jam Posted June 1, 2008 Report Share Posted June 1, 2008 I have a 5 month old beardie who is not eating alot. Trying to dig in the sand which has just been put in there. Has taken to hiding amonst the drift wood at the cool end of the tank and seems to want to stay there. When I picked him out the other day he was cold to the touch and normally he would be up and about at that time of the morning. He seemed lethargic for a bit. He came right but now he has gone and hidden away again, any suggestions please. The tank is heated to around 31/32 degrees during the day at present, more in the summer. Do you think this is too cool for him? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tabz Posted June 1, 2008 Report Share Posted June 1, 2008 Your enclosure should have a basking spot with a surface temp of 38 - 43 degrees. And the cooler side should be about 26 degrees. Does the sand cover the whole of the enclosure? sand can cause impaction if digested, does your dragon lick the sand often? do you feed it in the sand? if you must have sand, i suggest you keep it in a container or dish inside the viv as a dig box as opposed to an entire substrate. Do you have UV lamps? can he get to within 6inches of them? Do you use vitamin supplements? Do you keep your dragon alone, or does he have a mate in the tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted June 1, 2008 Report Share Posted June 1, 2008 hi jam, it might be feeling the effect of the seasons change and wanting to go into brumation - short hibernation they do. i currently run grass carpet with ours not sand, but others run sand with no problems if your concerned bring general temp of enclosure up a bit as he shouldn't be too cold to the touch what is nighttime temp and how long are your lights on for, what type are they ? there are some really good previous threads in the reptile section on here that cover beardie keeping go through those they will probably help as some of the posts are by some really experienced keepers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jam Posted June 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 1, 2008 Thanks guys for the response. In answer to the questions Day temp for winter is currently 32 degrees, night time is 22-23 degrees. Sand is half of the tank and other half is artificial grass carpet. The lights and reptile bulb (fluro) is on from 7-6pm - prob. 6 months old. We also have a 250 watt basking bulb. A ceramic bulb is also on constantly. Other nights he has climbed up his branch to sleep in the warmer part of the tank. I don't know whether to disturb him or not He does not appear to be ingesting alot of sand. Nothing in the poops. He gives it the odd lick but that is all and we do not feed him on the sand. Should I bother to drop the temps during winter or not bother. I was just trying to mimick the wild. I understand they do not brumate/hibernate at such a young age - is this the case? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tabz Posted June 1, 2008 Report Share Posted June 1, 2008 Do you use beach sand or the exoterra stuff? beach sand is no good because of the salt, ive heard they lick it more often. The idea behind impaction is that you wouldnt see it in the poo as it compacts in the stomach, although if he is still pooing regularly then i think you're safe. as for the uv bulb. it is recommended that you change them every 6months as the production of uv/uvb diminishes over time. also it is important to note that a uv tube is only good for a bout 2 days of sunlight a month. not much when you think about it. also, to get any real use out of the uv tube, your dragon needs to able to get within 6inches of it. I cant imagine at 5 months your dragon would be trying to brumate. it may be coccidia, there is a really good vet on at the Blockhouse Bay end of White Swan Rd if you live in Auckland, i know of a few dragon breeders taking there lizards there. they do fecal exams onsite, it may be worth taking them a fresh sample for them to check, i think it costs like $10 ad its worth doing every so often anyway, so it cant hurt, and at least you will know. I had a similar situation with my last dragon around the same age (5-6 months), he became really lethargic and went off food. It turned out to be coccidia. It sounds to me that your temps are to low to begin with, so i wouldnt drop them any further. dragons need a temp of about 38-39 degrees to digest their food properly. i noticed my dragon was being a bit lazy today, i checked the temps under his basking spot and it was too low, i changed it to a bigger wattage bulb and instantly he was eating ferociously and running all over the place. Its not really neccessary to drop their temps slightly in winter until their second year. What are you using to check the temps? sorry about long post Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broms2 Posted June 1, 2008 Report Share Posted June 1, 2008 dragons need a temp of about 38-39 degrees to digest their food that temperature is around max for basking, you need a graduation of heat in the enclosure so your dragon can self regulate, you need to remember these dragons originate from inland australia, it can get very cold over night in the wild. they use the sun to heat up, but you won't see many basking when the sun is at it's hottest. buy the bearded dragon manual, its a good reference book from experts that have breed thousands of dragons. I have kept my lizards on sand all their lives with no problems, I think everybody has their own ideas on substrate type. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted June 1, 2008 Report Share Posted June 1, 2008 do 5 month old dragons in the wild in winter not brumate then ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broms2 Posted June 1, 2008 Report Share Posted June 1, 2008 must go on holiday :bounce: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted June 1, 2008 Report Share Posted June 1, 2008 must go on holiday :bounce: to nz where the climate is warmer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted June 1, 2008 Report Share Posted June 1, 2008 good threads on here http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/beardi ... 29481.html http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/sand-f ... 29305.html http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/vegies ... 26517.html http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/dragon ... 27722.html may be of assistance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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