[Help] I'm worried about my Bearded Dragons

[Nervly]

Greetings!

I just got 2 bearded dragons two hours ago with a terrarium, everything for 120€. Supposedly they're 2 years old, according to what the person who sold them to me said. However, I am very worried, I've never owned reptiles before and these are my very first ones. Spyro (the male) has this white spot on his head

I've read it could be overlayed skin or a fungus, but I've also been told it could be desnutrition and that white spot was missing skin. The person who sold them to me said that Cynder (the female) was a leatherback and that those are rare, but I've been told she's not. Can you tell me what she actually is, please? Here's a picture of her:

Also, I have a ministat 300 which makes a very weird noise, that sounds like it comes from the sensor or the water bomb thingy. Here's a video with the noise: https://youtu.be/BlXpBxgz2AY

The terarrium's dimensions are 80x60x40 (LENGTHxHEIGHTxDEPTH)
This is the terrarium:

I've also been told that they seem to have been mistreated and that they are dehidrated. Spyro does have a dull grey color, unlike the female. How does he look for you? Here's a picture of him:

They're also kind of cold, especially Cynder. I know they're supposed to, but I'm not sure if they're too cold or not.

I just got a message from the guy who sold me them to me, he said the white spot is a wound he already had when he bought him as a baby. The people who sold him the dragon told him it was a wound he got when playing with his siblings as a baby. He also told me the noise could be the water bomb that was either clogged and running dry, so I'm going to try to clean it.

Thank you in advance,
- Nervly

 

[kingofnobbys]

If they are living in the same enclosure at that age , that's not good.

Beardies are not social and should only be kept in groups as hatchies (maybe when very young - you risk loosing toes, feet and tail tips as they will bite and try to eat anything that moves) or when mating.

I suggest investing in second enclosure and separating these two immediately into separate enclosures , as I suspect that might be scar from a bite delivered by the other beardie either in a dominance dispute or while mating.
The second one - Spiro - looks a bit on the thin side to me, separating them and allowing it to get it's fair share of prey insects and greens and veg and basking rights and UV will benefit it greatly.'
The dominant beardie in a group will take the lion's share of any food and will take the best basking positions and sleeping rights while the other will fail to thrive and will be constantly stressed.

I'd also suggest you take them each to good reptile vet for an examination. (To ensure they have no underlying health issues the seller neglected to tell you about).

If you can't separate them, you should arrange to feed them separately at least.

 

[AHBD]

Hi there....I'll answer a few things quickly and others can offer help. The white spot is probably a long ago healed burn. The female may be a low quality leatherback, l.backs are not at all rare and most have smoother skin than that. If you Google leatherback beardie you'll see pics. The dragons are both underweight but look bright eyed and alert . Feed them insects daily, not too many at first, and plenty of veggies. Water can be offered via eyedropper or syringe directly on the snout and/or during a 10 minute shallow warm soaking session every few days. Other posters will offer advice....I'm running off for a bit but may be back to check the video. No water feature should be in the tank though, if that's what the vid is about.

 

[kingofnobbys]

As AHBD said. Remove the water feature.

It'll result in high enclosure humidity which is bad for a reptile not evolved to cope with highly humid environments and can result in respiratory decease.

You don't need a water dish in a beardie enclosure (see above) either.

Also unless dehydrated, beardies don't require frequent bathing sessions to remain healthy (If their diet contains good quality live insects and fresh fruit and veg). My beardies only get a bath if I think they are impacted , or they have a problem shed , or they've really soiled themselves (crawled through a messy poo or been sitting ontop of their vegs).

Should get all the moisture they need from their prey insects (NO MEALWORMS !) and the fruit and veg they eat on a daily basis.

ALSO : the enclosure is too small for even one adult beardie if those dimensions are in centimeters, standard LxW here (Australia) is 120cm x 60cm for each individual adult beardie.

Since you don't know how old the UV lamp is , this needs to be replaced immediately with a lamp that will provide the highest levels of UVA and UVB (at least 10%) and you should check the basking spot temp, and the warm and cool zone temperatures in the enclosure to ensure these are appropriate and perhaps make adjustments to the basking lamp wattage and positioning to ensure good health for them from here on - essential for proper metabolisation of dietary Ca and digestion of food.

 

[Nervly]

Thank you for all the quick replies!

The water feautures it brought were a water bowl and a fountain with the water bomb thingy inside.
Here's a video showing the water bomb and a picture of the bowl: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ql7mVcm_WNU

I don't have possibilities of investing in either a vet or another terrarium, sadly :/ I'll try to feed them both separately though. Should I remove both water features then?

 

[kingofnobbys]

Thank you for all the quick replies!

The water feautures it brought were a water bowl and a fountain with the water bomb thingy inside.
Here's a video showing the water bomb and a picture of the bowl: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ql7mVcm_WNU

I don't have possibilities of investing in either a vet or another terrarium, sadly :/ I'll try to feed them both separately though. Should I remove both water features then?

Yes - remove them right away.

You could build your own enclosures , it's pretty easy to do if you are handy with powertools and lots cheaper than buying an enclosure in a pet shop.

Looking at photo I noticed the pebbly substrate - VERY BAD !!! I'd also remove the existing bedding material as it's a real impaction risk if they accidentially ingest any of those big particles and they are indigestible.
In the short term I'd replace it with news print or a few layers of absorbant kitchen paper towelling.

IMO the best substrate is loose ceramic tiles that are too big for the beardie to swallow. Some people here advocate the use of screened dried play sand. Again there is a risk of accidential ingestion resulting in impaction. Same applies with Coco husk type beddings and wood chips.
Also particulate bedding tend to get wet and increase enclosure humidity levels (increasing risk of RI) and unless thoroughly cleaned and scouplously spot cleaned at least daily can harbour bacteria, viruses and fungi all of which can result in at least a smelly enclosure and the risk of your beardies getting sick).

 

[AHBD]

Hi again Nervly....I know that your'e probably nervous now that you've been told that there are various changes to make, but don't despair or get ovewerwhelmed. The original owners seemed to at least have tried to set up a nice tank, investing in the fountain and providing lots of climbing areas [ which increases their living space ] and the dragons, although thin, don't appear to have any serious health problems. Lots of beardies have scars from their baby days which may be caused by a number of things.

Right now don't worry about getting to a vet, they will be better off just settling in + given plenty of good food and hydration. And DO offer extra water via the methods I suggested, since they are underweight they are probably also somewhat dehydrated as well. Even adult dragons should have at least the opportunity to drink once a week or so....they don't always drink, but many do. I've raised many dragons over a 20 year period and they do benefit from extra hydration.

Having said that, the fountain does need to go....it will raise humidity and the mechanical parts will eventually harbor harmful bacteria, it can't be avoided. A water bowl itself may not raise humidity too much but is still not recommended because beardies will soil it very quickly + love to use it as a toilet.

So just feed them well and do the best you can, if you see ANY aggression you can buy a temp. enclosure such as a giant size plastic storage tote. Here in the U.S , all the home improvement stores sell ones that are about 4 feet long. But the beardies may have lived together peacefully all their lives + be non aggressive toward each other.

I know you bought these + want a happy experience with your new pets, so enjoy them and do your best....save a little money as you can for a possible future enclosure or even build one as the other poster mentioned. I think they'll probably do fine.