is my beardie dehydrated?

[Nixiemaiden]

Ok so I was never really worried before but I came across a post saying that if they have wrinkly skin that they are dehydrated. Here are a few pics of my beardie for reference on his skin:

Right now I am soaking him twice a week for 10-15 minutes and I also keep his greens misted through out the day. His "meat" portion is phoenix worms and butterworms and he his fed twice a day...I believe these have a fairly high moisture content.

His urates seem soft and wet and there is usually a lot of water (relative to his size) when he poops. His poops are well formed though.

Everything seems totally normal to me except now I am questioning the saggy skin. I thought it was because he just finished shedding and needs to kind of grow into his new skin before he starts another shed. Usually when he is getting ready to shed, his skin seems really tight. Also when he turns himself into a pancake the skin seems tight.

Please let me know if there are any thoughts on this. I can bathe him more if that is what he needs or I can try to get him to eat more veggies or something.

 

[AHBD]

Hi Nixie....He's a very pretty dragon, and it's great that he enjoys his veggies. I believe he needs a little more of everything, but mostly insect protein to gain more weight, possibly more hydration as well. They just grow so quickly and need lots of protein. Maybe add an extra feeding, or double what you give him at one of the feedings.

 

[Nixiemaiden]

Right now he eats about 80 large phoenix worms and 8-10 butterworms a day. I can't really afford to give him any more than that and he won't eat crickets unless he hasn't had any worms (meaning if I run out of worms on a Friday, he will go all day Saturday without eating and then on Sunday, he will finally cave in and eat crickets) and I don't really have any other options since I can't have roaches here. He is still too small for supers. Silkworms and hornworms don't seem much more economical than the route I am taking although maybe they are? I don't really know how they compare in size I just know that the 80 phoenix worms a day wasn't cutting it which is why I added butterworms in there too. He is only about 13-14 inches long and I don't think he could handle anything too big. I know he does ok with the butterworms but I don't think he could handle anything bigger yet. Some of the larger size butterworms he has to chew for a few seconds where the phoenix worms he just swallows those whole.

Every two weeks I go through $43 worth of phoenix worms and $17 worth of butterworms so if there is a better way to spend that money and get him more nutrition I am very willing to listen.

 

[AHBD]

Your best bet is definitely crickets. They will go a long way, and believe me, if he's hungry hell eat them, and I think you'll see him plump right up. He could eat the 3/4" easily, he's nearly big enough for the adult crix. You can gut load the crix with various veggies and other foods. There should be threads in the feeders forum on where to buy and how to keep them. The repti worms are so expensive by comparison.

 

[Ferociouscorpion]

You can try small superworms, I buy 2000 for $35 and they last me a good 2-3 weeks. I've been using superworms as a staple for my dragon Haku since he was 15ins. It has been a little over a month and he is around 18ins now so don't think a diet of just superworms as a feeder has effected his growth.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

He doesn't appear dehydrated to me. I think that is just how the skin looks. He is a leatherback so the skin will lay a little differently than a regular scaled dragon.
He certainly goes through his food doesn't he? That is great he enjoys his greens, also. I don't think there is really much more of a feeding route than what you are already taking. The crickets & or roaches are always a good option & are less expensive than some of the worms though if he likes them, that is.

Tracie

 

[Dr. Phoenix]

Here is some information about why wrinkly skin on a beardie is normal that we thought may be of interest:

"If he has the normal amount of tail fat, as compared with your other lizards, he is probably okay. I know what you are describing, the kind of wrinkly appearing skin on the back of a resting bearded dragon. Because their skin does not stretch much, when compared with mammalian skin, they often appear to have excess skin when they are relaxed, so that when they puff up to display or challenge another male, they have skin to utilize for that purpose."

Margaret A. Wissman, DVM, DABVP has been an avian/exotic/herp animal veterinarian since 1981. She is a regular contributor to REPTILES magazine.

Craig Sheppard, Ph.D.
President, Insect Science Resource LLC
Emeritus, UGA
http://www.phoenixworm.com

 

[AHBD]

Yes, I agree with Dr. Wissman wholeheartedly that some wrinkly skin is 100% normal, I even recently posted on another thread about that, assuring the poster that all dragons have some degree of wrinkles, including my normal and leatherback dragons. And this dragon is not emaciated, he just appears, as a fast growing dragon, to need a little more protein to help keep his growth up. A good variety is the key, and crickets or small superworms could help out . I'm looking at the pic of him coming off the hammock, he's just a little thin and a few extra feeders would do him good.