Login|Contact Us
Question and Answer

Reptile

Ask a Reptile Question, Get an Answer ASAP!

  • Ask A Question
  • Browse Answers
  • Meet The Experts
  • How JustAnswer Works

My beardie is 5 years old and was fine a week ago. Now he

 
Joan's Avatar
  • Answered by:Joan
  • Vet.Tech 30+yrs./ Reptile Rescue
  • Positive Feedback: 99.1 %
  • Accepted Answers: 5417
Verified Expert
in Reptile

Recent Feedback

Positive
Thank you for your help.
Positive
Thank you for the information - very quick, helpful, and eased my daughter's...
Positive
Thank you, I appreciate the assistance.
Positive
Fantastic service for peace of mind. If you really need urgent advice, even...
Positive
Excellent and friendly communication with helpful answers.
Positive
Thanks
Positive
Excellent advice,much appreciated :) Thank you
Positive
Knows what she's talking about
Positive
we will go the vet to be sure, Mistral is OK many thanks

Customer Question

My beardie is 5 years old and was fine a week ago. Now he is very weak and cannot open his eyes. He is in a 40 gallon tank with a uvb lite and a basking lamp. He has stopped eating and drinking. I'm afraid we may be glossing him and I don't know what to do next.

 

Optional Information:
Pet's Gender: Male
Pet's Age: 5
Name of Animal: godzilla

Already Tried:
Changed uvb lite. Misting. Placed tank close to window for natural lite

Submitted: 298 days and 19 hours ago.
Category: Reptile
Value: $15
Status: CLOSED
Picture
Expert:  Joan replied 298 days and 18 hours ago.

Hello and Welcome to Justanswer,
Can you tell me about the set up?

Diet prey/veggies?

Substrate/bedding?

Temps and how measured?

Supplements?

Is the UVB light a Tube or coil? How old is the bulb and strength?

Joan

Customer replied 298 days and 18 hours ago.

He's in a 40 gallon tank with carpet.


 


He only eats mealworms dusted. He will not nor has never has eaten veggies or fruit.


 


It is a tube lite, brand new. i changed the bulb when I noticed he was acting funny. it is a desert 50 uvb.


 


Without the basking lamp, the temp drops to around 80 but is around 90 when its on


 


 

Accepted Answer

Picture
Expert:  Joan replied 298 days and 18 hours ago.

Hello,

You really need a Reptisun 10.0 florescent tube type UVB bulb as well as the bulb you have for basking. The 5.0 is a little too weak for a Dragon. Keeping the Dragon by the window will not do any good as sunlight cannot pass through glass as the glass filters it and looses the UVB rays.

 

The basking area should have 105*-110*F and the cool side of the tank in the
85* range. This is imporatnt for digestion and passing of stool. If the temps
are not correct, this can also cause a problem.

 

On a side note, the UVB needs to be changed every 6 months, for it to be effective as they do loose potency after 6 months use.

 

 

The UVB bulb or MVB bulb should not have any plastic between it and the Dragon,it should not be no more than 12" from the Dragon. The lights should run daily for 12-14 hours a day.

Normal diet is finely chopped Collard greens, mustard greens, dandelion greens, escarole and curly endives. Butternut squash and various berries are great for a treat. The Veggies should be put in fresh daily, and done about an hour after lights on.

They need 80% veggies daily and 20% live prey over a year old and under a year old the percenatges the percenatages would have been reversed.
This is a nutritional chart that will help to give the proper ratio of calcium to phosphorus:
http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutritionframeset.html it is color coded for easier reading.

The live prey should include crickets, silk worms, roaches, goliath
worms and phoenix worms. Super worms and wax worms are like giving the Dragon candy. All veggies and prey should be dusted with plain calcium daily 5 days a week and vitamins 2 days a week.

 

For now we need to give the dragon a daily soak in 50/50 warm water and plain Pedialyte to prevent dehydration and add some plain calcium powder to the soak. Please soak at least 30 mins. I can locate a Herp Vet for you with a state. Since we do not know what we are dealing with all we can do is the first aid I suggested. This may be a dietary issue, infection, parasite issue and several possibilities.

Joan

 

Bearded Dragon Care Sheet


  • Bearded dragons should be housed alone.


  • Ages of bearded dragons follow these guidelines:

1. 0-3 months- baby
2. 3-12 months-juvenile
3. 12-18 months- sub
adult
4. 18 months + -adult


  • Bearded dragons live as much as 10-12 years if well cared for properly.

  • Bearded dragons have a very good temperament as long as they are cared for
    and handled.

