Possible fungle on baby beardie chin?

[Shimoo]

Hello! I got a little beardie about 2 weeks ago and she is doing really well, she is currently 6 weeks old now, although yesterday I noticed a little brown/green/blackish spot on her chin... At first I thought (this may be me being silly) that she was “growing her beard” as she doesn’t appear to have one. She has settled in nicely and she has a 48inch viv and a 10whatt uv bulb along with a 100whatt basking lamp, (I have a thermometer in her basking spot and that sits at 39 Celsius) the uv lamp is a Exoterra desert one. But about the possible fungle, it is fairly small and has only recently appeared, it could also possible be a shed that hasn’t quite come off, I spray her once a day and give her a bath every 2 days so she can have a little drink... She has still been a little stressed since the move (hence stress marks) but she has been eating a lot of butternut squash and red pepper, along with some juvenile dragon pellets and small waxworms because they are the only things I can get my hands on!

I will post a picture once I figure out how! Thank you!

 

[Shimoo]

Its fairly hard to see, but there is a patch on her chin, because she is a juvenile i am wondering if maybe its just a retained shed? She also still has some stress marks after 1 and a half weeks, is that normal? However she loves playtime out of the tank!

 

[AHBD]

Hi there, it sounds like she's settling in very well. The picture is just a bit to far away to see exactly what it is, get a closer picture. Hopefully it is just a patch of shed or a food or other stain. Can you post pics of her set up as well ? Is the exo terra uvb a coil, if so what strength is it ? For best uvb exposure you'll need a long tube bulb like the Reptisun 10.0 t5 or Arcadia D3.

BTW, you can order some better feeder insects online.....go with bsfl [ black soldier fly larvs sold as Phoenix or calci worms ] dubia roaches and 1/4" crickets.

 

[Shimoo]

Hi! Thanks for the quick reply, I will try and get a better photo! The exact light is a Repti-glo 10.0, (25W) and it is a tube not a coil! I live in England so I have been trying to find a online store that isn’t ridiculously expensive and that will have stuff in stock and deliver! Once I get a photo I will send it onwards, it doesn’t seem as black as some other fungle images I have seen... She doesn’t seem low on energy or anything! So I’ll get that photo to you

 

[AHBD]

O.K, the long tube 10.0 is a decent bulb but it needs to be where she can get within 8-10" of it at least and unobstructed by fine mesh screen. You might have one of those long vivs I've seen from owners in the U.K where the bulbs are all mounted inside, if so then it's probably good, but check the distance it is from her basking spot. I'll wait on the picture though.

 

[Shimoo]

I am yet to get a picture, but its a oak viv with glass panels on the front, i am assuming she is close enough to the UV But ill take up a tape measure, and if not ill get a nice big log or something she can climb on under the UV aswell as the heat lamp, but i will have the pictures back in atleast 1 and a half hours

 

[Shimoo]

So here are all the photos, the first three are of her spot on her head (Sorry about the quality the focus wouldnt work) But you can see the brown/black spot if you look a certain way...

And here are the ones of the vivarium, Now that you mention it... She may be a little far away from the UV Bulb, so maybe i should get a big log or something to chuck in there?

(Heat lamp end /\)

(UV lamp bulb end)

Also as a side note, do you know where i may be able to purchase worms online in the UK? I wish rainbowmealworms delivered to over here... :lol: I also dont know if she could eat a dubia roach since her little head is so tiny! (Unless you can get mini dubia's???)

do you think its worth waiting until tomorrow to see if it grows? Maybe its just a stain, She is also very very little so keeping her still whilst taking a photo is hard (She loves running up and down my arms)

 

[Shimoo]

I saw somewhere on here another beardie with a little spot on his chin, it seemed fairly close to the spot she has now, they thought maybe he scratched his chin on something and took some scales off? This could be the case with mine and she has a nice like and a hubbahut she likes to bask and sleep on, so maybe when she was settling down to sleep she scraped it? If not they also recommended just putting anti fungal cream on anyway incase it is? What do you think?

