Very worried about my baby please help

[crazyangel]

My baby Reaper is acting very strange today. He won't open his right eye and he is not eating as much as usual or behaving normally. We took him to a vet and he said that his eye looks alright but if he is getting sick then we should probably return him to the store since we've only had him a week and he's so little. I refuse to give up on my little guy. He is in a 40 gallon tank. His basking spot is 110 with 25% humidity and his cool side is 85 with slightly higher humidity. he does have a uvb light fixture(which we turned off for awhile today) http://www.petco.com/product/115855/Zilla-Desert-UV-T8-Terrarium-Strip-Light-Fixture.aspx
He is about 6.5 inches and weights 11.6 grams. Up until today he has ate very well but now I just don't know. my husband thinks he is going to die he did the eye bulging thing a few times and when I took him out of his cage he started opening his eye some but he barely ate today, he did have a bath. I would really appreciate any help I can get

 

[Esther19]

I would keep the dragon and return the light bulb and fixture. (But that's just my opinion.) You need a ReptiSUN 10 tube. They come in a T8 version which is very good, and a new T5 that has a smaller, stronger bulb. The T5 comes in a package with a bulb sometimes, but it is a Reptisun 5, which is for tropical animals, not dragons.(I recently bought the T5 kind, but have not had the chance to install yet.The T8 has been great for my dragons for years, though) If he opens his eye outside the cage, it's my guess the bulb is bothering him. Good job turning it off.

Lighting is less expensive at petmountain.com. Your little one would be fine without UVB for a week if you order online. If you can get him out in the sun a bit, that would be great. Just keep good hold of him.

What are you using to measure temps? Incorrect temps can cause a loss of appetite.

Is he going to shed? They do the eye bulging thing to help with shedding.

 

[crazyangel]

My thought was that his is going to shed soon, but both my hubby and the vet said no. I think his "beak" looks funny today, darker and kind of grayish, he has been rubbing his face on his basking rock since we got him but he is definitely doing it more today. we've got the zoo med dual thermometer and humidity gauges on both ends of his tank. we've got a dehumidifier on order because at night it rises quite a bit. he hasn't been gaping and he loves his basking rock. he seems like he's breathing kind of hard but I'm not sure on that. I've been reading forums most of the day and now I'm also worried about the sand in his tank, we were told that it was fine for him because he is over 6 inches but now I think we need to switch to carpet

 

[Esther19]

Yes, rubbing is a sign of shedding. I would take out the sand ASAP. You might consider tile, paper towels, non-adhesive shelf liner, or newspaper rather than the carpet. The carpet requires frequent washing, and after a while, the edges get stretched out and live prey can hide underneath. Some folks use it successfully, however.

Has he made a pooper lately?

Is he in his basking spot but not gaping? He might not be eating because the temps are off. The round thermometers you have can be off by over 20 degrees. You need a temp gun, or a digital thermometer with a wire probe to accurately measure temps. You can pick up the digital kind at WalMart for about $12. Usually they are in the light bulb aisle. The pet store would be spendier.

 

[crazyangel]

Thanks Esther I actually have some shelf liner and probably some tile left over from a remodel. He has pooped twice today, and I think he ate enough to not waste away lol He only ate about 1/5 of the amount of crickets he usually does, he LOVES them which is how he got his name. I've never seen him gape and he almost always lays in his basking spot at least until someone is watching then the shenanigans start. I will change out the sand in the am and go get a digital thermometer.

 

[crazyangel]

AND can I just say GRRRRR...stupid pet stores :evil: we researched for a while before picking Reaper out so we had a basic idea of the sort of things we needed, and relied on the pet store people to help us get the right stuff and they sure sold us about $600 worth of what appears to be mostly useless junk

 

[Esther19]

We have all experienced the same frustration. You are not alone. Could you return as much as you can?
Temps for a baby should be 105-110 (not more than 115) for basking. Is the tank big enough to get a cool side of around 70-75? The UVB bulb should be mounted inside the tank so he can get within 6-8 inches when basking. The basking bulb should be on the same side as the UVB to protect the eyes from the UVB.

Are you bathing him at all?

I'd love to see the shenanigans.

 

[crazyangel]

This is his tank currently tomorrow we will definitely be making some changes I will be putting his uvb inside the tank and switching out the sand. he did have a bath today he didn't seem to mind it too much, this was his first time because we've only had him a week and didn't handle him at all for the first several days but we have been putting drops of water on his nose to try and entice him to drink I also mist is veggies right before I hand feed them which is the only way the rotten stinker will eat them. I am going to start bathing daily, we had previously been told only 3-4 times a week but idt that's enough especially after reading all the forums today.

 

[crazyangel]

I also feel like he is not getting close enough to his light what do you think?

 

[Esther19]

What a beautiful habitat! How big is the tank? It does seem very tall, but I'm not a good judge of things like that. Offering water orally, and misting veggies is a great way to hydrate them. Your little stinker is qute fortunate to have such a caring mama.

 

[Tonja]

I am going to butt in here. The temp gauges you have are no good hun, they can be as much as 20 degrees off. You need a thermometer with probes on it, They are fairly inexpensive at wally world. The probe should be on the basking spot and another for the cool area. His temps may be as much as 20 degrees higher or 20 degrees lower than those gauges are reading. He should be within 6-8 inches of his ubv and you can use a regular household bulb for his basking spot. No light at night as it will disturb their sleep.

 

[Esther19]

Thanks, Tonja. All help is appreciated! I recommended a temp gun or a digital probe from Wally's. I've never used a temp gun, figuring I would make user errors, though I have always wondered which others thought was better. Was it okay to recommend the temp gun? Do you prefer the one with the digital probe?

 

[Tonja]

myself I prefer the temp probe, I shake to much to hold a gun steady to get an accurate reading. I also think if the laser is off on the temp gun then you wont get an accurate reading..the laser has to be spot on. This gets complicated but I have used a thermo coupler...its a thermometer with what looks like an antenna on it and it measure both spot temps and ambient air at the same time and they are very accurate.

 

[crazyangel]

Thanks I'm going to go buy the probe kind in the am right after we change out the sand for tile. I am also going to look into trying out some different bugs just to give some variety. I am also going to get him a hammock lol we picked one up several different times at the pet store but ended up not getting it, but it looks like a lot of ppl use them and they are pretty popular with the beardies. Yes Esther this little one has his tiny little clawed toes wrapped so tight around my heart its ridiculous I'm also going to inspect his head tomorrow and see if it seems more gray to me I still think he is going to shed regardless of what the hubby and vet said. lol I've spent enough time in the past week staring at the little face I KNOW his "beak" looks grayer.
as for his shenanigans Esther here's a pix he ran and jumped off his basking rock onto this plant after he tried to take a bite of the plant and found out it wasn't eatable LOL I'm trying to find him some organically grown plants to replace the fake one since he seems to think he should be able to eat them and won't touch his salads

 

[Esther19]

Mama knows best. :wink: Do you have this link for recommended foods? There is a list of plants, though not comprehensive, at the bottom, as well.
http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html
Great picture, thanks. Reaper must keep you hopping.