I think somthing is wrong with my boy..HELP!

[duckyLBT]

Dexter is about 5 months old. He has stoped eating crickets, wont even look at them. So i tryed feeding him my last resorts cause i started to get worried, all i had was mealworms ( which i know airnt good but i only feed like 5) and wax worms ( i know olny as a treat but thats all he will eat) an he only eats like 4 of them a day!!!!!!!!!! and then thats it. I try crickes, leave them in there, everything but no luck.

I dont live close to a vet so i cant get him checked out for paracites. Also he hasent shed in like a month, is that normal? how often should they shed? and he only poops like once every 8 days or so...........

I just ordered Pheonix worms hoping this will suffice for the wax worms cause they are kinda the same looking....and maybe he will eat more.

Also where i live right now is cold and snow so maybe bermuth ( i dont know how to spell it) could be causing this?

Any help would be helpful.....Thanks

 

[twyliteskyz]

sounds like hes just being picky, since he wants wormies but not crix. when your PWs come in post to say whether it worked out or not, but from what i hear they love them, and i plan to switch to PWs once my beardie gets a little older

 

[diamc]

Hi, welcome to the forum. Sorry to hear that your boy has you a little worried. Since so many things affect their appetites, could you fill us in on the brand & type of UVB you're using and close it is to him? Also, what are the basking & cool side temps and what type of thermometer are you using? Only 9 worms a day is not very much, he should be wanting to eat a lot more so we need to figure out the reason for it. Is he eating greens and what ones are you offering him?

 

[duckyLBT]

Hi, thanks for the quick resopnces
I using a exo terra 10.0 24" bulb. right now he is about 7" away from the bulb. we just moved him into a 4'X2'X2' cage we made from crossfire eclosures 3 days ago. He seems to like it. But this started even before we moved him in and in the 20g we had him in he was 3" way from the light. I am ashamed to say im just using the cheep throm ( the ones that stick on the side ) But i am going into calgary this weekend or next so i can go to walmart and pick a proper temp + hunidity one. I have also been using just a reg outdoor therm with the mercary in them just under his basking spot for about a hour a day to check temps that way. I made a post on the elclosure form "How to measure temp? " and no one replied back so maybe you could go take a peek its just about the diff between a temp gun and a probe. I added it like a day or two ago.

Dexter is about 11 1/2 in long. He doesnt look like he is starving, he still looks pretty healthy. Just wont eat, little bugger!

O haha n the temps masuring right now are 80 on the cold side and 104 in the basking spot.

THANKS!!!

 

[gulfbrzdawn]

Also where i live right now is cold and snow so maybe bermuth ( i dont know how to spell it) could be causing this?

Sorry about your little guy.

I believe the word you're looking for is Brumation. It is highly unlikely that is the cause. Typically beardies don't brumate until after they are a year old.

Hopefully when Diane(diamc) gets your information she can figure out what's going on with your beardie.

Good Luck,

Dawn

 

[duckyLBT]

P.S - Sorry i forgot the last part. i offer him greens every monrning. i live in a small town so the only things as far as lettice goes is Endive and romaine. Then i ushally put somthing on top....he likes red pepper sometimes apple....im not sure if he acctully eats it, i have seen him eat it a couple times but when i come home from work he has it all over his cage. haha but there is still alot left..he may have had a couple bits.....
Thanks

 

[diamc]

Hi again, thanks for sharing a little more info. Beardies at 5 mo old can slow down their eating a little but due to the cold temps but don't actually brumate and it seems like there are a few things that are probably causing the lower appetite.

The first thing is the UVB that you're using. There have been some issues with the Repti-Glo 10.0 strip fluorescent causing eye issues and a few others. When it's time to replace that fluorescent in about 5 months, I suggest you get the Repti-Sun 10.0 fluorescent instead as that is the best fluorescent you can get in the U.S. In the meantime, the safest way to use the one you have is to place it right alongside a bright white basking bulb and to make sure it is about 10" from your beardie when he is in his basking spot.

