help please

[BellGus]

How old is your dragon? 2 years old
How long have you had your dragon? 1 years
How long is your dragon? 14 inches
What is the sex of your dragon? male
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in? glass aquarium
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank? sand
Do you use UVB lights? yes
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb? fluorescent tube
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)? zoo med and idk
How old is your UVB bulb? 1 year
How close can your dragon get to the UVB? one and a half feet
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage? yes, zilla 100watt
What are the basking temps? 90+ ?
What is the cool side temp? 70 ?
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun? wire and a probe thermometer
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps? bottom of cage by beardie
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad? no
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific. gut loaded crickets-collards-spinach-carrots sometimes-bok choy (not all at the same time tho)
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)? afternoon
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc? yes
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them? every feeding rep-cal herptivite and rep-cal calcium (alternate)
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)? what is regular that is one of my q's
Do you bath your dragon? How often? twice a week
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath? mist daily
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon? no
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done? no



thanks for the questioneer seems helpful from the answers to you think i am doing thinks right and my questions are -- how often do you feed your beardie?
how often to poop him? and what should the poo look like?
how often are they supposed to shed?
how can you tell if they are healthy?

i have been doing well with him he seems healthy i just want to see what other people say and compare to make sure i am taking care of him correctly i dont want to be a bad beardie mom or be an irresponsable pet owner please help

 

[fuzlbaby]

how often do you feed your beardie?
That age, protein daily and greens daily. Avoid spinach, it has high oxylides which block calcium absorption. The carrots are ok on occasion, but not daily. Beardies cannot absorb the vitamin A as fast as we would, so they can get sick, but on occasion is ok.

how often to poop him?
They will go daily to every other day, depending on their growth at the time and how much they eat. Be sure to soak your guy at least twice weekly in lukewarm water. Offer water daily, you may have to drip water into the bowl to get their attention to it, they like to drink from moving water.

and what should the poo look like?
Their stools should be a dark color and white. The darker color will be the undigested greens and bugs, the white is the calcium offered to him that his body didn't need. You want to see the calcium plug, that is a good thing, that means he is getting enough.

how often are they supposed to shed?
They pretty much shed when they need to. There isn't any time period on that. When you see that he is starting to shed, be sure to give him extra baths during that time, it will make him more comfortable.

how can you tell if they are healthy?
Are his eyes bright? (no dripping no crusting not red around the lids) Does he move around a lot? (if not, be sure he is hydrated and eating well) Does his poo smell chase you out of the room? (if so, get him checked for parasites) Are there any tiny dots crawling on him? (if so, he has mites, get it fixed - be sure they are crawling though, he is on sand and it could be a grain or two)


I noticed your bulb is a year old, it needs to be changed. The uvb output drops over time, by the time a year approaches, there isn't enough uvb getting to him.

Best of luck, and thanks for the questions!

 

[BellGus]

Wow! Thank you so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I appreciate your time and help, seems by your responses I am doing thing semi-correctly I'll feed him every day now as apposed to every other and hold back on the spinach thanks for the water/poo suggestions we are good in that field and he seems pretty healthy no drooping eyes, dotty scales or super smelly poo!
and I will change his UV bulb today! BG

 

[herpfreak]

Welcome to the forum!

I agree with everything said above, but would like to add a few things;

http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html
Here is a great (and color coded! ) list of greens and veggies that are good to feed beardies.

You said you used a ZooMed UV fluorescent tube; that would be a ReptiSun, which is one of the best types. Many brands of UV lights can harm beardie eyes. Make sure you get a ReptiSun 10.0, not a 5.0; 5.0s work well for smaller lizards, but beardies need a lot of UV output. Keep in mind that while these bulbs can emit light for up to a year, they stop emitting UV radiation after 6 months; it's best to replace them every six months.

Also, I reccommend either lowering the UV light or raising the basking spot so that your beardie can get within 9" of the light.

Sounds like you've got everything worked out. Keep us posted.

