My Beardie's eye has a clear crust on it! help!!
- Thread starter Rafe
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H31d1
Member
Hi sorry to hear your having problems with your beardy. im not sure about the crusty eye but if you could answer the following questions then it could help to rule out things.
Also, if you could put a picture up it would be a great help.
How old is your dragon?
How long have you had your dragon?
How long is your dragon?
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in?
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank?
Do you use UVB lights?
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb?
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)?
How old is your UVB bulb?
How close can your dragon get to the UVB?
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage?
What are the basking temps?
What is the cool side temp?
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun?
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps?
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad?
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific.
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)?
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them?
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)?
Do you bath your dragon? How often?
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath?
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon?
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done?
Also, if you could put a picture up it would be a great help.
How old is your dragon?
How long have you had your dragon?
How long is your dragon?
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in?
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank?
Do you use UVB lights?
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb?
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)?
How old is your UVB bulb?
How close can your dragon get to the UVB?
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage?
What are the basking temps?
What is the cool side temp?
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun?
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps?
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad?
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific.
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)?
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them?
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)?
Do you bath your dragon? How often?
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath?
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon?
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done?
Hi there, welcome to the forum. Sorry to hear that something is going on with your beardie's eye. There could be several reasons for it so if you could give us more background info, it would be helpful. The first thoughts that come to mind are that he could have some loose substrate in his eye if you are using something loose on the bottom of his tank. Other ideas are an upper respiratory infection, a possible injury or even using a UVB light that is causing some eye issues. So, answering the questions that H31d1 posted would be helpful so we can rule things out.
You mentioned that you're feeding crickets once a wk, that seems like a small amt so filling us in on his age would be very helpful. Romaine lettuce isn't very nutritional and can also cause runny poops so please take a look at this site for a very good list of the best greens/veggies to feed: http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html
Once we get some more of the needed info, we will do our best to help out further.
You mentioned that you're feeding crickets once a wk, that seems like a small amt so filling us in on his age would be very helpful. Romaine lettuce isn't very nutritional and can also cause runny poops so please take a look at this site for a very good list of the best greens/veggies to feed: http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html
Once we get some more of the needed info, we will do our best to help out further.
How old is your dragon?
-about a year and a half
How long have you had your dragon?
-a year.
How long is your dragon?
-12"
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in?
-11 gallon aquarium
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank?
-sand, but i will be switching to alfalfa
Do you use UVB lights?
-yeah
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb?
-flourescent compact
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)?
-Zoomed, 10.0 UVB
How old is your UVB bulb?
-a year
How close can your dragon get to the UVB?
-12"
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage?
-No
What are the basking temps?
-n/a
What is the cool side temp?
-n/a
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun?
-none
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps?
-i don't
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad?
-no.
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific.
-Romain lettuce, crickets, super worms, and carrots
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)?
-after noon, lettuce every other day. Crickets once a week
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
-yeah
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them?
-no, the sand has the vitamins
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)?
-yeah, but today i noticed is was a little runny. not its usual "firmness"
Do you bath your dragon? How often?
-i actually didnt know you could, so i gave him one today ^^
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath?
-starting today.
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon?
-nope
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done?
-no
I noticed that he has not been his usual self :/
he isnt moving much for anything.
-about a year and a half
How long have you had your dragon?
-a year.
How long is your dragon?
-12"
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in?
-11 gallon aquarium
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank?
-sand, but i will be switching to alfalfa
Do you use UVB lights?
-yeah
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb?
-flourescent compact
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)?
-Zoomed, 10.0 UVB
How old is your UVB bulb?
-a year
How close can your dragon get to the UVB?
-12"
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage?
-No
What are the basking temps?
-n/a
What is the cool side temp?
-n/a
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun?
-none
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps?
-i don't
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad?
-no.
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific.
-Romain lettuce, crickets, super worms, and carrots
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)?
-after noon, lettuce every other day. Crickets once a week
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
-yeah
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them?
-no, the sand has the vitamins
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)?
-yeah, but today i noticed is was a little runny. not its usual "firmness"
Do you bath your dragon? How often?