 

[AHBD]

I was just about to reply to the new pics, the pics are small so I can't see things too well but it doesn't look like anything but a smudge of some sort [ even poo at times ] or patch of skin. Try to get it off with a toothbrush, just gently stroke down her beard but not up.

The lights are a bit far from her, you might want to invest in an Arcadia D3 bulb, they last longer + have a better uvb output. I'm sorry I can't help you with a feeder insect U.K source, but if you go on the beardie forums in the U.K anyone will be able to help you.

 

[Shimoo]

I cant really adjust the heat lamp, but i can move the log accordingly and where it is at is at about 40 degrees C not sure what that is in F, I will deffo try rubbing it with a toothbrush, i have given her little chin rubs with my finger (downwards not up), But yeah i understand what you mean about stains... I might invest in some rocks or something to put at the UV end so she is a bit closer (Will that help with the stress marks?) But thanks so much for your help! This is a great forum and you are very nice!

I have also noticed its not like yellow around the edges or anything like that, so ill monitor its size, but till then.. Thank you very much!!!

Ill make sure she has alot of cuddles and love so that she feels better :lol:

 

[Shimoo]

Also one more thing, do you think she being a very small juvenile will be able to handle a Dubia? Can you get small ones?

 

[EllenD]

Yes, she can handle small Dubia, and you should be able to get them, at least you can easily get them in the US. As long as the live bugs are smaller than the space between her eyes she'll be fine.

Your viv is very nice, the only thing is that with a large viv like this, a T8 strength UVB tube really isn't a good idea, especially with no reflector behind the tube, and I don't think I see any metal reflector behind your tube. Also, you have to replace that T8 tube once every 6 months.

As AHBD already recommended, I highly recommend, for the health and proper growth of your dragon, that you invest in the Arcadia 12% T5 UVB tube. It's a much stronger tube, it lasts for a year, and it is a much better fit for a large viv.

At the very least I recommend ordering or buying a clip-on reflector for the tube you have, this will ensure that adequate UVB light is reflected throughout the entire viv, which is important when you have a large, wooden enclosure like you do.

 

[Shimoo]

Thanks for the advice, do you have an idea as to if I might be able to get a bulb like that on amazon? Or anywhere online? And do you have a link! If not that’s fine, but I’ll make sure I get a better UV bulb, could that be the cause of the stress marks?

I just looked and those bulbs are £30... Do you think she'll be fine without it? like if we get a nice big log for under the tube?

 

[EllenD]

Yeah, I forgot you're in Europe, they are a bit pricey plus the cost of a fixture. I think she'll be fine with the tube you have as long as you buy a metal reflector to put behind it, so that the UVB light is reflected throughout the large viv. That's the main problem, right now the UVB light is really only strong directly underneath the tube, the rest is being dissipated and not being reflected downward without a reflector. Also, be sure that you replace that tube once every 6 months, as they have a very fast UVB decay rate, and pretty much stop emitting any adequate UVB light at 6 months old.

They make clip-on reflectors that you can buy pretty cheaply, I know that Arcadia makes one, as well as many other brands. I don't know what websites you are able to order from, Amazon.com has several clip-on reflectors for sale cheaply. Just make sure you get one that is the same length as the UVB tube you have, not necessarily the length of the fixture, as some tubes fit into fixture that are actually longer than the tube is. The clip-on reflectors run the length of the tube and sit behind the tube to reflect the UVB/UVA light throughout the tank.

If you let me know what sites you can order from where you are, I can help you find some clip-on reflectors that are cheap...also, let me know what length your tube is.

 

[CooperDragon]

If you're in the UK, try Swell Reptiles. They are a great resource for supplies. https://www.reptiles.swelluk.com/arcadia-t8-fluorescent-reflectors/