Stress marks that won't go away on my baby dragon?

[Toria88]

So, I've been reading about beardies getting stress marks on their bellies, and it kind of has me worried. I've had baby Puff for about 2 1/2 weeks now. Ever since I've brought him home, he's had marks on his belly. They've never gone away. This is my first beardie, so I just assumed that this was what his belly was supposed to look like as a baby. Until I read about stress marks! :? Now I'm worried that I have a dragon that is stressed out 24/7! Is this normal?! I'm worried!

 

[kcarello]

Hello,
Your baby could be having stress marks for a number or reasons. Could you please go over your setup. Temps, basking surface, hot side and cool side. What are you measuring your temps with. What are you feeding your dragon, insects and green and veggies..what kind and are they the right size? Are you using supplements? Are you giving your baby baths? Are you dripping some water on his nose to drink? What size viv do you have him in? What type, brand of uvb light do you have? What type of substrate? Let me know that answers and we will see if we can figure out what could be wrong.
Kelly

And I just noticed where you are from!!! Keep him warm up there!! lol!

 

[Toria88]

Hi!

Right now he's only in a 20 gallon tank with a screen top. I have a much bigger tank to move him into, but I need to make a customized screen top for his bigger tank, because it has a glass top right now. Yay for DIY projects. :roll: He has an 18" ReptiSun 10.0 tube for his UVB lighting. I was using a 50 watt basking bulb, but it just burnt out... So I have 60 watt in there right now. I have two of the stick on strip thermometers and two dial thermometers, placed in different areas. I ordered a digital infrared thermometer online a week ago, but it still isn't here yet! (The name of it was Reptitemp, I think?) His air temp on the cool side is usually always around 84º. His basking spot has been at 104º. I read that it is supposed to be at around 110º for babies, so I'll probably order a 75 watt basking bulb to replace the one that just burnt out. His temp is at 71º at night. (I have to keep the heat on up here lol! :mrgreen: ) Let's see... I have paper towels as his substrate right now. He gets crickets twice a day. (As many as he will eat in 10-15 minutes, that's the rule I've been following) I have been planning to order phoenix worms online to offer him as well, because crickets don't tend to last very long at my house in the winter! I offer him moistened juvenile bearded dragon pellets every day, but he doesn't seem to want to touch them. :| Not that I can blame him, because it has the same ingredients as cheap cat food. He gets fresh greens sprayed with water once a day, but he won't touch them. I've been going off of the beautifuldragon website that everyone recommends. I offer mustard greens everyday, but no luck. Only thing I've been able to get him to eat is a lone piece of cilantro. Ugh. His crickets are dusted with a calcium and vitamin D3 supplement. I have Fluker's multivitamin drops, but I don't like them at all. Oh, and I have been trying to give him a bath every night, and I gently pour water over his nose so he can lick the drops off. If I miss a day, I will mist him. I think that's everything!

Thanks for your help! I greatly appreciate it.

 

[kcarello]

In case I forgot to tell you...Congratulations on your baby,,,and he or she..is so cute!!!
It sounds to me like you are doing everything about as perfect as you can get it. The only thing is how you are measuring the temps,,and you are fixing that. I wouldnt change the basking bulb until after you recheck your temps with your new temp gun. The only question I have is are you heating his tank at night and if so with what? If you need to use heat at night you should use a CHE. Its not surprising that he doesn't want to eat his greens yet...most of them are stubborn about that. You could just keep trying different greens, mine like collard greens and acorn squash. I love the name you picked!!! It is the same as my girl's! Funny, I go back on my post on here and see where I kept referring to Puff as a boy,,he this and he that LOL.
He is a she,,a very big she...21 inches long and 700 g. I just love her!!! Anyway,
do you get Puff out and hold him and play with him / talk to him, let him get some out of tank time? By the way, the 20 gal. tank is perfect for him at this size, they can feel lost in a larger tank at that age.
Let me know how he is doing, and welcome to the forum!
Kelly
give Puff a little kiss from me!!

 

[kcarello]

I would love to see a picture of your setup!! Also, can Puff get within 6 - 8 inches of the uvb light?

 

[Toria88]

Thank you!

