Well, I think you may have been 100% right, damn. Thank you. Just went to check on him again. He was still sitting in his basking area with his hands on his food bowl as if to say "more". I gave him more crickets and he went nuts devouring them. We will see if he stays this way through tomorrow but I feel like there is an improvement already!
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Brumation?
- Thread starter JSpanky
- Start date
Ok keep me posted- him not having the proper uvb causes things like being lethargic won't eat eye issues-- MBD the main issue- the list goes on - make sure you keep that T 8 changed out every 6 months I recommend 5--
Ok, thank you thank you! I'll keep you updated! And keep those bulbs updated more often. I also purchased a UV test card. One that gives different levels of UV. I'm gonna see how that works out too. I'm hoping if anything I can test the amounts of UVB through out the enclosure in different areas, especially where he spends most of his time!
Ok not sure how reliable those are- but I can find out
I'm not sure either, so I will definitely be testing it before I try to rely on it. If you hear anything, let me know.
Update: he is looking much much better and seems to be back to normal. He is eating, hasn't pooped yet though. I got the UV tester and it's so-so. It indicates there is a small amount of UV at the floor, a slight amount more in his basking area, and even a little more with in 2" of the brand new bulb, so I have a feeling the card is not calibrated well for testing for reptiles, since right at the brand new bulb it still doesn't go above a "weaker" rating and there is still medium and strong. Thank you for all your help!! I think we are good!
Still waiting for a reply on the test strips
Ok this is what I got for an answer on the UVB strips
Oh. Those aren't reliable at all. They measure UVA rather than UVB. The only way I know of to reliably measure UVB is to use a Solarmeter.
Ok. Sounds good. Thanks for the info. I'll just make sure to change the bulb out every 5 months and especially if I see any signs similar to what I experienced but I don't plan to let it come to that again. Thank you!
You need to keep the basking and UVB lights on everyday still, I wud keep them on for 10hours since it’s winter time; it should be 10-12 hours in the winter but if he’s brimstone do 10hours; also still offer food/water and make sure his belly is empty when he’s brumating; u can give him a lukewarm bath in dechlorinated water to get him to eliminate and rub his belly gently downwards to help get him to poop then just let him be. Also what do u mean by UVA at 105 and UVB at 80??? Makes No Sense. U need a CLEAR basking bulb for Heat; never ever use colored or coiled bulbs, it burns their eyes. The best one is ZooMed it gives off the best heat. And u need a UVB light that emits UVB that he needs for absorbing Vitamin D, breaking down the calcium powder and having strong bones/energy to eat & walk. This UVB bulb needs replacing religiously every “6”Mnths!! The best and recommended one is: Reptisun 10.0 T5; it’s a long tubular bulb and the length u order should cover 70prcnt of the cage. Maybe u need to replace the UVB or you don’t have the proper one; that will make a Beardie have wreak bones, not eat and eventually leads to death. Hope this helps & handle the UVB asap u will see a huge difference.
Sadie please STOP telling Powell reptisun 10.0 T8; the 10.0 T5 is the Best & gives out more uvb!!
Kristin relac
Bearded Dragon Egg
- Messages
- 5
So, we have 2: Menu our female, Cletus our male. They are 3yrs and We have learned a lot during that time. A lot of which has been trial and error. So, if I can save you some of that hassle I’d love to help. However, I would say anything you can verify our check from a vet or another expert please do. That being said, it is likely brumation. Given you’re doing all the right things I.e.bulbs, temperature, habitat, no substrate in tank and then I would say yes it’s brumation. From what I’ve learned it is still important to do a few things during that time. Pulling your beardie regularly abt once a week to weigh them and make sure they’re not losing too much weight. Also it’s important to maybe make sure in his cave her den area (ONLY) there isSome substrate that you can keep moist. Usually during brumation they will absorb moisture through the dirt or wherever it is they are hibernating so to speak.From what I know the most important aspect of this is to make sure he doesn’t get dehydrated or lose too much weight. It’s also not uncommon for domesticated beardies to not go through brumation because they’re in an in organic habitat. But mostly I would say not to worry if your beardie is just chilling and kind of hiding in his area. He is still young. (By the way pardon me if yours is a female I don’t know why I keep saying he). But please make sure the temperatures are proper make sure your bulbs are being changed at the right time. But his behavior and lack of appetite are not alarming if that is what he is doing, brumation. Again, I still urge you to seek out other advice there’s always other factors that come into play but maybe I wasn’t aware of. But for the most part it seems you’re a loving caring mommy and you’re doing right by your beardie. And don’t get freaked out it is normal they’re lizards everything happens slowly with them.
