My 2 month old breadie

[EllenD]

Yeah, you need a new UVB tube, either a 24" Reptisun 10.0 T5HO or an Arcadia 12%< and then a matching 24" T5 flourescent tube fixture. I can guarantee the reason your beardie's eyes are messed up is due to #1 that coil bulb, they always cause horrible eye damage, and #2 that sand you had. Thanks for getting it out of there...The tube UVB you have is no where near sufficient for a desert reptile. We're not saying you need a "10 watt", but rather the 10.0 T5HO which is actually 24 watts!!! 10 or 13 watts is hardly half of what a beardie needs to live. She will not survive long with either of those UVB tubes, you need to get onto Amazon.com and search " 22" Reptisun 10.0 T5 High-Output UVB tube" (their 24" T5 tube is actually a 22" tube, don't ask me why, but it fits in a 24" fixture). You can buy the tube for $24.99 or less. Once you select the UVB tube, scroll down to the package deal with the corresponding fixture they show you. This isn't optional, she isn't going to survive without it. And yes, please dust her feeders every single day with Calcium with D3 for now, until you get the new T5HO UVB tube installed, because she's not been manufacturing any vitamin D3 on her own with those UVB lights...AND PLEASE, THROW AWAY THAT COIL UVB NOW, IT'S HURTING HER EYES, I DON'T KNOW WHY THEY SELL THEM BUT THEY'RE AWFUL!

Also, do you have a digital probe thermometer or a temperature gun to measure her temperatures? If not and you're using a stick-on thermometer, you'll need to order a digital probe thermometer with a probe on a wire for $10 on Amazon as well, the stick-on thermometers are junk, and usually off by 20+ degrees!!! Once you get the correct UVB tube and the digital probe thermometer, you need to then work on her Temperature gradient.

 

[Melissa91]

Thanks guys will sort out the lighting i do take her out everyday for natural sunlight. I just need to know what happens next for her eyes. Its starting to freak me out and i dont want to lose Nessie. Just upset coz got wrong advice, but all good will get it sorted

 

[EllenD]

For that size enclosure you'll need at least a 100 watt bright white basking bulb, no colored bulbs at all, red, blue, green, yellow, etc. only bright white. Most of us don't even use a special reptile basking bulb, but rather a regular household halogen indoor flood bulb like you buy at Lowes or Home Depot, either 100 watt or a 150 watt for her enclosure. It must be mounted right alongside the UVB tube and both over her main Basking Spot so you're replicating natural sunlight as closely as possible, and she gets both at one time.

Basking Spot: between 105-110 degrees max for a baby or juvenile (never above 110 inside her enclosure). As they get older the basking spot temperature will decrease slightly to around 100 degrees, but in order for her to digest her food properly and process her vitamins, now it must be between 105-110 on her basking spot, and a digital probe thermometer allows you to place the probe right on the basking spot.

Hot Side Ambient: (side that the basking spot is in) between 88-93 max

Cool Side Ambient: between 75-80 max

Nighttime is fine and needs no nighttime heat source if at 65 degrees or above, it should be considerably cooler than her daytime temperatures and pitch black to sleep comfortably.

****Do not turn off her new UVB tube and basking bulb at all during the day, not for naps, only at bedtime, as she needs at least 14 hours of both UVB and UVA light every single day!!!***"

 

[AHBD]

To help her eyes you can use raw unpasteurized honey, such as from a health store. It must say raw....that type of honey is a natural antimicrobial and can heal conjunctivitis. I've used it for my own beardie's eye infection. Just mix some with a few drops of warm water , then apply via eyedropper or a Q-tip 2-3X a day. If you DO use honey just be sure there are no loose insects in th tank to bother her.

 

[EllenD]

For her eyes right now get rid of the coil bulb, get her the correct UVB and bright white basking bulb immediately, like yesterday because she's extremely small and thin, and she's in danger of becoming extremely impacted from not being able to process her food, and to not gain weight or grow because she cannot absorb any nutrition or vitamins/calcium without the proper UVB and UVA. You need to dust her live feeders in calcium powder with vitamin D3 every single day, and in a good multivitamin powder like Repashy Calcium Plus or Herpavite 4-5 days a week.

