My bearded dragon has been acting very strange for the last few days. He is not eating and does not move much. He looks healthy other than those to symptoms. He is 6 years old and has never acted like this. What do you guys think? thanks
beardie help
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We would need the full run down on your set-up:
Lights, tank size, temps, diet, any other pertinent info
Also pictures would help too
Lights, tank size, temps, diet, any other pertinent info
Also pictures would help too
Here is my setup-it's a 48in long,18in width, and 24in high. Temps- hot spot is 95-100 degrees farnheit. Cool spot is 75-80 degrees farnheit. Lights- 100 watt reptile full spectrum heat bulb and a uvb light. I house him on sand.(not sure on the brand other then that I know the sand is not calci sand.) Diet-crickets,mealworms,superworms, and every few weeks a frozen pinkie, if he wants it.(pinkie is defosted of course) All are dusted with calcium supplement 3 times a week. Veggies are carrot, spinach(not often), fresh and frozen peas, frozen corn, and squash. fruits- bannanas(rarly), strawberries with out seeds, assorted frozen berries like razz,black,blue,ect, and apple. prepared foods- nature zone bearded dragon bites,and zilla fortified bearded dragon food. Meats such as the crickets and mealworms are offerd every day. Veggies are offerd every other day. Fruits are offerd every 3 days. Prepared foods are offerd in small portions with every meal. He is the only beardie in this terrarium. He has accses to fresh water constantly. Once or twice a week I will give him a bath in a smal tub with lukewarm water. Pictures soon.
fish keeper;4744745; said:
This could have something to do with it. How long have you been giving them to him?
If you intend to feed them to him, I wouldn't feed as more than a snack more than once a month. No more than that, as they are fatty, and have cartilage which could possibly cause an impaction or they can get fatty liver disease.
The only useful benefit of pinkies(in my opinion) is for females that have just laid eggs
Well if you only started this month, it could either be a bad reaction to eating the mouse, or something else. Have you had a fecal test done at your local vet?
I wouldn't recommend the pinkies either.
A few other notes.
Sand is dangerous. It has a risk of impaction. Also, sand can harbor bacteria, and other nasties.
What uvb light are you using? A lot of uvb lights have been known to cause problems with dragons, and only two are highly recommended that I know of. Megaray for an mvb, though they have had a few issues within the last year. Though the reigning king of uvb light due to reputation is the reptiSUN 10.0 (not reptiglo).
Also, I can't check right now due to the site being blocked at work, but here is a great resource for what is good for dragons.
www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html
Also, I wouldn't feed spinach, considering, while high in calcium, it contains oxilates that bind to nutrients and prevents the dragon from absorbing them.
Mealworms are a terrible feeder. They don't have any nutrition, and are very high in chitinous shell which can lead to impaction. Superworms aren't that bad, they have more meat in them, but only for dragons of at least 16" in length. Crickets are alright, but I personally don't like them for a few reasons.
Try getting other greens such as collard, turnip, or kale. Supers are alright, but fatty, so not too much. As mentioned crickets are good, but I don't use them because they smell, make noise, are too good at escaping, and if left in the cage overnight with the dragon, will start munching on your pet. Myself, and a good number of other beardie owners would recommend blaptica dubia (yup, a roach) for a feeder. They breed very easily, and live awhile, so it cuts out on the feeder bill. Also, they can't climb, fly, jump, don't smell, don't make noise, and are very healthy for your dragons.
I would also say to get rid of the sand asap, you can replace it with repticarpet or papertowels for now. Another popular substrate is actually slate tiles. they are easy to clean, no risk of impaction, and help keep your dragons nails trimmed, as well as look nice.
How old is the dragon, and how long is it? A young dragon will have a diet consisting of mainly insects, but salad should be introduced daily. As the dragon matures, and enters adulthood, they will need to be eating about 80% of their diet as salad, with the remaining 20% as feeders. Salad should be offered every day, regardless of age.
Hydration, they don't need a water bowl in their viv. If humidity gets too high in their set up, they can get respiratory infections. A ten minute bath every day or two will keep them hydrated. Even if he doesn't drink in the bath, he will absorb moisture through his vent.
I hate to link to another site, but beardeddragon.org has a lot of caresheets, and a large forum community that can help with anything on your dragon.
A few other notes.
Sand is dangerous. It has a risk of impaction. Also, sand can harbor bacteria, and other nasties.
What uvb light are you using? A lot of uvb lights have been known to cause problems with dragons, and only two are highly recommended that I know of. Megaray for an mvb, though they have had a few issues within the last year. Though the reigning king of uvb light due to reputation is the reptiSUN 10.0 (not reptiglo).
Also, I can't check right now due to the site being blocked at work, but here is a great resource for what is good for dragons.
www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html
Also, I wouldn't feed spinach, considering, while high in calcium, it contains oxilates that bind to nutrients and prevents the dragon from absorbing them.
Mealworms are a terrible feeder. They don't have any nutrition, and are very high in chitinous shell which can lead to impaction. Superworms aren't that bad, they have more meat in them, but only for dragons of at least 16" in length. Crickets are alright, but I personally don't like them for a few reasons.
Try getting other greens such as collard, turnip, or kale. Supers are alright, but fatty, so not too much. As mentioned crickets are good, but I don't use them because they smell, make noise, are too good at escaping, and if left in the cage overnight with the dragon, will start munching on your pet. Myself, and a good number of other beardie owners would recommend blaptica dubia (yup, a roach) for a feeder. They breed very easily, and live awhile, so it cuts out on the feeder bill. Also, they can't climb, fly, jump, don't smell, don't make noise, and are very healthy for your dragons.
I would also say to get rid of the sand asap, you can replace it with repticarpet or papertowels for now. Another popular substrate is actually slate tiles. they are easy to clean, no risk of impaction, and help keep your dragons nails trimmed, as well as look nice.
How old is the dragon, and how long is it? A young dragon will have a diet consisting of mainly insects, but salad should be introduced daily. As the dragon matures, and enters adulthood, they will need to be eating about 80% of their diet as salad, with the remaining 20% as feeders. Salad should be offered every day, regardless of age.
Hydration, they don't need a water bowl in their viv. If humidity gets too high in their set up, they can get respiratory infections. A ten minute bath every day or two will keep them hydrated. Even if he doesn't drink in the bath, he will absorb moisture through his vent.
I hate to link to another site, but beardeddragon.org has a lot of caresheets, and a large forum community that can help with anything on your dragon.
Thank you Virus for all the info! I heard that sand could be harmful, but he has been on sand for six years. He is six years old too. The uvb light I have had for a while too so I think that is fine. Not sure what type though.
No problem, I'm just trying to be a useful member while I'm here. And since I don't keep fish, I'm mainly here for tank info for my snapper.
Most uvb lights wear out by six months. It will still emit light, but the uv output diminishes. I'm merely guessing that you've had it that long since you aren't sure what kind it is anymore.
Most uvb lights wear out by six months. It will still emit light, but the uv output diminishes. I'm merely guessing that you've had it that long since you aren't sure what kind it is anymore.