wanderingmoonmen
Member
Hi all -- everyone has been helpful here before and I've been digging through the internet for a conclusive answer, but have just brought me even more questions than answers.
tldr; I'm freaking myself out about my bearded dragon's teeth. His diet isn't perfect and I am aware of that, but otherwise he seems happy and healthy. It doesn't appear he's having any general discomfort from what I can tell, but his teeth aren't the color of what I've found of what healthy teeth look like.
Naxy is 3 now and from my estimates he's happy and healthy (he's also my first lizard). He loves the outside (although he's upset at me since I won't let him freeze to death in the snow), running around, snuggling, and otherwise being cute and mischievous. He poops very regularly and based on the fluids/"pee" he seems pretty well hydrated from my estimate.
I really started to notice about a year ago that his teeth were discolored. Now, I haven't moved forward on this as others in my life (who are not reptile experts) talk me out of me catastrophizing and panicking about it as a) he has an appetite b) doesn't seem to have trouble eating c) is energetic and happy d) no apparent sensitivity around his mouth or jaw e) I have an anxiety issue lol. I was able to find one post on the internet where someone had a similar situation and it just seemed like they were naturally discolored and let it be.
My anxiety is getting the better of me again and I know his diet isn't perfect and that too many soft foods can lead to problems. He, I think like a lot of dragons, is very stubborn. Once he was fully grown he just started outright refusing to eat crickets after living on them prior. I tried dubia roaches with similar luck. Now of course, he loves his worms. I know that mainly relying on worms isn't ideal, but I promise you I've tried to stick to my guns and not give him any and try to offer the others and he won't budge. At some point throwing money at bugs he won't eat just felt Sisyphean. He gets his worms once or twice a week depending on how he eats his other food.
He will /eventually/ eat his greens if I'm tough on him. His favorite thing to eat is fruits - bananas, strawberry, and raspberry (which he only gets as treats). I've tried offering him other veggies besides mustard/collard greens to see if i can find another food he'll eat. I've tried peppers, pea pods, zucchini, kale, to name a few, with no luck. He does however, love butternut squash (and lukewarm to spaghetti squash). I give him slices raw to try and get him to eat something crunchy. I try to give them to him every other day or so as I can't find anything conclusive about frequency (one place says yes, every day, another every once and a while, etc). I'll give him calcium on his food too which he eats no problem.
He's in an 80 gal tank, temps seem fine, I've added a ceramic heater to turn on for brief periods at night because it sometimes gets cold, and he has an Arcadia UV light (I got a recommendation from a previous thread). When I'm at home he's allowed to free roam and he spends his time running around or looking out the windows under a heat lamp.
I think that covers his general care questions hopefully, so I'll move on to his teeth.
It seems that /only/ his teeth are discolored, but the rest of his mouth looks OK. Previously I have tried brushing them with a Q-tip and a soft toothbrush, but it didn't seem to do anything besides slightly annoy him. If there's any sign of discomfort, the only thing I could guess at is that he seems to 'smack his lips' or 'lick his lips' and swallow (w/o food) more than what I think I remember (again, I could be just hypervigilant now). He seems to mostly do it when he's sleepy or occasionally while basking. Again, trying to do research seems to yield results of "he's dying" or "he's fine" which isn't super helpful. I haven't been able to get a video of him doing it because it isn't often enough or he's inside my sweatshirt, sleeping.
I've attached some photos from about a year ago and some from pretty recent. To me the top teeth look worse, but I've had a hell of a time trying to get a picture. Some pictures aren't high quality because I caught it on my surveillance camera, but I thought maybe it could be something or show his gums since he was yawning.
Thank you for any help! I apologize for my lack of conciseness, I just want to try and provide as much context and information up front.
tldr; I'm freaking myself out about my bearded dragon's teeth. His diet isn't perfect and I am aware of that, but otherwise he seems happy and healthy. It doesn't appear he's having any general discomfort from what I can tell, but his teeth aren't the color of what I've found of what healthy teeth look like.
Naxy is 3 now and from my estimates he's happy and healthy (he's also my first lizard). He loves the outside (although he's upset at me since I won't let him freeze to death in the snow), running around, snuggling, and otherwise being cute and mischievous. He poops very regularly and based on the fluids/"pee" he seems pretty well hydrated from my estimate.
I really started to notice about a year ago that his teeth were discolored. Now, I haven't moved forward on this as others in my life (who are not reptile experts) talk me out of me catastrophizing and panicking about it as a) he has an appetite b) doesn't seem to have trouble eating c) is energetic and happy d) no apparent sensitivity around his mouth or jaw e) I have an anxiety issue lol. I was able to find one post on the internet where someone had a similar situation and it just seemed like they were naturally discolored and let it be.
My anxiety is getting the better of me again and I know his diet isn't perfect and that too many soft foods can lead to problems. He, I think like a lot of dragons, is very stubborn. Once he was fully grown he just started outright refusing to eat crickets after living on them prior. I tried dubia roaches with similar luck. Now of course, he loves his worms. I know that mainly relying on worms isn't ideal, but I promise you I've tried to stick to my guns and not give him any and try to offer the others and he won't budge. At some point throwing money at bugs he won't eat just felt Sisyphean. He gets his worms once or twice a week depending on how he eats his other food.
He will /eventually/ eat his greens if I'm tough on him. His favorite thing to eat is fruits - bananas, strawberry, and raspberry (which he only gets as treats). I've tried offering him other veggies besides mustard/collard greens to see if i can find another food he'll eat. I've tried peppers, pea pods, zucchini, kale, to name a few, with no luck. He does however, love butternut squash (and lukewarm to spaghetti squash). I give him slices raw to try and get him to eat something crunchy. I try to give them to him every other day or so as I can't find anything conclusive about frequency (one place says yes, every day, another every once and a while, etc). I'll give him calcium on his food too which he eats no problem.
He's in an 80 gal tank, temps seem fine, I've added a ceramic heater to turn on for brief periods at night because it sometimes gets cold, and he has an Arcadia UV light (I got a recommendation from a previous thread). When I'm at home he's allowed to free roam and he spends his time running around or looking out the windows under a heat lamp.
I think that covers his general care questions hopefully, so I'll move on to his teeth.
It seems that /only/ his teeth are discolored, but the rest of his mouth looks OK. Previously I have tried brushing them with a Q-tip and a soft toothbrush, but it didn't seem to do anything besides slightly annoy him. If there's any sign of discomfort, the only thing I could guess at is that he seems to 'smack his lips' or 'lick his lips' and swallow (w/o food) more than what I think I remember (again, I could be just hypervigilant now). He seems to mostly do it when he's sleepy or occasionally while basking. Again, trying to do research seems to yield results of "he's dying" or "he's fine" which isn't super helpful. I haven't been able to get a video of him doing it because it isn't often enough or he's inside my sweatshirt, sleeping.
I've attached some photos from about a year ago and some from pretty recent. To me the top teeth look worse, but I've had a hell of a time trying to get a picture. Some pictures aren't high quality because I caught it on my surveillance camera, but I thought maybe it could be something or show his gums since he was yawning.
Thank you for any help! I apologize for my lack of conciseness, I just want to try and provide as much context and information up front.
