loving beardie seriously turned against me! Need some advice

[kevincease]

Ok, so I've had this guy for about 8 months now, and raised him from a baby. He has always been the most social and friendly of all my dragons. The other day, in the middle of the day, he just decided that I am the absolute enemy. I fed him normally in the morning and he was fine, and then a few hrs later I reached in to move his furniture for him and he just freaked out, running into the glass and gapes his mouth at me. He even kinda looks different now. Its like something just posessed him, and he is just always looking to see if i am in the room, and freaks out if he can see me. Anyone have this problem before? The "put your hand flat in the tank" thing that someone has been posting on everyone's behavioral problem posts isn't fixing this. I even got him in a towel and held him for 10 min and he just stared at me defensively the whole time. It actually looks like he is more scared than defensive, and it's on a completely ridiculous level. Anyone care to comment? nothing has changed in his cage or anything that i know of. He wont even eat now it seems. I could really use some advice.

here's some before and after pics

 

[vickson420]

Well there are two possible reasons.The first you can do nothing about except ride it through:Adolescence,he is a "teenager" and is acting accordingly.It does pass so long as you dont back down or acknowledge his bad behavior.The second is that he just isnt feeling well.Tempermants change if they are ill or in pain.How is he otherwise?Any other outward symptoms besides his bad mood?

 

[kevincease]

not that im aware of. the only thing I can think of that's changed is i added a little carrot to his meal (finely shredded)

 

[vickson420]

not that im aware of. the only thing I can think of that's changed is i added a little carrot to his meal (finely shredded)

No that wouldnt do it.I meant like health type things.Is his poop different?Is he sleeping more?Less?Has his eating habits abnormally changed?There is also the slight possibility that he is getting ready to brumate?

 

[kevincease]

not that im aware of. the only thing I can think of that's changed is i added a little carrot to his meal (finely shredded)

No that wouldnt do it.I meant like health type things.Is his poop different?Is he sleeping more?Less?Has his eating habits abnormally changed?There is also the slight possibility that he is getting ready to brumate?

well he hasn't pooped today that i can see, and I didn't see him sleep last night since he wouldn't rest until i was gone (though i couldn't see what he was doing while i was gone obviously). He isn't eating, in fact when his mouth was open, i put a meal worm in it and he didn't move, it just crawled out! also, hes only 8-9 months, is brumation ready for him? The only other thing i notice is it seems to smell a little different and worse, sort of a pee like smell, like a dirty hamster cage. He made the sand somewhat wet by jumping in and out of the water dish he has, but I've cleaned the sand and he has good ventilation. Don't know what else to do but wait. I am hanging sheets around his cage now, but I also don't want to alienate him from me, so that is something else i am trying to decide on if its a good idea or not.

 

[vickson420]

I do think he is too young for brumation but it does happen.Now if he hasnt pooped,isnt eating,and has an odor I would say there is an underlying health issue here thats making him beave this way.First thing I would do is get him to a vet and have a fecal done to rule out hookworms,parasites,etc.When was his last poop?Have you considered the possibility of impaction?What type of sand is he on?

 

[kevincease]

its playsand, something all my dragons and all my breeders have used

 

[vickson420]

its playsand, something all my dragons and all my breeders have used

The only reason I ask is because I have found that beardies with sand do generally have a higher parasite recurrence and I also just wanted to make sure it wasnt calcisand.Is he a sloppy eater or do you feed outside the tank?

 

[kevincease]

no i feed him inside. whats strange is how fast he went from happy to mad as hell.

 

[kevincease]

I guess I will just have to take him to the vet. unfortunatelly, the vet i've been to before isn't the most brilliant in the world when it comes to beardies.

 

[vickson420]

Have you tried herpvetconnection.com? You may be able to find a better vet there.In the meantime I would try to get him to poop.Are you bathing him daily?He may not like it at the moment but you want to make sure he is well hydrated and also to help pass along any possible blockages.He easily could have gotten a mouthful of sand.Also maybe put him on a probiotic to help smooth out his gut flora.If you cant find anither vet then I would still get the fecall done but you may want to double check here first before you give him meds to make sure he is being dosed correctly.

 

[beardie parents]

I read all this thread. I don't recall anyone mentioning the heat. I'm sure everything is the way it's supposed to be but I also remember reading about a beardie that did this same thing and it turned out in this case that the temps were way too hot for the beardie. Once the heat was gotten back to where it's supposed to be, the beardie went back to being a sweet beardie. Maybe he doesn't want it as hot as babies normally do and he's complaining. I'm not saying this is the problem, just another one to consider.

 

[diamc]

It would be a good idea to check the temps again, just in case. Sometimes as the seasons change, a change in wattage is necessary.

Is he in view or close to any females? If so, since he is puberty age, that could be setting him off. But a vet visit wouldn't be a bad idea especially since you noticed a change in his pooping.

 

[kevincease]

I think this is a health issue more and more. The temps are fine, that's not what i think it is. It was so abrupt in the change that i think something happened when he ate maybe. I'll call them tomorrow.

 

[kevincease]

Oh, I think he saw the movie "Network".