my baby isnt getting bigger?

[deco]

hello everyone, im new to these forums and i need info. i picked up 2 babys almost 2 weeks ago from the repti show here in las vegas. got them home, and set them up in just a 10 gal for now. there small, like under 4" when i got them. well i would be happy to say there doing great but one doesnt seem to be. i didnt even bother trying to sex them, but my kids call the smaller one a girl liz, and the bigger one a boy, rex. well rex is getting bigger he is just over 5" now and bulking up. its amazing how fast he is growing. however liz doesnt seem to be growing at all. she is just 4" and a lot narrower. she isnt overly skinny, she looks helthy, just small. she eats greens, and crickets every day, 2 times a day. she will eat a few small peaces of greens in the am, and 2-3 crickets, and in the eavaning 1-2 crickets and also a few small peaces of greens. rex eats quite a bit more now, like 3-5 crickets morning and night, but i have seen liz eat 5 in one feeding. my problem again is, why is she not growing. id be hard pressed to say she has at all in 2 weeks. also it seems like something may be wrong with her eyes.there always closed. if you pick her up she is kinda looking around for a min, but closes her eyes and lays down in just a few seconds, when there open,it seems like ther not all the way. i have been spraying them 2 times a day also. there basking side is around 95, and the other side is around 75-80. i am using papaer in ther tank for now. thats about it. sorry so long but i just want to make sure she is ok. she is so sweet and id hate to loose her.

 

[Linaeve]

I don't even have a dragon yet, but after reading extensively I hope to offer some good advice.

Your basking side seems a little low. For such younglings, the basking side should be around 100-110. Also, she may be getting stressed now because Rex is getting bigger; as solitary animals, him being bigger makes him a threat. Perhaps seperating them to see if she'll eat more and grow will be a good idea.

Are you dusting and gutloading the crickets?

I'm not sure about the eye thing, she could just be a little weak.

 

[gulfbrzdawn]

Sorry to hear your little beardie is not doing too well. Could you go over your set up with us? It will help to determine what might be bothering her.

What Brand and Type UVB?
What Type and Watt basking bulb?
How are you measuring the temps? Digital thermometer w/probe end, stick-on type, temp gun?
How close can your beardie get to the UVB?
Are you supplementing with Calcium and Multivitamins? If so, how often?
Are you bathing them for hydration?

 

[deco]

ok there in a 10 gal, for now, i have 2 bulb set up, a 75 watt basking and a 26 watt repti glo 10.0 uvb. the bulbs are about 10-11" away. its about 95 on there basking spot, the cool side is about 75. im useing small crickets, dusted, and greens. she seems like maybe she cant catch them. she will try and miss then give up, i feed her by hand 2 crickets last night and she ate them fine. i spary them withwater, but never gave them a bath. i dont thing she is dehydrated, and she doesnt look emaciated. she is playfull, but sleeps alot, i was thinking it could be stress, but worry its something more.

 

[gulfbrzdawn]

Those are very tiny young babies you have. In fact, they are so young you will need to act fast on getting the little girl to a healthier state. When they are this young they can go downhill very fast. The temps are critical... you did not mention what type of thermometer you are using. Baby beardies need warmer temps. Their basking side should be between 105-110 and coolside 80-85. Unless you are using a digital thermometer with a probe end or a temp gun, you will not know the correct temps unfortunately. The stick-on type thermometers are not very accurate and can be off as much as +20/-20 degrees. The 75W heat bulb may be too much for the 10 gallon tank, depending on the temps in your home. Could you let us know how you are measuring the temps.
If your temps are too high, this could lead to dehydration in your beardies.
The ReptiGlo UVB unfortunately has been known to cause some health issues among beardies and can be very harsh on their eyes. Your beardie could be closing her eyes due to the UVB. Is the basking bulb a white light?
Right now the best UVB on the market is the ReptiSUN 10 fluorescent "tube". You can find them at a reasonable price online here http://www.petmountain.com
If you do get the ReptiSUN 10.0, make sure it is the linear tube and not the compact/coil.
I would suggest bathing your beardies, especially the little girl. Unless they are drinking water droplets from the misting/spraying, this will not do them any good. Beardies do not absorb water through their skin. They absorb water through their vent(slit at base of tail). Soaking them in warm water(no deeper than their armpits) for a good 15 minutes will help to keep them hydrated. Putting water on their veggies is also a great way to get water in them.
Since your little girl is not eating much on her own, I would suggest getting her some chicken or turkey babyfood and feeding it to her with a needleless syringe. You can mix it with a little squash babyfood as well. Thinning it with a little water will be helpful to get it through the syringe. Just dab some on her nose until she starts licking it off.
Are you supplementing your beardies with calcium and multivitamins? You can also put a small pinch of calcium in the babyfood.

