed so to have a rouge cricket make it longer than 15 minutes in there is unheard of ~ thus the shock.

the UVB bulb may actually be the problem... it's about 6 months old. I am going to get one of those tonight and see what happens and go ahead and switch her back to the heat emitter we used to use. we were given a couple from someone who stocked up and then went out of business. i haven't been happy with the brand of stuff we were given as one emitter broke after only 2 weeks.

 

[mojo505]

oh and thanks for the suggestions/feedback. i have just a basic set up since i took everything out and she has calmed down quite a bit and is quietly basking for the first time in 3 days

 

[zebraflavencs]

What are your temps ? Do you use it to bring up the day temp or night time temps ?
Janie

 

[Embee]

What are your temps ? Do you use it to bring up the day temp or night time temps ?
Janie

Yes, this. The heat emitter: using it for basking, supplemental daytime heat or nighttime? Are you using a bright white bulb for basking? In addition to an older UVB, the absence of a bright white light source can have beardie running for the hills as the bright white light guard beardie's eyes from the UVB rays... if the UVB bulb is aging, this could be making the rays all the more harsh and the effects thereof, more extreme, hence, the glass dancing.

An aging UVB could also certainly effect appetite as well... which UVB are you using? Type and brand?

More random thoughts and ideas to ponder.

Em

 

[mojo505]

Thanks Em,
This is the first I have heard about the bright white basking/UVB issue. Ummm long story short I am back to using a heat emitter for bringing up the tank temp and already she has eaten a few crickets but I am having to do a few at a time. The UVB bulb will get replaced tonight provided we can find a vendor with a bulb in-stock. We were using a while bulb for heat due to money... but I decided to go back to basics and work our way back to beardie paradise 1 day at a time.

In response to another reply: I had already posted my tank temps... but here's some more details.
I turn all heat/light sources off at night and she sleeps on a cushion and is wrapped in a flannel blanket spring/summer/fall. the temp remains about 75 during the night. During the winter the heat source stays on but the lights go out as tank temp drops below 60 usually with out the heat source. [not that winter's important right now]. UVB/heat source come on for about 10 hours. I try to take her out for natural sun several times a week... she like to visit with the neighbors and watch daddy work on his truck while sitting on my shoulder.

 

[Embee]

Thanks Em,
This is the first I have heard about the bright white basking/UVB issue. Ummm long story short I am back to using a heat emitter for bringing up the tank temp and already she has eaten a few crickets but I am having to do a few at a time. The UVB bulb will get replaced tonight provided we can find a vendor with a bulb in-stock. We were using a while bulb for heat due to money... but I decided to go back to basics and work our way back to beardie paradise 1 day at a time.

Hi, thanks for getting back... hope I can help in further troubleshooting.

To be clear: Beardies do require bright white light for basking. How nice that at least one piece of equipment in the tank doesn't cost a fortune. :mrgreen: Bright white light provides beardie with proper UVA and as I mentioned in my previous post, it also helps to guard beardie's eyes from the UVB rays, so definitely stick with the incandescent white bulb for basking/heat, however you may need to make sure it's of proper wattage/giving you proper temps. Heat emitters can be used as *supplemental* daytime heat (only if needed), and for nighttime heat (again, only if needed--temps at night go below 65). We were given a heat emitter INSTEAD of a basking bulb when we first brought our beardie home (pet store provided us with a few "suspect" items, actually). Within weeks, our beardie's left eye was shut nearly all the time. Part of this was due to a poor UVB (sadly, there are just way too many of these available--you haven't happened to mention with type/brand you are using), but the situation was exacerbated by the the absence of a bright white incandescent bulb/heat source.

In response to another reply: I had already posted my tank temps... but here's some more details.
I turn all heat/light sources off at night and she sleeps on a cushion and is wrapped in a flannel blanket spring/summer/fall. the temp remains about 75 during the night. During the winter the heat source stays on but the lights go out as tank temp drops below 60 usually with out the heat source. [not that winter's important right now]. UVB/heat source come on for about 10 hours. I try to take her out for natural sun several times a week... she like to visit with the neighbors and watch daddy work on his truck while sitting on my shoulder.

Ideally, beardies basking bulb (again, bright white), and UVB burn at least 12 hours per day. As to temps, can you tell me with what and how you are going about gauging temps? The 110 basking temp? Is that the temps taken directly on the basking surface/under the basking lamp?