And please, no more mealworms!!! Mealworms are not good for any size or age of bearded dragon, as they contain little to no nutritional value and are nothing but fat and chitlin shells. The fat will cause fatty liver disease, and in a beardie her size with improper lighting and temperatures, she's sure to become impacted because they have trouble digesting mealworms to begin with. They just aren't an appropriate live feeder for beardies at all. No superworms either until she's at least 14-16" long, and even then they are an occasional treat or meal. Appropriate live feeder insects for a baby/juvenile beardie are gut-loaded crickets, gut-loaded roaches (dubias and other species), gut-loaded Phoenix Worms/Calciworms/ Reptiworms/BSFL (all the same thing), or gut-loaded silkworms. Occasionally a treat once or twice a week give a couple wax worms, butterworms, hornworms, but these are all full of fat and not staple feeders. Never feed mealworms. You should gut-load your feeders with the same greens you should offer her every day fresh (babies and juveniles rarely eat a lot if any greens or veggies, but if they do it's a bonus, but you should still offer them every single day): collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion greens, bok choy, endive, escarole, chard...NEVER feed her kale or spinach of any kind, too many oxalates that bind the calcium and block her from absorbing it...

 

[Melissa91]

Hey EllenD i am not using the coil bulb with nessie it was just like a back up but will not use it. Will get that tubes tomorrow at petshop. Its a 64cm by 32.5cm tank. Im just scared that 100watt will be a bit rough.

Thanks for the honey tip will def get some tomorrow.

 

[AHBD]

Best wishes to your little one !

 

[EllenD]

In addition to the raw, unpasteurized honey, I would first rinse both her eyes out with either a saline eyewash or Eyedrops that are just saline and nothing else, I'd wash them out twice a day first, then water the honey down with a little if the saline eyewash or eyedrops and apply it to her eyes. Hopefully the combination of the cleaning her eyes and the raw, unpasteurized honey with the new lighting will help her eyes heal and she won't need antibiotics, but please order the 10.0 T5 High-Output UVB tube (24 watt) and fixture, and pick up a 100 watt or 150 watt bright white halogen indoor flood bulb so her temps get up to appropriate ranges, I'm very concerned about her size combined with a total lack of appropriate UVB and UVA light and low temps combined with mealworms...

She should be getting at least 2 live insect feeding sessions every single day, 3 sessions every day is better, each session lasting 10-15 minutes, where she gets to eat as many live feeders as she wants to. This should go on until about 6-8 months, then go to 2 sessions a day, then at a year old or so go to one. MAKE SURE EVERY INSECT IS SMALLER THAN THE SPACE BETWEEN HER EYES!!! To give you an idea, my now 4-month old male, which I got at 4 weeks old and very tiny, eats BSFL/Phoenix Worms as his staple feeder (they're the size of a wax worm). He eats between 15-20 in the morning, 15-20 in the afternoon, and around 10 early evening...Your baby isn't eating enough due to a lack of UVA and UVB light. Also, PLEASE ALLOW HER LIGHTS TO BE ON FOR 1-2 HOURS IN THE MORNING BEFORE FEEDING HER, AND PLEASE ALLOW THEM TO BE ON FOR AT LEAST 1-2 HOURS AFTER SHE EATS BEFORE YOU TURN THEM OFF FOR BED, ENSURING SHE CAN DIGEST AND ABSORB...And again, her photoperiod every single day with the proper UVB tube and bright white basking bulb together needs to be at least 14 hours!

 

[Melissa91]

Thanks so much AHBD...

Thanks EllenD i will sort everything out first think in the morning...

Thanks for all the advice i reallllllyyyy appreciate it.

 

[EllenD]

Most pet shops do not carry the Reptisun 10.0 T5HO, only the Reptisun 10.0 T8, which must be able to get within 6" of her basking spot, versus 11" for the T5HO, and the T8 must be replaced every 6 months, versus every year for the T5HO. If you can get her basking spot within 6" of the UVB tube then the T8 is fine, but you must have a reflector...

Did you see the Temperature ranges I posted? There is no way an enclosure that size will reach those temps with a 50 watt bulb! For reference, a 40 gallon breeder tank needs a 100 watt bright white basking bulb to get to appropriate ranges...Do you have a digital probe thermometer? Please pick one up if not, and be sure to allow the probe to sit on each of the 3 important temperature zones for at least 20-30 minutes before reading the temperature...If you have a digital probe thermometer already, what are the 3 temps? I have 2 enclosures that are 4'x2'x2', and one that is 36"x18"x18", and the 2 larger enclosures use a single 150 watt, and the 36"x18x18 uses a single 100 watt...So a 50 watt is definitely not getting her temps even close...