Kristin relac
Bearded Dragon Egg
- Messages
- 5
Also I believe you can use soaking and bars in replacement of the moist substratum maybe once or twice a week
Kristin relac
Bearded Dragon Egg
- Messages
- 5
Baths not bars... Never take your beardie to the bar!!!!
Sparky; never ever do pellets or bottled food for a Beardie ever it’s the worst & it impacts them. At his age u need to be feeding him 3times a day; they need lots of proteins; Stick to crickets & Dubia roaches only and make sure the size u are feeding isnt bigger than the space between his 2eyes; u should be doing medium size crickets & in a few more mnths u can do larges; under 1 year old don’t feed any worms. After a year old u can add super worms and hornworms only as treats cuz they are high in fat. R u dusting the crickets in REPCAL calcium powder; u sprinkle some like salt on fries and shake it in a ziploc bag; it slows the crickets down and he needs calcium 3-4 times a week once per day. When he’s an adult u can do 3times a week. Also herptivite vitamin powder once per day/per week on a Non calcium day. And do the greens/veggies: the best everyday ones are: mustard greens, collard Greesns, dandelions, endives, snap peas, yellow squash & butternut squash. U need to cut it up small for him and mix 2-3 of each and oalce the plate on the cold side. Fruits do 1-2 times a week as treats blueberries, mangoes and papaya; sugar is not good for them. If u don’t get him to eat his veggies/greens now he will never do it as an adult. Also only feed him after he’s been basking for a few hours they need 2 Hours to digest the food under the lights that goes for the last feeding as well. Go on Amazon and order the Reptisun 10.0 T5 asap with the holder to hold the long bulb; he needs UVB ASAP and get a digital thermometer & humidifier those are the only accurate ones. Humidity needs to be between 30-40; never over 40. Also, order a fleece blanket & pic up small soft pillow/animals at a pet store so he can perch up on or rest his head on to be comfy. His cage looks very bland and cold/scary he cannot be sleeping on hard cold tile place a soft fleece blanket in his hide so he can be Comfy. Sometimes also the heat lamp fails u can buy one at Petco or Petsmart or any pet store and return the old one tell them it is not heating up properly get the zoomed clear basking bulb!!!
Feed him after he’s been basking for a few hours they need to be warm to eat. And u need to give him a lot more proteins; crickets/Dubai roaches
Don’t feed till he’s been basking for a few hours u can’t feed him when he’s cold
Here are pics of my enclosure get him a fleece w blanket & a donut pillow/other softies;Petco or any petstore or homegoods
Attachments
Also replace the UVB light every 6mnths!!! You have to know this; the light will still be on but it will emit NO UVB; some people dont know this and the beardie will become lethargic, weak bones, no energy, unable to eat, gets tremors, twitches & shakes and eventually death. So UVB (Reptisun 10.0 T5)
Don’t let people here freak you out please. If you don’t already have a kitchen scale, get one so that you can monitor his weight. My guy did a weird semi-brumation at an early age and it lasted for months. Drove me crazy with worry! But
First I need to say that I didn’t read all the responses... I wanted to throw in my two cents though because I know how this site typically goes.
Now, please don’t let the people on here freak you out. They’re going to go crazy about lighting (yes, it’s important) and other things, but you need to know that I too have a beardie that went into brumation very young, about the age yours is now. I was so scared because they all said it’s not possible for them to do it until about 1.5 years old (it is, I did deeper research, it’s just Not common). Best advice I can give you is if you don’t already have one, buy a kitchen scale to keep track of his weight. I bathed my guy every 1-2 weeks during this process to be sure he stayed hydrated and encourage him to poop (including an abdominal massage to again, encourage poop). Offered food after his bath which sometimes he would eat and sometimes not. I would weigh him once per month, and found that he continued to gain weight. If he had been loosing weight I would have known there was a problem and taken him to the vet. It was MONTHS before he was finally back to normal, and then two months later he went back at it again. He’s good now. Basking all the time and no longer hanging out in his hide. Again, just wanted to share my experience in case it helps you.
