Long time lurker needs some veteran beardie owner help.

[ThatGuy88]

So i have wanted a pet reptile for a long time and im also ocd. lol so ive been doing tons of research and lurking here on the forums for 8-10 months. Never posted until now. I need some help or opinions. So i ended up going with a beardie. I adopted from one of the many neglectful people on craigslist. Not because i was looking to save money but because id rather save one from someone elses bad habits. It came with a terrarium but its not a normal breeder tank. its 4 foot tall and 4 foot long 18 inches wide. Slidding glass doors on the front. Wire cage top. Not small mesh screen but not chicken wire either. The cage itself is gray plastic. The bottom is glass. Its not home made. Just never seen one like this. Anyway so i get the big guy home. Hes 2 years old supposedly. Owner said firefly morph whatever that is. Never heard of it. Looks normal to me. Since i got him home 5 days ago he wont come out of his hide hes awake just hanging out. And hes only pooped once. I have to take him out daily and put him in the basking area. Ive also been giving luke warm baths daily to stimulate pooping. Still hes only gone once. When i do take him out hes active walks around and acts normal. But wont eat any greens and has only eaten 3 large superworms. Cool side with hide is 75 degrees. Basking spot 110 and ambient is 80-85. My first question: is this normal behavior? My second question is The UVB bulb is on top of the cage which is 48 inches high and the light bulb a 48 inch 40 watt reptisun 10.0. Is my beardie getting the proper UVB from that high?

Sorry for the wall of text but i wanted to be thorough in painting the picture because i cant load pics at the moment. Thank you in advance for any input.

 

[diamc]

Hi, welcome to the forum. :wave: Good job rescuing a beardie that needed you.

It can take about 2 wks before a new one adjusts and gets used to all the changes. One thing that jumped out at me was the 110 degree basking spot. That is actually too hot for a 2 yr old and should only be that high for a very small & young beardie. A 2 yr old would actually prefer a basking spot of about 100 to about 102, that's the way my adults have always been.

Can you fill us in on the type of thermometer you're using, digital strip, round gauge (dial), temperature gun or digital with long wire & probe end?

For the bath water, you could go warmer than luke warm, test temp by the inside of your wrist. Warmer water (but not hot) will help them poop easier.

Is your Repti-Sun 10.0 a fluorescent tube? Do you know if the UVB is a high output (T5) bulb or a T8? What is the distance from where the UVB is on top of the cage to your beardie when in the basking spot?

 

[ThatGuy88]

Thank you for replying so quickly. To answer some of the questions the UVB is a 40w florescent T8. Its on top of the cage so its about 45 inches away from the beardie. As for the thermometer i use a digital with the long wire. Oh and i just raised the basking light so its cooling off as we speak.

 

[diamc]

Good that you were able to raise the bulb to cool it down some.

Thanks for the added info about the UVB. Since it's a T8, it should actually be mounted inside of the tank so that it is right over the beardie when he's in the basking spot. Not a good idea to mount it to the back of the inside of the tank because you wouldn't want your beardie to have to stare right into the bulb. Also, the T8 should be about 6 to 8" from your beardie while he's on the basking log or rock. You're right, at a distance of 45" away, it's not doing him any good at all.

Are you using a bright white basking bulb? Also, the cool side is a little too cool,should be within the 78 to 82 range and since it's so long, could probably use some light on the cool side. You can use a lower wattage household light bulb on that side to brighten it up & raise the temp there a little.

Happy to hear you're using a probe thermometer. To get the basking SURFACE temp, place the probe end right on the basking log or rock & then wait about 45 min for the temp to stop rising before getting the final reading. Some owners don't realize that you have to wait that long. If you have any other questions, let us know. :wink:

 

[Taterbug]

Could you share a picture of the enclosure? It sound pretty cool but that maybe you could also get more out of it. Glad to hear a dragon has found you

I agree. The T8 bulb is way too far away. If you use a reflector you can keep it a little further than 6-8" but I would highly recommend a 22" T5 light. They are similar in strength at 3' away that the T8 is at 8-10" and are easy to hang. I have a cage of similar dimensions and have it split into two levels basically. The UVB + basking lights at the top and another basking light under the first. You can offer heat with or without varying levels of uvb this way. Anyway, just my thoughts on that. You could also get a metal halide or MVB bulb as they are pretty strong too and have a great color spectrum.