It's also very important to get an accurate thermometer because the ones you are relying on now can be off by as much as 20 degrees and maybe even more. I don't have a chance to read your other thread right now about the differences in the temp gun and digital with probe because I'm baking cookies but I will say that I have 2 of each of them. The temp gun is the quickest way to get a reading because you just "point and shoot" but the digitals with probes are great to double check the temp gun from time to time. With those, you lay the probe end so that it is resting, actually touching the basking area with the thermometer part way over on the bottom of the cool side, wait about 45 min for the temp to stop rising, then the "out" reading will be for the basking area and the "in" reading for the cool side. Here's a picture of the one with dual readings and a humidity readout that I got at Walmart for about $12.00.

I'm sending this now so you can review it and then we'll address the other issues.

 

[duckyLBT]

thanks,
I live in canada and even when i was looking for the one i have how all i could get was this exo terra 10.0. And i called, and looked everywhere. then 10.0 are hard to come by so i just got what i could get. My light needs to be changed in 2 months or so, but i dont like to order them off the internet. And im not sure i can get one that is a repti Sun.....and yeah that was like the threom i was looking into, same barnd , same everything

And as for the lighting it is all installed in my enclosure with the tube going along the top and the heat lamp hanging down so i cant really move anything.

 

[duckyLBT]

also is there maybe any reptile supplement i could give him or any home remedies that would work to boost his appatite? thanks

 

[diamc]

Is your enclosure made out of wood and that's why you can't put it on the outside on a screen lid? If so, another way to move him away from the UVB would be to lower the basking area. You could use a low log or even a rock as the basking area or another option would be to use a couple of bricks and put a slate tile on the top for a basking platform. That particular light is hazardous & emits low wavelength UVB & will harm his eyes. Also, make sure that you have a bright white basking light directly beside the UVB light.

His appetite can also be affected by inaccurate temps in the tank so if no adjustments are made, his appetite will probably not increase. There are appetite stimulants that you can buy but they may not even help until you get the temps right. Also, if they are off, it will affect his digestion and pooping too which you're also seeing. So, you need to get a good thermometer.

Are you using calcium and vitamin supplements? If so, how often. It's important that he also get both of these in his diet as he is still growing at only 5 months old. Here's a site that shows the best greens to feed: http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html Endive is a good staple green but romaine is mostly water so not a good idea to feed that every day but could mix a little in with some other staple greens. You must have a grocery store near you that would have escarole, mustard greens, collard greens, turnip greens, etc.

What substrate are you using on the bottom of his tank? Also, are you keeping him well hydrated? Sorry, forgot to ask those questions before.

 

[duckyLBT]

Hi,
I use tile as a substrate. And i give him a bath every second day. There is a little watter bowl in there that he sometimes runs though but i dont think he drinks from it. Our grocery store doesnt carry any of those greens exept endive. I looked on that site before i even got dexter and i even looked in calgary at the superstore and the safeway there and all i could find was endive also....but no mustard or turnip or esarole......which i found very weird.

When he was eating crickets, i dusted them 6 days with calcium and 1 day vit..... i was feeding butterworms but i ran out of them a couple days ago and they dont need to be dusted and i am dusting the wax worms and mealworms till my pheonix worms get here on thursday which form what i understand i dont have to dust. ( im really hoping him + my leo will really like them, i hate crickets!!)

I am getting someone to pick me up a thermo from walmart so it will be here by friday for sure......

ANd yes my enclosure is made of wood (the firecross enclosure outline) ...So this repti glo is bad for my little guy?? make him blind??? i dont want that............. but i dont think i can get a repti sun in canada...do u know maybe if i HAD TOO get one off the net where i could order one from??

Thanks sooooooo much for your help it is reallly appricaited!!!!!!!!

 

[diamc]

Hi, I'm headed off to bed but wanted to give you the site of where you could probably get a Repti-Sun 10.0 sent to you: http://www.petmountain.com/product/fluorescent/504983/zoo-med-reptisun-10.0-uvb-bulb.html If you find out that they don't ship to Canada, let me know and I'll see what else I can find out. Promise I will check out your latest post tomorrow more detailed.