Unhealthy poop?

[boredism69]

Hey guys! I’m a new beardie owner. I have done research for months on how to care for an adult bearded dragon and then I decided to get a baby. He is only a month old and I have had him for about a week.

He eats crickets and I am trying to get him to eat his salad. I did give him 3 small super worms.. after doing some research I read that super worms are too high in chitin for the babies and will cause digestive issues... So I immediately stopped giving them to him (this was two days ago) Yesterday and today I realized that he has been getting stress marking on his belly and his beard for what seems to be no apparent reason? I’m not trying to handle him, and I’ll look in his terrarium and he has the marks. I was able to get them to go away by giving him a bath.. I read online that baths help with their digestion? So maybe that’s why it helped?

I’m not sure if it’s because his stomach is upset from the super worms. Plus yesterday he didn’t poop, when he was pooping the everyday. Also, his poop didn’t smell at all.


Then today I looked and his poop looked sorta runny. Also, it smelt terrible. And there a little yellow in the urate? Is that because he is too dehydrated? I mist him a few times a day. Should I take him to the vet? Or is the consistency of his poop normal?

Maybe I’m just overreacting, I love him and I am doing my best to make sure he is okay. Thank you in advance.

 

[CooperDragon]

Don't worry too much about the salad at this point. The little guys tend to prefer bugs to help supply protein for big growth spurts. Keep salad available but it's OK if he ignores it for now. Try feeding the leftovers to the crickets.

It's good that you stopped offering the supers. Probably not a huge deal if they were small but they aren't the best staple. They're OK for adults when mixed in as part of a variety though. I'd stick with softer worms for now like silk worms and black soldier fly larvae in addition to the crickets. Give him a couple of bug meals - all he wants in a sitting - each day.

The dark marks are common with the little guys and I think the term stress marks is misleading. They darken their colors to warm up and absorb heat/light. This is common when they bask. The marks themselves aren't a concern (a full jet black beard however, would be concerning for example).

The runny poop might just be an upset stomach. That happens sometimes and isn't a big deal as long as it doesn't continue for weeks on end. I'm not able to see the photo though. You can upload photos here https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ and post them to your thread using the XIMG button. Please let me know if you have any further questions.

 

[boredism69]

Thank you so much for showing me how to post the picture! And thanks for your advice!

Also, I’m seeing a lot of controversy against what the ambient gradient for a baby beardie should be in the day and the night. Do you happen to know? His basking spot is usually 100-115 degrees F. The tank is usually 75-90 degrees F from cold side to hot side. And at night the tank is usually 75-85 degrees F cold to hot side. I have yet to see him hang out in the cool side. He is always on the warm side.

 

[CooperDragon]

That poop looks healthy and normal to me. I don't see anything to worry about there.

That temp gradient sounds good for the daytime. A little warm for overnight. I like to keep my tank in the low 70s overnight to give them some cool down time. The key to the gradient during the day is give them options and they'll move around to get what they want at any given time. If he likes to hang out in the basking area at those temps, you probably have it right.

 

[boredism69]

Thank you so much! I will take the temps down a little tonight.