HELP NEEDED!!!!SKINNY LATHARGIC BEARDIE ADVICE NEEDED

[taylor123221]

there is a lot of different ppl have different oppinions on what waving means some say its a sign of saying hello submission sex dance is the latest one i have heard and i was extremely worried as they bro/sis sis/bro not sure yet lol!

 

[diamc]

Hi David, Dawn asked me to take a look at this thread, so I'm checking in here. :wink: Dawn has given you some great info, she is always a big help.

Your littlest beardie looks VERY stressed. Every time something is changed in their enclosure it can stress them out. It can be something as small as changing their feed dish to a different one. So, since they were together, then you put the divider up, putting them together again is not a good idea. I suggest that you still keep them separated because with the 2 of them together, the one that looks ill could go downhill even more. Stress alone can kill and we certainly don't want that to happen. When they are stressed, it causes their coccidia count (parasites) to go up which can cause them to get very sick. So, the least amount of stress is what you want right now.

As far as the CHE, I agree with Dawn that 250 watts is way too much for a 40 gallon tank. Changing it to a standard household light bulb would be much better. But, rather than having to pick up another clamp lamp, you could try using a 60 or 75 watt household bulb and cutting the cardboard down in the middle and putting the one clamp lamp in the middle of the sectioned off part so that each of them can get heat from that bulb. You will have to move at least the smallest beardie's log to the other side to make the right side the basking area. I hope I explained that clearly enough.

Good that you're getting a digital with probe tomorrow as it's critical to get accurate readings especially since one of them isn't doing well. If you can get a digital that gives dual readings, and that way you can get the basking & cool side temp at the same time. If you want me to post a picture of one, let me know.

Regarding the arm waving, that's a sign of submission which means they are trying to decide who the dominant one will be. So, keeping them separate is much, much safer. This article explains about arm waving: http://www.beardeddragon.org/articles/armWaving/

 

[taylor123221]

so what you saying basically is get a 75 watt bulb and move the light fitting i have to the middle and they will be fine???? how do i move it????????

 

[diamc]

I just took another look at the pics of the tank. Is there a screen top on it or is the top wood? If it is wood, you could cut a hole in the wood so that you could put put the holder for the bulb in the middle or if you made the tank yourself, you can get another light fitting to attach it on the inside like the one that is now holding the CHE. But, you'll need to cut the divider down so that the heat can reach both sides of the tanks. It's impossible to say for sure what wattage bulb you will need because it depends on your room temp, how high the basking log brings them to the light, etc. The only way you'll know for sure what wattage bulb to use is to get the digital thermometer with probe and test the temps.

 

[gulfbrzdawn]

Hello David,

Were you able to get that thermometer yet?
Diane had some great ideas for your basking light...were you able to do anything about that?
How is your little beardie doing? How is he doing with the babyfood....has he taken any?

 

[taylor123221]

i am just waiting on my dad coming up to give me a hand to move the light fixture and then i will go and get the thermometers its in progress lol! littlefoot seems to be ok i left some dandelion greens in last night and it was all over the place this morning so looks like hes had a bit of that so thats a good sign i have tried this morning and he had 3 drops of baby food then wouldnt have no more then tried again just there and had another 3 drops big drops though

 

[taylor123221]

thanks ever so much diane for the great idea aswell should have my setup all sorted out by today i will take some pictures when its done

 

[gulfbrzdawn]

Hopefully you can get the set up working for both beardies. You may want to consider looking for another enclosure...so that when they are doing better and up for the move, they will each have their own home.

If your little one is doing well with the babyfood, you can add a small pinch of the calcium powder to it for an added boost.

I hope everything works out for you and your little guys.

Please keep us posted as to how they are doing.

BTW...when you do get the digital thermometer....for an accurate reading you will need to put the probe end of the thermometer directly on their basking spots and allow to sit for 45 minutes for the best reading.
For young beardies such as yours...you will need their basking spots to be between 105-110 degrees and their coolside between 80-85.

Good Luck, David!

