Crowder my 5-month-old bearded dragon has not been using his back left leg for a month now. When I noticed this I increased his Calcium with vitamin D3 and changed the uvb to a Reptisun 10.0. I thought he was doing better, but recently he has developed a lump on his left leg and has very limited mobility and he has very little appetite. He also had trouble chewing the two crickets he ate this morning.
It looks like the muscle on the leg with the lump isn't developing in a typical way. I'm not certain what the cause is, but it may warrant a vet exam. As far as the lighting goes, it looks like that is a T8 fixture. For best results, that should sit about 6-8'' above the hammock/basking area since the output from those drops quickly beyond that. It's also good to remove the clear plastic shield that sits in front of the bulb if your fixture has one, since that will intercept the UVB.
It looks like the muscle on the leg with the lump isn't developing in a typical way. I'm not certain what the cause is, but it may warrant a vet exam. As far as the lighting goes, it looks like that is a T8 fixture. For best results, that should sit about 6-8'' above the hammock/basking area since the output from those drops quickly beyond that. It's also good to remove the clear plastic shield that sits in front of the bulb if your fixture has one, since that will intercept the UVB.
That is a very strange shape there. Has it shown any size changes at all, that you can tell? Is the lump hard to the touch
or more soft?
I'm glad you took the plastic covering off of the tube bulb so the UVB would be more direct.
Since you mentioned that he was having trouble chewing so that can indicate possible bone issues. Are you getting enough
calcium into him on a regular basis?
That is a very strange shape there. Has it shown any size changes at all, that you can tell? Is the lump hard to the touch
or more soft?
I'm glad you took the plastic covering off of the tube bulb so the UVB would be more direct.
Since you mentioned that he was having trouble chewing so that can indicate possible bone issues. Are you getting enough
calcium into him on a regular basis?
The size has not changed. The lump is hard with a little give when I push o it. He does not seem in any discomfort when I touch or push on the lump. I dust his cricket each time I feed him the Flucker calcium with D3 powder. I moved him to a smaller tank where the uvb can be closer to him. My wife has been getting him to drink water off of his endive leaves which really seems to be helping him. His appetite is starting to come back. Hoping all of the advice and tank changes will continue to help him recover. He is holding his shoulder and head up now where before he was not able to do that.
How is he doing today? At least it doesn't seem to hurt him any right now, that's good to hear.
He must be starting to feel a little better if his appetite is improving. I think he might not have
been getting adequate UVB light. He should hopefully continue to get stronger also.
I would keep an eye on the bump to be sure it doesn't get larger in size or start bothering him
any.
Let us know how he is doing.
How is he doing today? At least it doesn't seem to hurt him any right now, that's good to hear.
He must be starting to feel a little better if his appetite is improving. I think he might not have
been getting adequate UVB light. He should hopefully continue to get stronger also.
I would keep an eye on the bump to be sure it doesn't get larger in size or start bothering him
any.
Let us know how he is doing.
He starting to move on his own which he hasn't done for a week. I will keep everyone updated. Again, thank you all for your advice and concern for Crowder.
Kevin
That is great to hear he is starting to move around more. Hopefully the UVB light
exposure is helping him out some. Keep working with him & you can also let him
try to run around on the floor a couple of times per week for exercise.