Sick baby beardie :'(

[Kaylee]

I have had my beardie for almost 2 months now from petsmart. I named him Bruce Campbell. Provided 40 gallon terrarium, reptisun 18" 10.0, 100watt basking bulb, repticarpet substrate, gut loaded dubias, collard and mustard greens, calcium powder and liquid vitamin. Basking temps range from 92-107 and cool side ranges from 80-84 used with infrared thermometer. He doesnt like it when i spray him with water so i just put droplets on his snout to lick up. Has never had an appetite since i got him. He just will not eat. I took the little one to the vet on friday. Fecal came back clean. The sample i brought with me was about 7-8 hours old idk if that makes a difference. They gave me powder formula food, dewormer and antibiotics for 7 days. (To give just in case) since hes not eating. Today (monday) after giving the food it was too much for him even with short breaks and he regurgitated everything up. I thought he was dying! Raced him back to the vet and by the time we got there he perked back up. Still will not eat dubias or greens. I feel like these meds are too stressful for him. I have been an emotional wreck since i got him honestly. I dont know what to do. Should i stop the meds? I cant stand force feeding meds and food its ripping my heart apart. The vet said its also possible he may have ADV. I have spent $800 total on the beardie, lights, enclosure, dubias, supplements and vet bills only to watch this poor baby suffer. I just am torn up about everything. I just have this gut feeling hes not going to make it and its all my fault.

 

[Hdrydr31]

Sorry for responding so late.. how is your little one?

 

[PatsyB]

So your UVB bulb should cover 1/2 to 2/3 of your tank and the basking light and the UVB bulb need to be overlapping each other. The UVB provides the D3 and the heat from the basking bulb helps the body synthesize it. The temp in the basking spot needs to be more consistent. 92-107 is a giant difference, it needs to be stay close to 107 dropping or raising just a few degrees.

Dragons usually regurgitate food when the basking temp isn't warm enough or they don't have enough time to digest after they eat. Make sure that you are giving at least 2 hours to digest dinner before the lights go out for the night. It's also okay to drip water on his nose. You don't really want to spray them, they don't absorb water through their skin so spraying them sets them up for skin infections.

 

[Kaylee]

Hes looking better.
Heres what happened. I was starting to give up when i wrote that post i kept trying after that but with less hope. I actually moved him back to the 20 gallon in my bedroom where its nice and quiet where he first started his disappearing appetite. Quit meds and formula food after he vomited again in the 20 gallon. His basking temps range from 101-108. He still was not eating and becoming more lethargic. I woke up every morning wondering if he would still be alive. I started assist feeding 1-3 dubias a day so he wouldnt have an empty stomach plus he was able to keep them down and digest. All of a sudden one day out of no where he was very active and alert. It was so strange. He still wasnt eating on his own though. I remembered a reptile rescue that i had contacted as well as the vet telling me to try mealworms. I was very hesitant about them considering theyre so hard to digest but they told me in moderation its ok especially since he wont eat. So i caved in and thought since hes alert and moving around im gonna try this one last move. But instead i got small superworms dusted them with calcium and he gobbled them right up all on his own. I felt like i could breath again! Im on day 3 of worms and hes starting to gain the weight back slowly but surely as well as acting more alert and happy. I got some wax worms today for him to try in hopes he doesnt fixate on the superworms. He liked them but definatly not as much as supers. I just hope i can build his appetite back up, get him back on the dubias/greens and move him back to the 40 gallon. I still keep offering the dubias along with the worms. I also got this stuff called bearded dragon salad dressing by nature zone to try out on his greens. Im crossing my fingers its worth the $. I have been working with the 40 gallon temps the past week while he recovers in the other enclosure. I just cant seem to get it right though. This 40 gallon is giving me grief lol The good news and what matters most to me rn is that i think hes making a come back and im hoping for the best. The top photo is the day after my previous post. The bottom photo was today.

 

[Hdrydr31]

Awe he looks much better!! Thank you for the update!! Here's how I heat my 40's : our house is set for 73F for my health reasons... I have for their UVB's the reptisun T5 HO 10.0 24" long so 22" bulbs. Then basking they are either zoo meds 50watt or regular 50 watt light bulbs.

 

[PatsyB]

So glad he's doing better! Me and Hdrydr31 are twins, I have the same bulbs, only I went with a 36" UVB bulb that covers the whole tank. The 50w bulb works great to get the temps right for my older dragons in the summer. In the winter I go with a 75w bulb.

 

[Kaylee]

Its like a miracle hes doing better <3<3<3 i smile every morning now when his lights go on. My home is set at 73F as well most of the time but its cause i live in texas and its crazy hot here during the summer. Should i get a bigger uvb? I have the 18in reptisun 10.0 but was told by a breeder it would be fine. Is your heating in a wood or glass enclosore? I feel like since i got the glass enclosure is the reason why im having trouble with the heating temps. I see a lot of people using the 100 watt above the screen for a 40 gallon but i think the reason my 100 watt temps were all over the place is cause i was using the smaller dome rather than the large one so the heat is more concentrated in one spot idk? So since i dont have the larger dome rn i cut a hole in the screen so that the bulb can be under the screen to see what the temps were. I used a 75 watt but the basking temps are all over the place still. Ill post a picture of what i mean. My uvb is not in the photos cause its in the 20 gallon with bruce. Also my cool side is too cool in the low 70s. But i guess thats easily fixed with a low watt heat bulb on the cool side. I got a reading of 114 on one of the spots of the basking log. I think thats too hot. So im gonna try and pick up a bigger dome to place on top of the screen with the 75 or 100 watt or a lower watt bulb like the 50 to put under the screen. I attached pictures of the readings i get to show how all over the place they are on just the basking log lol.

 

[PatsyB]

I have glass tanks, the same one you do, and my heat bulbs rest on top of the mesh in a dome fixture. You want your UVB to cover at least 1/2-2/3 of your tank and make sure that it over laps with your heat lamp. I have my UVB sitting along the back of the tank and my heat bulb is in front of it.

I'm wondering if it's just what you are using to measure the temps with that is off. Do you have something else that you can measure the temps with? Most of us use a temp gun that you can get at the hardware store. It has a laser pointer that gives you the temp right at the spot.

 

[Kaylee]

I have glass tanks, the same one you do, and my heat bulbs rest on top of the mesh in a dome fixture. You want your UVB to cover at least 1/2-2/3 of your tank and make sure that it over laps with your heat lamp. I have my UVB sitting along the back of the tank and my heat bulb is in front of it.

I'm wondering if it's just what you are using to measure the temps with that is off. Do you have something else that you can measure the temps with? Most of us use a temp gun that you can get at the hardware store. It has a laser pointer that gives you the temp right at the spot.

I actually got the temps right now<3 ranging from 100-108 on the basking spot. I am so relieved I really thought it was that thermometer too but seems i just needed to keep trying and messing around with it. I swapped out the 75 watt under the mesh with a 50 watt and the 100 watt above the mesh with the small dome. Little Bruce is doing GREAT im so happy hes even back to eating dubias on his own. Im still definatly going to upgrade to the reptisun 10.0 36in instead of my 18in when i get the $ thank you for talking to me and helping me. This is such a great forum<3