Not eating as much.. Sleeping more

[magicmagni]

I have an 8 month old Male bearded dragon "Irwin" who has not been himself for the last few weeks. I've noticed that he has been slowing down on his eating habits. Seems less and less interested in his Dubia's and eating more and more salad, but some days do doesn't eat much at all. Also he will sometimes just go to his sleeping spot under his log in the middle of the afternoon and stay there until the next morning. Last Saturday he took the longest break I have seen and didn't wake up until just this evening, deciding he was going to get up and go to his basking spot and warm up. I took the opportunity to bathe him and try to get him to go. He didn't, but at least he got hydrated.

i'm wondering if this is a form a brumation, but not so sure since he is so young. I am thinking that it may just be time to take him to the vet and get a fecal done anyways ,but just wanted to get some opinions on what may be going on with him. Another odd thing I have noticed is his poop habits have changed. Normally in the mornings he will run off his basking spot to the bottom of his tank to go to the bathroom. He usually does what I call the "poo poo dance" which consists of running laps around the tank like Nascar and then "window surfing" till the moment is right, but lately after he goes he will go back up to the basking spot and then go about his routine again for hours like maybe he's trying to go more, but can't?

How old is your dragon?
8 months
How long have you had your dragon?
5 months
How long is your dragon?
A little over 17"
What is the sex of your dragon?
Male
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in?
4ft x 2ft x 2ft 120 gallon aquarium?
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank?
playsand
Do you use UVB lights?
Yes, 2 T5HO Reptison 10.0 that run the length of the tank 19" from the basking spot. Please note that this sounds like a great distance, but T5HO are very strong and can't be too close.
How old is your UVB bulb?
6 months
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage?
GE outdoor halogen Flood bulb, 60w
Do you have any type of night time heat source (ceramic heat emitter, colored bulb, etc)?
I have a heat mat along the entire bottom of the tank set on a controller. 70f at night and 82F during the day.
How long are lights on each day?
From 7am til 8:30pm
What are the basking temps?
Ranges from 103F to 108F
What is the cool side temp?
80F to 82F
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun?
Digital w/ probe and gun to make sure it's consistent
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps?
On the surface of the driftwood
What do you feed your dragon?
Was eating 10 to to 15 3/4" size dubia a day or about 8 two inch sized silkworms and the occasional butterworm mixed in with greens. Now maybe eats one or two dubia if I hand feed to him. Takes to butterworms more mixed in his greens. Greens consist of a mix of Collard, Mustard, and Turnip greens with the occasional mixing in of Romaine and kale for variety. Also add different squashes like butternut and spaghetti.

How often do you feed and what time do you feed
Was feeding in the morning a couple hours after the lights came on mixture of butterwoms and salad. Then in the evening his Dubia or silkworms. Now he usually just gets the salad with butterworms in the morning and then in the evening I try to hand feed him the butterworms if any he didn't get- if any and try to feed Dubia by hand.
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
Dubia on special diet from Dubiaroaches.com and I also add carrot/ mango/ orange etc. Silkworms strictly on chow.
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements?
I use Repal with Vit D3 3 times a week and the vitamin supplement once a week.
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)?
Not at first, but once I added the heat mat he started going daily except for just recently when he decided to sleep for several days.
Do you bathe your dragon? How often?
At least Once a week, but more lately (3 times a week) to try to keep him hydrated since he isn't eating as much in general and he seems to lap up some water which I have never seen him do before. It also help him go to the bathroom half the time.
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath?
Mostly misted everyday except for the days he gets a bath.
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done?
No
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon?
No

 

[Taterbug]

He may just be slowing down. I went through something very similar recently. Going to bed early, getting up late, no appetite for bugs. He got a checkup and fecal run to check and he did have a higher coccidia count. We treated that and he is a bit better now.

I spoke at length with the vet and with the breeder I got him from and they both said its not unusual for an 8mo old to slow down. The breeder has been having lots of her dragons getting slow, she thinks its may be related to this crazy winter. Also, that it's around the age that some start to be more into veggies and less into bugs. Pepper has also moved to an every other day poo schedule.

Is he otherwise healthy, alert and such when he is awake? Is he eating the salads, just not the bugs? Keep an eye on his weight to make sure he isn't loosing any. A fecal might not be a bad idea and some vets will do them with out an appointment. I think there are mail out places too. I took him in to get looked at for my own peace of mind.

 

[magicmagni]

He was up this morning basking on his spot. I gave him a salad and he picked at it throughout the day. Ate about 4 large to medium sized butterworms as well. Seemed like he was trying to go poop, but never did. Then in the early afternoon he went back into his shelter and seems like he's going to stay there till tomorrow?

The Vet I take my dogs and cats to has another vet on staff that specializes in reptiles exclusively. He's treated my skink and saved it's life so I will most likely bring him in to be seen with hopefully a fresh poop sample that can be checked. This all started when I went out of town for 4 days and had a someone watching the house for me. The thermostat got turned off and it got pretty cold in the house- to the low 50's at night/ maybe the low 60's in day so I suspect he got too cold. My controller registered a low of 62 at night when I was gone (I usually keep it at 68 to 70) Now I have the heat mat installed on thermostat so that shouldn't be an issue again.