# bearded dragon not eating



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

hya need a bit of help got temps ok in viv she has everything she needs ,started her on crickets she got bored with them switched to locust and wax worm she loved them for the first day now all she will eat is a bit of chicken baby food . she is all alert loves a fuss , she is about 16wks old what size should she be , ive done the bath thing for her she has passed poops but hasn,t eaten liveprey for a couple of days she is 8 inches from tail to head ive bought all the best food for her and she has fresh salad with calcium powder on it but the locust seem more interested than her she charges round the cage as if she is going for the food but when they go by her she ain,t interested she hasn,t got impaction and temps are good in tank HELP RUNNING OUT OF IDEAS XXXX also temps measuring 41 on basking log but 34 when put to side cool side 27 both therm stick things about six inches from floor any advice please


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

also she keeps going black just turned uv off she,s sulking


----------



## vgorst (Sep 27, 2011)

Hi,

First, those thermometers you're using aren't very accurate (can be 10C+ wrong) so those temperatures are likely to be wrong - not your fault, shops just insist on selling them. Invest in some digital thermometers, can be picked up cheap from ebay, these will give a more accurate measure of your temperatures.

How long have you had her? She could still just be settling in and getting used to her new surroundings. It's completely normal and can be around 2 weeks before they settle. Keep trying with the veg and live food - when she's hungry she'll go for it.

Can you describe the rest of your setup in case something else might be affecting her? Things like UV light %, brand and age is helpful, as well as any other supplements.

Edit - they often turn black when they're cold, confused, nervous, annoyed etc. Nothing really to worry about. What do you do with your heating at night? And what is your heat source?


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

i have 2 digi therms with probes one at the hot end basking area reads 41 warm end 34 cool end where uv bulb is 26 plus the main round thermo in the middle half way down that reads 25 she has two branches one under heat lamp and the other under uv + a big vine and greenery its a 3ft viv


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

oh ive had her for 6 weeks now she hasn,t eaten properly from the start and she is about 8 inches from head to end of tail she has grown but not much she does poo and loves a hot bath


----------



## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

Is your uv attached to the top of the viv? I am trying to think of reasons why she would be off food.. I know a lot of beardies go off feeding this time of the year they just naturally detect the change in seasons... Do you feed her veg? 

Liz


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

yes its hangs from the top its one of those light bulb one not the strip i gave her a bath this morning and she pooped but ive tried her with a locust and a wax worm she wasn,t interested she is up on her vine now by her uv xxx


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

she has fresh salad fruit available to her sometimes she will eat a tiny piece of pepper or lettuce but not enough i,m runnig out of ideas :lol2:


----------



## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

Ok.. if you can try lowering the uv so it is hanging just under half way down the viv.. I don't normally recommend mealworms but it might be worth a try.. Veg wise try a bit of rocket some grated butternut, pea shoots and watercress.

Liz


----------



## vgorst (Sep 27, 2011)

She really needs a better UVB, coil bulbs aren't suitable especially for beardies. 12% T5 tubes are the best option. What percentage does she have at the moment?

Without proper UVB she won't be able to synthesise D3, that means any calcium you give her will do nothing - this is the main cause of MBD, and can also cause loss of appetite. Her trying to get as close as she can to the UV bulb is a sign that she's not getting enough, in getting too close she can seriously damage her eyes. I can pretty much guarantee that when you change to T5's you will see a huge change in her.

You can also up your temperatures a few degrees.


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

thanks for the advice from you all i will try it all hopefully my next post will be more positive xxxxxxx


----------



## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

vgorst said:


> She really needs a better UVB, coil bulbs aren't suitable especially for beardies. 12% T5 tubes are the best option. What percentage does she have at the moment?
> 
> Without proper UVB she won't be able to synthesise D3, that means any calcium you give her will do nothing - this is the main cause of MBD, and can also cause loss of appetite. Her trying to get as close as she can to the UV bulb is a sign that she's not getting enough, in getting too close she can seriously damage her eyes. I can pretty much guarantee that when you change to T5's you will see a huge change in her.
> 
> You can also up your temperatures a few degrees.


I never used UV bulbs with my beardies, although I do use one with my tort.. I assume tubes are better because they go the length of the viv.. Also younger beardies need to get closer to their uv.. When I breed beardies mine would hang just over half way down the viv.. 

As she seems to spend a lot of time up by the uv bulb then I would expect that she is trying to utilise it as much as possible I would recommend trying a UV tube.

