Question
Sick beardie
Hi. I have about a 3 months year old bearded dragon. Prior to getting him, he was kept under the incorrect lights (non reptile lights) and was not eating unless force fed. The people were not force feeding either so I think he went without eating anything.
Both of his eyes are barely open. One eye appears to be fogged over and the other is a little crusty. He will not chase after crickets or worms and won't eat unless you force him. I have had him for about 3 weeks and initially tried force feeding crickets and some meal worms. However, he occasionally spit them out. I have recently started giving him applesauce with calcium powder through a syringe. He won't open his mouth on his own but once i start putting the applesauce in he will chew. Some days I can get him to eat a whole meal worm if i make sure it is in his mouth. I also give him a warm bath before feeding. After I force feed him though he loses his color and turns very pale.
I am not sure if there is anything I can do to get him to eat on his own or to clear up his eyes. He is slowly becoming a little more active but it seems like there is something wrong and I am afraid I will hurt him if i continue to force his mouth open.
I was using a repti glo 10 hood but have turned that off and am just using a basking bulb. The temps on the cool side are around 80 during the day and under the bulb they can get a little higher than 100. At night the temp stays around 70.
Please help. I don't want him to get any worse. I have attached a picture but not sure if it will help.
AnswerHi Melissa,
He does look to be in bad shape..very, very tiny for his age also.
There have been some problems with some of the uvb lighting. Some just don't produce the uvb needed and others are producing eye problems...especially the compact ones.
There is a link to reading more on the "blindness" that the compacts were causing. The good news is that if it is the cause of the eye problem, it corrects when the offending light is changed.
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/
also, for more reading on the subject of uvb:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/UVB_Meter_Owners/messages
The following link will take you to my discussion group and to a post that tells how to tell the new compacts from the old ones. IF your beardie is using one of the new ones, it is vital to let us know that. If you prefer not to join the meter group, you can just send an email to the owners of the group at the address listed there.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/UVB_Meter_Owners/message/6721
If you are using sand or other loose substrate, I suggest removing it. Sand is especially dangerous for baby dragons.
He may have a nasty overload of internal parasites also. He really does need to see a vet to find what is happening with him. Unfortunately, some just don't make it for other health reasons. The color change after eating is most likely stress.
As I said, I would get him to a vet and the vet may be able to prescribe some supplements that will help. You can try offering some benebac with a syringe to see if that helps..also diluted Gatorade to keep hydration up.
I would not use applesauce as that sometimes in reptiles it works more as an appetite suppressant.
With beardies, you can use a babyfood that contains meat also...the veggie and meat ones..or even a fruit and meat combo.
Until you can find out what is wrong with him, its pretty hard to know how to treat the problem he has, if he is able to be treated.
I would not take away his uvb...its vital for them.
You can wipe his eyes out with some sterile saline solution, such as is used for contact lens users.
Some of the problems he has may be due to him being sold to the original people too early...They should be 6 inches long and at least 6 wks old before being sold, given away, etc. It also sounds like he was never offered any dark leafy greens in his diet as there needs to be.
I would also raise his night time temperature 5-10 degrees in one area so he has the option to be warmer at night if he chooses.
Double check all your care with the care sheet below. I've included links to finding a vet also.
Sorry for the time span in my replying..I was at the surgery center for several hours today...
BASIC BEARDED DRAGON CARE:
HOUSING:
For an adult bearded Dragon, a 50 -55 gallon is the smallest recommended tank. For a baby, nothing less than a 30 gallon tank will work for a very short time, so its best to just start out with the adult sized tank....you can add rocks and branches for climbing, being sure to not stack rocks too high to prevent them toppling over. Branches need to be secure. They like to have a hide log or cave too!! All items brought from outside need to be cleaned well before placing them in the BD's tank. To clean them, there are a few methods: to wash in a bleach solution of 1/4 cup of bleach to 1 gallon of water. Let them soak for about an hour, rinse them in hot water several times and then let them dry in the sun until completely dry. If the items are small enough, they can be baked in an over at 200 degrees for about 2 hours, check often to be sure they are not starting to burn. The items can also be boiled(simmered) for 30 minutes or so and then allowed to dry completely before placing in the tank. I also suggest washing any pet store items such as caves, rocks, branches, etc before placing in the tank as that if the store would happen to have mites they can also be on the items we purchase. Any of the above methods are acceptable for cleaning. CAUTION!!! On store bought branches...be VERY careful with the driftwood pieces that have the holes in them!!! Be sure the holes are small as that if the holes are large, the BD MAY be able to get his head in them but not able to get it back out!!! A secure screen top is necessary for bearded dragons as that also they do not require much height for climbing..they can and do climb!! NEVER USE HEAT ROCKS OR HEATED CAVES!!! They malfunction and cause severe burns and even death!!!!
