AboutSandra Expertise I can answer questions about housing-heating-lighting-substrates
diet and supplements-breeding and incubation and hatchling care
and give advice on what to do in case of an emergency until you can get your reptile to a vet
Experience I have 10 plus years experience in keeping reptiles
I currently keep Bearded Dragons-Leopard Geckos-African Fat Tailed Geckos-Crested Geckos-New Caledonia Giant Geckos-Gargoyle Geckos-Blue Tongue Skinks-One Tokay Gecko and One Box Turtle
Education/Credentials Self taught with reading and through personal experience with reptile care
I can find links to care sheets and forums about species of reptiles that I do not keep but I can only answer questions from experience from the reptiles listed above
Expert: Sandra Date: 7/1/2008 Subject: beardie is sick
Question QUESTION: my bearded dragon hasent been eating and keeps his eyes closed most of the time do u know what this could be
ANSWER: Hi James
In order to even have a clue as to what is going on with your Beardie- I will need the following information from you
Age/size
how long that you have had it
Size of enclosure/tanks
lighting and heating used
Substrate used
Types of veggies/greens and insects fed -size and how often
Temperatures inside the tank
One right under the basking spot lamp and the other on the cool side of the tank
Is he shedding?
If you can tell me the answers to those questions-I will try my best to help figure out what is going on with your beardie
Sandy aka LadyGecko
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: age roughly 6 months size is about 6 inches had it for 1 week size of tank is 20 gal lighting is red night lite basking bulb and a zilla dessert 50 bulb temps inside tank run 104 in basking light 90 in cool side and 78-85 at night substrate is alfalfa pellets it ate a few worms the first couple days then threw them up and aint seen him eat yet and hes not shedding
Answer OK-
At this age your dragon should be at least over 12 inches in length tip of nose to tip of tail
He should be eating at least a couple dozen or more of worms or crickets per day plus a salad of greens and veggies
Regurgitation in Beardies-unless they have eaten too- much too fast-is usually a sign of an ill animal
You need to get your Dragon into see a vet asap
I would like to suggest that you get rid of the alfalfa pellets and put him on paper towels so that you can monitor his poop-how much-how often and if it is runny and smelly
As for the lights
You need a 10.0 UV light for them that stays on for ay least 10 hours per day
The basking spot light bulb is for heat only and 90 degrees on the cool side in a 20 gal tank is way too hot
I believe that you need at least a 30 gal long tank for a good heat gradient for a Beardie of any size
Chances are right now you are baking your lizard with those temps and that it is also dehydrated
Do you keep a water dish in the tank for him at all times?
I like to use one that they can walk into and soak if they want to
Bearded Dragons not only do not need a night light(unless your house is so cold that you have to use it for heat at night-bout I prefer a ceramic heat emitter) they need the darkness to sleep
So my suggestions would be to make an appointment at the vet for your little guy
A vet will do a fecal smear to test coccidia levels and for other internal parasites
Toss the Alfalfa and replace with paper towels for right now
Get rid of the red night bulb until you have a larger tank
Get a florescent-(not a "compact") UV strip bulb and leave it on 10 to 12 hours per day
Monitor the temps during the hot weather when you house might be warner than usual
Higher temps in your house equals higher temps in the tank
Leave the spot basking light on for less time if it is getting the tank too hot
Make sure that the cool end of the tank is in the 70's to low 80's at the highest temp
Add a water dish that he can climb into and soak and clean and replace with fresh water daily
After the vet appointment and if you can't get him in right away-get some Flukers Rept-A-Aid
It is a formula for ailing and/or underweight reptiles
You want the insectivore/carnivore formula
Mix the powder with some water per directions and slowly feed some to your dragon
You can start putting a drop on his nose and hopefully he will lick it off
They really like the taste and usually end up drinking it right from the syringe
You want to feed small amounts several times per day=start with about 1/4 of the syringe 3 times per day and gradually work up to larger amounts
I wish that I had better news for you but I believe that unless you get this dragon onto see a vet-you may lose him
Good Luck with him and let me know how he makes out at the vet
