Need advice about poor condition hatchling

[Cheesenugget]

Can you post pics?

First, your hot spot is too low. Make it hot at about 100-110F. Babies need these temps.

Secondly, make sure not to feed insects that are larger than the space between its eyes. You can cause a fatal impaction by feeding too large of an insect. 1/4 size crickets may just be about right. Forget freeze-dried stuff. The prey needs to move and entice him to want to eat. Try hornworms too. Most pet stores would have a size of about a little less of an inch and that is fine. Hornworms are soft bodied so impaction is not an issue, it is very nutrious, high in calcium and lots of moisture. Lots of beardies love hornworms because of the color.

Another nutrious food item is the fly larvae. I forgot the exact name, but they are sold online and usually not available at pet stores. They are small, black larvae with small sizes that should be okay for him to eat. I buy mine online from Mulberry Farm.

The leg will need to be inspected by am experienced vet. I don't think surgery is a choice for a lizard this small and weak. But the vet may be able to do something for it that is less invasive and they can check for other issues that is not obvious at first.

Supplement Calcium D3 every other day. Multi vitamins 3x a week until he starts eating on his own, then 2x.

Strong UVB is necessary. For mesh lids, get a t5 UVB fluorescent fixture. Zoo Med has one around 24" long for a 20 gallon long. As the lizard gets bigger, you will need to upgrade to a bigger one. Forget the cheap coil bulbs. The bulb that I use is T5 HS Reptisun 10.0. There are other brands too so do some research, but use a T5 for lights on top of a mesh lid, T8 without lid.

Once the temps and lighting are set up, you should see him a little more energetic. He should respond more to what's going on around him, and appetite should increase. It will take about 3-5 days to see changes. If all that is done and no appetite, he may be too far gone.

Forget the veggies and salads for now. A typical baby beardie diet is 70% insects. For him, feed him insects for now until he starts eating on his own. Then you can add salads to his diet. He needs to grow and gain weight.

Absolutely do NOT medicate unless an experienced vet determined so. Even deworming should be done only as necessary because of a high parasite load that is causing or contributing to his current symptoms. Destroying his gut flora may be too much for his body to handle at this time.

Lastly, soak with Pedialyte. Try to add some Pedialyte in his food too.