Bearded dragon has frequently closed eyes, and appears sick.?

Question

I have a bearded dragon, about 4-5 months old. Recently (about 3 days now) she has had her eyes shut an awful lot, and when they are open the secondary lids won't open all the way. Also, she only opens one eye at a time. She doesn't eat too much when presented with food, and only does so with lots of coaxing. She's become very lethargic, and does not resist or squirm or make even the slightest movement when I pick her up. If I pet her and stroke her head, she will barely open her eyes for but a few seconds, and lift up her head until I stop, then lays back down in my hand.
I've tried giving her plenty of water by misting and even a few warm baths in the tub when I noticed she became ill. She seems fine for about 30 minutes after that, but shortly returns to her previous condition.
Another thing, she never eats her vegetables, no matter what I offer.

So is there anything I can do at home or should I take her to a vet?

Thanks for the help, all!
She is doing fine now, it turns out she was getting ready to shed.
I did notice, however, that her undertank heater was not working properly and was only somewhat warm to the touch. Also, I had been using a bit of unused automobile carpet instead of a substrate, and I don't think I had been cleaning it properly.
I bought her a different substrate which I had had success with before the carpet, and a clamp lamp which works great.
She's doing quite well now, and now she's on my shoulder trying to eat my hair. :)

Answer 1

You should really take her to the vet. If not, it may die.

Answer 2

Our dragon has been doing the same thing the past few days cause we've had a cold snap down here in TX and the area by her window is cooler ...she's inside. Get a little thermometer you stick to the inside of the aquarium and keep any eye on the temp in there. If you think it's cool weather related, you can drape a towel over part of the cage (make sure the ventilation is still fine when you do this) and you might also consider buying a heat lamp ( hopefully you already have a uv bulb in there unless it's by a window). They will also become lethargic and eat less before they molt and since she's young, she will be doing this frequently.
30 min after her warm bath her body is cooling down ain..slowing her down. Do not give her baths though, she's from a desert environment and only mist like every 2-3 days. Give her mostly green leafy veg or even clover from the yard if chemicals aren't used on the lawn. Go to beardeddragon.org or beardeddragon.com or reptilecare.com for more info.
good luck

Answer 3

I'd make an appointment with a knowledgeable reptile vet, if you can find one in your area. Try checking the website www.arav.org/USmembers.html for vets in your state. In the meantime, double check her environment. Is the temperature warm enough (at least part of the tank should be 90-100 degrees)? Do you keep her on sand (could she have gotten some in her eyes)? Do you have a UVB light source (they need one!)? Does she get a vitamin supplement (too much or too little vitamin A can lead to eye problems)? You can more info on their care and set-up at www.anapsid.org/bearded.html.

In the meantime, reduce the number of baths and misting - this is a desert animal and too much moisture could lead to a respiratory infection. You can try rinsing just her eyes with dechlorinated water from an eyedropper or ReptiRinse (available at pet stores - this is made for turtles, cause they get lots of eye problems - but I've used it successfully on a Chinese water dragon with an eye problem!). Do this about three times a day. If this clears up the problem before you get to the vet, you can always cancel the appointment.

Also, she may not be eating well because young dragons have a hard time swallowing food that "looks" small enough for them. If she's under 6" she shouldn't be getting anything larger than pinhead (up to about 1/4 inch) crickets. Most pet stores don't sell ones this small, so you either have to raise them yourself, special order them through a pet store, or get them on the Internet. I've had some that weren't interested in veggies either, but you should still offer them occassionally.

I hope she gets better. Beardies are great little animals!

Answer 4

don't be alarmed.. bearded dragons commonly go through a winter shutdown.. they will become lethargic, and will not eat much, if at all.. they will sleep alot as well... it typically doesn't matter what you do, they somehow know it's winter and will shutdown... it's normal... if you want you can raise the temps in the cage.. they normally should be at 85 for ambient air temp with a basking spot of 105... but like i said there is no need to be alarmed, it's just a normal winter shutdown... also make sure that when you spray her, don't do it in the cage as that will raise the humidity and could result in a respritory infection...

the winter shutdown could last another month, or she may begin to come out of it in a matter of weeks... just make sure she has food available if she does want to eat...

also the post above me has wrong info... bearded dragons can eat crickets that are bigger than pin size.. a very easy way to tell if food is small enough is to look at the space between their eyes.. the food should be no bigger than that.. i have a 2 month old beardie and she has had no problem at all with digestion

Answer 5

Please go to http://www.repticzone.com and ask this question there! I see people with this same problem all the time on there and the experienced keepers have great answers! Hopefully you already have a DIGITAL thermometer and the temps are high enough. I'm sure she's not just like that because of low temperatures! There's obviously something much bigger going on. Ask about it on repticzone in the bearded dragon forum and see what kind of answers you get there AS WELL AS taking her to a vet asap! I hope you decide to do the right thing :)

Answer 6

Reptiles are cold blooded and live where there is lots of sun unless they are fish. They don't eat in the cold times and don't need to. I hope you get a sun lamp for your pet and look up on line what their natural home is like. We too need a special place to live. It is an error to see all people as needing the same activities. We just don't and because we change as life progresses we need to live more and more differently than our siblings and early friends.

Answer 7

The light could be bothering him on one side on his tank if the light seems more direct on that side.. you could try moving his light source to the opposite side and see if his other eye closes. Also, iguanas close one eye when they're trying to ignore something, I'm not sure if beardies have ever been known to do the same.

Answer 8

She is to cold... do you have a tank thomamator? her tank should be around 75/ 80 do you have her near a window? has it gotten cold were u are lately?

try moving her to a warmer spot in the house..
and make sure she has a Rock or something to bask on under her heating lamp

Answer 9

Need more info regarding her enclosure. Are the temps right? Are you providing UVA/UVB lights? What food has she been eating? What substrate (bedding ) are you using?

Answer 10

take her to the vet. I lost my savannah monitor the day I was taking her to the vet. Same simptoms and for three or four days.