Water Dragon Breathing

Question
QUESTION: Hi, I've had a Chinese Water Dragon for about 2 months now, and I've just learned to really handle him. He was already a year old when I got him so he wasn't very tame in the first place.

For the past two days (which was the time I've been handling him the most) he's been holding his breath, then inhaling and exhaling rapidly then repeating it. He also makes a clicking sound when he exhales.

Should I be concerned, or should I see if it was just a weird thing he's doing?

Thank you,
Harry Johnson

ANSWER: Hello Harry,

What is your setup like currently?
What are the temperatures in the tank, & what type of thermometer do you use to measure the temperatures with, a stick on type, a digital probe or a temp gun?
What is the humidity in the tank?
Maybe you could post a picture of your setup for me?
Are you using a UVB light & if so, what type & brand is it?  A fluorescent tube bulb or a compact/coil light?  
What type of basking light are you using for him?
Great that you are getting him tamed down, that is quite a bit of work, as Chinese water dragons are sometimes hard to get to calm down.  So, he is over a year?  He has begun maturing as well which makes it harder to handle him.
They can exhibit aggressive behavior by doing a forced exhalation which is rapidly forcing air in & out of their throat areas, making snorting noises, & clicking types of noises.  He is just communicating.  Did he seem upset with something, or just maybe displaying or showing off a little bit?
Does he have any symptoms of a respiratory infection such as mucous in or around the mouth or nose?  

Tracie

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Tracie, my dragons currently in a 40 gallon tank with a fairly big water bowl, some branches to climb on and some artificial vines for decoration and shade. I'm using a digital probe and I try to keep it around 87 F under the basking lamp, and room temperature on the shaded side of the tank (70-80 F). I have a UVA light unfortunately, I haven't been able to find a local pet store that carries UVB's for some reason.

I've also been giving him a mist of water every now and then, and I have a humidifier in the room he's in.

He doesn't have any sign of infection or anything else of that sort.

He was acting exactly the way you described it. He's not having the problem as frequently now. He only does it after he eats, which now leads me to believe I might have been overfeeding him. I've been giving him around 8 crickets and 2 super worms a day. I figured if he wasn't hungry he'd stop eating, but maybe that's not the case. His environment hasn't changed since I got him, so I don't know what he'd be aggravated about, except for me handling him more.

Thanks again,
Harry Johnson


Answer
Hello Harry,

Great, the basking temperatures are fine then, especially since you are using a digital probe to measure them.  You can go to 90 for the basking spot, if you would like to.  The cool side temperatures are good as well.  Here is a good online site to purchase the Reptisun 10 fluorescent tube bulb for an ideal price:
http://www.petmountain.com/product/reptile-fluorescent-bulbs/504983/zoo-med-rept

He really does need the UVB lighting though, so at that price, it is cheaper than the stores are.
What is the humidity, do you know?
Other than his behavior I think you are just dealing with male hormones!  You will just have to put your foot down with him & show him who is boss!  LOL  
He is still growing so he will continue to eat like he is doing right now.  

The size of the tank is pretty good.  You might need a larger one when he gets bigger though.

Tracie