  • When you bring your baby home, it may be quite stressful to him/her to get
    use to new home. May not eat well the first 2-3 days. They may not need to be
    handled the first 2-3 days if skittish and nervous.

  • Never use sand or any other type of loose substrate: Loose substrates can
    cause impaction (not being able to go Poop) in all ages of bearded dragons- they
    lick their environment to explore .It is difficult to keep germ free and clean.
    Ceramic tile, newspaper, non adhesive shelf liner and reptile carpet is what is
    most recommended. Use paper towels for the little one and as they get bigger you
    can change to something else.

  • Be sure you keep your beardies home as clean as you can. Clean up by spot
    cleaning when needed. Clean & sanitize entire tank every 10-14 days. A good
    cleaning solution is a 20% bleach solution. If you choose to use wood climbing
    branches etc, these should be soaked in the bleach solution and rinsed well.
    Then bake in 250 degree oven for 30 minutes.

  • Need a climbing accessory: to bask and to warm up under basking heat light
    and lower branches or platforms to come down and cool off.

  • A hide of some sort like a cave.

  • A food dish and water dish.

  • Plastic spray bottle

  • Can use artificial plants when they get older- 3 months or so.

  • Digital thermostat and/or temp gun

  • Tank size: Minimal size tank for this age is 20 gallon long

  • Minimal size for older beardie: 4 months of age: 40 gallon breeder is the
    minimal tank size for older dragon. Can divide a 40 gallon breeder for a smaller
    dragon. Must have two lights for your beardie.

1. A UVB light source-best is 10.0 Reptisun that runs the length of your
tank. Your dragon must have this light to metabolize calcium. If not he will get
metabolic bone disease, a serious condition. You can also take your beardie
outside to bask in the sun for 15 minutes each day if your temps are 80 degrees
or above outside. You can purchase cages or reptariums from your pet store.
Never leave a beardie outside unattended.
2. A basking type light that puts
out heat and warmth above basking spot. Your beardie must have warmth to digest
food & thrive.


  • Lights should be on for 12-14 hours each day. Follow the seasons and light
    timers are a great luxury if you can get them. 6 dollars at Lowe's. No lights or
    warmth needed at night unless your temperatures get below 62 degrees. If they
    do, there are ceramic heat emitters that put out no light, only heat. Use these
    at night if temperatures fall below 62 degrees.

  • Temperatures have to be kept at the following ranges during the day:

Babies: Warm basking log: 105-125 degrees F
Cool side: 85-90
Adults:
Warm basking spot: 110-115
Cool side: 80-85
Measure temperatures with a
digital probe type thermometer or a temp gun-these are most accurate. Stick on
thermometers unreliable.


  • Feeding a Beardie: Beardies eat live prey consisting of crickets, roaches
    and/or silkworms. Never feed any size of mice to your beardie. Never feed meal
    worms. They also must be given greens/veggies everyday. The younger they are the
    more live prey they should have. As they grow older the live prey decreases and
    the veggies/greens should be the major part of diet. Never feed anything bigger,
    than the space between your beardie's eyes. This includes both live prey and
    pieces of veggies/greens,

  • A chopper or food processor is a huge help when your beardie is small.
    Always offer greens and veggies: collard greens, turnip greens, mustard greens,
    cabbage, red cabbage, fresh green beans, yellow summer squash, butternut squash,
    sweet potato, cactus pad. Apricots, strawberries, apples, blueberries,
    raspberries, cantaloupe- fruits are treats only.

  • What is live prey? The easiest and less expensive live prey is crickets when
    you have a young or first beardie. The other live preys you can feed are
    silkworms, and special types of roaches. You can learn to raise your own live
    prey. Treats can be wax worms, super worms, and tomato/Goliath worms. You may
    find that ordering live prey from the internet is the way to go..... Never leave
    live prey or greens/veggies in tank overnight. . Crickets can bite your beardie
    when sleeping.

  • Babies should get 80% live prey, and 20 % greens/veggies. But since the
    greens/veggies are a must when they are older, get them eating their
    greens/veggies very early. Give greens/veggies in small pieces everyday. You
    should eventually start decreasing your older dragon's protein intake when they
    are about a year to 15 months old. Their protein intake decreases to 20 % live
    prey and 80% veggies/greens.

  • A baby eat 50-75 crix a day depnding on the size of the crickets. Never feed
    crix or veggies bigger than the space between your beardie's eyes. Use this
    guide when buying crix or chopping your greens/veggies.

