Antisocial and sometimes aggressive bearded dragon

[VenomTheBeardie]

Venom is a 9 month old beardie. We got him when he was 3 moths old, in November. He was an amazing pet who was curious, social and happy. In February, I was holding Venom, he got anxious hissed, flared and attempted to bite me and my sister. he jumped off the bed onto the floor. We had to wrap him in a towel to put him in his enclosure. There was nothing that we could find that set him off, he was warm and lying down, very calm. The sudden aggression came from nowhere. Since then he has been aggressive when taken out, bobbing his head constantly and hiding in his cave. His temperatures and UVB bulbs are perfect, so its not a mistake in setup. Nothing has changed in his enclosure since january when we upgraded his cave so he has more space to sleep. In the last month, Venom has stopped eating as many crickets as usual. He probably eats protein every 2 days. I offer him crickets twice a day and he always has collard greens/rocket and carrots/butternut squash in his enclosure. he is bathed every week and misted every morning. He goes the bathroom every two days, usually the day he eats the crickets. When we try pet him in his enclosure he either runs away or breathes fast while sitting down. Lately he spends 90% of his day in his cave, on the warm side. We have tried leaving a small teddy associated with our smell in his enclosure so he would be used to our smell and maybe trust us better but nothing has changed. I would really appreciate any advice you all can give so our beardie can be a bigger part of our family.

 

[Sadie]

Venom is a 9 month old beardie. We got him when he was 3 moths old, in November. He was an amazing pet who was curious, social and happy. In February, I was holding Venom, he got anxious hissed, flared and attempted to bite me and my sister. he jumped off the bed onto the floor. We had to wrap him in a towel to put him in his enclosure. There was nothing that we could find that set him off, he was warm and lying down, very calm. The sudden aggression came from nowhere. Since then he has been aggressive when taken out, bobbing his head constantly and hiding in his cave. His temperatures and UVB bulbs are perfect, so its not a mistake in setup. Nothing has changed in his enclosure since january when we upgraded his cave so he has more space to sleep. In the last month, Venom has stopped eating as many crickets as usual. He probably eats protein every 2 days. I offer him crickets twice a day and he always has collard greens/rocket and carrots/butternut squash in his enclosure. he is bathed every week and misted every morning. He goes the bathroom every two days, usually the day he eats the crickets. When we try pet him in his enclosure he either runs away or breathes fast while sitting down. Lately he spends 90% of his day in his cave, on the warm side. We have tried leaving a small teddy associated with our smell in his enclosure so he would be used to our smell and maybe trust us better but nothing has changed. I would really appreciate any advice you all can give so our beardie can be a bigger part of our family.

Lets go over the lighting --- your basking temps and UVB control the behavior of the dragon--- what are the basking temps they should be 95-100 for his age and taken w/ a digital probe thermometer- NO stick ons -they are inaccurate-- the UVB should be a long tube fixture NO coils --- they are inadequate--- NO colored bulbs NO heat mats NO heat rocks ---if the UVB is incorrect and the temps are off he will not eat like he should -- the UVB helps the dragon absorb / synthesize the calcium hes ingesting-- and it prevents a ton of health issues -- the basking temps start digestion -- so w/ him turning aggressive all of a sudden could be something spooked him but w/ him hiding in his cave and not eating like he should tells me something is off in the tank -- plus the aggressiveness

 

[VenomTheBeardie]

Lets go over the lighting --- your basking temps and UVB control the behavior of the dragon--- what are the basking temps they should be 95-100 for his age and taken w/ a digital probe thermometer- NO stick ons -they are inaccurate-- the UVB should be a long tube fixture NO coils --- they are inadequate--- NO colored bulbs NO heat mats NO heat rocks ---if the UVB is incorrect and the temps are off he will not eat like he should -- the UVB helps the dragon absorb / synthesize the calcium hes ingesting-- and it prevents a ton of health issues -- the basking temps start digestion -- so w/ him turning aggressive all of a sudden could be something spooked him but w/ him hiding in his cave and not eating like he should tells me something is off in the tank -- plus the aggressiveness

Basking temp is 98-100*. We have a long tube UVB. Today he was really social, it was strange he sat on my shoulder for 30mins

 

[Sadie]

Basking temp is 98-100*. We have a long tube UVB. Today he was really social, it was strange he sat on my shoulder for 30mins

Long tube is a T 5 or T 8 where in the tank? Top of screen or inside the tank? Distance and placement is key here!

 

[VenomTheBeardie]

Long tube is a T 5 or T 8 where in the tank? Top of screen or inside the tank? Distance and placement is key here!

Longest Tube available not sure what type you were saying. Inside the tank at the top middle. It covers 2/3 of the length. When basking it is about 1”5 feet away. The breeder said that should be perfect.

 

[Sadie]

Longest Tube available not sure what type you were saying. Inside the tank at the top middle. It covers 2/3 of the length. When basking it is about 1”5 feet away. The breeder said that should be perfect.

Please look on the tube it will tell you --- brand and bulb --- depending on the tube it has certain distance placement

 

[VenomTheBeardie]

Please look on the tube it will tell you --- brand and bulb --- depending on the tube it has certain distance placement

exo terra 100Watt UVB

 

[Sadie]

exo terra 100Watt UVB

Ok when you change the bulb out please get a Reptisun or Arcadia - is it the T 5 or a T 8-- it will say please look

 

[VenomTheBeardie]

Ok when you change the bulb out please get a Reptisun or Arcadia - is it the T 5 or a T 8-- it will say please look

T5.

 

[Sadie]

T5.

Ok so your T 5 needs to be directly over the basking decor piece -- distance 12-15 inches NO closer -- the bulb is too strong to be closer -- the Reptisun and the Arcadia 12 % bulbs are the best on the market -- if your dragon continues to have aggression issues I would change the bulb out to one of the ones I mentioned---- the T 5's need to be changed out once a year I recommend a month prior to --- if you change it out and hes still being aggressive then we need to look at other causes -- dragons are normally not aggressive --

 

[VenomTheBeardie]

Ok so your T 5 needs to be directly over the basking decor piece -- distance 12-15 inches NO closer -- the bulb is too strong to be closer -- the Reptisun and the Arcadia 12 % bulbs are the best on the market -- if your dragon continues to have aggression issues I would change the bulb out to one of the ones I mentioned---- the T 5's need to be changed out once a year I recommend a month prior to --- if you change it out and hes still being aggressive then we need to look at other causes -- dragons are normally not aggressive --

Thank you