Need a little help little one won't eat crickets

[aronoiiel]

So after some help on here I got him in a good sized tank with a reptisun 10.0 bulb and I'm not sure on his basking bulb wattage but it's on a dimmer so I can control the temps. Both sides are the right temps basking hitting between 102 and 104 and cool side staying generally around 75 to 80 just depends on how cool my living room is. My problem is that he doesn't seem to be eating crickets at all anymore He is 7 inches long and was eating them with gusto the first three weeks or so I had him. Slowly he's been going off them and the past two nights he hasn't eaten at all He was eating his greens also and has also stopped nibbling those as well. I know he's hungry he at four wax worms tonight which is the first time I've offered them and frankly did so just to see if he'd eat them. He's also developed quite the attitude toward anyone getting him out of his tank when he's not sleepy. When he's tired it's no problem but when he's fully awake and basking he skitters, puffs, and throws a terrible fit with hissing and biting included. It all started two weeks ago. I handle him once a day now at night before and after feeding and he seems to be happy with it and still enjoys his baths every couple of days. I'm just stumped all this is happening like a downward slide and I'm not sure where I went wrong I'm sure I've caused this somehow but my question is how do I fix it all

 

[ashleyelsha]

My bearded dragon used to get moody and not eat when he was getting ready to shed. I guess his skin felt itchy. He freaked out when I held him and refused food for two days, after he started to shed his appetite picked back up. I have noticed now that I can tell when he is getting ready to shed by his attitude. He doesn't refuse food anymore but he will be less enthusiastic and skittish with handling. Maybe that could be what's going on with yours?

 

[aronoiiel]

Thank you for the reply That's what I initially thought so I didn't worry to much about it but we're going into the third week of him doing this with no signs of actual shedding so I'm guessing that might not be it? I've actually done tons of searching on here via the search bar (freaking awesome thing btw) and it all boils down to either he is being picky about his food, doing some weird puberty thing, or he's been startled by something and it's stuck with him. I couldn't find much of anything else that would lead to his current behavior so I'm hoping someone might have some ideas? I'm going to pick up some reptiworms today and see if he'll eat those as well I know he's really young but maybe he just won't eat crickets anymore? I only bought him waxworms last night because he didn't eat anything the previous day or yesterday morning Vet check was clear no parasites or anything funny in his system so I'm kinda stumped. Doesn't help it's my first beardie lol

 

[YuriTBD]

Several things in this message, your not wrong by any means but moving to a new tank can be stressful for them. it like your parents going through your sock drawer and rearranging your fave socks and socks you hated. now your just in an ill mood because you can't find them. most lizards don't like change and they will stop eating become aggressive and stubborn for several weeks before they can re adjust. ( sometimes not all are like that) handling them during that time can make the process take longer... because more stress is of course more stress. though this may not be the case, just a suggestion. next thing to try would be to entice them with something they are eating, give em a few and then trick them by switching the next one out with the cricket. wax worms work great they are like candy to them. if your buddy takes the bait and eats the cricket, try to give another one. if they won't eat it try to trick them again. eventually they will give in. sometimes they just forget what is food and what isn't. some days mine thinks my finger is food and not the cricket, others only veggies. and other day's he wants the cricket. so to get him to eat both i trick him and he doesn't complain at least if he does he hasn't showed me yet lol.

 

[YuriTBD]

Several things in this message, your not wrong by any means but moving to a new tank can be stressful for them. it like your parents going through your sock drawer and rearranging your fave socks and socks you hated. now your just in an ill mood because you can't find them. most lizards don't like change and they will stop eating become aggressive and stubborn for several weeks before they can re adjust. ( sometimes not all are like that) handling them during that time can make the process take longer... because more stress is of course more stress. though this may not be the case, just a suggestion. next thing to try would be to entice them with something they are eating, give em a few and then trick them by switching the next one out with the cricket. wax worms work great they are like candy to them. if your buddy takes the bait and eats the cricket, try to give another one. if they won't eat it try to trick them again. eventually they will give in. sometimes they just forget what is food and what isn't. some days mine thinks my finger is food and not the cricket, others only veggies. and other day's he wants the cricket. so to get him to eat both i trick him and he doesn't complain at least if he does he hasn't showed me yet lol.

another note. add variety, he might just be tired of eating them all the time. they have charts on here of different types of foods for them to eat, try them and see what your beardie likes. and change them out every couple of days to keep them from getting bored.

 

[aronoiiel]

Thanks for all the tips I really appreciate them