-i actually didnt know you could, so i gave him one today ^^
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath?
-starting today.
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon?
-nope
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done?
-no
I noticed that he has not been his usual self :/
he isnt moving much for anything.
Thanks for answering the questions. I see some things that we need to get a handle on to help your beardie. A lot of us came to this forum when we had some concerns and realized were were given a lot of bad info from either a pet store or somewhere else and couldn't believe the change in our beardies when we made some adjustments in their setup.
Your beardie is quite small for being 1 1/2 yrs old. But, being in a 11 gallon tank is too small for him. I suggest you check here to see if you can find a minimum of a 40 gallon breeder for a reasonable price. http://www.craigslist.org/about/sites Tanks that small limit the amount of room they have to move around in and it's very hard to get the temps right which is extremely important for their total well being.
You mentioned that you have him on calci-sand which is actually very dangerous. Because it contains calcium, it encourages them to lick it then hardens in their bellies like cement. Another name for this substrate is "death sand" and it has unfortunately caused quite a few deaths because they get impacted and they aren't able to pass it. Rather than changing to alfalfa, I would recommend a solid substrate instead like non-adhesive shelf liner, reptile carpet, slate tiles or if you really prefer to use sand, buy some children's playsand which isn't totally impaction free especially if you have a beardie that licks a lot, but it is much safer than any other type of sand or the other loose substrates.
I hate to be the bearer of more bad news, but the compact bulbs are also very dangerous. They cause all sorts of health issues, the main symptoms being lethargy and eye issues. You can read more about that here: [ Invalid URL Removed / p= t=65424 f=1 ] This is the best fluorescent UVB you can find in the U.S. For the hood, you can go to Walmart, Lowe's or Home Depot and buy a standard fluorescent light, remove the plastic cover and the bulb that comes with it, put in the UVB and leave the plastic cover off. You should be able to find a hood for $8.00 up.
You will need to use a basking bulb otherwise he will not be able to digest his food and he will get very ill if not worse. For a 11 gallon tank, you could try a 60 watt household light bulb and see how he reacts with that. BUT, you will need to invest in either a temperature gun or a digital thermometer with a long wire & probe end to find out what the temps really are. If his basking area brings him closer than 6" to that bulb, you should use a 40 watt instead until you can get a good reading of the temps.
I posted the link to the beautifuldragons site above, but here it is again. http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html Please review it and offer some other greens/veggies besides just the romaine and carrots, suggestions would be collard, mustard greens, escarole, endive, etc. All the best greens are printed on that site in green ink. He should be fed fresh greens daily and can also get 50 small feeders (like crickets) or 30 to 35 larger feeders (like hornworms, silkworms, etc) a week. They need protein and healthy greens to help them grow and since your beardie is only 12" he may do some more growing once you change some things around.
With an adult, you should be dusting his greens or live food 3 days a wk with calcium with D3 but phosphorus-free and with vitamins 1 to 2 days a wk. Since your beardie hasn't been getting any supplements, you could actually start giving him calcium 4 to 5 days a wk and vitamins 2 days a wk but you have to be sure you have a good UVB light before doing it that often otherwise he won't be able to process it efficiently.
The romaine can cause runny poos so it would be a good idea to remove that from his diet and replace with others as explained above. I would also suggest that you take a fecal sample to a vet to check for parasites soon.
That's good that you gave him a bath today, I suggest you do that at least 4 to 5 times a wk in case he is bound up from the sand. Be sure to put a washcloth down in the sink or container to help him feel more secure. You can add enough warm water (tested by the inside of your wrist, should feel warm but not hot or cold) to cover his front legs and he may even put his head down to get a drink. But, watch him closely because they can drown. A 15 to 20 min soak helps with proper hydration.
I know this is a lot of information but I didn't want to leave anything out. One more thing about his eyes, the irritation could be from the compact UVB and/or from sand particles in his eyes. You can pick up some saline solution in your drug store, the type that is used to flush out the eyes and use that 2 to 3 times a day, that should help wash anything out and should also relieve the irritation from the compact bulb. Please be sure to turn off that bulb as no UVB is better for a few days instead of using that type.