For his behavior, I think relocation stress is part of it but would worry about VitD deficiency if the light has been like that for long. Do you know if he had a taller perch before the owner rehomed him? If he isn't eating he won't have anything to poop.

 

[ThatGuy88]

Ok so i posted a week ago about my new rescued beardie. Have researched for months through forums, reading of books, youtube, etc. before getting one. Rescued an adult(2 years old) from craigslist. My post last week was just to make sure i was doing everything right as far as lighting, temps, and feeding etc. Everything looks good there. However i will have had him 2 weeks today and hes not left his hide one single time voluntarily. So ive taken him out and put him in his basking spot myself. He seems to love it when hes there. Hell run around a bit and try to climb the walls. He also randomly licks things. But it will be about 15 minutes until hes back in hide again. Hes only eaten twice (superworms). And will not eat any greens as ive tried 4 types Kale, collard greens, romaine, and mustard greens. Even bought some beardie salad dressing to entice him. Nothing. Hes only pooped twice since ive gotten him. Both times in the bath as im giving him daily baths to try and help. When i handle him he loves it. Climbs all over me. Jumps on my bed. Runs around. But activity unless i engage it. Its the winter months but i keep my house at 70 just for him. About 75 in his tank.

So is this his internal clock causing him to brumate or is something wrong? Was he so used to bad conditions that now optimum conditions are hurting him in some way? Since i am a new owner i am over analyzing things and just need some help here.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

At 2 years of age, he could definitely be trying to brumate some, as this is the time of year they normally slow down.
Did you run down your tank setup in your other thread & it was all good?
Do you have any pictures of him you could show?
Has he had a black beard at all or is it normal color?
A 75 gallon is a great size for him, too!

Tracie

 

[diamc]

[I merged both of your threads so that other members would know all the details and what info had already been suggested]

Did you have any luck lowering the basking temp since your beardie is 2 yrs old to see if you could get him to bask more?

Also, were you able to mount the T8 in the tank since 45" away really isn't giving him any UVB exposure?

We really want to help you get things all straightened out.

 

[ThatGuy88]

Yes i was able to do all of the above. Lowerd the basking temps. Put the UVB on a pully its now a little under 2foot away from him now and i can raise and lower it. Today he actually popped his head out of his hide and ate some kale. Thats the most active hes ever been so i guess its a good sign. His beard has never been black or puffed out. In fact the only color change hes done is in a warm bath he seems to turn like neon orange on his face and he seems really happy. I am learning little things about him day by day. Like he LOVES to climb which i didnt think beardies did much of. So this week im gonna utilize the 4 foot high tank to full potential. Build a huge rock wall with hides and ledges out of foam and grout. I think that will get him to be more active. Another question i have is are beardies taste testers? Like i notice he licks random objects. Just one lil flick. But he does it when i try to feed him superworms powdered in calci. He sees it he engages it test licks it. Tastes the powder and backs off wont eat.

 

[Taterbug]

Dragons have tastebuds on their tongue and also a Jacobson's organ (like snakes) in the roof of their mouth that can detect other chemicals/pheromones. Some dragons like certain powder brands better than others.

At 2' away your T8 bulb isn't giving you any uvb still. Even with a reflector the effective range isn't much more than 12".

Glad to hear you'll be using the height! I'm sure he will like it. You can add more basking light too, so he can have differnt options. That migt also encourage more activity.

 

[ThatGuy88]

Awesome. as for the uvb I'll lower it some more.