New to (possible) brumation- any tips?

[Zaargo]

Hey guys, it's me again.

Since I am a first time bearded dragon owner, I have a lot of questions and not much experience caring for a beardie in the colder months.

My boy Patches is staying in his hide for weeks(!) now. I sometimes pet him or take him out to bathe to make sure he's still alive and hydrated, but he looks so tired when I do that and I always feel bad about forcefully taking him from his hide. He shows no interest in greens and barely in any bugs. It started around late August and im kinda worried now. Had a vet visit in August and he told me he looks fine.

I would love to hear from an experienced keeper about what I should do, or If I should just leave him be?

Thank you in advance!

 

[Mollie the dragon]

When a beardie is brumation is usually last a few weeks up to 4 months but usually not past 3, just remember its safe to keep the enclosure clean, if hes not eating hell most likely not be having bowel movements, its best to kinda just leave them be and let them do there thing till they get out of it. I know sometimes it looks scary cause they can really look dead in brumation but if you turn him over and he moves around a little he's not dead, honestly its really hard to tell so dont freak out if you see him not move or anything when you look at him obly because hes in brumation, if you think he's dead always take him to the vet first just to be 100% sure.

 

[KarrieRee]

Hey guys, it's me again.

Since I am a first time bearded dragon owner, I have a lot of questions and not much experience caring for a beardie in the colder months.

My boy Patches is staying in his hide for weeks(!) now. I sometimes pet him or take him out to bathe to make sure he's still alive and hydrated, but he looks so tired when I do that and I always feel bad about forcefully taking him from his hide. He shows no interest in greens and barely in any bugs. It started around late August and im kinda worried now. Had a vet visit in August and he told me he looks fine.

I would love to hear from an experienced keeper about what I should do, or If I should just leave him be?

Thank you in advance!

Keep a weight on him --- he should not brumate longer than 3 months- weigh him on a kitchen scale in grams keep track - they can lose weight / sustain it you dont want him losing a lot of weight - getting him out every 2 weeks or so weighing him and offering water - you can keep the lights on shorter periods of time or off its up to you - some do both --

Brumation in Bearded Dragons

Written by Denise R. Bushnell in June, 2008 For those who are not experienced in the hobby, and who keep Bearded Dragons as pets, one of the greatest sources of worry is when, for one reason or another, our beardies refuse to eat for long periods of time, or become increasingly inactive and...

www.beardeddragon.org

Practical tips: A healthy brumating bearded dragon

Georgina Rayner of Swell Reptiles, UK in November, 2015 Practical tips to help keep your bearded dragon healthy during brumation Reptile brumation occurs differently depending on each reptile’s bodily processes, from species to species. Environmental factors and the natural genetic instinct in...

www.beardeddragon.org

 

[Rocky2022]

There's a new post about this as well. This is such a difficult time for all of us newbies. I wish you the best of luck getting through it. I confess that I cried when Rocky started but I am okay...

 

[Zaargo]

When a beardie is brumation is usually last a few weeks up to 4 months but usually not past 3, just remember its safe to keep the enclosure clean, if hes not eating hell most likely not be having bowel movements, its best to kinda just leave them be and let them do there thing till they get out of it. I know sometimes it looks scary cause they can really look dead in brumation but if you turn him over and he moves around a little he's not dead, honestly its really hard to tell so dont freak out if you see him not move or anything when you look at him obly because hes in brumation, if you think he's dead always take him to the vet first just to be 100% sure.

Thank you for the answer! I'm planning to get him out today to bathe him and offer him some food, but im glad that it seems to be normal for him to sleep so long.

