Help with feeding baby beardie

[kaska798]

I have my first BD baby. He's about 3-4 weeks old. The breeder said he was eating great but I can't get him to eat! I've tried small crickets, mealworms and Phoenix worms. He seems disinterested. I thought it was cause he's in a new setting but it's been almost a week now. I put the worms on a bowl so they don't get lost in the sand. He also won't eat any greens I put in there and I've tried pineapple. I think he ate a few crickets one day but that's it. Any suggestions?

 

[CooperDragon]

How long have you had him home now? He may still be a bit stressed out from the move. Is he alert and active? Do you see signs of him shedding like gray/dull skin or peeling skin anywhere? Sometimes shedding can put them off of their food. I suggest replacing the sand substrate with something solid and easy to keep sanitized. Non adhesive shelf liner works well. If the sand gets damp or traps food bits it can harbor bacteria which may be harmful.

 

[kaska798]

No signs of shedding. I've had him a week. He is active and alert. I wonder could he be lonely or depressed?? He went from a cage of about a dozen of his brothers and sisters. I've thought of going to get him a cage mate but I don't know if it's bad to have 2. I think today he may have eaten 4 crickets. They were in there this morning and I don't see them now. They're either hiding or he ate them. Do they eat more at night?

 

[twixy79]

I just got my first beardie on Friday and he gave me a similar scare. Friday night after setting up his home, he ate 1 cricket, so I thought, great, at least he is eating and we are off to the races. Saturday and all day Sunday he ate nothing. He just laid on his branch, basking with his eyes closed. I did get him to drink water both days, and he apparently enjoys trying to sleep in his water. Obviously, I don't let him, so I dump out his water, and leave the moist bowl, and he seems content to sleep in there. He also does enjoy sleeping on his rock, however that one is a bit more terrifying, since he splays himself out, and looks dead.... Not exactly what I want to wake up to...

Yesterday, he ate about 15 crickets, and today, so far, has eaten another 14. My husband is home with the pets all day, so we feed him crickets 5 or more times per day. He will eat 4 or 5, and then stop, we will leave one or 2 roaming around, and come back in a few hours. If they are gone, we drop in one more, and see if we have any takers. If we do, great, keep feeding until he's done. Feed, leave and repeat...

We have been giving him greens, veggies and fruit, however so far, he has not eaten any of it. I also purchased every baby bearded dragon food commercially made, so he has a variety of food to choose from, and so far, only will eat crickets.

My only advice is just make sure he/she stays hydrated, and give him/her time to adjust.

 

[CooperDragon]

No signs of shedding. I've had him a week. He is active and alert. I wonder could he be lonely or depressed?? He went from a cage of about a dozen of his brothers and sisters. I've thought of going to get him a cage mate but I don't know if it's bad to have 2. I think today he may have eaten 4 crickets. They were in there this morning and I don't see them now. They're either hiding or he ate them. Do they eat more at night?

If he's active and alert that's a good sign. They are pretty solitary and while they'll interact with people they don't like eachother much and it's best to keep them alone. I would be patient with him. I also suggest removing any crickets from the tank after feeding time (10-15 min window) and offering in small batches to help track them down. If the crickets hide they can come out later and bite him which can be harmful if there are several of them. They aren't usually active at night. All of my dragons sleep soundly through the night. I've found the best feeding times to be in the morning after an hour or two of basking time to warm up and in the evening a few hours before lights out.