My baby bearded dragon(I'm not sure if about 6 months counts as a baby, but...) hasn't eaten in 3 weeks, and I don't know what could be the problem. I clean her tank daily, change her water and food, and she still won't eat. It's gotten to the point where she can barely open her eyes and hardly moves around her tank anymore. She used to be very active up until three weeks ago, and I can't think of anything I could have changed besides her light bulb, which used to have the daytime light on 24/7 because the nighttime one broke. Now she switches between the two, but I'm not sure if that could have affected her this badly. I'm only a student, and I'm not sure if I can do anything, but I still want to do whatever I can so she doesn't die young. I don't want her to die hating me.
Hi Rikki, 3 weeks is a long time to go without food for a juvenile dragon and the symptoms you explain suggest either improper husbandry or illness. I'll have to ask for a few additional details so that we can hopefully rememdy any husbandry issues. Sometimes this is enough to get the animal un-stressed and willing to behavior normally again, but at the very least we can try to provide as optimal an environment as possible to ensure a faster recovery if it is indeed disease. -What kind of bulb(s) do you have in there? Brands and wattage if you know. -Do you have a UVB producing bulb? -What are the temperatures at the basking sites? (only measure these with a digital thermometer or tempgun). -What kind of substrate (bedding) are you using? -Can you provide us with any other details about your care, routine, feeding, etc? The more information we have to work with on your end, the better tailored our advice will be for your pet. Often in reptiles, the home enclosure and husbandry practices are key to a healthy pet and simple changes may be all that is necessary... but I will be honest with you... lethargic behavior like this often suggests disease, and beardies are quite susceptible to gastrointestinal parasites like coccidea. You may want to consider looking around for herp vets in your area who are able to treat reptiles. Use this website to find them in your state: http://herpvetconnection.com
-The daytime light I'm using is 75w I believe, and the nighttime light is 50. The nighttime light came with the tank and is Exo-Terra, or so it says on the box. The daytime light Zilla, as it's the only brand I can afford. -I don't have a UVB light, I don't know where to buy them since I buy all her stuff from small pet stores in the area. -I don't own a proper thermometer for chacking the temperature, but it should be around 80-95 in the tank. -I use a reptile carpet in her tank. -I feed her every morning at 7 am and again later at night around 6. I feed her the miniature dried crickets(the last attempt at feeding her lives ones ended miserably, though I've been wanting to try again) and I used to feed her full grown ones cut in half until she stopped eating, which is when I bought her the small ones. I clean her tank every day when I get home, or a little later but still every day. She lives in my room on a dresser by the window, so I leave the window closed and the curtains drawn. From time to time I'll take her out to play with and bathe her, but she hasn't been responding much recently. I plan on going to a vet today with a friend to see if she's having any problems like you say, but any other information would help greatly. The herp vet in my area is very close by, so I'll pay it a visit if this trip to the vet doesn't work out.
You NEED a UVB light Rikki...I have never had a Beardie but I am 99% sure that a UVB light is a MUST.
Like Tim3skimo said.. UVB is absolutely necessary. You need one of those. I recommend getting either a coil bulb (people say they have issues with these, but I wholeheartedly disagree, they are fine bulbs to use) or a tube bulb like a reptisun 5.0. Most pet stores carry these things. After three weeks of not eating I would assume that you should have gone to the vet or asked for help earlier. These kinds of things should not be looked upon lightly. I hope it all turns out well.
