Lifeless Lily...

[abbyxelizabeth]

Hi guys. My first beardie, Lily, is nine months old and she's still very small. It's like her growth was stunted. (I had made a post about this previously, I was very concerned.) She's very thin, hardly eats, hasn't grown or developed at all, seems to be having a weird shed, looks miserable and lifeless. When I offer her crickets, she may eat one or two but ignore the rest, unlike my other beardie, Noah, who is probably about a year now, and he still goes crazy over them and hunts down every last one of them. She won't touch greens, either. She's very skinny. Her health appears to be progressively declining, and has been over the past few months. Can't remember when she went crazy over greens or crickets.

I don't know what to do. I can't take her to the vet as I just spent my vet savings on my dog's bladder infection. I'm not sure how much they could do for her anyway... I don't know if she will survive or not. I want her to be a healthy happy dragon, I don't want her to be in misery anymore. I just don't know how to fix her. Somebody suggested handfeeding her baby food or something? I can't remember exactly what they said. I'm open to any suggestions at this point.

(Other information about how her care has been, in case you're wondering - She lives in a 20 gallon long tank, with a UVB strip and basking light. She was fed crickets almost daily but I haven't been offering them as much as she hardly eats them. Fresh greens are offered daily. This includes collard, mustard, and dandelion greens. I occasionally add in calcium powder to her greens and or crickets. She is sprayed daily with a spray bottle and bathes once a week.)

 

[destiny1998]

Hi. Can you tell us what kind of lights and brand? How long have you had the uvb? How close can she get to it and c is there anything between her and the light? What are the temps and how do you take them? If you are misting do it outside of his tank so it doesn't raise the humidity and cause a respiratory infection. Baths are the best way to keep her hydrated. How frequently does she poop? Also at her age she needs calcium with d3 5x a week one feeding per day and vitamins 2x a week.

 

[TipsyTraveler]

May i also suggest that the 20gallon long is a bit too small? Our dragon was in a 20gal long and wasnt improving but when i got him a new tank he spiked up in weight and activity.

 

[sammmycakes]

for now try feeding a chicken baby food mixed with a sweet potato or squash one twice a day.drip it on her nose and she should lick it off. if not i usually pull down the side of the lip and sneak some in. once they taste it they will usually lick. you don't want to be too forceful and squirt it right in her mouth if you've never done it before in case she inhales it instead of swallows it. (if this does happen and she gasps you can tilt her so her body so her head is facing the floor and it should drain out)

bathe her in warm water and add in unflavored pedialite to get her hydrated. (a 50/50 mix)

make sure she is getting correct heat and even increase it a little bit to help her immune system.

I'd also recommend taking a stool sample to the vet if you can get one. (some vets will test the poop without physically seeing the animal. where i go i only pay 20$ for that and they only ask to see the beardie if something is wrong...) that way you can rule out parasites without paying hefty vet bill for a physical exam. But when you do get the money it would be a good idea to take her in just incase. this is just an option around your money situation....


good luck!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Please do review your tank set up with us. Such as the brand of the tube UVB as well as the wattage of the basking light. A 20 long is not very large though & can be difficult to maintain the proper gradient in there.
What type of thermometer are you using to measure her temperatures?
At 9 months of age, she needs calcium 5 times per week to help her bones as she shouldn't be finished with her growing yet.

Tracie