(Worst case scenario): what should I do if he doesn't stop sleeping so much tho? I mean he started sleeping around late August and that's about three months now already

 

[Zaargo]

Keep a weight on him --- he should not brumate longer than 3 months- weigh him on a kitchen scale in grams keep track - they can lose weight / sustain it you dont want him losing a lot of weight - getting him out every 2 weeks or so weighing him and offering water - you can keep the lights on shorter periods of time or off its up to you - some do both --

Brumation in Bearded Dragons

Written by Denise R. Bushnell in June, 2008 For those who are not experienced in the hobby, and who keep Bearded Dragons as pets, one of the greatest sources of worry is when, for one reason or another, our beardies refuse to eat for long periods of time, or become increasingly inactive and...

www.beardeddragon.org

Practical tips: A healthy brumating bearded dragon

Georgina Rayner of Swell Reptiles, UK in November, 2015 Practical tips to help keep your bearded dragon healthy during brumation Reptile brumation occurs differently depending on each reptile’s bodily processes, from species to species. Environmental factors and the natural genetic instinct in...

www.beardeddragon.org

Thank you for the answer!

What can I do if hes loosing weight but not wanting to eat?

 

[Zaargo]

There's a new post about this as well. This is such a difficult time for all of us newbies. I wish you the best of luck getting through it. I confess that I cried when Rocky started but I am okay...

Yeah I know it's so scary

I miss him so much, he always looks soo grumpy when I check on him.

 

[Rocky2022]

Yeah I know it's so scary

I miss him so much, he always looks soo grumpy when I check on him.

Oh do I know. I went to rake leaves and he went all the way in hiding and now that i am back, he is peeking. Rocky is totally playing games with me. He is napping, not brumating yet there are days when he is in full sleep. As hard as it is, I am practicing patience and following his lead. I sneak a hug in when I can and his response (a kiss) tells me he loves me and I make it to the next day (no treats/bribes needed!).

 

[KarrieRee]

Thank you for the answer! I'm planning to get him out today to bathe him and offer him some food, but im glad that it seems to be normal for him to sleep so long.

(Worst case scenario): what should I do if he doesn't stop sleeping so much tho? I mean he started sleeping around late August and that's about three months now already

Are you turning lights on now? If not turn them on when the 3 months is up - if he has lost a significant amount of weight a vet visit is in order their appetites will come back slowly - if hes eating something that is good - if nothing at all thats not so good - have you had a parasite test done ? You might want to collect a fecal from him as soon as you can - feed him some baby food pumpkin that will make him go so you can get one in to the vet - NO enemas!

 

[Zaargo]

Are you turning lights on now? If not turn them on when the 3 months is up - if he has lost a significant amount of weight a vet visit is in order their appetites will come back slowly - if hes eating something that is good - if nothing at all thats not so good - have you had a parasite test done ? You might want to collect a fecal from him as soon as you can - feed him some baby food pumpkin that will make him go so you can get one in to the vet - NO enemas!

I've been keeping the lights on for now, I've read that it's okay if they have enough hides so that he gets the warmth he needs.

I've taken him out a few hours ago, bathed him and he ate one worm and one dubia but that was about it, went straight back to the smallest, darkest crevice in his enclosure. I weighed him and he's about 376g right now.

I had a vet visit with fecal sample a few weeks prior to him starting brumation. He had a small amount of worm eggs, nothing serious but he got dewormer. That was about two to three weeks prior, so he should be in the clear

 

[Mollie the dragon]

Thank you for the answer! I'm planning to get him out today to bathe him and offer him some food, but im glad that it seems to be normal for him to sleep so long.

(Worst case scenario): what should I do if he doesn't stop sleeping so much tho? I mean he started sleeping around late August and that's about three months now already

so all i suggest to this is to make the process healthy, once a beardie is in brumation theres not much stopping it and naturally they should wake up out of it on there own, youre doing great! If it's his first brumation it might go on a little longer.

 

[Zaargo]

so all i suggest to this is to make the process healthy, once a beardie is in brumation theres not much stopping it and naturally they should wake up out of it on there own, youre doing great! If it's his first brumation it might go on a little longer.

I would guess that it's his first, because we got him when he was a little under a year old. I hope everything's alright, I miss my little buddy. But thank you so much for your answer!