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At a lost...help
I bought my bearded dragon, Mooshu, earlier this year in March. When I bought him, he ate fantastic, loved his dubias and crickets. But he had very watery stool. I took him to the vet shortly after and he was diagnosed with bad pinworms. We got rid of them finally, and stool went to normal.
Since then he just slowed down eating his insects. I must add he has never eaten veggies for me. I have tried so many kinds and he has no interest in them. I try several times a week and no interest. Now lately he will only eat 5-15 insects every few days. When he used to eat 30-40.
Also he used to drink some water for me, but now nothing. I went and bought a variety of insects, he ate a few hornworms and that's all.
I just don't know what else to do. I plan on taking him back to the vet this week. I just don't understand why he has slowed down eating so much, and why he refusing to eat veggies. Want your guys thoughts on this.
He is a little over a year old, his basking spot is roughly 103 or so. Has a uvb light, everything in his tank is perfect.
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I've only had one beardie, a rescue that was near-death from being fed only crickets (the large back legs tend to block up beardies...beardies have a big mouth
& look like they can easily handle larger crickets than what they should be given) and from ALSO eating some of the wood shavings (in presumed desperation)
that he was kept on...needless to say, he was "beyond constipated" & starving to death. Anyway, when I got him cleaned out (oral doses daily of mineral oil &
warm water soaks) he was EAGER to try different colorful foods. But, he soon had his favorites so it's rather like getting a little kid to eat their dinner & not
desert first (& then they're too full to eat the healthy stuff...). In the morning I only fed the veggies & fruits...only later in the day did he get some worms etc.
I found that if I mixed the worms into his 'salad' he'd carefully pick them out.
There is a HUGE list of good veggies & fruits that beardies enjoy...as well as a list of things NOT to offer. But I think you have to learn not to "cave in" to his
demands...they're just like kids, lol. Are you chopping up the fruit/veggies enough for him to eat & not choke on? What have you tried feeding?
Another thing: try taking him outside (temps. permitting) for some REAL (& well-supervised) sunshine. If you got him in March, then his UVB light is getting "old"-
unless something has changed since I used them, they need to be replaced about every 6 mos. (even if they still light up, use them elsewhere just for light) as
they lose their effectiveness at that point. Also, how far above his basking spot is his light? Too far from the dragon & it's ineffective.
A dose of REAL sun generally perks up lizards such as dragons as far as their appetite goes...& maybe when he's hungrier, he'll be more willing to eat whatever's
on his plate instead of playing hard-to-feed?
Maybe your vet can turn up other answers (-I hope?) but that's about all I can suggest from what you've said.
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Re: At a lost...help
One of the reasons he is eating less is that he is no longer sharing his meals with the pinworms.
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I had a similar situation with mine as he was approaching the 1 year mark.
First and foremost, as beardies get older, it is not uncommon to eat less. That is just how they are. It is normal for them not to eat for a day before getting hungry again the next day. Mine used to devour 50 or so insects at a time which now dwindled down to about 25 a week. That is about the right amount most adult beardies stop at.
Beardies don't usually drink standing water. They prefer drops if they take it. They get the majority of their hydration from live insects and salads. Hence the importance of salads as they slow down on eating the insects, their diet should be at 70-80% salads at this stage of life.
It is never too late to get him to eat salads. The challenge lies with keeping him interested. This is a common problem we all beardie owners deal with. Beardies like food that are colorful, crunchy, some like it leafy, and small enough size to pick it but big enough to sink their teeth into. I found success in yellow squash, sweet potato (Cooked), bell peppers, green peas, carrots and watercress. Please check Beautiful Dragons for a list of safe veggies and fruits for your beardie. Mixing it up and changing it up every other week helps. Some people add fruit juice in it. Others grind them all into tiny pieces so that the beardie has to eat the salad with its favorite items. Mixing worms like black soldier fly larvae can help get him started.
