two concerns with my 1.5 yr old

[FortunateOne]

My beardie is about 1.5 yrs old and about 25-26inches from head to tail.

He will not eat veggies, I try mixing in baby food with his moist food, raw, etc. He still will only eat super worms, crickets (doesnt like so much anymore) and that pink chunk food. I always put calcium on the pink chunks, but he doesnt always eat that either. Im worried he is not eatting enough, if I dont give him the worms, he generally will not eat. I bought 50 crickets 2 days ago, which would had been gone by now but there is still about 25 in his enclosure.

He keeps scratching at the glass section and banging his head against the glass to the point I noticed blood on it yesterday night. His chin is also dark and bruised.... He does not get a black beard at all when doing this and even continues if I shut off the day lights and leave the night on only. There is nothing in the space he maybe seeing in front of him. I thought it was his reflection but since he does not have the black beard at all I do not know what is going on. This is something that just keeps happening. Even when he was in his old 40G he would do it. He was in an 40 gallon until about 1 year old, however upgraded due to his length being longer then the width of the enclosure. He is in a handmade enclosure of particular board (about an inch thick), plexi glass front and screen top. It is roughly 4x2 ft (150 gallons). The temp is 80-90 in there and the humidity is about 25.

He doesnt seem to climb anymore on his ledge ever since being moved to a large enclosure, he just walks around.

This is a photo of it, he now has a third lamp, 2 night 1 day. Night are on 24/7 night only during the day.

Any suggestions on what it maybe? Was thinking about putting about 8-10in of paper around the front of the glass to prevent him from seeing himself if that is the cause.

 

[destiny1998]

Hi. Do you know the temps? I would get him a better basking platform or somehow lower his lights. Is the uvb a t8 or t5? Also the red light is not good for beardies. Just need a good uvb and a bright white basking light.

 

[donstamos]

I bought 50 crickets 2 days ago, which would had been gone by now but there is still about 25 in his enclosure.

This stuck out to me, and made me curious if the crickets are left in the enclosure til he eats them. If that's the case, it'll probably be part of the problem. Crickets will bite beardies, causing stress. If there's 25 of them in there, I can only imagine how bad that'd suck.

If I read that wrong and you don't leave them in, then please disregard

 

[kyleena29]

There is no need for any kind of light when it's time for sleep. They like it dark. Unless it gets below 65F at night they don't need any heat. If there is light in the room when it's bed time cover the cage maybe he will know it's time for bed and calm down. How close can he get to the uvb and what kind is it? I notice it's on top of the mesh and doesn't look like he can climb up to it. You can also try roaches or phoenix worms if he's tired of crickets. You can also try giving him greens by putting a piece on the inside of his lip on from the side of his mouth and push it against his teeth and see if he'll eat it.

 

[FortunateOne]

The crickets are generally left in, usually because they would be gone within a day. I know as they get older they eat less and less proteins, but generally hell eat a large container of super worms from Petco. Of course, my petco barely gets any right now, they said there is a "worm shortage."

I can try some greens (none lettuce) he eats butternut squash from time to time...

As for the UVB, I am not sure what strength, I can always try to find brackets to leave it in there. I just noticed yesterday the post. I've had it for over a year and it has not burnt out yet? To be honest, I never see him laying near it, he is always between the "cool" side and "warm" side, even though the warm side does not get above 95. Sometimes ill find in just hanging out in the cool side resting and he is cold to the touch. I generally will give him a warm bathe when I notice it to warm him up (He likes to be held in the water, so I have to hold him as he lays in the water) or ill just place him on the branch under the lights.

I will try turning all of the lights off then tonight! I got the red since I thought it would not keep him up but you are right, we do hear him sometimes running around while we are in bed.

Since the enclosure is manmade, it can be altered and brackets can be built into any corner. However, it also means the crickets can hang upside down on the lid and make it so I cannot get in there without them getting out... AKA crickets running around my living room. (Where he is)

Also any plus to get things for them to climb on that wont be $40+, I have no been able to find anything other then the fake plants... Was hoping for at least 1 or 2 more limbs of different heights so he can get up as high as he needs and it wont be as spacious in there, may help him feel more safe. (The perches you glue onto the side, will not stick. And the lids some people use would be to small to leave in there secure.)

 

[Stres]

As said before that red light should not be used at all, also how old is your uvb tube they need changing every 6 months or yearly if it's a t5 version, if it's not been changed it will be affecting his digestion which affects his appetite.

My dragon stopped eating crickets after 6 months and won't touch them at all anymore, he then got bored of calci worms and now will only eat adult locusts, morio worms and the occasional fruit. I have to blend veggies and use a needless syringe to drip it on his nose to get him to take any he's around a year old now but from what iv read it is quite common.

 

[EllenD]

You've got multiple issues here that are pretty serious. The first is that I'm assuming your UVB tube is a T8, either a Reptisun or a Zilla, either way it only emits UVB for 6 months even though it's still on, so he's gotten no UVB for 6 months... However, even if it was a new UVB light, a T8 UVB tube is only effective if under the mesh lid, which blocks up to 50% of the UVB light to begin with, and a T8 must be within 6-8" of your beardie, unobstructed. Your enclosure is way too tall for no high basking spot, and if you want to keep the UVB tube on top of the mesh you'll need to buy a Reptisun 10.0 T5 High-Output UVB tube and a new fixture for it that is rated for the T5 wattage of 24 watts, your current fixture is only rated for up to either 15 or 17 watts...