Liz


----------



## vgorst (Sep 27, 2011)

Lighting Guide for all Reptiles from Arcadia < This is a really useful resource to help you figure out what you need, if you get confused PM Arcadiajohn on here, he's always helpful 



Aunty_Lizard said:


> *I never used UV bulbs with my beardies*, although I do use one with my tort.. I assume tubes are better because they go the length of the viv.. Also younger beardies need to get closer to their uv.. When I breed beardies mine would hang just over half way down the viv..
> 
> As she seems to spend a lot of time up by the uv bulb then I would expect that she is trying to utilise it as much as possible I would recommend trying a UV tube.
> 
> Liz


I'm very surprised you say that, it's considered standard care for a beardy to have a high percentage UVB available during the day. Tubes are better because they emit far more UVB and yes, exposure is increased due to the size. T5's are extremely good, emit the most UVB over the longest period and don't emit dangerous UVC as far as I know (unlike any UVB bulbs/tubes from brands like exo terra etc). Hanging the UVB bulb halfway down the viv is considered bad too due to the eye damage and unnatural position (think it causes something like photo-kerato-conjuctivitis)


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

it is a reptiglo 10.0 uvb exo terra bulb that i have in there now


----------



## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

vgorst said:


> Lighting Guide for all Reptiles from Arcadia < This is a really useful resource to help you figure out what you need, if you get confused PM Arcadiajohn on here, he's always helpful
> 
> 
> 
> I'm very surprised you say that, it's considered standard care for a beardy to have a high percentage UVB available during the day. Tubes are better because they emit far more UVB and yes, exposure is increased due to the size. T5's are extremely good, emit the most UVB over the longest period and don't emit dangerous UVC as far as I know (unlike any UVB bulbs/tubes from brands like exo terra etc). Hanging the UVB bulb halfway down the viv is considered bad too due to the eye damage and unnatural position (think it causes something like photo-kerato-conjuctivitis)


I meant UV Bulbs not uv tubes lol.. I always used tubes for my beardies babies or older ones.. Whoops I guess that did look like I said I didn't used uv at all.. I was trying to find a pic of how I used to set up my vivs for my babies/juvies.. But they are on the external hard drive and I can't get access to it at the moment.

Liz x


----------



## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

Yeah your right they can get an eye condition but, younger beardies need to be closer to the uv.. I never had a problem with my babies and eye problems.

Liz


----------



## vgorst (Sep 27, 2011)

Aunty_Lizard said:


> I meant UV Bulbs not uv tubes lol.. I always used tubes for my beardies babies or older ones.. Whoops I guess that did look like I said I didn't used uv at all.. I was trying to find a pic of how I used to set up my vivs for my babies/juvies.. But they are on the external hard drive and I can't get access to it at the moment.
> 
> Liz x


Haha sorry, I must have mis-interpreted that! Tubes are definitely the way to go :2thumb:


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

lol xxx so the bulb i have in is a reptiglo 10.0 uvb exo terra bulb that was in the viv when i bought it from the reptile shop barking mad pets barnes hill bham great bloke very helpful all his beardie set ups in the shop are the same


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

so now i,m confused you two lol xx


----------



## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

parents of kiki said:


> so now i,m confused you two lol xx


I have never used a uv bulb I always used tubes.. When baby beardies are younger they seem to need more uv to grow.. I always used to lower my tubes so they had what they needed as they grow then I would higher the uv bulb.. There is a lot of controversy as to if it is good for the beardies eyes but, I had never had a problem with the eyes as babies.. I did have a problem with one of mine as a adult but, it was thought to be nothing to do with the uv but, more an infection. 

Just trying to get pic from my external hard drive to show you what I mean :lol2::lol2:

Liz


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

:lol2::lol2: kk thanks xx


----------



## parents of kiki (Nov 1, 2012)

parents of kiki said:


> lol xxx so the bulb i have in is a reptiglo 10.0 uvb exo terra bulb that was in the viv when i bought it from the reptile shop barking mad pets barnes hill bham great bloke very helpful all his beardie set ups in the shop are the same


 is this bulb no good then xxx


----------



## vgorst (Sep 27, 2011)

It's not very good - you should really change to a tube soon (Arcadia T5's are the best easily). Also the bulb you use will need to be changed regularly anyway (they say every 6 months but it's more like 3-4 months), whereas Arcadia bulbs only need to be changed once a year.

Pet shops don't necessarily have the best setups for their animals as they get moved on fairly quickly.


----------



## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

Bulbs are not really good for some species beardies being one of them.. I would much rather see a uv tube in there.. I use a bulb for my tort but, it is a whole different species.. What works for one doesn't always work for another.

Here is how I used to set my viv up for my babies.. 



Liz


----------

