Im a bad owner

[Sponge]

Hello! I have a Dragon by the name of Drogon and he is 4.5 years young! He has had a mouth sore for pretty good while. Took him to the vet a while back and he prescribed me antibiotics. Might be asking why I haven't posted this sooner, and I have no excuse. I haven't been a good owner. I feed him, and give him water and baths, greens and blueberries along with superworms and Dubai roaches, proper uvb and lighting, but haven't always been there for him. I feel absolutely like turd, and beat myself up everyday and really want to change, and hope I can be forgiven. I just wish I can be a better owner. So I guess I have two questions, how can I be a better and good beardie owner, and how can I get rid of this mouth sore?
I just want to add This at the end and say I want to apologize outloud for not being a good owner, and hope that yall can forgive me and help me fix my mistakes. Listed a re pictures of beardie, enclosure, and medicine.

 

[KarrieRee]

Hello! I have a Dragon by the name of Drogon and he is 4.5 years young! He has had a mouth sore for pretty good while. Took him to the vet a while back and he prescribed me antibiotics. Might be asking why I haven't posted this sooner, and I have no excuse. I haven't been a good owner. I feed him, and give him water and baths, greens and blueberries along with superworms and Dubai roaches, proper uvb and lighting, but haven't always been there for him. I feel absolutely like turd, and beat myself up everyday and really want to change, and hope I can be forgiven. I just wish I can be a better owner. So I guess I have two questions, how can I be a better and good beardie owner, and how can I get rid of this mouth sore?
I just want to add This at the end and say I want to apologize outloud for not being a good owner, and hope that yall can forgive me and help me fix my mistakes. Listed a re pictures of beardie, enclosure, and medicine. View attachment 82284 View attachment 82285 View attachment 82286

I would upgrade his tank to a 120 gallon--the tank has no floor room for him to move around -- I am assuming hes been glass surfing and this is the cause for the sore --- please get some raw unfiltered honey on it - NO crickets in the tank please -- the screen on the tank is a fine mesh if so please take it off and have the UVB unobstructed so hes getting the full rays- its crucial to the health of the dragon and his mouth sore hes got going -- if you need help w/ finding a tank we can post websites for you -- but he needs a bigger home- also how old is the UVB bulb? How are you getting your surface basking temps?

 

[CooperDragon]

His setup looks pretty good. Quite similar to mine (Same enclosure). He looks healthy overall and I think the sore should heal up nicely with a little care/attention. There is always room for improvement though, and I can offer some suggestions to try.

I've found that, as mentioned, the Exo Terra enclosure is a bit too small for an active and energetic adult. My dragon tends to hate being locked up in it. You generally want as big of a space as you have room for. This usually means either building a large custom enclosure, or preparing a secure space for free roaming. Using an adjustable lamp stand or two, you can set a basking light (or a MVB combination) up in a secure room/area of the house and let him roam around on his own a bit and interact with you more. Not all dragons take to this, and not all spaces allow for it (other animals in the house, areas that can't be closed off, etc). If that's the case, then I'd build something that is at least 4-6ft long and wide with enough height to allow for climbing while still keeping the lights at a reasonable distance. In the current enclosure, you could increase UVB exposure by taking the screen top off, hang the basking light from an adjustable stand, and let the UVB bar sit from front to back next to the basking light if it will fit. It looks like a 24'' fixture, so that should at least fit at a diagonal along one of the corners. Removing the screen will allow for more light to get through, but it's not a good idea if there are other animals (Cats in particular) in the house.

As far as the mouth goes, reducing the impact on it by increasing space should help. The cream will help if it is getting infected, otherwise some honey might help as mentioned (that can get sticky and attract dirt, so be aware), or you could just try to keep it clean and see if it reduces on its own after a while.

 

[Sponge]

I would upgrade his tank to a 120 gallon--the tank has no floor room for him to move around -- I am assuming hes been glass surfing and this is the cause for the sore --- please get some raw unfiltered honey on it - NO crickets in the tank please -- the screen on the tank is a fine mesh if so please take it off and have the UVB unobstructed so hes getting the full rays- its crucial to the health of the dragon and his mouth sore hes got going -- if you need help w/ finding a tank we can post websites for you -- but he needs a bigger home- also how old is the UVB bulb? How are you getting your surface basking temps?