 

[diamc]

David, that's great that your dad is going to help you get it all set up for them. I felt badly when you said you would have to get rid of one of them so I wanted to give you an alternative for now so that both of them could have the basking areas. Of course, this is only temporary until they need larger tanks or you could use the one you have now, but just get another one. Making these changes for now will buy you a little bit of time and they won't be together, wouldn't want anything to happen to either of them. Make sure the thermometer has a long wire & probe end. Here's a picture of the AcuRite Dawn and I were talking about.

Can't wait to see the pictures when you get it all done. Good that your little one ate a little bit of baby food. Are you feeding either chicken or turkey as well as squash baby food? Did you try handfeeding to see if he will eat any crickets that way? Hopefully once the tank & temps are all squared away, his appetite will pick up for you.

 

[RioReptiles]

From my observations of my beardies interacting with one another, the smaller ones will amost always seem to wave if they see another beardie, close up or from a distance. They know they are small and insecure, especially when alone, so they wave in any presence of another beardie to say they are NOT a threat, and as if they are saying "don't worry about me, I won't hurt you, just don't eat me either". Small beardies find safety in numbers so I think putting them together for a couple months is probably a good thing. It will encourage them to fight for more food as well, resulting in fat, happy dragons that grow like weeds.

Another waving observiation I wanted to share, one of my females pulls a bait and switch tactic this way. She approaches another female in a nice basking spot, waving and acting all cool like she is no threat. So the other one doesn't stand her ground and protect her basking spot, no beard nothing. When she gets there with the other, she climbs right on top, plopping her fat belly over the other ones taking up all the light. So now the other beadie is like, this is b.s. and moves away. Not always, sometime they barge right back or lay next to each other and share nicely.

 

[taylor123221]

well just to let you all no littlefoot is doing great i took him to a local speacialist in repitles and he was de-hydrated he told me to soak him in warm water for 30 mins every 2 days not the bath as this will stress him but in the container i took him in and to mist them 2 times a day. NOT to seperate them as they are still only very young and no way were they how old we thought they were. I done as he said and today he eat 7 crickets what a difference there is too he is as alert as fatgut. I also got the digital thermometer and my temps were a bit out but not by much and am now happy he doing fine 7 crickets from having none for 4 days and wasnt looking good hopefully he will have another 7 tomorrow

thanks for the help
DAVID

 

[munchkins9802]

Glad he is better but must disagree with your vet--they need to be separated

 

[taylor123221]

well if i see any sign of them starting to fight or anything like that i can just move the light to middle like i was going to. but there has been alot of change since i got them so just leaving them alone so they can settle and see if there eating gets better hopefully it will continue like today. i have just been feeding them in the otherside and i think that is why they have eat so well because theres nothing in the way or anywhere for the crickets to hide

 

[taylor123221]

i am glad to report that both littlefoot are doing really well they both eat 12 crickets yesterday and have had 6 in there first feed today i am over the moon how well they are doing think it was a mixture of my temps being a little out and not hydrating them properly i have been spraying them twice a day and putting them in a container to bath them they havent had a stress mark for 2 days i have also been feeding them in the opposite side of the viv with nothing in and i think thats really helped aswell :mrgreen: so glad littlefoot is eating and eating well just one little question fatgut is shedding again and littlefoot has yet to shed in the 3-4 weeks i have had them why is this???????????

 

[gulfbrzdawn]

Hello again David,

Glad to hear your beardies are doing so much better! That is wonderful news!

The vet was correct in suggesting the bath's be in a container(less overwhelming). You can also put a washcloth in the bottom of the container so your little guys have something to grip on to.
The suggestion of a separate feeding area is great also. This can also be done in another smaller tank or bin(when the time comes that you need the other side).

I also do not agree with them being housed together....being that we have heard so many horror stories from owners on here about tail nips, toe nips and some times worse.
This is totally up to you, just keep in mind the risks involved.

Littlefoot has not been eating or feeling well. Give him some time! With the proper set up now and the change you have noticed already in his eating habits, it won't be long before you see results. :wink:

Good Luck to you David and to Fatgut & Littlefoot also.