Whats wrong?

[boopidbanana]

Hello! My bearded dragon has a huge crick in his back. His toes are swollen and he can't get around as well as he used to. I took him to the vet because this concerned me. They told me he/she was okay and they sent me home with some oral calcium. I showed them my set up I told them my tempts everything! And she checked them out and said that he was doing okay and he was too young for blood work. I am terribly scared cuz it looks like mbd. Which is so frustrating because I have done everything to prevent this. I dust his bugs every morning. I dust his greens in the morning and now I am giving him calcium orally. I don't know what else to do and am so lost.

 

[hdochow]

the first thing we need to sort out is your lighting and temps. these things are most crucial to dragon care and will effect everything else with them if they are off. we always start from there when trying to figure out what is going on with our scaly friends. once those things are on point, it is easier to move forward. i looked at your profile but still have some questions. what type of uvb light do you have (long straight tube light or a coil/compact bulb) and where is it placed (inside enclosure/ on top of a screen)? and then what are you using for a basking light? what are your temperatures for both ambient hot/cool sides, and then the basking spot? i saw you are using an IR gun. depending on what surface you are reading with them, the temps can be off. a digital probe thermometer is best.

 

[boopidbanana]

Hi! I have a long straight tube light, its screwed into the screen so it is inside the tank. For a basking spot I am using a halogen light from home depot. The tempt on the hot side are 92-105. The basking spots about 98-105. Also the uvb is a 10.0 12" reptisun

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

The Reptisun 10 tube bulb, is it in a light fixture or mounted overhead, etc? Can you try to post a
few pictures of the overall tank layout so we can see the lighting arrangement? I think the UVB light
needs to be closer, if it's a T8. You can safely have it at a 6-8 inch distance & it needs to be in a light
fixture, directly overhead.
How old is the tube bulb?
It does appear to be metabolic bone disease. How old is he? Most of the time, the bone deformities
are permanent, but, if he is young & still growing you might be able to get it halted & possibly reversed
to some extent on the bone issues.
What liquid calcium are you giving, do you have a picture of the label? Did the vet dose him for his
weight?

Tracie

 

[boopidbanana]

Hello,

The Reptisun 10 tube bulb, is it in a light fixture or mounted overhead, etc? Can you try to post a
few pictures of the overall tank layout so we can see the lighting arrangement? I think the UVB light
needs to be closer, if it's a T8. You can safely have it at a 6-8 inch distance & it needs to be in a light
fixture, directly overhead.
How old is the tube bulb?
It does appear to be metabolic bone disease. How old is he? Most of the time, the bone deformities
are permanent, but, if he is young & still growing you might be able to get it halted & possibly reversed
to some extent on the bone issues.
What liquid calcium are you giving, do you have a picture of the label? Did the vet dose him for his
weight?

Tracie

Hi! The bulb is mounted in a light fixture. You can see in the pic both the hear lamp and the uvb. I think I might need to bring the uvb lamp down inside, which means I need to either lower the bricks or figure out a new tank arrangement. He is only about 4-5 months maybe less. I got him April 23rd. I bought the tube light im using now when I got him.

 

[boopidbanana]

Hello,

The Reptisun 10 tube bulb, is it in a light fixture or mounted overhead, etc? Can you try to post a
few pictures of the overall tank layout so we can see the lighting arrangement? I think the UVB light
needs to be closer, if it's a T8. You can safely have it at a 6-8 inch distance & it needs to be in a light
fixture, directly overhead.
How old is the tube bulb?
It does appear to be metabolic bone disease. How old is he? Most of the time, the bone deformities
are permanent, but, if he is young & still growing you might be able to get it halted & possibly reversed
to some extent on the bone issues.
What liquid calcium are you giving, do you have a picture of the label? Did the vet dose him for his
weight?

Tracie

Also here is his medicine. I'm not sure if they dosed him by weight, they just said give it to him twice a day for a month even with his other supplements hell be okay.

 

[KarrieRee]

Hi! The bulb is mounted in a light fixture. You can see in the pic both the hear lamp and the uvb. I think I might need to bring the uvb lamp down inside, which means I need to either lower the bricks or figure out a new tank arrangement. He is only about 4-5 months maybe less. I got him April 23rd. I bought the tube light im using now when I got him.

T 8's need to be directly above the basking decor 6-8 inches --- the hood needs to have a reflector in it-- the basking bulb should be a bright solid clear white - NO yellowish or off white bulbs -- the T 8's expire in approx 6 months I recommend changing them out in 5 - I also recommend getting a 24" fixture Arcadia Pro T 5 w/ a 12% bulb 24 watt --

 

[boopidbanana]

T 8's need to be directly above the basking decor 6-8 inches --- the hood needs to have a reflector in it-- the basking bulb should be a bright solid clear white - NO yellowish or off white bulbs -- the T 8's expire in approx 6 months I recommend changing them out in 5 - I also recommend getting a 24" fixture Arcadia Pro T 5 w/ a 12% bulb 24 watt --

It is above the basking spot? What do you suggest I do? It's not okay to let the heat lamp hit the uvb right? So its not getting hot

 

[KarrieRee]

It is above the basking spot? What do you suggest I do? It's not okay to let the heat lamp hit the uvb right? So its not getting hot

You don't want the uvb getting melted so put another piece of decor under it 6-8 inches

 

[boopidbanana]

You don't want the uvb getting melted so put another piece of decor under it 6-8 inches

I am a little confused, under what sorry lol.

 

[KarrieRee]

I am a little confused, under what sorry lol.

under the UVB -- they dont haft to be directly beside each other - just make sure he has options of getting under both lamps - he will pick the one he needs

 

[boopidbanana]

under the UVB -- they dont haft to be directly beside each other - just make sure he has options of getting under both lamps - he will pick the one he needs

Okay that makes sense. Thank you.

 

[boopidbanana]

under the UVB -- they dont haft to be directly beside each other - just make sure he has options of getting under both lamps - he will pick the one he needs

Is there anything you suggest to use as a basking spot/where he can sit for uvb

 

[KarrieRee]

Is there anything you suggest to use as a basking spot/where he can sit for uvb

As far as decor? Look at Pet Smart for decor pieces they are easy to keep clean or if your one to like outdoor wood you can do that too just make sure you bake it in the oven on 300 for like 30 min or so - that will kill whatever is living in it- I know Pet Smart has nice decor for dragons-- I personally dont like bricks or slate bricks are rough and slate rocks etc get really hot - under a UVB it wouldnt be bad but under basking lamps they can burn the dragon

 

[hdochow]

oh good. i see you have input from KarrieRee and Drachie613. they were who i was going to refer you to last night after getting the information i knew they would want to have.

myself, for basking decor for UVB i use a long grape vine that is angled from the floor to high up on the side wall of the enclosure, which gives sir henry many options for how close he wants to be to the light. takes away the guess work for placement distance. this is the one i have, but they have different sizes so you can choose what works best for your enclosure. Wholesale Lugarti Premium Grapevine

i have his basking light set up right behind to the UVB with a different platform under it. sir henry spends the day going back and forth between the two areas.