Had to start a new question

Question
QUESTION: I haven't ordered one yet but will today. I'm having trouble finding the right lamp that will be able to hold the bulb though.

I put the thermometer under a log in the cage and in the shade it's 89 degrees on the hot side.

The stuff I'm using to clean the mouth rot is Maxi/Guard Oral Cleansing Gel.
http://indoors.pricegrabber.com/dog-supplies-accessories/m/14608123/

Roy doesn't seem to like it too much when we put it on her mouth rot though. She usually flips her tail at us.

Where can you buy diluted betadine?

The mouth rot is sort of like this only it's brown and not as big or gooey as that. It's more of a legion.
http://www.geocities.com/chamjacksonii/mouthrotlg.jpg

As you said the freeze dried crickets are to blame. I had my own suspicions that they were to blame since little pieces sometimes get stuck on the side of the mouth. I will take them out of the diet immediately.

There is an un-shedded patch of skin spanning from the spikes on the back to the underbelly on one side of the Water Dragon. The dead skin is still attached to the new skin and won't peel and cannot be peeled. Is it normal for the dead skin to be there for a week and still be so tight that it won't peel?

Also I've not read too much on Water Dragon behavior but I did read quit a bit before purchasing the lizard since not knowing what you're getting yourself into is not fair to the lizard. I've had the lizard for one year now around march 25th and I've learned a lot about their unique behavior compared to other household pets. One of the behaviors that I couldn't figure out though was why they tasted the ground so much.
-Is it to determine if there is anything edible or do they taste the air like snakes do? I can't really be sure since I'm only guessing, Do you know?

Thanks a ton since by the time I'd have found out the UVB problem Roy probably would have had perminant eye injury and I would have been in debt with exotic vet bills.


ANSWER: Hello Chase,

Have you checked Home Depot for the correct fixture, they usually have quite a few to choose from there you might look there.  
Just go to the grocery store or to a drug store like Walgreens or CVS, etc, & go to the medicine area.  Betadine is purchased full strength.  Just dilute it to a 10 to 1 or 10 to 2 solution meaning more water than betadine.  You want it to look somewhat like weak tea.  It is very effective in cleaning the area out & keeping infection away while maintaining healthy cells.  Remember not to ever use hydrogen peroxide as it is cytoxic.  
Put the probe directly under the basking spot to see what it is right under the light.  Just make sure it is not over 90, otherwise she can overheat.  
Great, the freeze dried crickets may have caused some type of mouth injury so definitely take them out.  They taste their surroundings all of the time, just to check out what everything is.  They smell like mammals do through their nose.  Tasting the ground etc, in the wild helps them find valuable nutrients in the area as well as for breeding behavior & finding a mate.  
If it is just a lesion right now, you can get that taken care of pretty easily, but just be persistent.  I know she doesn't like it but tell her it is for her own good.  
Is the humidity at 70-80%?  You might try getting some aloe vera gel & putting some on the unshed areas to help moisturize it so it can help the skin loosen up some.  You don't want it to retain too long otherwise some of the scales could die.
I am glad that we got the UVB figured out sooner than later.  You are trying, so just keep fixing things & we will get her all set up.

Tracie

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

QUESTION: I just got back from purchasing the repti glo 8.0 and to hold it I just fixed an aquarium flourescent top over part of the enclosure. The repti glo 8.0 was surprisingly hard to find. I had turned over every pet store around and finally found one in a dusty old back isle in a pets supplies plus. (Reptile supplies aren't particularly popular there) Petsmart usually has a lot more variety but they were only selling those harmful UVB lights. They had like 10 Repti glo 10.0's sitting there!

I did ask the manager to look into getting some of the less harmful ones like the Repti glo 8.0 and Repti Sun 10.0. I also informed them whether they like it or not to enlighten the customers on what they were buying.

Well anyway it's installed and Roy seems pretty active and happy. Just scarfed down a bunch of meal worms.

I also bought a 150 watt version because I didn't feel that the 100 watt was heating a wide enough space other than the basking part. I of course will monitor the temps to make sure it doesn't get too hot.

Humidity hasn't been a problem for some time. I use an ultrasonic fogger for the humidity. I have it in a gladware box with holes punched to let out the fog for 2 reasons.
1. If she came in contact with the top part of the fogger it would shock her. hehe I know this from personal experience. (I didn't read the warning and was in for a shock)
2. It makes the water flies everywhere and I don't think she would be happy with a flooded cage.
I hope that's ok, oh btw humidity is anywhere from 75-100% usually.

As for finding and fixing this problem sooner or later. I look closely for any changes in behavior or any out of the ordinary physical changes all the time. If I do find something wrong the I don't hesitate to look for health conditions that could explain it and try and find a solution asap. The fact that there are sites like this and people like you makes it much easier to do.

I will keep you updated and any questions I have in the future, I will know where to go.

Thanks a bunch, your advice is worth more than any veteranary bill could cost!

ANSWER: Hello Chase,

Great you actually found a Reptiglo 8.  I am afraid they are trying to phase out those unfortunately which is stupid since they have the harmful ones on there.  It is too bad because the store owners have no idea about them either.  So Roy loves his new light & actually ate too.  That is great.  
I would try to keep the humidity to around 80% though but it sounds like the humidity is not a problem definitely. Good you got everything all set with the fogger.  Alot of people use those.   
Do you feed crickets too?
I am happy that things are looking up for Roy.  I hope he is doing much better & his appetite is improving too.
Let me know how he is doing.

Tracie

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

QUESTION: Hey, her eye has teared up again but this time it's clear not brownish.
Do you think that I re-administered a UVB too early and didn't let her heal enough? Or could there be another reason for the irritation?

Also are there any portable power sources that could run a power strip except gasoline generators? I live in Ohio and we are going to have a blizzard tomorrow and I really dread if the power went out.
If it comes to it I'll have to sneak her and the equipment into a hotel, again.

Answer
Hello Chase,

Oh no.  Well, how long did she not have UVB between the time she had the bad one & then the reptiglo 8?  Maybe you should turn it off for a week or two & let her eyes readjust & heal up.  
How close is it to her?  You can safely have it at 8 inches with a bright light being used right beside it.
I do not think there is anything else causing an eye irritation as we have reviewed your husbandry & everything is good now.  
Try that & let me know how it goes.  Poor girl!  
Hm, a boat battery holds a decent amount of juice.  Could you get hold of one of those?  They usually run around $50-75 I believe.  They are pretty good & are noise free!  LOL
I hope the power doesn't go out on you, & that you stay warm.

Tracie