 

[kingofnobbys]

I was going to suggest replacing the old 5%UVB coil with a 26W UVB200 (these compacts are very powerful and very good - Ive been using them with my dragons for over 7 years - no eye issues at all).

Repti-Zoo uvb tubes are very dodgey , horrible Chinese knockoffs (made in china on the cheap and distributed by Dong Guan ETAN Industrial & Investment Co., Ltd.... I suggest ditching it or if new, return and request either an Arcadia T8 12%UVB tube or Zoo Med T8 10%UVB or Exo Terra T8 10%UVB, but in reality I'd also exchange the new T8 tube fitting for a T5HO reflector hood and go immediatedly to a T5HO 12%UVB Arcadia tube.

Any UV light that comes with Jiaxing Nomoy Pet Products Co., Ltd brand on them - give it a very wide berth .... they are as dodgey as they come - very poor quality quartz (full of defects) and very low grade phosphors , made on the cheap somewhere in mainland china.

No wonder she's got a bad case of sore eyes ! Fortunately with photoconjunctivitis , I believe the turning off of the culprit (light) or replacing it with a good quality UV light results in fast results.

For setting up your basking and UV lighting see my cheatsheet ,
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=234738&p=1806050#p1806050
there is a good guide and handy information in it to help you set the lights RIGHT.

I'd replace the basking globe with one of these http://www.lighting.philips.com.au/prof/conventional-lamps-and-tubes/incandescent-lamps/reflector-nr-r-par-e-a-p-pc-shape/par38 , they come in 80W and 120W , all are dimmable. I'd go for the 120W colorless version and invest in an inline dimmer for it .... you'll need the extra wattage when the cold weather returns.

 

[Melissa91]

i am in south africa on the south coast, everyone here just uses 50watts

 

[kingofnobbys]

i am in south africa on the south coast, everyone here just uses 50watts

Anywhere near Cape Town ?
...., this would place you essentially at the same latitude as me, Lake Macquarie NSW (33 deg South). Your climate will be very similar as here too. I get away with 80W par38 globes for my Bluetongues in their 4ft x 2ft x 2ft timber vivs, and 60W for my rearing tubs.

A 50W halogen is pretty powerful , are they using 50W halogen spots or 50W reflector style (par38) incandescent spots ?

Bare in mind most here on this board are in the USA , Canada and EU , and all in colder climates than you experience and the majority have converted fish tanks made from glass which have essentially open tops ( so need fair bit more wattage from their basking globes to achieve the basking spot and warm zone temperatures both because their homes are chiller for the most part and because all the warm air created by the basking globes is immediately lost through those mesh lids they all seem to have.
See viewtopic.php?f=34&t=236332&p=1816614#p1816614

I see from your earlier photos you have a viv with with a nice solid lid. .... so you shouldn't need as much wattage in your viv because there is not so much heat lost by convection and the solid lid will insulate the viv (keep heat in very effectively).

You'll find a very good and easy to follow guide for heating and UV here : viewtopic.php?f=6&t=234738&p=1806050#p1806050

So long as you are able to get the basking spot temperature at 40-43 degC , and a warm zone about 30-33 degC your beardie will be fine.

 

[kingofnobbys]

Most pet shops do not carry the Reptisun 10.0 T5HO, only the Reptisun 10.0 T8, which must be able to get within 6" of her basking spot, versus 11" for the T5HO, and the T8 must be replaced every 6 months, versus every year for the T5HO. If you can get her basking spot within 6" of the UVB tube then the T8 is fine, but you must have a reflector...

Did you see the Temperature ranges I posted? There is no way an enclosure that size will reach those temps with a 50 watt bulb! For reference, a 40 gallon breeder tank needs a 100 watt bright white basking bulb to get to appropriate ranges...
<<< she has a timber viv with a solid lid , so can indeed get away with lower wattage basking globes than are required for open top glass breeders.
her basking globe will be by default closer to the basking spot
and
most the heat created by the globe trapped inside the viv.

Do you have a digital probe thermometer? Please pick one up if not, and be sure to allow the probe to sit on each of the 3 important temperature zones for at least 20-30 minutes before reading the temperature...If you have a digital probe thermometer already, what are the 3 temps? I have 2 enclosures that are 4'x2'x2', and one that is 36"x18"x18", and the 2 larger enclosures use a single 150 watt, and the 36"x18x18 uses a single 100 watt...So a 50 watt is definitely not getting her temps even close...

 

[Melissa91]

Thanks so much kingofnobbys. Im in margate so not really close to cape town but same type of climate i guess. You really make me feel so much better.