 

[spurlee01]

I have to agree just a little bit here. By 2 years, a dragon's diet should be 80% veggie and 20% protein. About 50 live feeders should be fed each week (I think most people do every other day). Unlimited salad should be offered every day.
Sara

 

[Embee]

and what should the poo look like?
Their stools should be a dark color and white. The darker color will be the undigested greens and bugs, the white is the calcium offered to him that his body didn't need. You want to see the calcium plug, that is a good thing, that means he is getting enough.

Just wanted to clarify here: the white in their poop is actually the URATES, which is a fancy reptile word for PEE. It should be soft, and is often well formed, or sometimes runny and in either of these forms it indicates a well hydrated dragon. If it is hard or chalky, it indicates a dehydrated dragon, who perhaps needs a good long bath (or MANY baths). :wink: I'm not aware that the urates have anything at all to do with calcium... which if they are getting enough, a dragon should be growing properly, without signs of MBD.

I believe also you meant to say "digested" yes? As to the greens and bugs? Although if you look at our girl's poop as of late, you just might see some undigested bugs. :roll: :wink: Ah, what's a dedicated beardie slave to do without some problem to solve? :mrgreen:

Thanks for allowing me to nitpick.

The best,
Em

 

[fuzlbaby]

I'm not aware that the urates have anything at all to do with calcium... which if they are getting enough, a dragon should be growing properly, without signs of MBD.

Well, in the years of my experience, all of the animals that I have had here had no urates to speak of when I get them in. It isn't until I start treating them with calcium that I start to see a proper urate. As far as not showing signs of MBD, it is too late when there are already signs, you have to quickly reverse MBD before it alters their lively hood. I only referred to the stools in simple terms so a better understanding could be made.

And the fact that I am addressing this now, isn't allowing you to nitpick. I find it underhanded and belittling to another person, I hope it isn't a habit here on this site. :mrgreen:

 

[spurlee01]

I think the urates probably have more to do with you hydrating them when you get them in. I do know that if you have too much calcium, the urates can become off-colored. I really don't think Em was nitpicking, just wanting to make sure the right info is out there .

 

[Embee]

I'm not aware that the urates have anything at all to do with calcium... which if they are getting enough, a dragon should be growing properly, without signs of MBD.

Well, in the years of my experience, all of the animals that I have had here had no urates to speak of when I get them in. It isn't until I start treating them with calcium that I start to see a proper urate. As far as not showing signs of MBD, it is too late when there are already signs, you have to quickly reverse MBD before it alters their lively hood. I only referred to the stools in simple terms so a better understanding could be made.

And the fact that I am addressing this now, isn't allowing you to nitpick. I find it underhanded and belittling to another person, I hope it isn't a habit here on this site. :mrgreen:

My sincere apologies to you. It was never my intention to be underhanded, but simply attempt (perhaps clumsily so) to pass along information which I felt would be important for those that may participate in or read the forums here. Truly, my intention was simply to offer an accurate definition of the urates, and what they signify, never to offend or try to show up anyone. The "nitpicking" comment was meant to keep my post "light" but I can see now that it was offensive to you, and you have my deepest regrets. Indeed, if you search my user posts, I believe you will find that it's not my style to belittle anyone, only in give the most accurate information and thorough help that I possibly can.

I understand all too well about reversing the symptoms of MBD before any outward physical signs present themselves, as we successfully treated our dragon (thanks to the forum here) at the earliest possible danger signs (lack of appetite, lethargy, etc due to a poor UVB). We were lucky because we knew something was wrong early on due to her behavior, and were able to make changes to her environment that turned things around in a hurry. I realize not all go about it in the same way, and not all dragons are as lucky. Dragons (et al) are lucky to have someone such as yourself to take them in and care for them.

The best to you, and again, my apologies for having offended you. Truly, it was not my intention. If you would like for me to edit my post as to make it less personal/more diplomatic, I will be most happy to do so.

Em