Typically, if beardie is wishing to flee the tank one or a combination of three things can be to blame:

1. Poor UVB (either poor bulb to start, or decent bulb that is aging)

2. Absence of bright white light, which helps beardie deal better with the UVB rays

3. Too hot of temps

Just hoping to help you pin point the reason so beardie can feel comfortable in her viv.

(Love your siggy banner btw!) :mrgreen:

The best,
Em

 

[mojo505]

Thanks Em,
Some good things for consideration. What's your thoughts on the correct UVB bulb? She seems to be eating like a mad woman again now that the UVB bulb has been off a couple hours. I can certainly hang with the household light bulb [cost] and keep my emitter for winter.

I am a little unclear on if the Repti-Glo 10.0 8.0 issue and Repti-sun...

 

[mojo505]

oh, i measure the temps with a digital probe at the highest point in the basking spot, have stick on strips in 5 places in the tank

 

[Embee]

Ok, so you are measuring basking temps with the probe, great. Are you then leaving the probe directly on the basking surface (where beardie lays most of the time), for a full 45 minutes before reading temp? That's the best way to know what is going on for beardie under the lamp. I would also use the probe to get the mid-tank and cool side temps and make sure they are doing ok (85-90, about 80, respectively). The stick ons are not known for their accuracy I'm afraid, and have been known to be up to 20 degrees off either way... when we compared our stick on thermo with our digital probe, it was a good 15 degrees LOWER than the real temp.

Thanks Em,
Some good things for consideration. What's your thoughts on the correct UVB bulb? She seems to be eating like a mad woman again now that the UVB bulb has been off a couple hours. I can certainly hang with the household light bulb [cost] and keep my emitter for winter.

I am a little unclear on if the Repti-Glo 10.0 8.0 issue and Repti-sun...

Great, the bright white is definitely the way to go.

As to the UVB, I understand your confusion... been there and done that myself.

The best bulb available, both safe and excellent in the way of UVB output is the ReptiSUN 10.0 tube: http://www.petmountain.com/product/reptile-fluorescent-bulbs/504983/zoo-med-reptisun-10.0-uvb-bulb.html. Make sure beardie can get to within 6-8 inches of the UVB while basking, and replace bulb every 5-6 months.

There are two lesser bulbs that are safe. They are the ReptiSUN 5.0 tube, and the ReptiGLO 8.0 tube. I can recommend each of these as to safety but to be clear, they are only "OK" in the way of UVB emissions, and will wear early (replace every 4-5 months I'd say).

Being that the internet offers a good price on the ReptiSUN 10.0 tube, it's well worth the effort in obtaining one as they are both safe and excellent. :mrgreen:

The ReptiGLO 10.0 tube, has been linked to health problems for beardies including low or lack of appetite, slow/stunted growth, lethargy, eye issues and more. At best, this has been somewhat of an unpredictable bulb, and in particular, does not tend to 'wear well' in that as the bulb ages, many beardies will begin to experience some or all of the symptoms above. Here is a link to more information, that you may find helpful (in particular, the comments made by Tracie--moderator/Drache613): viewtopic.php?f=34&t=101703&p=793076&hilit=ReptiGlo+10.0#p793076.

Hope that helps clear things up a bit! I'm so glad to hear your dragon is feeling better/eating better having turned off the UVB. She will be fine without UVB should you need to wait for a replacement to arrive via mail. The rule is, better NO UVB (temporarily), than poor UVB.

The best and I hope she continues to do and feel well.

Em

 

[zebraflavencs]

How is she doing today ? Were you able to order the ReptiSun 10.0 ?
As for basking lights, I'm with Em, a nice bright house hold flood or reg light is the way to go !
Janie.

 

[mojo505]

Janie & Em,
Off to a little of a rocky start but things seem to be settling down. I bought a MVB and she went CRAZY when it first went on. I took her out and let the temps come up for a while to get a good read and put her back in. She is slowly migrating to her basking spot. The MVB didn't produce enough heat for basking so I have a 75 watt household bulb and now we have a basking temp of 110, hot spot of 100, cool side 85. She is eating today and pooped... so things seem better. She looks more alert as well. I can tell she is a bit on the stressed side and I attribute some of that to my energy... We are becoming a little co-dependent I think. She and I both need a good massage and a cocktail - she'll have a veggie smoothie and I will have a margarita

 

[Valex]

MVB can take 24 hours +/- to break in and the temperatures will fluctuate until it is done breaking in, so the MVB *should* be enough heat, so really watch that temperature as it may keep changing for a while. Just be careful!