HELP! NOT EATING AND MOVING!

[GarinGazelle]

So, my beardie hadnt pooped for a little over 4 days. he finally got it all out today. but it was VERY undigested. i could see cricket heads and wings and legs. maybe he ate too much. his basking temps are fine(100-107).

so, i tried to feed him about half hour ago, he just sat there and watched the crickets jump around. so i put him back in his tank and he just moved to his basking spot and closed his eyes! im very worried. before he passed the big bowl movement, he was hungry. after, not at all. wouldnt even eat one cricket.

he is breathing normally. but doesnt care to open his eye thats closest to me when i walk like he normally does.

could passing the big BM made him incredibly tired? im going to rap him up in something to keep him warm but put him right next to me so i can watch him.

Edit: he just raised himself to get more heat. but still answer my questions!

 

[VEGASLIZARD]

Mine has never gone that long without pooing so I can't say if it made him tired. Make sure you are not feeding crix that are larger then the space between his eyes as this can cause impaction. Does he have a favorite food? If so try placing some of that in front of him to see if that sparks his interest. When Scorch was a baby she would sometimes refuse to eat much for a few days and want to hide all the time. It was winter, so I am not sure if it was the season or if it was because she was grumpy from shed. If he refuses to eat then I would suggest buying some chicken or squash baby food (make sure the ingredients have nothing but chicken, or squash and water, no fillers) and put a little of that on the tip of his nose to lick off. It is easiest to use a syringe with a thick tip, they sell these at the pet store or you might be able to get one at the pharmacy. Hope that helps.

 

[GarinGazelle]

And it was a large poop. two short ones, but thick. imagine one of the small glue sticks, half the length. almost double the thickness. and he lost a LOT of bulk. he likes grapes. but he wuldnt even eat those. he tried eating on cricket off my tweasers, but he only got the antannea and it was dangling from his mouth. and after it fell i tried again. didnt eat it.

and he's just sleeping underneath his basking light. he short naps normally. but he's actually sleeping right now. with one eye barely open to see whats happening i guess.

 

[Valex]

What type of UVB lighting are you using and he may be dehydrated. i would do a soak dyluted with pediatlyte, or if you can't get that a little gatorade.

Did the excreate look watery or really dry-like?

 

[GarinGazelle]

I dont have one yet. i've taken him out into the sun a couple times. my Reptisun 10.0 is supposed to arrive on the 23rd. so he hasnt had a whole lot of UV , could MBD happen in 8 days? cuz when i try to hand feed him a small piece of collard green or a small cricket, his had twitches and closes his eye. im really worried.

he shouldnt be dehydrated. i've given him baths once a day.

dry-like. no fluid like normal. think of someone taking dead crickets and rolling them into a poop ball. like that except not quite as bad.

can vets test for MBD and have results quick? if so, i might get a vet to do that. i also want to take him in for a quick check up.

 

[VEGASLIZARD]

I think he is too young to be worrying about MBD. You have the right lighting ordered. I wouldn't worry too much. He needs the uv to digest his food properly, so if he isn't getting enough the food is going to come out like you described. Try to get him into the natural sunlight and maybe that will help.

 

[GarinGazelle]

Meant to say "head twitches" ever so slightly.

really? 2 months too young for MBD? hmm, i'll have to watch it though.

yes, i did a lot of research the day i got him. i know more than ppl i called at petco. i have part of our convo in the GD(it shows that they know nothing).

well weds. and thurs. his poops were fine. maybe its because i started feeding him more crickets and his digestive track wasnt used to that many.

and he's acting normal now. not eating still, but his behavior is fine. hes sitting up to get more heat like he does, and is alert.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

How big is your dragon? Remember the size rule: the feeders (mainly crickets & roaches) should not be any larger than the space between the eyes, or it can cause serious impactions.
I would try to get some extra fluids into him right now just to help him out. No, metabolic bone disease should not be a factor that quickly. Great you have the Reptisun 10 on order. Hopefully you will get it quickly.
What type of thermometer do you use to take the temperatures?
How is he doing this evening?

Tracie

 

[GarinGazelle]

He is 8 inches long. skinny for 2 months. im working on that though. as its not really my fault. since i've had him for almost a week.

yes the size rule, i go by it. Petco doesnt. can you believe they feed 2 month old adult crickets?

like what kind of fluids? just bathe him? okay thats a relief. it says it will be here on the 23rd, so 2 more days or less.

digital thermom with probe.

he is much better. he's alert and acting almost completely normal. and what i mean by almost is that he's a little tired right now. We were just out in the sun for a good 45 minutes. Idk if that makes him tired though. I will take him outside till we get the reptisun, and even after that i still will.

still not eating though. just kinda stares at the crickets. he is also starting his shed though, especially on his head. HE WILL HOWEVER, eat the crickets if i get them with my long tweezers. even if they sit right in front of him, he wont go for them. only if i they are in my tweezers

 

[VEGASLIZARD]

He may not want to chase them because of the shed. I have to say I only hand feed mine worms and she hasn't had crix in months so probably wouldn't chase them :roll: Nothing wrong with them being lazy and wanting to be fed by hand. There are many spoiled dragons on here. Mine will also not eat her salad in her viv. She insists on eating it on the living room floor. So, just to recap. If you spoil them it is ok, but we only have ourselves to blame when they become brats. :mrgreen:

 

[GarinGazelle]

haha. he's had maybe 15 crickets today and no salad. which im not trying to force feed him. and its rather hard to catch the cricks with tweezers.

i just got done giving him a warm bath to loosen up the shed. he has flakes around his nose stickin up and he scratched that off with his foot(is that normal? it was very quick scratch on his nose). he has another white thing hanging out of his nose(not like mucus). i want it off so badly but im not going to pull it off. it bugs the hell out of me though

 

[VEGASLIZARD]

They shed the inside of their nose and when it comes out it looks like a long tube. This could be why he is grouchy today. If it is already starting to come out you can remove it for him. He will thank you for that. They will scratch themselves and rub themselves on things when shedding to try to get the skin off. When I did feed crix I found the easiest way to catch them was to use the cricket keeper tube and an empty medicine bottle. They like to hide in the cricket keeper tube so there were always some in there. I would shake the tube into the bottle where I had some calcium so they would get coated and put the lid on and shake them around a little to stun them. I know it's mean but they are going to get eaten in a few seconds anyway.

 

[GarinGazelle]

okay, i just plucked that sucker from his nose. lol. he still has skin over his other nose(not blocking it but its connected to his face and this "tube" so i didnt pluck that one yet.

his skin is really flaking on his head lol. i wet his head with warm water to soften the skin up.

no, i dont have trouble getting crickets for him, as i have a container to grab them with. its getting them one by one.

i accidentally left them in the sun for a while today. and i think like half of the exploded :O, or melted or something haha. but theres still like 50 or more so he's good.

 

[GarinGazelle]

GREAT NEWS!

Reptar has his appetite back. He still is having a little trouble catching the crickets. as the move so fast lol but he ate like almost 10 in 2 minutes lol

 

[Valex]

You can pop the crickets in the fridge for 5-10 minutes to slow them down before you feed them. ( Of course in a contanier)