Just lies around all day

[kitkat101]

At first, I thought it was okay but now Percy is just laying in the corner of his tank, sleeping most of the time. I get up in the morning for school around 6:50am...and he's asleep. I come home from school around 3:15. I can't find him in his tank, and he squished between his log and the tank asleep. I'm scared this isn't normal...I'm sure it's not! He barely eats his crickets...maybe 8 a day..but he will gobble down veggies and fruits.
*He is around 4 months old(don't know the specific age, got him as a gift)
*He is in a 10-12 gallon tank
*Reptisun 5.0 UVB compact-I know they are awful lights...but I can't get one until I convince my parents it's time for the 6 month replacement...because they are very expensive
*I have a 75 watt basking bulb.
*Temperature in basking area 102-105F
*Cool side is around 80-85

I haven't used any calcium powder since I have had him..which is about 2 months, but I know I should get some?
Any help would be amazing!

 

[noella5088]

A coil or compact bulb is dangerous to a beardie. It can cause health issues. Turn off the UVB immediately and see if that clears his condition. I would recommend a Reptisun Tube Light. 6 months under a coil or compact bulb will give him Metabolic Bone Disease. A dangerous disease that affects the bones and can kill him. Then you've got to take him to a vet for MBD for injection of calcium. Convince your parents that having coil or compact bulbs are cheaper to go, but they don't work. They don't give enough UVB out and are the wrong wavelength. Convince your parents to buy a Reptisun 10.0 tube light. It's expensive, yes, but for the life of your beardie. He will perk up once he has that bulb. Don't go with Reptiglo 10.0. They're the worst you can buy. They sell them in the pet stores.

You can use an old aquarium hood without the glass or you can go to walmart to get a fixture and use command hook strips to hang it inside the tank. It's about 9.00. Then go to this site:
http://www.petmountain.com/product/reptile-fluorescent-bulbs/11442-504983/zoo-med-reptisun-10-0-uvb-bulb.html. They're having a sale on them.

 

[diamc]

I agree with noella, the compact UVB's are life threatening causing lethargy, loss of appetite, metabolic bone disease, eye problems, etc. A 4 month old should NOT be wanting to sleep like that, he should be very active. I also would recommend shutting it off and see if you notice any improvement. No UVB for a short time (no longer than a wk) would be better than continuing to use that dangerous bulb.

A 10 to 12 gallon tank is VERY small for a 4 month old, he needs a minimum of a 40 gallon breeder. If you check http://www.craiglist.com you should be able to get one for a reasonable price.

A 75 watt bulb seems like quite a bit of wattage for such a small tank. What type of thermometer are you using, a digital strip, round (dial), temperature gun or a digital thermometer with long wire & probe end?

How are you keeping him hydrated?

It's also very important that you dust his feeders with calcium 5 days a wk but only 1 feeding a day and with vitamins the other 2 days a wk but also only 1 feeding a day.

He should be wanting to eat a lot more than only 8 crickets daily, something is not right. You need to make some changes in your setup very quickly!

 

[kitkat101]

Thanks for the help! I researched for about a year because I wanted one, and I wasn't too happy to get everything as a gift because of the incorrect tank size and UVB light. Sadly... my mom can't get me a UVB for a little bit...how long can they go without one? Like, right now no money is available(my mom is recently single and not working).

Also, out of curiosity, I have a great heat emitter I got from pet mountain. Can I use that to replace my basking bulb? , I know it should be replaced now.

 

[AHBD]

Kitkat, if you can get your beardie outside for about 40-50 minutes a day he will get a great deal of UVB until your mom can get the Reptisun 10.0 flourescent bulb . If your temps. are even mid 60's and sunny, you can get a dark plastic Rubber maid type storage bin ....the plastic absorbs the heat from the sun and heats up nicely. Just put a small basking platform in it and hang out with him. Don't leave him unsupervised though, and watch that he doesn't actually get too hot.....the sun should help perk him up, and it will help very quickly if he has a calcium deficiency starting. Be sure to keep him hydrated as was mentioned. Hope he gets better for you soon.

 

[kitkat101]

Kitkat, if you can get your beardie outside for about 40-50 minutes a day he will get a great deal of UVB until your mom can get the Reptisun 10.0 flourescent bulb . If your temps. are even mid 60's and sunny, you can get a dark plastic Rubber maid type storage bin ....the plastic absorbs the heat from the sun and heats up nicely. Just put a small basking platform in it and hang out with him. Don't leave him unsupervised though, and watch that he doesn't actually get too hot.....the sun should help perk him up, and it will help very quickly if he has a calcium deficiency starting. Be sure to keep him hydrated as was mentioned. Hope he gets better for you soon.

This is a great idea! Thanks so much!

 

[diamc]

Also, out of curiosity, I have a great heat emitter I got from pet mountain. Can I use that to replace my basking bulb? , I know it should be replaced now.

We don't recommend using a heat emitter in place of a basking bulb because they have more energy, etc with a bright white bulb. You can actually use a standard household light bulb for the basking bulb though. Also, basking bulbs don't need to be replaced every 6 months, only when they burn out. I wasn't sure if you were aware of that.

That would be great if you can take your beardie outside for some sunshine. Just make sure he doesn't get too hot and that a shaded area is available. What type of thermometer are you using to check his tank temps?

www.petmountain.com has reasonably priced Repti-Sun 10.0 strip fluorescent bulbs for about $20.00.

How is your beardie doing now?

 

[kitkat101]

Ohh...okay, that's good! I have a great basking lamp at the moment so I'm gad I don't have to change it.

I have a stick on strip that comes with the tank..I know those don't work properly. But, I can't seem to find a regular thermometer at any petstores or HomeDepot!

I haven't turned off the UVB light because I talked to my mom and I probably can't get a new one for about a month...things are super tight right now. So I am going to take Percy out onto my patio where it's nice and warm for some good sunbathing!

 

[diamc]

If you have a Walmart near you, they have the AcuRite brand digital thermometer with probe which will give you both readings as well as a humidity readout and it only costs $12.00. It should be in the area of the store where the outdoor plastic thermometers are sold. Here's a picture of it: http://www.amazon.com/Chaney-Instruments-Acu-Rite-Thermometer-Humidity/dp/B001BO8CUE/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1328489761&sr=8-7

Since you're going to be taking your beardie outside for some sunshine, could you do me a favor and shut the UVB light off that you're using now for 3 to 4 days and see if you notice any change in the lethargic behavior? Then let us know, ok?

 

[kitkat101]

Okay! I'll try it...!

 

[diamc]

Ok good. Did you look at the links for a digital thermometer?

 

[kitkat101]

So I waited a full day before I shut off the UVB light, I wanted to be able to monitor his behavior. So half the day I watched him before I shut off the light, he regained his appetite and ate a ton of crickets and was much more energetic. I cleaned his tank and organized it so he had much more running room. He was crawling all over the place.
Even though all of this, I decided to turn off the light. I turned it off before I went to bed, woke up, kept it off, and left for school. I came home from school and he seemed to be the same, in the corner ect. But I continued to leave the light off for a day and give him to real sunlight. The behavior didn't change, he continued to lay in his corner.
I decided to turn the light on again, and he returned to his regular self. He's been really great! I know I still have to get a new UVB light, but I feel a bit better that he's behaving better.