xxdragonflamesxx
Hatchling Member
Hi, My bearded dragon Elliott is sick but I cannot figure out the cause. He started eating less to the point he was not eating at all about 2 weeks ago. I was weighing him every couple of days and he only lost about 2-3 grams so I figured he was probably just slowing down for brumation. Then on Tuesday (Oct 5th) I weighed him and noticed he did lose about 10 grams. On Thursday I came home to find what I thought was a cage full of diarrhea and a dragon with a VERY black beard. He is very chill and never black beards so this was alarming. I cleaned him and the cage up and gave him a few CCs of water with a syringe and gave him a soak. After that he fell asleep and soon after his beard went back to normal white. The next morning I gave him some baby food (chicken and veggies) and more water. I decided I would take a fecal sample in. That evening (Friday) He didn't poop until 6pm and the vet said I had to have the sample in by 6pm so I couldn't get the sample in on time. The poop and urate looked normal but just tiny. Probably because he had not eaten much. On Saturday at about 2pm I gave him some water and baby food and a soak in the tub. After that I had him laying on my lap and he ended up throwing up all over me. That's when I realized that what I saw in his cage on Thursday was NOT diarrhea, but throw up (it looked the exact same). I called the breeder that I got him from and he said that it sounded like he probably had worms and suggested I get some Safe-Guard and give him a dose the next morning. So Sunday (today) at around 11am after he was warmed up a bit I gave him the dose of Safe-Guard. He kept it down until 2:30pm. He threw up some of the medicine, but not all of it and shortly after he pooped. The urate and the poop looked pretty normal. The poop was just a little on the dark side. I gave him a small amount (.5cc) of water after he threw up just to be sure he stayed hydrated and he spent the rest of the day in his hide dozing on and off. He also had a black beard all day from the time he threw up and on. Right now he is asleep his beard is still gray, but not jet black like it was. He does not seem weak. He walks around his cage and goes back and forth between the basking side and cool side like normal. He seems to be adequately hydrated because his urates look normal. There was even a bit of excess water when he pooped. I don't think he is impacted because as I said he has pooped twice since all of this started. I will now answer the "question sheet". Any help or ideas about what may be going on is appreciated. Do any of you agree or disagree with what the breeder said (worms)? If so I think the panacure (Safe-guard) should kick in at some point and he will get better, right?
How old is your dragon? 18 months
How long have you had your dragon? 15 months
How long is your dragon? 20.5"
What is the sex of your dragon? Male
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in? 4'x2'x2'
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank? Paper Towels
Do you use UVB lights? Yes
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb? MVB
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)? Mega Ray 100 watt SB
How old is your UVB bulb? 15 months (i know that is a very old, but I ordered a new one, used it for 2 months, and it burnt out. I am in the process of trying to get a new one but it hasn't come yet so I have the old one in until then)
How close can your dragon get to the UVB? 12"
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage? No
What are the basking temps? 104°
What is the cool side temp? 84°
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 Thermometer with Wire and Probe End
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps? In the middle of his basking log right under the light
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad? No
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific. Superworms and Hornworms from Great Lakes Hornworms also Collard Greens, but he hardly eats greens. I also feed baby food squash to supplement since he does not eat enough greens and as I said I have recently given him Chicken and Veggie Baby Food
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)? Usually morning about 8am or if he hasn't woken up by the time I go to work I feed him on my lunch break at 1-2pm
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc? No
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them? I use liquid calcium (the kind from Tracie) every other day so 3-4 times per week
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)? Yes his poops look normal but tiny had one on Friday and one today.
Do you bath your dragon? How often? Yes, every other day or every third day
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath? I sometimes mist him during the day and I feed him water from the syringe daily I try to get 2-4MLs into him daily.
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon? No
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done? No, both times he pooped it was too late to bring it to the vet. I do plan on getting one done ASAP.
How old is your dragon? 18 months
How long have you had your dragon? 15 months
How long is your dragon? 20.5"
What is the sex of your dragon? Male
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in? 4'x2'x2'
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank? Paper Towels
Do you use UVB lights? Yes
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb? MVB
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)? Mega Ray 100 watt SB
How old is your UVB bulb? 15 months (i know that is a very old, but I ordered a new one, used it for 2 months, and it burnt out. I am in the process of trying to get a new one but it hasn't come yet so I have the old one in until then)
How close can your dragon get to the UVB? 12"
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage? No
What are the basking temps? 104°
What is the cool side temp? 84°
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 Thermometer with Wire and Probe End
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps? In the middle of his basking log right under the light
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad? No
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific. Superworms and Hornworms from Great Lakes Hornworms also Collard Greens, but he hardly eats greens. I also feed baby food squash to supplement since he does not eat enough greens and as I said I have recently given him Chicken and Veggie Baby Food
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)? Usually morning about 8am or if he hasn't woken up by the time I go to work I feed him on my lunch break at 1-2pm
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc? No
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them? I use liquid calcium (the kind from Tracie) every other day so 3-4 times per week
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)? Yes his poops look normal but tiny had one on Friday and one today.
Do you bath your dragon? How often? Yes, every other day or every third day
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath? I sometimes mist him during the day and I feed him water from the syringe daily I try to get 2-4MLs into him daily.
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon? No
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done? No, both times he pooped it was too late to bring it to the vet. I do plan on getting one done ASAP.
. The breeder told me 0.1cc for each 100grams that he weighs. He is 490grams so I gave him 0.5ccs. They suggested to repeat the dose once a week for 3 weeks, so I have 2 more to go. His lights just came on a few minutes ago. He has not come out of his hide yet, still dozing on and off with a slightly gray beard.
