Health

Question
My bearded dragon has small bumps in a row across his/her belly where the tail connects with the torso.  Is this normal?  Also, I know about winter shutdown but it is the end of March and he still isn't eating.  P.S. He is about 3.5 years old.

Answer
Hello, the bugs may be causing this. They are called mites which are a cross breed between the tick and flea. A reptile will usually get them with a uncleaned enclosure. I had the same problem a few years back. You need to find a certain brand of lice cream the you can bathe them in that will kill the mites. then you must throw out all of the substrate and bleach the logs or bowls in the enclosure. Make sure you clean everything. Once you do this also make sure all the bleach is washed off. Mites will actually suck the blood of its "host" and leave scares.