I notice in your sig now that you have a Puff as well! He's sitting on my chest right now. I guess I've been referring to my Puff as a boy haha. :lol: Although if "he" turns out to be a girl, the name will still be Puff! :mrgreen:

So far the marks have never gone away. His tummy was like that when he was in the pet store, when he's sleeping, and when I take him out. It worries me, but maybe he's just getting used to his new home? I hope my thermometer comes soon! I've heard that dial thermometers and the stick on thermometers are not that accurate. I don't have any sort of light or heat on during the evening. I have to keep my house at around 75º during the winter, for both my crestie and for Puff. So Puff's tank stays at about 71º at night by itself! Oh, and he can get about 4 1/2 - 5 inches from his basking light.

I'll get a picture of his tank up very soon! Puff gets taken out for some bonding time every day. He always freaks out when I try to get him out of his tank, but he seems ok once I get him out... Hopefully he'll come around soon. Aside from a few random escape attempts! Hopefully he will come around and give me some love really soon here, because I sure love the little guy! :love5:

Here's another picture of my little nugget. :love10:

 

[kcarello]

Hi There,
I just gotta tell you I love your little Puff!! I so would love to have another baby,,,but my Puff is already so jealous of my boy Deuce, that I dont have the heart to bring another dragon into the house. She was spoiled rotten,,and still is mind you, for a year before I found Deuce on here in the for free section. He just needed a new home that could give him more attention. He is the sweetest boy ever!!! But there is no love like your first love..and for me thats Puff.
I am sure that your little Puff will settle in and quit with the stress marks soon. I noticed that you have quite the collection. I have to ask you,,,do the tree frogs make noise at night?
They do around here where I live,,at night,,especially after the rain!!
How close can Puff get to his uvb light,,,that is the one he needs to get within 6 -8 inches..4 or 5 is too close. Also, do you have the basking light right next to, or along side the uvb light. They need the bright white light to protect their eyes from the uvb.
Hope you have a good night.
Kelly

p.s. Do you have a scale for him yet..?? I figure you might have one sense you have all the other reptiles...anyway,,its great to measure and weigh them and chart their progress.
Also, dont know if you have thought about it,,,but both of my dragons have their own baby blankets,,so when its bed time, I wrap them up and hold them till they are asleep then lay then down in their viv's.

 

[Toria88]

Hi There,
I just gotta tell you I love your little Puff!!

I love him too! Haha, and I don't think we could have a better name for our dragons! :lol:

I noticed that you have quite the collection. I have to ask you,,,do the tree frogs make noise at night?
They do around here where I live,,at night,,especially after the rain!!

No, my tree frogs are surprisingly quiet. It's my fire-bellied toads that make all of the noise! I have a male and a female, and they constantly are making noise. They don't really croak, they bark! :mrgreen: It's such a funny noise. :lol:

How close can Puff get to his uvb light,,,that is the one he needs to get within 6 -8 inches..4 or 5 is too close. Also, do you have the basking light right next to, or along side the uvb light. They need the bright white light to protect their eyes from the uvb.

Yes, he can get within 6 inches of his uvb light. The UVB light is 18 inches, and the tank is 20+ inches, so it gets runs through most of the tank. I do have his basking light right next to it.

p.s. Do you have a scale for him yet..?? I figure you might have one sense you have all the other reptiles...anyway,,its great to measure and weigh them and chart their progress.
Also, dont know if you have thought about it,,,but both of my dragons have their own baby blankets,,so when its bed time, I wrap them up and hold them till they are asleep then lay then down in their viv's.

I do have a scale! It's funny, I actually use the same kind of scale for my babies and for my work. I'm a hair stylist, and I often use a scale to measure hair color. They're really precise, so I've been weighing my herps on them. Although right now it's at my salon, so I haven't had a chance to put Puff on it yet. Oh, and the baby blanket is a great idea. It would probably really help him in staying warm at night, which I worry about when it gets to be -2º outside like it was yesterday. :shock: If you wrap them up in it loosely, can they still get out? I'll have to get a piece of fleece and try it. Is it safe to do that with babies? Thanks for all of your help! :mrgreen:

 

[kcarello]

Yes, for a baby, just use a smaller piece or fleece for a blanket. I use real baby blankets for mine,,but they are full grown.
That is funny about the frogs,,,my husband would loose his mind if I had some frogs in this house....he isnt quite the animal lover I am..the four cats are the ones he barely tolerates!
It does sound as if you are doing things really well with your little Puff so I am sure once he settles in the stress marks will go away.
Have a great day,
Kelly