New petsmart beardie sick?!

[AmberH]

Hey y'all! I got a new baby beardie from petsmart on June 19th and I think he is starting to get sick. I've had two previous beardies one from petsmart and one from petco and both passed away after all my efforts to save them. I really really want this third guy to survive and I don't know if it's something I'm doing wrong or if I'm just getting sick dragons. I have two leopard geckos and a crestie so I'm not a newbie to reptiles in the slightest but obviously I'm having trouble with the beardies. When I go to purchase them I always get the biggest ones and make sure they are alert and have a belly on them. I have a 50 gallon tank (it's a national geographic sanctuary from petsmart the biggest size). I have a 75 watt zoo med heat bulb on one side that makes his basking spot 105 degrees Fahrenheit and I have a branch under there along with a repti hammock so he can have varying degrees under his heat lamp. I have one of the compact UVB bulbs (which after reading more I will change out for a long 10.0 as soon as I can). He is on repti carpet and paper towel. I've been feeding calcium dusted crickets and I got some meal worms for a few days between cricket shipments and he seems to only want those so I've been giving them to him even though I know it's not the best source of food it is all he will eat. He doesn't touch his veggies (mustard and turnip greens). He is perky and responsive and I've given him baths almost every day and when he doesn't get a bath he gets sprayed in his tank. The problem I'm having is that he is slowly starting to not eat and his poops have gotten small and are on their way to stopping completely. I just wondered if I could get any advice/ opinions from some more experienced keepers. Thanks in advance for any and all responses.

 

[destiny1998]

Hi. Good you'll be changing out the uvb. Stop mealworms. They make babies impacted. That's what sounds like is happening. No feeders bigger than the space between their eyes. What are your temps on the basking spot? How do you take them? Babies don't really eat salad . All you can do is offer it everyday.

 

[AmberH]

The basking temp is anywhere between 105 and 110 I take the temp with a thermometer with a probe. The cool side is about 75-80 degrees. I was thinking about switching his staple diet to repti worms. What do you think about that? I've done tons of research and watched a lot of videos from Michael from Webe reptiles. It just seems that he likes worms better than crickets. He kind of stays dark under his belly but the rest of him is bright and colorful. His white urine is runny instead of solid as well so I didn't know if I was watering him too much or if parasites could be a factor?

 

[AHBD]

Hi Amber, can you post a few shots of him as well as his set up ? Here's how :

https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/
Then hit XIMG

It's REALLY important to get the proper lights right now....if he is developing a calcium deficiency because the uvb is not reaching him to enable him to absorb calcium, then he may go downhill quickly. Until then, take him outside in a large plastic tote when it's not too hot , include a log for him to bask on and keep part of the tote in the shade. A good dose of sun can do wonders [ in the a.m or late afternoon, before sundown when it's not too hot ]

As Destiny mentioned, mealworms aren't good for babies and some dragons may snub crickets after they get a taste for them so then you have another problem besides possible impaction. He may bounce right back with a few adjustments.

 

[destiny1998]

Yes. Repti worms are excellent feeders. But you still want to give him a variety. Maybe add silk worms, horworms. Idk if you can get dubia where you live , they are very good feeders. It sounds liks hes well hydrated. I wouldn't worry about parasites as long as his poop doesn't smell very bad and his appetite is good. It sounds like your set up is good.

 

[AmberH]

Yes I will post pictures when I get home. Can someone send me a link to a site to get the UVB light and fixture for a reasonable price? I have been taking him outside but picking him up and stuff seems to stress him out. He was rubbing his nose on the glass so I put some foam pieces on the glass so it kinda looks funky. I'm trying to figure out getting a nice background for it. I will definitely get a variety of worms.

 

[AmberH]

Also I was going to try Dubia but my dad isn't too keen on roaches in the house and they kind of weird me out as well ?

 

[AmberH]

[XIMG]87644 5585475499[/

XIMG]

 

[AmberH]

He always brightens right up after a bath. All these pics were taken just now within a few minutes of eachother. Even the ones of the tank.

 

[CooperDragon]

This is on sale now. It's the one I use and it's excellent. It should provide a great level of UVB for over a year. It can be mounted right on top of the tank. http://www.lightyourreptiles.com/22-t-5-ho-fixture-high-output-with-arcadia-d3-12-ho-bulb/

 

[diamc]

I agree that bulb and fixture are great. It's a good buy getting them both for that price.

 

[AmberH]

Okay awesome I'll order that as soon I can. Does anyone have any recommendations on where to get good repti worms with over night shipping? The repti worms site only does 2-3 day priority and pick up at post office

 

[AmberH]

Okay I have ordered reptiworms and hornworms and they should be here tomorrow morning. Do you think he will be okay for a week on the lighting just so I can get my next paycheck in? If not I will have to go to petsmart and just buy a zoomed fixture with cash.

 

[CooperDragon]

Yeah just bring him outside for a bit if the weather is nice and he can get a good amount of UVB from natural sunlight.

 

[AmberH]

Yes I will definitely do that. He seems to be perkier since I took him out this morning too so I will take him out again in just a few minutes.