If you have any questions, please let us know.
Your beardie is quite small for being 1 1/2 yrs old. But, being in a 11 gallon tank is too small for him. I suggest you check here to see if you can find a minimum of a 40 gallon breeder for a reasonable price. http://www.craigslist.org/about/sites Tanks that small limit the amount of room they have to move around in and it's very hard to get the temps right which is extremely important for their total well being.
You mentioned that you have him on calci-sand which is actually very dangerous. Because it contains calcium, it encourages them to lick it then hardens in their bellies like cement. Another name for this substrate is "death sand" and it has unfortunately caused quite a few deaths because they get impacted and they aren't able to pass it. Rather than changing to alfalfa, I would recommend a solid substrate instead like non-adhesive shelf liner, reptile carpet, slate tiles or if you really prefer to use sand, buy some children's playsand which isn't totally impaction free especially if you have a beardie that licks a lot, but it is much safer than any other type of sand or the other loose substrates.
I hate to be the bearer of more bad news, but the compact bulbs are also very dangerous. They cause all sorts of health issues, the main symptoms being lethargy and eye issues. You can read more about that here: [ Invalid URL Removed / p= t=65424 f=1 ] This is the best fluorescent UVB you can find in the U.S. For the hood, you can go to Walmart, Lowe's or Home Depot and buy a standard fluorescent light, remove the plastic cover and the bulb that comes with it, put in the UVB and leave the plastic cover off. You should be able to find a hood for $8.00 up.
You will need to use a basking bulb otherwise he will not be able to digest his food and he will get very ill if not worse. For a 11 gallon tank, you could try a 60 watt household light bulb and see how he reacts with that. BUT, you will need to invest in either a temperature gun or a digital thermometer with a long wire & probe end to find out what the temps really are. If his basking area brings him closer than 6" to that bulb, you should use a 40 watt instead until you can get a good reading of the temps.
I posted the link to the beautifuldragons site above, but here it is again. http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html Please review it and offer some other greens/veggies besides just the romaine and carrots, suggestions would be collard, mustard greens, escarole, endive, etc. All the best greens are printed on that site in green ink. He should be fed fresh greens daily and can also get 50 small feeders (like crickets) or 30 to 35 larger feeders (like hornworms, silkworms, etc) a week. They need protein and healthy greens to help them grow and since your beardie is only 12" he may do some more growing once you change some things around.
With an adult, you should be dusting his greens or live food 3 days a wk with calcium with D3 but phosphorus-free and with vitamins 1 to 2 days a wk. Since your beardie hasn't been getting any supplements, you could actually start giving him calcium 4 to 5 days a wk and vitamins 2 days a wk but you have to be sure you have a good UVB light before doing it that often otherwise he won't be able to process it efficiently.
The romaine can cause runny poos so it would be a good idea to remove that from his diet and replace with others as explained above. I would also suggest that you take a fecal sample to a vet to check for parasites soon.
That's good that you gave him a bath today, I suggest you do that at least 4 to 5 times a wk in case he is bound up from the sand. Be sure to put a washcloth down in the sink or container to help him feel more secure. You can add enough warm water (tested by the inside of your wrist, should feel warm but not hot or cold) to cover his front legs and he may even put his head down to get a drink. But, watch him closely because they can drown. A 15 to 20 min soak helps with proper hydration.
I know this is a lot of information but I didn't want to leave anything out. One more thing about his eyes, the irritation could be from the compact UVB and/or from sand particles in his eyes. You can pick up some saline solution in your drug store, the type that is used to flush out the eyes and use that 2 to 3 times a day, that should help wash anything out and should also relieve the irritation from the compact bulb. Please be sure to turn off that bulb as no UVB is better for a few days instead of using that type.
