Dragon turning yellow

Question
QUESTION: I have a 7 year  old male, was grayish brown and over the last month has turned yellow.  He is very active and eats crickets and vegetables and dandelion greens.  Why is he turning yellow?  Thank-you

ANSWER: Hello Cindy,

How long have you had your bearded dragon?  Have you had him the entire 7 years?  
Can you post a picture of him for me?
What type of lighting are you using, are you using any UVB lighting?  If so, what type & brand, is it a flourescent tube bulb or a compact or coil light?
What type of substrate do you use, sand, tiles, paper towels?  
Is he possibly getting ready to shed?
Is the inside of his mouth turning yellow, as what would happen if he had jaundice or liver failure?

Tracie

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


Bearded Dragon turning   QUESTION: We've had him for 4 years.  Picture is attached.  We added dandelions to his diet about a month ago.  Otherwise his diet has been the same.  He has a Repti-Glo 8.0 UVB, Exo terra 15 watt bulb.  This bulb is about a year old.  Sand substrate.  He is not ready to shed and when he does it is in patches.  His mouth is yellow inside.  Thank-you

Answer
Hello Cindy,

Ok, well, the Reptiglo 8, is mostly gone bad.  It is a decent bulb new, but after about 4 months, the UVB emissions begin decreasing.  So, you will need to get a Reptisun 10 flourescent tube bulb for better UVB exposure for him.  
You can get it from pet mountain online.  It is around $20 or so.  
If the inside of his mouth has not been yellow until now, it is highly possible that his liver is having a hard time.  You might have caught it early enough, but I am not sure.
The only true way to determine if it is liver or kidney problems is to get a blood test.  
You could look into getting some colloidal silver, & some serrapeptase to help with liver function.  Also, if you ask the vet about lactulose that is a product that helps the liver break down fats more efficiently.
He is getting a little older, but they can live longer than 7 years.  
How many crickets weekly does he get?  As an adult, he really only needs around 40-50 per week along with greens & veggies.  
Do you supplement calcium on a regular basis?  He still needs calcium 2-3 times per week even as an adult.  
Is his beard black all of the time, or just sometimes?

Tracie