SUBSTRATES:
Young bearded dragons MUST be kept on paper towels, newspaper or other non particulate(loose) substrate to prevent them from getting any loose substrate into their mouth and swallowing it which can and does cause intestinal blockages.Once the BD is over 10 inches, some people have had good luck using play sand mixed with 50% of peat moss. I prefer the safe substrate of the newspaper, or other non particulate substrate to prevent any problems and also for ease of cleaning.
LIGHTING:
BD's need UVB, which is the special lights that come in fluorescent tubes or special screw in bulbs(mercury vapor)that are designed to produce uvb and heat. The tubes do not produce heat. UVB is needed by the BD to be able to absorb the calcium in the foods they eat. Without the uvb, they will develop metabolic bone disease.
With the tubes, they must say that they produce BOTH uvb and uva. The uvb needs to be 5% or higher. Repti Sun 5.0 and 10.0(not compact) are TWO of the best uvb tubes on the market. The repti glo 8.0's are a great uvb source also. Arcadia 5.0 (UK), which is the uvb tube available in the UK is a good uvb tube. These need to be positioned 6-8 inches(for the 5.0 and 8.0 and 8-10 inches for the 10.0) over the BD so that they get the uvb that is needed. Recommended length of the tube is 24 inches or more. They need to be replaced every 6-9 months as that they stop producing uvb long before they stop producing light. They need to have access to uvb and basking temperatures for 10-12 hours daily. At night, no white lights!!! There has been new studies that have proven that compact uvb lights, both the spiral/coil type and the ones that look like long "U's" laying on their side and a few other brands are causing what basically amounts to snow blindness in reptiles. To read more on this, you can go to
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/index.htm Here is a link to a letter from RZilla on their product: http://www.zilla-rules.com/assets/006/13278.pdf
There are tubes and bulbs that say ''full spectrum'' but they do not produce any uvb.
On the mercury vapor , they also produce heat. They also produce the uvb and uva. The best on the market now are the MEGA RAY or the T-Rex. www.reptileuv.com has more information on the Mega Ray lights. When using these, the distance is much greater than the uvb tubes and the directions must be followed that are listed for the light. When using the mercury vapor lights, you don't need to have one light for uvb and one for heat. The Mercury vapor lights provide both.
HEATING AND TEMPERATURES:
Bearded Dragons have specific temperature requirements. For heat when using the uvb producing fluorescent tubes, a regular household lightbulb will work for DAYTIME heat. The wattage needed will vary to each situation such as tank size, room temperatures, air flow. Their basking area temperature must be between 95F and 105F degrees to allow proper digestion of food. Your basking area must be where the uvb light is as well as the heat source. Be sure that the BD cannot get too close to the heat source as that they WILL get burned! The ambient temperature range in the mid 80's . Cool daytime range of normal room temperature of low to mid 70's. Nighttime temperatures in the low to mid 60's is fine. NEVER USE HEAT ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A good digital thermometer is a must. I like using the duel ones with the probe...cost about 15$ at Wal Mart. The probe can be placed in the basking area at the BD's level to monitor this temperature and the main unit can be placed in one of the ambient temperature areas. When reading them, the "out" reading is the probe area.
DIET:
Bearded Dragons eat and need both animal proteins and vegetable matter!!! As young dragons they eat a bit more of the insects. As they get older, as adults their diet is more of the vegetable matter. As young BDs, the diet is about 80% animal proteins and 20% vegetable matter. As they get older, the ratio changes. An adult will eat about 80%-90% vegetable matter and 10-20% animal proteins.
