New baby beardie not eating

[mckennymccormick]

Hey everyone! About 2 and half weeks ago I bought a 2 month old bearded dragon, and I've been having some issues feeding him. All the research I've done tells me he should be eating 10-20 insects a day, but he has been eating nowhere close to that, and not even touched greens. I've tried offering dubia roaches, crickets, and waxworms, all of the appropriate size and dusted with calcium and vitamins, and every day he'll eat between 1-4 of them, but shows no interest afterwords. I've tried feeding him inside and outside of his enclosure, with and without tongs, and I remove all uneaten feeders after he stops showing interest so they don't bother him. As for his greens, I've tried many different kinds, and he only had one nibble of mustard greens like a week ago. I've tried sprinkling the greens with bee pollen too, to no avail. I've been dropping water on his head every morning to make sure he stays hydrated, and bathing him in lukewarm water very 2-3 days. I currently have him in a 20 gallon long tank (which as he gets older I will upgrade to a much larger one) with a UVB and basking bulb, and some decorations for basking/hiding/climbing. The UVB I have is a coil, which I know isn't the best and that the tube bulbs are better, but I do plan on upgrading that within a few weeks. His basking spot maintains a temperature of 100-110F, measured with my temp gun, and the cool side sits at about 80F. He is very active and alert and doesn't seem lethargic or anything. I do handle him for a few minutes every day, to make sure he gets used to handling, and he seems to very comfortable with me at this point, but his eating habits just will not change. While picking him up some crickets today (because those are what he's shown the most interest in), I saw some stuff called Fluker's Repta-Boost that's an appetite stimulant and supplement, which I picked up to possibly try but I haven't tried it yet as I wanted to get some outside opinion first. Could he still just be in his new tank adjustment period and not eating for that reason, or might it be something more serious? And are there any tips for getting him to eat more? And has anyone had experience using Repta-Boost to improve appetite? Thank you so much in advance for any and all help, me and Spike appreciate it!

 

[Silver dragons]

Hello, your tank looks great! Bearded dragons will often not eat as much when you first get them but it also might be parasites. I would suggest going to the vet to get him checked for internal parasites.

 

[HarleyQuinns_Dad]

It could also be he is Shedding..... A lot of younger dragons are in shed currently. A et check is always the safest.

Just check him for any signs of Shedding. My 2 month old girl just shed a few days ago. She was not eating for a couple days leading up to this.

 

[mckennymccormick]

Thank you both for the suggestions! I've made a vet appointment for him on Tuesday, and I plan on bringing some of his poop in for a fecal test, so hopefully, that should at least rule out parasites. I did end up trying out the Repta-Boost formula today which did seem to up his appetite a little bit and he ended up eating quite a few mealworms (which I know aren't the best feeders but as I said I'm trying everything I can right now) and a cricket right after, so things may be on the up and up. Fingers crossed all goes well at the vet, thanks again