New dragon hasn't pooped for 3 days... Help!

[J4ckdaw-]

Hey there, fellow dragon owners. I've recently purchased a 3 month old bearded dragon (not my first) from a trusted reptile shop; keep in mind this was 3 days ago. He is presumably male (visible hemipenes, femoral pores and such), sitting at 27 grams and 8 inches when I had originally purchased him. One think I overlooked at the retile shop was the substrate they were using for their bearded dragons: it was a loose substrate, Zilla desert sand blend to be exact. At first I was skeptical, asking about possible impaction as one should when this is a thing to consider. They shrugged it off, saying they'd housed their bearded dragons (along with many other species of lizards and snakes) with that substrate for years with no health concerns at all; they were a well educated shop and could answer any of my questions correctly. I figured it was fine, considering there were poos littering the cage here and there (they were housed together, another thing I am not a fan of but they all looked healthy otherwise.) As the title suggests, he hasn't pooped for the entirety of the time I have had him and am growing steadily more nervous. I've started to get worried about impaction all over again. He's been on paper towel substrate and on a diet of brown crickets and collard greens, the crickets are quite large (around the size of small marbles) though I have never had a problem when feeding a dragon of that size those particular crickets. I've read somewhere that too large of food can also cause impaction, is this true? I'm downsizing on crickets regardless of whether this is true or not. A few more honorable mentions health wise: when I first got him he was full of energy, running everywhere and climbing up my arms. Now, he's grown sort of... Lazy? Not lethargic, no, he's still alert and moves around except less- could this still be relocation stress? He used to happily chase down his crickets but now he prefers to be hand fed (not something I do regularly or the sake of enrichment). He is also kind of twitchy, sometimes when I am no where near him he randomly twitches his head up or to the side (not head bobbing though). Over the timeframe of 2 days he's also gained 7 grams (standing at 34 grams as of now), I get that he's in his growing stage but... I mean, so much growth over two days? It doesn't even look normal, he looks slightly obese despite my limited feedings and balanced diet. I am NOT overfeeding him, could it be the cause of him not going poo or is it natural growth? I've never had this issue before. Please help!

 

[Lyrebird.Rainwing]

Beardies can go days without pooping
I just hope you are ready to eventually get a mega poop

 

[KarrieRee]

Hey there, fellow dragon owners. I've recently purchased a 3 month old bearded dragon (not my first) from a trusted reptile shop; keep in mind this was 3 days ago. He is presumably male (visible hemipenes, femoral pores and such), sitting at 27 grams and 8 inches when I had originally purchased him. One think I overlooked at the retile shop was the substrate they were using for their bearded dragons: it was a loose substrate, Zilla desert sand blend to be exact. At first I was skeptical, asking about possible impaction as one should when this is a thing to consider. They shrugged it off, saying they'd housed their bearded dragons (along with many other species of lizards and snakes) with that substrate for years with no health concerns at all; they were a well educated shop and could answer any of my questions correctly. I figured it was fine, considering there were poos littering the cage here and there (they were housed together, another thing I am not a fan of but they all looked healthy otherwise.) As the title suggests, he hasn't pooped for the entirety of the time I have had him and am growing steadily more nervous. I've started to get worried about impaction all over again. He's been on paper towel substrate and on a diet of brown crickets and collard greens, the crickets are quite large (around the size of small marbles) though I have never had a problem when feeding a dragon of that size those particular crickets. I've read somewhere that too large of food can also cause impaction, is this true? I'm downsizing on crickets regardless of whether this is true or not. A few more honorable mentions health wise: when I first got him he was full of energy, running everywhere and climbing up my arms. Now, he's grown sort of... Lazy? Not lethargic, no, he's still alert and moves around except less- could this still be relocation stress? He used to happily chase down his crickets but now he prefers to be hand fed (not something I do regularly or the sake of enrichment). He is also kind of twitchy, sometimes when I am no where near him he randomly twitches his head up or to the side (not head bobbing though). Over the timeframe of 2 days he's also gained 7 grams (standing at 34 grams as of now), I get that he's in his growing stage but... I mean, so much growth over two days? It doesn't even look normal, he looks slightly obese despite my limited feedings and balanced diet. I am NOT overfeeding him, could it be the cause of him not going poo or is it natural growth? I've never had this issue before. Please help!

Your dragon should be pooping everyday - sand substrate he could be impacted- make sure the insect is no bigger than the space between his eyes- your surface basking temps are 105-110 taken w a digital probe thermometer- your uvb is not a coil and your using a long tube fixture-- zoo med 24 w/ a reptisun 10.0 T 5 or a Arcadia pro T 5 w/ a 12% bulb or a sunblaster nano tech w/ a reptisun 10.0 T 5 bulb-- try feeding some baby food pumpkin to get him to poop

 

[J4ckdaw-]

Beardies can go days without pooping
I just hope you are ready to eventually get a mega poop

Thanks for the input, I'll keep that in mind but if he doesn't poop for another few days I am scheduling a vet visit. I've tried giving him warm baths and massages so we'll see, hoping for inprovment.

 

[J4ckdaw-]

Your dragon should be pooping everyday - sand substrate he could be impacted- make sure the insect is no bigger than the space between his eyes- your surface basking temps are 105-110 taken w a digital probe thermometer- your uvb is not a coil and your using a long tube fixture-- zoo med 24 w/ a reptisun 10.0 T 5 or a Arcadia pro T 5 w/ a 12% bulb or a sunblaster nano tech w/ a reptisun 10.0 T 5 bulb-- try feeding some baby food pumpkin to get him to poop

Thank you, I'll definitely look into a new uvb light. The basing spot temps range from 95-110 where as the cool side is 75-85 and the overall humidity is 30-45%, I will try and find some pumpkin and baby food next time I'm out. Much appreciated

 

[KarrieRee]

Thanks for the input, I'll keep that in mind but if he doesn't poop for another few days I am scheduling a vet visit. I've tried giving him warm baths and massages so we'll see, hoping for inprovment.

NO enemas------------- Beware of vets giving enemas to your dragon | Beardie ER it is best to take care of the impaction by natural means ---- enemas are only advised if they absolutely need it -------- the pumpkin will make him go to the bathroom - add a drop of olive oil and a drop of honey for sweet

 

[J4ckdaw-]

Thank you, I am aware to avoid enamas. I was only thinking of getting an x-ray to confirm if my suspicions are true.