Try the bath's and babyfood and let us know how your beardie is doing. Also let us know about your thermometer.

 

[deco]

it is a stick on type, and i move it nere where the basking spot is to get a better idea, i have moved them up and now have them in a place where there able to get 100-105* temps. as for the reptiglo, i dont know anything on that, im limeted to what i can do as for bulbs. the bigger one is thriving, he is getting bigger and bigger by the day. the little one has gotten bigger and she is eating a lot better on her own. if i give them crickets she will chase one down and eat it, and then go after another. if she misses she seems to stop eating so i have been pushing them close to her and she just grabs them up and eats. so it seems she is eating fine and i am dusting them with vitamens. her color is good, and size is fine if she should be this size. how ever there seems to be a thick layer around her eyes under the eyelids, and kinda sticking out. not mucuosy but just a few min ago, right after a bath her eyes started bugging out, im not taking this lightly, it freaked me out, she looked like she had 2 ballons on the side of her head and it looked like they were about to pop. they went down after a few secounds but as i said it freaked me out. a vet trip is almost out of the question, unless some one can give me a definative answer, im out of work, and have 3 kids. i have had reptiles for ever and never had anything like this. please help me.

 

[catUK]

babies should be eating around 30-100 crickets a day and fed 2-3 times per day, however many crickets they can eat in a 10 min period. If they are housed together (which isn't recommended), one may become more dominant (bigger one) and hence stress out the smaller one. if she is stressed her appetite will decrease and health problems may arise. You could try something like wax moth larvee to try fatten her up- they've got a high fat content and should be fed as treats but can be fed to increase weight- plus my beardie goes mad for them.

As for the bulging eyes, this can happen when beardies are about to shed- they do this to loosen the skin so if this is what it is, its normal (although freaky to see)

 

[MALIBUSMOM]

I seem to be reading more and more posts of babys not thriving when repti glo is used for UVB.

 

[gulfbrzdawn]

As mentioned above... the ReptiGlo's are not a very good UVB. If financially you cannot afford another UVB right now, then keep the ReptiGlo at a distance of 10-12" from your beardies. Be sure to have a birght white basking bulb along side the ReptiGlo, to protect your beardie's eyes from the harmful UVB rays. I am only suggesting this until you can afford the ReptiSUN 10, which is a much safer UVB.
I would like to suggest that you get a decent thermometer. The stick-on type are not very accurate and your temps could be way off. You can get a great little digital thermometer with a wire and probe end at Walmart. It is called AcuRite and runs around $12. It is in the indoor/outdoor home thermometer section(not the pet section). The temps are vital to the health and well being of your beardies.
The eye bulging, is usually a sign of shedding around the eye area. You mentioned something around your beardies eyes. Could this have been loose skin you saw?
Were you able to pick up any babyfood and feed it to your little one? Are you bathing them both to keep them hydrated?
How is the little girl doing today?

 

[deco]

I haven’t been back on in a few days. things got a lot worse for the little one. she stopped eating and was just failing to thrive. we couldn’t even force her to take the repti rescue we used to help our spiny when he was sick. unable to take her to the vet, and being that she was so small they said it was almost pointless, I called the guy I got her from and he said bring her back, he has a lot of experience and he will try his best. it was sad for me even though we only had her for a few weeks, my I didn’t want my kids to have to deal with the let down, so we went to take her back and pick out another. what happened next was just painful to see, and names will be left out to avoid any issues. we arrived at the house where the breeders lived. went into the room and there was a 10 gal tank , open, no lid, or screen with 6 babies, all from the same mothers eggs, and all the same size as the little one except one. the man took it out and said he is the best eater and gave him to me in a small dish. the little guy almost on cue started seizing. the guy didn’t seem to know what was going on, I see it before with my spiny, he wasn’t getting enough vit c and the vet told us it didn’t look good. he was seizing 6-10 times a day. we used the repti rescue, got some new lights, and he was good in just 3 days. well, these beardies were in this tank with only a heat lamp, that was about 14" away, and the tank way to cool. the guy wasn’t supplementing there diet with anything, and had no uvb light. all the babies looked dehydrated. I felt so bad I couldn’t just take them all. I ended up taking one that was very active, his eyes looked good, and seemed good. small and in need of water, I got it home, gave it a bath, introduced it to rex,(they were together 2 weeks go) and fed it. over the last few days this tiny beardy has been eating a little more each day, filling out more and even shed yesterday. he gets along with rex very well, and seems to be adjusting to his new home. but now I just cant stop thinking so bad I couldn’t do anything for he et of those babies. I don’t have the money to do anything, and I can help thinking tat if someone put any effort into them they would all be ok. anyway, thanks to everyone for your help, iv got the tank regulated well now. I have adjusted there light, and feed times. rex is getting so big now, he is almost 6" already, and filling out nicely. thanks again