Hi, thank you for replying . Ijust switched out the UVB yesterday with a new one. I will take off the mesh screen when I get home. I actually do have unpasteurized honey, think it is called Monoka or smth, but stopped using it when I received the antibiotics. I will let you know the basking temps when I get home! Thank you so much

 

[KarrieRee]

Hi, thank you for replying . Ijust switched out the UVB yesterday with a new one. I will take off the mesh screen when I get home. I actually do have unpasteurized honey, think it is called Monoka or smth, but stopped using it when I received the antibiotics. I will let you know the basking temps when I get home! Thank you so much

Use the manuka it's really good

 

[Sponge]

His setup looks pretty good. Quite similar to mine (Same enclosure). He looks healthy overall and I think the sore should heal up nicely with a little care/attention. There is always room for improvement though, and I can offer some suggestions to try.

I've found that, as mentioned, the Exo Terra enclosure is a bit too small for an active and energetic adult. My dragon tends to hate being locked up in it. You generally want as big of a space as you have room for. This usually means either building a large custom enclosure, or preparing a secure space for free roaming. Using an adjustable lamp stand or two, you can set a basking light (or a MVB combination) up in a secure room/area of the house and let him roam around on his own a bit and interact with you more. Not all dragons take to this, and not all spaces allow for it (other animals in the house, areas that can't be closed off, etc). If that's the case, then I'd build something that is at least 4-6ft long and wide with enough height to allow for climbing while still keeping the lights at a reasonable distance. In the current enclosure, you could increase UVB exposure by taking the screen top off, hang the basking light from an adjustable stand, and let the UVB bar sit from front to back next to the basking light if it will fit. It looks like a 24'' fixture, so that should at least fit at a diagonal along one of the corners. Removing the screen will allow for more light to get through, but it's not a good idea if there are other animals (Cats in particular) in the house.

As far as the mouth goes, reducing the impact on it by increasing space should help. The cream will help if it is getting infected, otherwise some honey might help as mentioned (that can get sticky and attract dirt, so be aware), or you could just try to keep it clean and see if it reduces on its own after a while.

Hi, thank you so much for the reply! Appreciate yall taking the time out of your day to help! When speaking about the UVB, how should I postion it? Front to back like front of cage to back of cage

 

[KarrieRee]

Hi, thank you so much for the reply! Appreciate yall taking the time out of your day to help! When speaking about the UVB, how should I postion it? Front to back like front of cage to back of cage

It is optimal to get it as close to the basking bulb as possible but you want him to be able to sit directly under the uvb - what uvb did you get? Brand and bulb please

 

[Sponge]

It is optimal to get it as close to the basking bulb as possible but you want him to be able to sit directly under the uvb - what uvb did you get? Brand and bulb please

 

[KarrieRee]

View attachment 82318

Yes that is what you need --- 12 15 inches directly above the basking decor

 

[CooperDragon]

Getting it close to the basking light is good, but the key is to spread the UVB across the basking area so with a 24'' fixture without the mesh top to support it you'll need to set it from front to back or at an angle across one of the corners unless you get/build a grow light stand that can support it independently. This is a 24'' sitting on my Exo Terra with the basking light suspended above/next to it (Infrared heat lamp is over on the other end for winter nights:

 

[Jjurovaty]

Never too late to ask for help. Just take care of your sweet baby moving forward! We are here to help!

 

[Drache613]

Moved by Moderator from General to Health

 

[Sponge]

Never too late to ask for help. Just take care of your sweet baby moving forward! We are here to help!

Thank you so much! The sore on his lip is actually going away! I will send pictures when I get home. I also just purchased a 120 gallon bearded dragon enclosure! I appreciate all of you!

 

[Sponge]

Hello again! I have purchased a 120 gallon tank for my little pumpkin! And the sore on his lip is doing fantastic! I just wanted to thank all of you for the help! I have a quick question real quick, do yall have any stands to recommend? Like stands for the actual enclosure? It is a 4x2x2 enclosure

 

[KarrieRee]

Hello again! I have purchased a 120 gallon tank for my little pumpkin! And the sore on his lip is doing fantastic! I just wanted to thank all of you for the help! I have a quick question real quick, do yall have any stands to recommend? Like stands for the actual enclosure? It is a 4x2x2 enclosure

Zen habitats sells them but it's cheaper to go to a used furniture store and get a dresser w/ drawers for the accessories -