MHD wont eat crickets!

Question
QUESTION: Hi Diane,
I'm the proud debutant owner of a beautiful Mountain Horned Dragon. I've had it for a full 7 days now (I know that's pretty short) and he hasn't eaten any of the crickets in its terrarium.  He's eaten 4 silk worms so far but he doesn't seem the least bit interested in the crickets which I was told were its primary source of food...
I may just be in too much of a hurry and he may eventually start eating them, but in the meantime what am I supposed to do with the crickets ?  So far I've been leaving them in the terrarium but from the 8 original crickets there are only 2 or 3 left, because the others all dove into the water bassin and died...
Should I give it something else to eat ?
And another question, this one about handling.  Since I'm new with lizards, I'd like to know if it is ok to handle my dragon already.  I've been picking it up a few minutes every day, and it doesn't seem to mind, it doesn't move except for turning its head, but maybe I'm putting too much pressure on it by handling it so soon and the last thing I want is to terrify it. Is the fact that it's not moving a good or a bad sign ?

Thank's so much for your time !

ANSWER: Hi Danielle,
MHD actually need a very varied diet of insects.  Silk worms, roaches, earthworms, crickets and several other insects should be fed.  Many prefer earthworms over other insects. With the crickets, they may be too large for him to eat.
You can also break the hind legs off the crickets which will prevent the crickets from hopping away, provided your crix are the proper size for your dragon.For dusting the insects, Use a calcium with no added phosphorus.  

You can keep your crickets in a small tank.......for water you can place cotton balls in a jar lid and add water. The idea there is so the crickets don't drown as you have seen they will do. Be sure to place a cut potato in your MHD's tank when you feed crickets so that any uneaten crix will eat the potato instead of your dragon.
Insects must be gut loaded(fed) for at least 48 hours prior to feeding your MHD. Remove any uneaten crix or insects after 15-20 minutes..... You have to be sure to feed your crickets and insects the right foods before feeding them to your dragon.  If your crickets/insects are not healthy and well fed, your dragon will not get the nutrition he needs. You can gut load your crickets and insects greens, veggies, cereals or specially designed commercial foods for crickets or the insects you are feeding
In the link below is a wonderful list of insects to offer...plus lots of other fantastic info on caring for your MHD.

http://www.froggieb.com/MHDCaresheet.html
 
I want to touch on a few important things with you about their care.

With the MHD, they are swimmers...and they need to have a pan of filtered and aerated water in their cages.  They will spend a lot of time swimming and soaking, and also drinking as that a MHD will not drink from standing water.  
You will find that you may need to provide a different cage for him as that they require height...they are for the most part tree dwellers and when they aren't given that in captivity, they can become very stressed.
On the humidity, you may have to add a humidifier to his tank/cage to keep the humidity level at its needed 70-75%.  If you need some tricks for setting up a humidifier, give a shout.  Also, please be sure to read the information on the uvb lights..  and do provide him with uvb...even in the shade of trees, they receive filtered uvb, a very important factor in them being able to use  the calcium in the foods they eat.
Their warmest area only needs to be about 80 degrees...  low temps 70 degrees at the lowest(daytime cool and nighttime)
I've included information on the proper uvb that is needed for the dragon.
UVB is provided By 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.(Tubes are the best for the MHD as they don't need the heat that a mercury vapor produces) UVB is needed by the MHD
to be able to absorb the calcium in the foods they eat.
With out 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 10.0 and the Repti Glo 8.0's
are a great source for uvb.  The old "favorites" are the repti sun 5.0 or the
Iguana light..which are the same tube, just different package.
There are tubes
that say ''full spectrum'' but they do not produce any uvb.
These need to be positioned 6-8 inches over the iguana for the 5% and 8%
and 8-10 inches for the 10% so
that they get the uvb that is needed. The tubes need to be replaced every 6-9
months as that they stop producing UVB long before they stop producing
light.
Do not use coil lights that are sold as
that they do not produce the uvb in the fashion needed for MHD's.
They do not need any night time lighting and generally normal room temperatures are fine.

The best advice is to have your pet checked out by a vet that is able to treat reptiles.  Having a fecal check done for internal parasites is always recommended as that stress can cause overloads of parasites(all lizards have parasites basically, and actually need a low level of them, but when stressed, the load can be too great and medications are needed...never use ivermection on a MHD) to find a vet that is able to treat reptiles,
http://www.arav.org/Directory.htm
http://www.anapsid.org/vets/
Your water  area needs to be able to allow the MHD to get into it as they do enjoy a swim and soaking.  It also needs to have movement such as a filter or air stone as a MHD will not drink from standing water.  Waterfalls work nicely for their "drinking dish".
On an outdoor branch, yes they are fine to use but must be properly treated/cleaned prior to placing in the cage.  All items brought from outside need to be cleaned well before placing them in the dragons cage.  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.
to keep the cage warm in an area, you can use any  household lightbulb in a wattage needed to get the proper temperatures. Using a good digital thermometer is important. Acu Rite is a good brand...around 10-15$ at wal mart..they measure two different temperatures plus humidity.. The infrared lights might be too much heat for the dragon and they don't do well with too high of temps..(over 80)Remember, you want the cage to have a gradient(slowly rising) temperature ranging from 70-80 degrees.

