help !!

[kayleighidkk]

i just posted in this about 2 days ago, and my baby was doing fine. i got him from petsmart if that's important to know (i know this was a bad idea) he looked very skinny when i got him so i wanted to help him. you know how they are. anyways, my baby beardie was fine 2 days ago. yesterday, he didn't really eat his worms like usual. (they are wax worms- ran out of crickets and he doesn't like them very much anyways. getting silk worms asap.) and today, i kind of had to make him eat and he still isn't eating as much. he is basking with his eyes closed A LOT. he even stands up and slowly closes his eyes. his temps are fine. i don't know what to do.

 

[CooperDragon]

He looked pretty healthy to me in the photos you posted in the older thread. Do you see signs of him starting a shed? Dull gray/waxy looking areas, especially around his face. That could cause lack of appetite and may irritate his eyes.

What kind of UVB light do you have in his enclosure and how far is it set from his basking area? The silk worms will be great, I hope he enjoys them. I also suggest trying some black soldier fly larvae (phoenix worms). They are quite healthy and a big hit with most dragons too.

 

[kayleighidkk]

i'm not good at guesses but it is pretty far from the basking light. it's not a coil i can tell you that . he shed his tail completely and is shedding on his back slowly. i give him warm baths to help him with that.

 

[CooperDragon]

OK that sounds fine then. Depending on the type of light (T8 tube?) you'll want to keep it in a specific range to provide optimal UVB output. A typical T8 tube with reflector should sit about 6-8'' above the basking spot as output drops off quite a bit beyond that.

This issue is more likely to be a shed causing irritation though. Their appetites will fluctuate depending on growth spurts and other factors like shedding so a decreased appetite for just a few days isn't concerning in itself.

 

[kayleighidkk]

he has definitely grown since i got him (about 2 weeks ago). thank you so much, i was so worried about him

 

[CooperDragon]

That's a good sign too. It's a good idea to keep track of his weight using a kitchen scale if you can. His weight trends will tell a lot about his overall health. There will be daily fluctuations but if the general trend is steady or increasing (it should be increasing at his age) then you don't need to worry about a lull in appetite.

 

[kayleighidkk]

thank you so much!

 

[kayleighidkk]

i'm late lol, but by looking at his pictures i posted what morph do you think he is ?

 

[CooperDragon]

He doesn't look like any different morph to me, just a standard central bearded dragon. I like his tiger stripe back though.

 

[kayleighidkk]

oh okay- we'll unfortunately i don't think this issue is shedding anymore. he is getting really skinny now, he literally shrunk over night. he barely eats at all now and it very skittish and runs from me and does all he can to get away when i try to pick him up. he usually loves being picked up and held. he gets everything he needs so i don't know what could've went wrong. maybe petsmart. i don't know. all he does is lay under his basking spot with his eyes closed. his eyes are sunk in and he just feels like your holding nothing.

 

[CooperDragon]

That's not good if he's losing weight then. Can you post an updated photo of him? He looked OK in the last ones. Try offering him some water by dripping it on his nose and get him hydrated a bit.

 

[kayleighidkk]

he just went to drink water from his bowl on his own. can you give me the link to upload a picture please?

 

[CooperDragon]

That's a good sign that he went for a drink on his own. I'd still drip some more on his nose and see if he wants more. You can upload photos here https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ (link is also on the right hand side) and post them to your thread using the XIMG button.

 

[kayleighidkk]

idk if he looks as skinny to you or not in this picture, but before he drank he was thinner than how he's looking now. i just don't know what to do for him, & i don't know what could be wrong. i give him everything he needs (& wants, he's spoiled)

 

[kayleighidkk]

update - when i touch around his head or his neck he freaks out. he has took his little hands and pushed my fingers away or just ran. he also had snatched his head really quickly and done this thing i can't explain, it was like a shaking movement as he moved his head away. i just tried to feed him, all he ate was 2 wax worms. i am so worried about him. he walked around a little but now he's just back to standing in his basking area. i want to give him a bath but he just won't let me touch him even when i force it on his he does everything he can to get away, and it's really pitiful & sad. i also see no more signs of shedding. it's like he shedded his tail and that was it. i feel so bad right now