Sunken Eyes on new baby

[Chelsea]

I got a 6 inch baby exactly 6 days ago from a reptile show, and since day one her eyes have been sunken in and on top of that, she always closes them. I tried turning her UVB off for a couple days and saw no improvements in the eye closing, and I also have been giving her pedialyte baths and making sure she is well hydrated. Her UVB is a Reptisun 10.0 tube. She eats and poops like a champ. She is also very calm and is fearless, I don't know if that's normal or not in a tiny baby, but the breeder said he spent a lot of time with them. Does anyone have a clue what could be wrong with my poor girl's eyes?

 

[Menolly]

Can you put up a picture? It would give us a better idea if what he might have. To cover the bases what's his diet like? Cage setup and size? What are the temps in his cage like?

 

[Chelsea]

Tank is a 20 long with a 10.0 Reptisun UVB tube on an under cabinet fixture inside the tank, basking spot surface temp is around 100-102 degrees, ambient temp is mid 80's. She eats dubia roaches and crickets. She is a bit underweight so an occasional waxworm. I will post a picture as soon as I can.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Pictures would be helpful. What type of thermometer do you use, a digital probe or temp gun?
What type of basking light are you using, a bright white light or a coated type of bulb/colored?
A fecal also might be a good idea also to make sure she doesn't have worms or parasites.
She is probably under stress from being rehomed right now. So if you can you can wait until the end of the week to see if her stress levels decrease any yet. If she does not improve, a vet visit or fecal would be a good idea.

If she is not eating, you can also try some baby food such as chicken or turkey to help her out.
Use a plastic dropper or syringe to feed her with.

Tracie

 

[Chelsea]

My other dragon's eye are a lot more vibrant and noticeable, hers are sunken in looking and dull. She does close them a lot as well.
For thermometers I use a temp gun for the basking area, and a digital with probe for the ambient. Her basking bulb is a Zoo Med Repti Basking Spot Lamp 75 watt. It is not bright white, more of yellow. She does not use any colored bulbs. I don't have her UVB on much in case that is hurting her eyes. She does eat pretty well. When we brought her home she weighed 7 grams at 6 inches, now 7 days later she is up to 12 grams.

 

[Chelsea]

Bump

 

[AHBD]

Hi Chelsea....I think her eye looks fine. She looks perky + healthy to me in that picture.

 

[Chelsea]

In the pictures its hard to capture exactly what her eyes look like. But she constantly closes them and are super dull. She only has them wide open because of the flash, but usually they are like tired looking eyes.

 

[Menolly]

If she's tired all the time she could possibly have parasites. Is there anyway you could get a fecal sample done?

 

[Chelsea]

Nah, she's not tired all the time. She just closes one or the other eye all the time. Her perkiness is a lot better from when we brought her home. She moves around normally now then she did when she first came home. It seems like it's Photo kerato conjunctivitis.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

She is very beautiful.
Which basking light do you use, is it a bright white light, or a colored light? Is it a daytime bulb which is a bluish/coated type of light?
How close is the Reptisun 10 tube bulb to her? How is it mounted, directly overhead?

Is she eating very well right now?

Tracie

 

[Chelsea]

Thank you
Well she came to me with the eye problem, all the babies I picked her out from had been closing their eyes. Her basking bulb is a Zoo Med 75 watt. It's not colored, not a daytime, just a basking. Her UVB is a 10.0 Reptisun tube on an under cabinet fixture inside the tank sitting about 7-8 inches away from the ledge she likes. She somehow loves to get on top of her UVB fixture in her cage so she's really close to it sometimes. This is a new thing though, so that's not bothering her.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

How close she get to the tube bulb though, that could be bothering her eye. Is the basking light directly beside the tube bulb?
Is she eating well too?
I suppose it could be a nutritional issue also. The entire clutch was having eye issues?

Tracie

 

[Chelsea]

Yeah I've seen a few babies closing their eyes. Her UVB light is at the top back wall of the tank inside, and the basking light is on top of the cage. She sits 5 and a half inches away from her UVB and 5 inches away from her basking IF she goes to the top, which she usually doesn't. She stays in the middle so its at about 6-7 inches away from both. She eats well, both roaches and crickets dusted, and greens. She is a great hunter. She is a normal little beardie but her eyes and I don't know what to do.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

You mentioned the UVB light/tube being the back wall? Is it directly overhead or mounted on the wall?
The light may be glaring into their eyes too much if it is not directly overhead. Is it directly alongside of a bright white basking light also?

The UVB lights can be hard on their eyes if the basking light is not bright enough for them.
How is your baby doing?

Tracie