baby bearded dragon eats little

Question

Pat   QUESTION: We recently purchased a baby bearded dragon from a pet store.  He or she eats only 1-3 crickets a day at the most and is 7 inches long, he has grown about 1/4 inch.  The pet store tried to tell me that it is probably just an adjustment thing as he was in with about 7 other babies.  They claimed to have had these beardies for 4 months.  My bearded dragon is nowhere near big enough to be that old (at least from pics I have seen on the net).  They were all the same size in the pet store.  I'm not sure how much he should eat as the answer varies so much on the net....  He is pooping daily and a week after we got him he started molting so I wondered if this was why he doesn't eat much or if he is just too little to eat much yet.  We have had him 9 days - does it take that long to adjust?
I have a 100 watt bulb by Zoo Med that says repti basking spot lamp.  His cage gets to about 90-95 but can get as low as 80.  Since it was varying, I put a 75 watt red light repti globe on him at night too.  He loves to bask by the way.  The cage is a 55 gallon with a screen top that we sit the light on.  He also has the uvb lamp on for approximately 10 hours a day which again sits ontop of the screen.  The thermometer sits beside his basking rock to get a good temp.  The substrate is that calcium sand although I only have it in half of the cage - the other I have newspaper in and that is where he feeds, I separate the two sides when feeding for ease of cricket removal.  He seems more interested in looking at his reflection than eating the crickets!  He's not real active, loves to be held and on your shoulder all the time.  Bought some little meal worms and he won't eat those either, won't eat veggies either.  He laps water in his bath and from a mist.  
Anyway - is he acting normally for a little guy?  How long should I leave him in there to feed?  I make him stay for at least 15 minutes.  Thanks so much.

ANSWER: Hello Carla,

They can go through relocation stress for a couple of weeks yes.  Let's review your setup though to see if anything else is going on.
Which type & brand of UVB light are you using?  A flourescent tube bulb or a compact/coil light?  The brand should be stamped on the base of the bulb.  The basking light sounds like it is a bright white light, which is fine.  Remember, screen does block over half of the UVB emissions to him, so we will need to figure out something for him to get more UVB.  
What type of thermometer are you using, a digital probe or a temp gun?  What are the temperatures in the tank?  They need a basking spot of around 95-110 with a cool area of around 78-82.  
The red light at night may keep him awake & disturb his sleep.  It is recommended that they have it dark at night to sleep.  They can safely fall into the 60 range in the tank with no heating.  If you need heating, I would suggest using a ceramic heat emitter which gives off only heat but no light.
Are you using a powdered calcium supplementation?  At his age, he will need calcium once daily, 5 times per week.  
The calcium based sand is questionable for babies.  Make sure he does not eat any of that sand because it can impact him terribly since it hardens up like cement when it gets wet.  

You can let him stay out to eat for at least 10 minutes to give him ample opportunity to eat.
It will take him a little while to get used to eating his greens & veggies so keep trying.  Eventually he will recognize it as food, it will just take awhile.  When his appetite picks up, he should be eating at least 50+ feeders daily right now.


Tracie

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QUESTION: Yes, I use a calcium supplement that I got from the pet shop.  I use it 5 times a week on the crickets.  I also got herbavite that I use 5 times a week.  
I wasn't aware that the screen would block that much rays - I will get that fixed right away.  The bulb for that is a tube I think but I will check.  It was suggested to me at the pet store - which one is best?
I don't care for the thermometer I bought - it is a stick on and I put it by his basking spot but I think I will get a different one tomorrow.  Any suggestions?  The temp gauge shows between 90-95 for basking so maybe I need to up the temperature by lowering the light or by buying one with more wattage?  Should I not use a screen at all????
Thanks for the reassurance on what is going on with him:)  I really appreciate it!

ANSWER: Hello Carla,

Ok, good you are using a calcium supplement 5 days per week.  The vitamins really only need to be used 2 times per week right now.  
There is a digital probe, the Acurite brand, that is found at Walmart in the plants or outdoor area which runs around $12 or so.  It is very accurate for the basking spot temperatures.  I wouldn't increase the wattage of the light for basking until you get a better thermometer just to make sure you don't overheat him.  Then, you can double check your temperatures with the lights you currently have to see what they are, then, we will go from there.
IF it is safe in your house, meaning, if he got out somehow, he couldn't get far or get eaten by a cat or dog, then you can remove the top screen yes.  Maybe he might not even get out.  How close to the top of the tank is the basking branch that he sits on to bask?  If you position it properly, he most likely couldn't get out.
Or, you can just cut a hole in the screen to where the UVB emissions will go through more freely for him.
Yes, check on the bulb type for me, whether it is a long tube bulb or a compact/coil type?  The brand is normally stamped on the base of the bulb on one end of the tube, or on the base of the compact/coil light.  

Let me know how he is doing.
Tracie

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

QUESTION: Hello Tracie:

I wanted to catch you up on what happened.  Pat quit eating all together after we had him 11 days.  He also would refuse to drink water or lap it when misted.  We had purchased a higher watt bulb for him and the temps were 100 to 105 for basking.  We kept bathing him to keep him as hydrated as we could, but also he would not even eat from a medicine dropper.  Saturday (14 days after we got him) he was lethargic acting.  I called the vet, kept calling the pet store, etc.  Sunday his head started tilting and was lethargic even more but his eyes were bright and open.  I was going to take him to the vet but when I called the vet store, they wanted me to bring him there so they could put him in isolation.  So I took him first thing Monday morning (day 15) and as soon as they seen him they said he showed signs of a neurolocial problem and that it happens sometimes if when hatched they have problems.  I asked if he was inbred as I have read about that causing problems and they assured me no, that they get them from only local breeders that are respectable.  They said that they would try to get fluids and food down him but that with a neurological problem most die(:  They assured me that we had done all we could(:  We were soooo upset!!!!!  At any rate, they insisted we take a different beardie home and I refused the beardies that were from that clutch so they gave us one from a different breeder.  What a difference!  This little piggy eats 30+ feeder crickets a day and when he is on the go, he goes like crazy!  He is 2 weeks younger but sooo much fatter and all.  Now we know how they are suppose to act!  This little baby has warmed our hearts but there is a lot of sadness for Pat - we were already soooo attached to him!  We love the new little baby but there will always be a void in our hearts.....  

To any newbie beardie owners or soon to be owners - make sure you see them eat before buying one.  It is NOT normal for them to be lazy ALL the time and sleep ALL the time.  And don't let the pet store tell you it is all because of relocation - their eating might be less, but a good 2 days and they should be eating very well if they are healthy!!!!!!

Answer
Hello Carla,

Sorry you had such a sad experience with your first one.  Unfortunately, he could have been from an inbred pair, or been hatched from a female with low calcium reserves which would cause early calcium problems.  He could have had some viral or bacterial problems or an infection of some sorty also which would need to be treated.  He also could have had Adeno virus too.  
I am happy to hear that your new one is doing so much better & eating so much food right now.    
Let me know if you need any help.  

Tracie