  • You must provide calcium dust without D3 and multivitamin dust for your
    beardie. You should dust the live prey with calcium one time a day, and vitamins
    3 times a week. Just collect your live prey into baggie and add enough calcium
    and vitamin to dust them. Then pour a few at a time into your tank. Some people
    feed their beardie in a separate tank so that no crickets can hide. Or some take
    out "furniture" from tank and feed this way. As they get older, 4-5 months or so
    dust live prey with calcium 3 times a week.

  • Feed the veggies/ greens 1st thing in morning after lights on for one hour
    at least. Then after 2-3 hours offer crix. Then freshen green/veggies. Then give
    more crix. Make sure after last crix feeding there is at least 1-2 hours of
    lights so that they can digest their food before night time.

*Beardies over the age of one year old during the winter
months will go into a Brumation like most Reptiles and Herps. It is a form of
Hibernation that is governed by the weather and time of year. The lights should
be on a shorter period at this time. Fresh greens should be available during
this period. Do not feed live prey during Brumation.

Water: Mist your little one with the spray bottle 3-4 times a day. You can
also offer a small dish of water in your enclosure but be sure your dragon is
not too small to drown in it. It is recommended that when your beardie is 2
months old you can bathe your baby in a small plastic container with warm water-
not hot. It will help them to stay hydrated. As they get older you can move up
to the bathroom sink and then to the bathtub. Very important for bath enclosure
to be thoroughly cleaned and rinsed prior to bath time. Clean between dragons
too if bathing more than one.

If you have any further questions feel free to ask. I like to start people
off with proper husbandry and then see if I can further assist.

This is for fruits and Vegetables

http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutritionframeset.html

 

This will give you an idea about Sand as a substrate:

http://www.beardeddragon.org/articles/impaction/?page=3

 

Walnut shell Graphic: http://mrskingsbioweb.com/beardeddragngrossanatomy.htm

 

sexing bearded Dragons: http://repticzone.com/articles/sexingbeardeddragons.html

 

Your Deposit does not make a payment to the Expert.


Please be sure to rate 3-5 STARS/ Only SMILEY FACES for a Satisfactory answer or ask for more help by hitting reply.

Joan41083.205909456

Expert TypeVet.Tech 30+yrs./ Reptile Rescue
Category: Reptile
Pos. Feedback: 99.1 %
Accepts: 5417
Answered: 6/23/2012

Experience: I have been doing Reptile Rescues for 15+ Years

Ask this Expert a Question >
 
Tweet

2 Reptile Experts are Online Right Now

Ask Your Question Now
Reptile Questions Date Submitted
my snake has a swollen tale at the end. not to sure why. he 4/6/2013
My iguana I have had for years, about 4 ft. long. Always been 4/6/2013
My beardie will not eat. He is 3yrs old 4/5/2013
I have two very large, rescued sliders who live in our pond 4/5/2013
We have a 7 yr old female bearded dragon that just started 4/4/2013
My bearded dragon is about 9 months old, she eats and sleeps 4/1/2013
I have two concerns - both psychological. It seems that when 4/1/2013
RA-RP 3/30/2013
A log fell on my baby bearded dragon how can I tell if he is 3/30/2013
Hi, I bought a healthy lively bearded dragon 2 days ago. 3/28/2013
RSS
Next 10 >
Ask A Reptile Expert
Type Your Reptile Question Here...
characters left:

Top Reptile Experts

See More Reptile Experts

In The News

Nbc
Washington Post
New York Times
Cnn
Learn More

How It Works

  • Ask an Expert
  • Get a Professional Answer
  • Ask Followup Questions
  • 100% Satisfaction Guarantee
Learn More
close
Find Expert answers related to your question.
Sign up using email
We will never post anything without your permission.
Already have an account? Sign in

Ask a Reptile Expert

Get a Professional Answer. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed.
209 Reptile Experts are Online Now
Type Your Reptile Question Here...
characters left:
Disclaimer: Information in questions, answers, and other posts on this site ("Posts") comes from individual users, not JustAnswer; JustAnswer is not responsible for Posts. Posts are for general information, are not intended to substitute for informed professional advice (medical, legal, veterinary, financial, etc.), or to establish a professional-client relationship. The site and services are provided "as is" with no warranty or representations by JustAnswer regarding the qualifications of Experts. To see what credentials have been verified by a third-party service, please click on the "Verified" symbol in some Experts' profiles. JustAnswer is not intended or designed for EMERGENCY questions which should be directed immediately by telephone or in-person to qualified professionals.
Truste
Contact Us | Terms of Service | Privacy & Security | About Us
© 2003-2013 JustAnswer LLC