So no matter what, you need to go buy him a new UVB tube IMMEDIATELY, like I said, T8 tubes only emit UVB for 6 months, after that it's just light...If you buy the same UVB tube that's fine, but it absolutely must be mounted under the mesh lid, and he absolutely must have a basking spot that can get him within 6-8" of the completely unobstructed UVB tube. Also, if that UVB fixture is a Zilla, it probably has a clear plastic safety cover on it over the UVB tube, which blocks pretty much all the UVB light, so he's gotten none. You must remove any cover...

Ditch all colored bulbs, and absolutely no lights on at night, and he needs no nighttime heat source, they want it to be pitch black and considerably cooler than their daytime temperatures, just like in the desert. So no nighttime heat source.

You need only 2 total lights, the UVB tube and a single, bright white basking bulb, probably 100 to 150 watts for that size enclosure. You have stick-on thermometers I believe, which are usually off by 20 degrees or more, and you cannot measure the basking spot temperature with one, though you need to get him a new UVB tube and a tall enough basking branch or platform immediately, then you can measure his basking spot temperature (between 98-103), Hot Side Ambient (between 88-93), and Cool Side (between 75-80), but you need to buy a $10 digital probe thermometer at Petco, and allow the probe to sit for at least 20 minutes each time before reading the temperature.

His poop, any appetite issues, lethargy, is all related to inadequate UVB light and not being able to get anywhere near close enough to the UVB bulb, temps that are not within the appropriate ranges which means he cannot properly digest his food, and bad bulbs/colored bulbs. And also, NEVER LET CRICKETS INSIDE HIS ENCLOSURE!!!!! EVER!!!! HE'LL END UP WITH A BAD INFECTION! THEY BITE, ABD THIS IS HOW SO MANY DRAGONS END UP LOSING BODY PARTS TO INFECTION!!! If you feed crickets you must only feed a few at a time, and when he's done, if there are any left inside the enclosure you must take them out, certainly not 25 crickets! That's why he wanted our and was scratching!

So he'll be fine once you buy a new UVB tube, buy a proper digital probe thermometer, buy or just go outside and find a basking branch/log (bake at 250 degrees for 30 minutes to disinfect) and get him at the proper distance from his new UVB, and get his 3 Temperature ranges correct. He'll be fine then.

 

[kyleena29]

You could add wooden shelves and put fabric on them if you wanted. Make a little ramp to get up or whatever you want to do.
If you want to keep uvb above the mesh I would go with this for uvb
http://www.reptilebasics.com/arcadia-desert-12-uvb/arcadia-d3-12-uvb-t5-bulb-22/
With this fixture
https://www.amazon.com/Sunblaster-904296-NanoTech-Fixture-Reflector/dp/B00AKKUBDQ/ref=lp_6264127011_1_10?srs=6264127011&ie=UTF8&qid=1506616845&sr=8-10
This could be set on top of the mesh and set up allowing him to get within 8-10" of it.
Though it does look like a fine mesh screen you could find a way to mount this inside probably as it is pretty light in weight.

 

[EllenD]

You could add wooden shelves and put fabric on them if you wanted. Make a little ramp to get up or whatever you want to do.
If you want to keep uvb above the mesh I would go with this for uvb
http://www.reptilebasics.com/arcadia-desert-12-uvb/arcadia-d3-12-uvb-t5-bulb-22/
With this fixture
https://www.amazon.com/Sunblaster-904296-NanoTech-Fixture-Reflector/dp/B00AKKUBDQ/ref=lp_6264127011_1_10?srs=6264127011&ie=UTF8&qid=1506616845&sr=8-10
This could be set on top of the mesh and set up allowing him to get within 8-10" of it.
Though it does look like a fine mesh screen you could find a way to mount this inside probably as it is pretty light in weight.

I like your setup, nice and clean, and he has access to all different heights and levels of lighting...the shelf across the back is a good idea...

Just to add to your question about finding cheaper enclosure decor, as I said, you can just go right outside and find a couple nice, thick branches or even little logs/stumps that will give him the choice of how close to his lights he wants to be. All you need to do scrub them down in hot water and bleach very well, then rinse very well, and bake them at 250 degrees for 30-45 minutes in the oven.

And yes, by all means buy another T8 UVB tube that fits the fixture you already have, that's fine (you do need to replace them every 6 months though, even though they are not "burnt out" they stop emitting any UVB light at 6 months), but you have to remover any clean, plastic safety cover if there is one on the fixture over the tube, and it must be mounted underneath that mesh lid. Most people use 3M Command Hooks, or make brackets out of hangers, or they poke small holes in the mesh and use the large, plastic zip ties the hang the fixture under the mesh lid and directly over the basking spot, right next to the bright white basking bulb. Make sure that whatever basking platforms or branches you find/buy allow him to get at a minimum within 6" of the UVB tube, unobstructed under the mesh lid. He'll sometimes want to be that close, sometimes not, but that's the distance at which the T8 is effective to him (6-8") so he needs the option.

It's a very nice, big enclosure, but there's just been far too much distance between him and his lights, and then the mesh blocking the UVB tube is just a double whammy, then the fact that the T8 tube is a year old is a triple whammy, so it's caught up to him...