You may be lucky and have a calm MHD....he may be content to sit and look around to check things out...or..he may just be taking everything in right now and is a bit scared. If he doesn't seem stressed with holding, then holding him daily for a bit of time is fine.

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

QUESTION: Hi again Diane.
I've already been to the website you suggested, it gives excellent advice.
Now it seems we have a problem with mildew in the terrarium.  I'm not too sure how to fix this since the dragon needs high humidity and branches to climb on... Now the branches have mildew on them.  I'm adding a few pictures of my setup to help you make a diagnostic.  I know we have lots of water but humidity is still only around 70% so I'm wondering if we'll need to change for artificial branches... Please advise.
[url=http://www.servimg.com/image_preview.php?i=18&u=12350591][img]http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/12/35/05/91/hpim2312.jpg[/img][/url]
[url=http://www.servimg.com/image_preview.php?i=19&u=12350591][img]http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/12/35/05/91/hpim2313.jpg[/img][/url]
[url=http://www.servimg.com/image_preview.php?i=20&u=12350591][img]http://i45.servimg.com/u/f45/12/35/05/91/hpim2314.jpg[/img][/url]

Thank you!

ANSWER: HI Danielle,
What a fantastic setup you have there!!!  Just gorgeous!
I think I may know what your problem is..............
ventilation.....
You have the top screen for air..but..there is really no way for the air to circulate. Generally, for proper air circulation, you need to have a high vent and a lower vent, on opposite ends of the cage. When there isn't enough movement of the air, the mildew forms. Can you find a way to add a vent to the tank? I know they do make tanks that come vented, but there may be a way to add a vent to yours now.
Chances are your humidity is higher than the 70%....the stick on dial things aren't all that great for being accurate.
I prefer to use the acurite brand thermometers from places like wal mart.  They are about 20$ and measure two temps (one VIA way of a probe on a wire) and also humidity.
Are your natural branches getting the mildew or only the fake ones?



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

QUESTION: Thank you, we've put so much work in the terrarium, I'm really happy that it looks okay !
I hear you about the ventilation, I'm gonna put my husband on it, I'm sure he'll figure something out. In the meantime we've removed the large piece of wood, which was the one that had the most mold.  My husband rubbed natural beeswax on the branches. He thinks it will help keep them waterproof and may keep mildew off.  Is that a good idea ?
I plan to get the right thermometers soon to make sure both temperature and humidity are alright.
My dragon is now eating 1 or 2 worms a day. I put it in a smaller tank, alone with the food, and that seems to help him stay focused on the prey.  He doesn't seem to see them unless they move... but when they do move, he turns toward them and eats them.  I really hope he'll be okay because he's really cute and so quiet and calm. I just love to carry him on my shoulder !
Thanks again Diane for your advice.

Answer
Hi Danielle,
As far as I know, the beeswax should be fine...do watch out for the branch to start rotting as the beeswax may cause the branch to rot from the moisture being trapped in....  of course if its on the fake branches it won't be a problem.
One other thing popped into my mind about the real branches..
Soaking them in a solution of a tablespoon  of bleach to a gallon of water and then baking it for about 2 hrs at 250 degrees to dry it.....(make sure no smell is left) may also help retard mildew growth.
On feeding, have you tried feeding the worms in a dish?  There is a dish called "Lee's mealworm dish" that I use to feed my leos.  It has curved sides which prevents the worms from crawling out...
Most reptiles that eat insects don't see them unless the insect moves..its how they hunt. My leos have gotten to where they see me get their dish and climb to the top of their caves, ready to dive into the dish because they get a good view from up above them...
One of my favorite "toys" for reptile keeping is a temperature gun...you basically point and press to see the temperature for a spot check in your cage.  It doesn't replace a good thermometer but works wonderfully for quick check of temperatures throughout the tank.  They cost about 25$.
Once you have your temps all nice and comfy for him, he should start eating more...of course as he grows, he will eat more also.  Do be sure that the foods are proper size for him...no larger than the space between his eyes.  Some lizards will not even try to eat food that is too big, others will tackle anything which can cause blockages, choking, etc...