My beardie has been acting a little weird lately. About a month ago he had a huge shed, which we all know changes their hunger level and their behavior. After that he has been in his cave for long times each day. From about the morning to 3-5 (when I feed him and bring him outside). He also hasn’t been eating much lately. He ate about 15 worms and a few crickets around four days ago and hasn’t wanted to eat since. At first I thought this shyness and lack of hunger was just after-shed effects but idk anymore. Is there anything I should do to help him? Or is this okay?
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Vic and Mars
Juvenile Dragon
- Messages
- 177
If he's in the hide a lot it sounds like he is possibly brumating. If this is the case just give him some space and he will be fine
thanks for the info. i’m in the us so it’s only september. can brumation happen this early?If he's in the hide a lot it sounds like he is possibly brumating. If this is the case just give him some space and he will be fine
Vic and Mars
Juvenile Dragon
- Messages
- 177
Yes, I believe so. It could also still be some changed behavior from shed too
They tend to slow down in the fall and its possible hes getting ready to brumate - the UVB plays a huge role in the behavior of dragons along w/ basking temps - they can mimic brumation behavior so if you can tell me what your using for a UVB brand and bulb coil or long tube and how old it is and how your taking basking temps and what they are we can rule that out for sure --- worms? what kind of worms are you feeding?If he's in the hide a lot it sounds like he is possibly brumating. If this is the case just give him some space and he will be fine
this can give you more info on brumation
Brumation in Bearded Dragons
Written by Denise R. Bushnell in June, 2008 For those who are not experienced in the hobby, and who keep Bearded Dragons as pets, one of the greatest sources of worry is when, for one reason or another, our beardies refuse to eat for long periods of time, or become increasingly inactive and...
www.beardeddragon.org
I have two temperature gauges in the tank, one is at the basking spot and the other is at the further end of the tank. The basking temperature is about 106-ish but the temp gauge is just a few inches above the actual spot cause i can’t put it right there. In the non-basking spots it’s around 80 degrees. I usually give him meal worms but this time i gave him super worms because that’s all the store had. the light bulb is an exo terra basking spot bulb with 100 watts 120V and 60Hz. It is a bulb coil and not a long tube. I got the bulb about six months ago maybe? It’s definitely not older than a year but I don’t remember the exact dateThey tend to slow down in the fall and its possible hes getting ready to brumate - the UVB plays a huge role in the behavior of dragons along w/ basking temps - they can mimic brumation behavior so if you can tell me what your using for a UVB brand and bulb coil or long tube and how old it is and how your taking basking temps and what they are we can rule that out for sure --- worms? what kind of worms are you feeding?
this can give you more info on brumation
Brumation in Bearded Dragons
Written by Denise R. Bushnell in June, 2008 For those who are not experienced in the hobby, and who keep Bearded Dragons as pets, one of the greatest sources of worry is when, for one reason or another, our beardies refuse to eat for long periods of time, or become increasingly inactive and...
The UVB needs to be replaced w/ a long tube fixture ASAP - a 24" fixture Zoo Med - Sunblaster Nano or a Arcadia Pro T 5 w/ a Reptisun 10.0 T 5 for a 40 + gallon tank - if you need help w/ this please ask I will help you - the coils are NO good --- the tubes have certain distance and placement please let me know when you get it - --- I would recommend getting your insects on line you can get him on dubias I recommend them they are good staple feeder - get the size not bigger than the space between his eyes length wise --- www.dubiaroaches.com -- improper basking temps and UVB will cause brumation behavior and lack of eating along w/ many other health issues
I actually have a zoo med reptisun in the tank! it provides light for the entire tank i just have a single coil bulb that’s at a certain basking spot. the way my tank is built is there’s space a long tube that runs along the middle and a coil bulb that goes in the corner. so he has both available to him when his lights are on? is this okay that the long tube provides light for the whole cage and not just a basking spot? i also give him plenty of dubia roaches. when i go to my local pet store (which is much better than pet smart or petco) i get him meal worms, crickets, and dubia roaches. he loves all three!
i don’t know how old the tube light is but it works just fine!
Tell me tube is it a T 5 or T 8- they expire the T 8 6 months T 5 approx one year- I recommend changing them out one month prior to expiration- please take the coil out - it's not doing any good but harm- the dragon needs to be able to get out of the uvb rays this could be another reason for hiding-
it is a T 5. I’m pretty sure it has been used for about a year so I ordered a replacement. I also attached a photo to show you how the top of the cage looks like- it’s a very nice cage- but I cant change the placement of things. the distance from the tube is a bit far from the ground (but not that bad). is this distance okay? included are photos of the top set up, distance from the tube to the ground, and distance from the coil to the ground. thanks for all this info!
Attachments
What is the red hue? There should be no light eluminating at night dragons like cool and dark 65-75 at night- distance for your uvb should be 12-15 inches directly above the basking decor w/ NO SCREEN- the screen blocks 30 % of the rays and uvb rays get weaker as time goes on even tho the light still eluminates
he has only been in this tank for four months so we’re still figuring out the best ways to make this tank his environment. thanks for all this info though! i am excited for the new bulbs to come in
the red hue is just my own light to take the photo! he sleeps in complete darkness. also if i make his log his new basking area that fits in the 12-15 inches and there is no screen covering it.
That will work - make sure your basking temps are 95-100 taken w/ the digital probe thermometer- this stuff is extremely important- get your uvb changed out then watch his behavior
I have a follow up question. I have a new tube coming in and i’m excited for it try it out. Can I use bulbs, that don’t give of UVB and just give off UVA, for just the basking spot? It’s just to give it some heat and light. Thanks again for all the info.
Sorry! I need to correct myself. When I was reading your responses there was a bit of a miscommunication. I thought you meant I can’t use any bulbs at all (even ones that give off no UVB). I never used UVB bulbs, only basking bulbs. And his UVB comes from a tube bulb. I have bought a new tube bulb in the mail and built him a spot where he will be closer to the tube. Sorry for the miscommunication but thanks a lot for the info! Hopefully with these new additions he’ll get out of his little rut
Your dragon needs UVB --- your basking bulb as long as its a bright white basking bulb hes going to get UVA from that --- but you MUST HAVE A UVB-- you can use other bulbs to add light like regular HH bulbs like a LED that will give off light and no heat -- if you need to get heat in the middle of the tank like in the 90's you can use a lower wattage basking bulb or a House hold bulb NO coils tho a regular house hold bulb 60 watt or so --- but the two main things in that tank are the UVB and a bright white basking bulb --- the basking bulb starts digestion and the UVB helps the dragon absorb/ synthesize his calcium hes getting and prevents MBD --- you want that tube UVB properly placed in the tank I think we went over that --- replace that UVB every year for a T 5 --- every 6 months for a T 8