Animal protein sources are: Crickets, superworms, silkworms, roaches, hornworms, waxworms. Waxworms are considered candy to a BD so only feed on occasion in a small amount(2-3 worms). ALL insects must be properly gutloaded for at least 48 hours prior to feeding to the dragon. For crickets and superworms, this can be done with vegetables, plain cereals and commercial foods for the species. Silkworms and the other insects have their own diet needs. Its best to feed the crickets in a separate feeding tank such as a 10 or 20 gallon size tank or container with a well vented lid. This can make it easier for the dragon to catch the crickets and prevents any stray crickets in their "home" tank from deciding to nibble on the BD if he happens to not find them all. If you do feed in his home tank, be sure to place a 1/2 potato in the tank to help prevent the crickets from biting at the BD. ALL insects fed must be no larger than the space between their eyes to prevent choking. Be sure to dust the insects daily(for dragons up to 14-15 inches) (2x wkly there after)with a good calcium source such as Rep Cal calcium powder with no added Phosphorus. Young BD's up to 4 months of age will eat more crickets than anything. At this age they will usually consume anywhere from 10 to 30+ correctly sized crickets three times a day. Be sure to remove any uneaten crickets that are not consumed in a 15-25 minute time frame. For this reason, its easier to use a separate feeding tank for the bearded dragon. A 10 gallon tank(with a screen top) works well. Its best to offer their "salad" of greens/veggies before offering their morning insect feeding when they are hungry to prevent any problems with them preferring NOT to eat their salad. Their salad consists of Collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion greens...... this is the BASE of the green part of their vegetable diet. To this, for variety you can add arugula, escarole, endive,small amounts of bok choy or other Asian greens. For the vegetable part of the diet, green beans, butternut squash, acorn squash(other winter squashes are also acceptable) yams, sweet potato. For color, sweet peppers can also be added in a small amount. For baby BD's, using a food processor for the greens and veggies works well. As they get older, greens should never be larger than about an inch x an inch in size. Never feed lettuces as they have no nutritional value. The hard veggies should be either food processed or grated. Fruits can also be offered in small amounts. Good fruits are figs, papaya, melon, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries....and many other fruits... these need to be mashed or chopped. Watermelon is a good source of water for the dragon. Their salad can be dusted once or at the most, twice a month with a good vitamin supplement such as RepCal HerptiVit. This is by no means a complete list of foods the dragons can eat.You can also offer baby food chicken or
small bits of boiled chicken.
Be sure to provide a dish of FRESH drinking water at ALL times!!! Misting their salad will also help get much needed water into them. NEVER FEED any MICE or other mammals to your Dragon!!!
WATER:
As stated above, always provide a dish of drinking water and mist their salad. You can also bathe your dragon a few times a week. (many bathe them daily for "bathroom duties") Temperature of the water should be between 85 and 95 degrees. The depth should never be any deeper than to cover his back when laying FLAT!!! Never leave them unattended at bath time to prevent possible drowning. Many love to soak and swim for 15 minutes or more. Never bathe less than two hours before his basking lights go out. Doing so can cause him to become too chilled, risking the chance of a respiratory infection.
A vet check up is recommended and a fecal sample taken in to be tested for any internal parasites.... To find a qualified vet in your area you can go to
http://www.herpvetconnection.com
http://www.arav.org/ECOMARAV/timssnet/amm/tnt_mdsearch.cfm
http://www.anapsid.org/vets/
More in-depth care info can be found at:
http://www.bio..miami.edu/ktosney/file/BDcare.html
http://www.sundialreptile.com/care%20sheet--bearded%20dragon.htm
http://www.blackninjakitty.com/herps/dragons
Most bearded dragons will take long naps (generally,if they are over a yr) in the fall.. this is called Brumation. is a form of hibernation. You can read more about that at
http://www.exclusivedragons.com/Brumation.html be sure to read this link as it tells you what to look for in brumation vs illness.
http://www.bio.miami.edu/ktosney/file/BDbrumate.html
http://worldofbeardeddragons.blogspot.com/2006/11/bearded-dragon-brumation-bruma...
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