If you have any questions, please let us know.
spurlee01
BD.org Addict
So many of us have made our way here because of inadequate or just plain wrong information given by pet stores. It really does break my heart. The good news is, you're hear now and we can fix these problems! Diane has given you great advice. The beautiful dragons sight is my bible when it comes to beardie food. I think the UVB is probably causing his eye problems as Diane said. If you are in the US, the petmountain site is by far the best I've found to order the reptiSUN 10.0 UVB TUBE from. Your beardie will actually do well with a break from UVB for a week or so, that way his eyes have some time to heal. It's going to be very important to your beardies overall well being that you feed him as suggested above. Getting a bigger tank will also be a priority. I've been checking Craig's list religiously hoping to find one, but so far no luck. I think I'm going to build mine with some help from the men in my life. Here is the link I'm going off of http://www.freewebs.com/crossfireenclosures/.
It would be best to immediately remove the calci sand. I am just using paper towel in my girl's viv until I get her "big girl" enclosure. I'm going to put tile in that. I am also really concerned about your temps. If you don't have a basking bulb, I'm guessing your temps can't be much above 80*F. Beardies have to have a minimum of 95* to digest their food and the low temps could also be causing the eye crust. Baths will be key in getting your beardie back to health. If you do mist, do it outside of the cage. I know Diane's already given you most of this advice, I just want to reinforce it as following our advice will be critical to getting your beardie healthy again. Keep us updated on the changes and your beardie's progress and feel free to ask more questions as they come up.
Sara
It would be best to immediately remove the calci sand. I am just using paper towel in my girl's viv until I get her "big girl" enclosure. I'm going to put tile in that. I am also really concerned about your temps. If you don't have a basking bulb, I'm guessing your temps can't be much above 80*F. Beardies have to have a minimum of 95* to digest their food and the low temps could also be causing the eye crust. Baths will be key in getting your beardie back to health. If you do mist, do it outside of the cage. I know Diane's already given you most of this advice, I just want to reinforce it as following our advice will be critical to getting your beardie healthy again. Keep us updated on the changes and your beardie's progress and feel free to ask more questions as they come up.
Sara
I have turned off the bulb *phew* and i just want to make sure that he is Ok without it?
also i noticed that he keeps puffing up his throat. kinda like he is taking a really deep breath.
thank you for the website for the food. so many people have told me to feed him the lettuce. thank you. but he isnt interested in eating at all. he wont eat the super worms or anything else i put in there.but also i bought some eye drops for him and i cant get them in his eyes :/ the one that has the crust on it wont open at all. should i force it open?
also he is safely out of the "death"sand and right now i had some extra alfalfa. he seems to enjoy it more
starting to seem a little more active and still hissing at my cat ^^
Demon (Bearded dragon) and i thank you so much for your help
also i noticed that he keeps puffing up his throat. kinda like he is taking a really deep breath.
thank you for the website for the food. so many people have told me to feed him the lettuce. thank you. but he isnt interested in eating at all. he wont eat the super worms or anything else i put in there.but also i bought some eye drops for him and i cant get them in his eyes :/ the one that has the crust on it wont open at all. should i force it open?
also he is safely out of the "death"sand and right now i had some extra alfalfa. he seems to enjoy it more
starting to seem a little more active and still hissing at my cat ^^
Demon (Bearded dragon) and i thank you so much for your help
spurlee01
BD.org Addict
He will be okay without the light for 1-2 weeks. You should probably go ahead and order the reptisun 10.0 TUBE soon because shipping takes several days. With this bulb, he will need to get within 6-8" of the bulb. I put a tall log in Lilly's viv to accomplish this and my boyfriend built up a basking platform with tile in his BD's tank. I am kind of against loose substrate not just because they can be swallowed but because they have a "litterbox" effect. In other words when beardie poops it is kind of impossible to get all of the liquidy part out and some bacteria stay. Plus they can get moldy. I don't know anything about alfalfa in particular, though. Neither of my beardies will touch superworms. They both like butterworms and LOVE hornworms. They like roaches a lot better than crickets, but I can't afford to feed roaches all of the time. I can't emphasize enough how important it is that you get a proper themometer. Temps can literally be the difference between life and death for a beardie. Feel free to ask any more questions that come up and definitely keep us posted on how your beardie improves with the changes.
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Mirage came out of brumation on April 26. He was doing great. On May 2 he started acting funny. We just redid his tank, and he keeps going into one of his hides. He just lays there. He shows no intrest in food. HELP!
