Why won't he eat?...Found outside in garden.

[SylvieColquhoun]

A week ago today, I was out gardening and came face to face with a bearded dragon hiding right in behind my compost bin. It scared the crap out of me, and I thought I was just seeing things. He wasn't scared at all, and didn't show any signs of aggression when I picked him up and went to my neighbours to ask if he belonged to them. Someone had written on his tail with sharpie, can not read what it says, but it won't come off. After a couple days, no one had claimed him so I decided to keep him.
From the moment I found him, I found a used 40 gallon glass terrarium and filled it with sand (as he is completely full grown, not sure how old), gave him a small bowl of water and some greens I had in the house. I also own a leopard gecko, so I had some crickets that I also tried to offer him. I was not surprised when he did not eat the first couple days as he was probably quite stressed out after his little adventure, and with a whole new atmosphere. Although now it has been a week and he still will not touch any food I offer to him. I have misted him in the face and gotten him to drink water that way, so he is staying hydrated, but I do not know when the last time he ate was and I'm beginning to get worried. Yesterday he had a bowel movement, and it was normal, so he isn't impacted or anything. I do have a proper heating source for him and a UVB light, so he is getting the proper lighting and heat that he needs (I made sure to do all my research on bearded dragons before I decided to keep him). He is not lethargic at all, in the afternoon he'll beg to come out of his cage and will either cuddle with me or run around and explore. He's very alert all the time and seems to be happy from what I can tell. A couple of day ago I offered him some worms, and he was very interested at first, as they were moving around, and went up and licked them and was very curious, but then he just decided naawww never mind, and just walked away. I have read that beardies can go a while without eating in a new environment due to stress and what not. But I am just concerned because, since I found him outside, I have no idea when the last time he ate anything was, or how long he was outside for. He looks healthy, he's a good weight, and he has not shown any signs of illness or anything, so I don't know if I should bring him to a vet and get professional advice, or if he simply will eat on his own with time....I just don't want to starve him if something is wrong, but there just aren't any signs.
Please, if you have any advice I would love to here it! Thanks!

 

[bumblebee]

Hi, welcome to the site!

Congrats on the new beardie! You said you had asked your neighbors, but I'm just wondering if you've posted on craigslist or a similar website that you've found a beardie. It's very possible that someone's still looking for him after a week. I've actually heard of people on this site who have lost their beardies outside and found them alive even months later!

The marks on his tail will probably come off once he sheds once or twice (though as he's an adult, that could take a while). A 40 gallon tank is fine for most adult beardies, though if you wanted to get him a bigger one, I'm sure he would love it! I would get rid of the sand - it harbors bacteria and is really difficult to actually keep clean. He'd do better with newspaper, paper towels, non-adhesive shelf liner, or tile. I also would not keep a water bowl in his tank or mist him, as both can raise the humidity in his tank and lead to a respiratory infection. The best way to hydrate him is to give him a warm soak a few times a week in warm water up to his shoulders in the bathtub, the sink, or a plastic bin. I would keep offering greens every day (just leave them in a bowl in his tank throughout the day), and keep trying different greens and veggies until you find something he likes (this is an amazing resource for beardie nutrition: http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html). Can you go over exactly what temperatures he has for his basking spot and his cool side, and what type of thermometer are you using to measure the temps? Also, which UVB light are you using? The only two UVB lights recommended on this site are the Repti-SUN 10.0 TUBE and the Arcadia 12% tube (coil UVB lights and other brands aren't good for beardies). I would try to keep handling to a minimum because he's probably still going through relocation stress (it can last up to 2 weeks or so), and that's very possibly why he's not eating. That's great that he's at least somewhat interested in the worms! I wouldn't really worry until he's been with you two weeks or so. Especially as adults, they really can go a long time without eating (months even). It definitely would not be a bad idea to get a fecal exam done, but I think it's recommended to wait until you've had him for 6 weeks, so he's had a chance to settle in. Also, you mentioned that you have a leopard gecko, I would be really careful with keeping the beardie quarantined, so that your gecko is safe from any potential parasites (coccidia and pinworms are common in beardies, and reptile mites are easily picked up outside).

Hope that helps!