# Bearded Dragon loss of appetite



## Quillan (Jun 26, 2012)

I have a 14 week old Bearded dragon who i am feeding number 4 Crickets. he has been eating around 20-25 a day since i got him at 11 weeks old he now seems to have gone off his food . He has never touched the salad or veg i put in for him .but always finnished off the crickets. he has now only ate 10 crickets in the last 3 days . is this normal or should i seek advise from a vet.


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## Mikedunz (May 1, 2012)

How bug are the crickets.

They shouldn't be larger than the space between his/her eyes.


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## Bradleybradleyc (May 7, 2012)

Mikedunz said:


> How bug are the crickets.
> 
> They shouldn't be larger than the space between his/her eyes.


Not completely true my friend it recommended as too big prey can cause impaction but this does not happen often, do you think a Beardie would look at prey in the wild and go ooooooh that's a bit big?? No chance 

OP this can be normal with beardies as anything if they ain't hungry they won't eat, give a massive viarity of fruit salad gel teens etc, keep an eye on the amount of live food he eats, 

Has anything changed ?? ie temps ???


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## Quillan (Jun 26, 2012)

temp is set at 92 as i was advised i mix fruit & veg every time never had same stuff 2 days running and crickets are not bigger than mouth.


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## Bradleybradleyc (May 7, 2012)

Their preferred body temp is 95-96.8 basking spot temp should be closer to 95 this could be one reason turn the temp up a bit pal, 

Keep a note of what he feeds on and which days amount of live food Aswell.
This is good practice as a vet will need to know this info if anything ever happens. I do this with all my reps.


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## Jeffers3 (May 18, 2010)

Don't worry about it too much. Their appetites swing wildly as they grow. Yours is still eating, so won't starve.

What's the UV light like? Is it a strong source (10-12%) and how old is it?


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## Quillan (Jun 26, 2012)

lamp is 3 weeks old so new .i will keep records of food thx for help will jus keep an eye on consumption and hope apertite improves


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## vgorst (Sep 27, 2011)

Bradleybradleyc said:


> Their preferred body temp is 95-96.8 basking spot temp should be closer to 95 this could be one reason turn the temp up a bit pal,


Erm turn up the temperature a lot! Try between 105-115F :2thumb: 
Also try different bugs if you can e.g. locusts and roaches, he may just be getting bored :lol2:


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## Bradleybradleyc (May 7, 2012)

vgorst said:


> Erm turn up the temperature a lot! Try between 105-115F :2thumb:
> Also try different bugs if you can e.g. locusts and roaches, he may just be getting bored :lol2:


Lol sorry I'm confusing myself now :blush:


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## vgorst (Sep 27, 2011)

Bradleybradleyc said:


> Lol sorry I'm confusing myself now :blush:


Haha what were you thinking of? But I agree with what you said about prey size, gap between the eyes is a guideline, impaction only generally occurs if husbandry is wrong


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## Bradleybradleyc (May 7, 2012)

vgorst said:


> Haha what were you thinking of? But I agree with what you said about prey size, gap between the eyes is a guideline, impaction only generally occurs if husbandry is wrong


I haven't got a clue trying to watch tv while replying to the op never a good idea i cant multi task i should know that by now lol.

Too many people worry about impaction and make people terrified of it, you just have to be sensible, and use common sense (unlike my previous post)


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## Debbie1962 (Dec 5, 2008)

Have to agree on the temps allthough I wouldn't go quite as high as 115. I generally have mine at 110 which seems fine for them. The appetite may improve once temps are raised.


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## vgorst (Sep 27, 2011)

You'll know if 115F is too hot if they are constantly in the cool end (although beardies in the wild only bask for short periods at a time, not all day). It's best if you provide different levels for your beardy in the hot end so that they can choose the temperature they bask at.


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## Quillan (Jun 26, 2012)

Thx for replies although he is not eating as much as he was he seems to be eating around 10 size 4 crickets a day now gonna go to see about getting some difertent types of food to see is apertite improves


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## Sid the dragon (Jun 29, 2012)

Quillan said:


> I have a 14 week old Bearded dragon who i am feeding number 4 Crickets. he has been eating around 20-25 a day since i got him at 11 weeks old he now seems to have gone off his food . He has never touched the salad or veg i put in for him .but always finnished off the crickets. he has now only ate 10 crickets in the last 3 days . is this normal or should i seek advise from a vet.


My Berdie's appatite seems to go when he is about to shed, and i think that is the case with most lizzards. As long as he is eating somthing he should be ok


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## Debbie1962 (Dec 5, 2008)

I think 10 crickets a day is okay. They do slow down with their eating as they get older so as long as his appetite doesn't go down anymore then I wouldn't worry too much.


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