Is My Beardie Sick?

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

I adopted Oscar, a one-year-old bearded dragon two weeks ago, and he's been acting a bit strange. He hasn't been eating, or really doing anything besides basking. He suddenly stopped eating today after his morning salad, so I may have fed him something that disagrees with him (It was just mustard greens and carrots, both of which he's eaten before), but I have a gut feeling that this isn't the case. He did make a dookey this morning, and it seemed a bit more solid than the usual pudding consistency (I clean it up right after he poops), would that have something to do with this? Could he be impacted? Please help! I'm not sure what to think.

Edit:I also kept an eye on him all day, he hasn't left his basking spot. Now that I think about it, I may have the temp a bit too low. Let me know what you guys think

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

The UVB is a tube, and it sits on top of the screen that covers the tank. I feed him crickets twice a week, and dubia roaches once a week. What really makes me worried is that he didn't seem that stressed for the first few days, even with me handling him. I also feed him kale, butternut squash, and collard greens, but today just happened to be mustard greens and carrots

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

Could his lack of appetite have something to do with brumation? I mean he is a year old and every website I've looked at says they start going through it when they're fully grown. The crickets I put into his tank are hiding now, which means he at least ate some of them, right? He hasn't touched his salad today yet, even when I tried to hand feed him. But he's still pooping, which is a good thing. I think he wants to be left alone, he keeps glaring at me (I love how expressive he is!). I did take out an old plastic tree thing a few days ago that the previous owners had in his tank, there were crickets hiding in a little hollow spot where he couldn't get to. Could he not be eating because he's mad at me? I did replace the tree thing with something else that's about the same height, in the same spot,

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

His poop seems like the normal consistency, with the normal smell, but I'm really not an expert on these guys. The tree has already been thrown out, I replaced it with this like log tunnel thing that I bought from my local pet store. I'll make sure to get the crickets out, I had no idea they could hurt him. I'll start keeping an eye on his weight so we can rule that out as well, thank you so much for your help! He seems active when I'm handling him, but when he's in the tank, he barely moves from his basking spot. Does that mean anything?

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

His temps in the basking area are about 100 degrees. His poop is usually like a thick pudding, almost custardy consistency. The bulb is a reptisun, but I have no idea how to tell whether it's a T8 or T5 by just looking at the bulb, the previous owner gave me the lamps included with the dragon.

Edit: The bulb says "Reptisun 10.0 UVB" Does that help?

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

I have no idea how old the bulb is, the previous owners didn't write the date they began using it. Attached is a photo of the bulb/fixture that his previous owners gave me

Edit:I did inspect the whole bulb, there is no indication that I know of that tells whether its t8 or t5, I can do a quick google search for that bulb

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

Did my search, it's a t5 bulb

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

Okay, I'll order that right away! But what I'm not understanding is why he hasn't had problems before this, as I'm assuming that's the same type of bulb his previous owners used since they got him. He seemed to be doing fine up until now, but why do you suppose it took so long for him to show me a sign?

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

So you said he needs a way of absorbing calcium. Is there a difference between dusting his food with calcium powder and absorbing it from the uvb?

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

I've been dusting everything he eats with a thin layer of calcium, no worries. I was just curious, and I'll keep a close eye on him for the next couple of days until the bulb arrives

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

I think it's going to be on top of the tank, near his basking spot.

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

It's not as fine as a screen door, but it's not wide enough to fit my fingers through. I'll attach a picture with my hand for reference.

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

Also, my sister has this turtle tank she got from craigslist, I think it came with a tube uvb fixture, but I'll have to see it to know for sure. Is there a difference between the uvbs turtles need and the uvbs beardies need?

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

Thank you so much for all your help, I'll make sure to let you know how he does after I recieve the new bulb

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

I recieved the new bulb a couple days ago, and today he started eating again! He's still not eating much, but I'll give him a couple days to get his appetite back. He's also a lot more alert than he was before I changed it. I'm really relieved that he's okay now, I was really worried. I really appreciate your help, now hopefully he'll be a happy and healthy dragon!

 

[Victoria Muzzarelli]

It's on top of the screen

Edit: Just fed him 2 dozen dubia roaches, he gobbled them right up!