Beardies are known to be picky with their salads. Some will be so stubborn to wait it out until you give up and give him insects. They can go without food for about a week or longer if necessary. I would make a small salad (the size of his head), every morning and leave it there. Hand feeding helps. If he won't touch it, try again tomorrow. He will eventually get hungry enough to take a bite. I would try for a whole week before giving in for a few insects, then try again.
Try different kinds until you find one that works. Bell peppers appear to be a fav among beardies and it comes in yellow or red in color, both colors that they prefer most.
You can also soak your beardie for 15 min, 2 times a week. Some say it helps with hydration but I say it won't hurt to try. Misting works too. Make sure a clean water bowl large enough for him to go into is available daily. He might not drink it but it is there if he wants to. And some soak to poop.
Lastly, your hot spot is too hot! Lower it to 90-95 F. Babies need hot temps from 99-105 or so but as adults you can lower it. If your beardie basks with his mouth open, you are good to go.
Your UVB lights should be a T5 HO Reptisun 10.0 if you are using it on top of the mesh lid of a glass tank. Mesh lids take away over 40% of the rays your beardie need for his bones and appetite. Your beardie should be about 10 inch away from the lights to get the rays from this UVB fixture.
You can use a T8 Reptisun 10.0 if there are no mesh lids or it is installed inside the tank.
No loose substrate of any kind in the tank.
Once the hot spot and UVB lights are confirmed set up properly, you should see a difference in appetite which will help him to get started on salads.
Last edited by Cheesenugget; 09-04-2018 at 01:44 PM.
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The Following 4 Users Say Thank You to Cheesenugget For This Useful Post:
Bogertophis (09-05-2018),C.Marie (09-05-2018),Goblin (09-05-2018),hilabeans (09-04-2018)
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Thank you all for replying. I guess i didn't give enough information when I first posted.
So for his tank, I do have a 10.0 reptisun strip light. I have always lowered his basking spot to 95 now to see if that helps. I have never seen him bask with his mouth open. But I am hoping lowering the temp will help now, especially with his appetite.
He is also on newspaper for his bedding.
To address the salad. I used to try several times a week to give his salad. I tried a huge variety, and no luck. I tried handfeeding it to him, no interest, and tried putting worms in the salad, no interest.(He once picked out the worms from the salad, little sneaky devil) Anyway I am trying again to give him salads, I went and bought a huge variety of safe foods to give him. I'll try feeding it everyday from now on, and just put my foot down on the insects. I'll try only giving some once a week and see how that works.
I do soak him 2x a week, and mist occasionally. He used to drink some when I misted, but has since stopped. Seems more annoyed when I do.
I am hoping all of this will get him eating his salads, and back on track to a happy, healthy life!
Life isn't complete without some creatures
1.0 Spinner BP(Gremlin)
1.0 Pied BP(Goblin)
1.0 Banana Black Pastel BP(Dobby)
0.1 Pastel Spector BP(Nagini)
0.1 Spider BP(Genesi)
1.0 Champagne BP(Jupiter)
1.0 Champagne Pastel Het Axanthic BP(BeetleJuice)
1.0 Biak Green Tree Python(Loki)
1.0 Western Hognose(Kai)
Hedgehog-Milo
Ferrets-
Luna, Athena, Willow
Pac man Frog-Buddha
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The Following User Says Thank You to Goblin For This Useful Post:
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Life isn't complete without some creatures
1.0 Spinner BP(Gremlin)
1.0 Pied BP(Goblin)
1.0 Banana Black Pastel BP(Dobby)
0.1 Pastel Spector BP(Nagini)
0.1 Spider BP(Genesi)
1.0 Champagne BP(Jupiter)
1.0 Champagne Pastel Het Axanthic BP(BeetleJuice)
1.0 Biak Green Tree Python(Loki)
1.0 Western Hognose(Kai)
Hedgehog-Milo
Ferrets-
Luna, Athena, Willow
Pac man Frog-Buddha
-
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