2007-06-24 15:55:44 · 7 answers · asked by josh 1 in Pets ➔ Reptiles
he is 15 inches long and i feed him medium crickets mustard greens and turnip greens and some mealworms. he has green carpet for substrate a 20 gallon tank and a log to hide under with a hammock
2007-06-24 18:13:11 · update #1
If he won't eat or drink, then that's a life threatening affair for a herp. The no-brainer answer is that you need to take him to a reptile vet.
Not eating, drinking, and sitting with eyes closed...is usually a BIG sign of infection. There are many other potential reasons and/or contributing factors...such as improper diet, improper supplementation such as hypo or hypervitaminosis, improper temps, lack of UVB, impaction on improperly sized prey/excessive mealworms, etc, etc, etc....but by the time you listen to all these guesses and go through them one by one, your lizard will probably die from infection or impaction and you should have been at a vet much sooner to rule out the most critical possibilities.
2007-06-24 20:58:35 · answer #1 · answered by Fireside3/Phrynosoma-Texas 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
How old is your bearded dragon? What kind of setup do you have?
The ideal set up would be at least a 40 gallon glass aquarium. The substrate I recommed would either be ceramic tiles, cage carpet, or a paper based substrate like Carefresh (that's what the vet recommended for my beardie). Carefresh is only for adult beardies though. If he is young you need to have him on a solid substrate. Many recommend sand and this will only cause problems. If he is on sand take him off right away even if he is over 6 inchs. The basking temperature should be around 90-100 F. You need a thermometer inside the tank under the basking lights to ensure its getting hot enough. If he is too cold he will slow down and will not be able to digest his food.
What have you tried feeding him? If he is a juvenile he needs protein. Crickets are a good staple. Although they must be the correct size. If they are too big or too small he may not want to go after them. Make sure the crickets are able to fit completely in his mouth. You can try mealworms or waxworms, but only in moderation as mealworms have alot a chitin and is hard to digest in large quantities and waxworms are high in fat. Have you tried greens? Try dandelion greens, romain or kale lettus. Just don't do iceberg lettus as it's low in nutrition and high in iodine which isn't good for your beardie.
Finally, I would recommend you get him to a reptile vet right away. The last time my beardie didn't eat he had a severe bacterial infection. I had to treat him with antibiotics and benebac (for birds). He LOVED the benebac which made it easier to feed him the antibiotics. The vet should also be able to show you how to force feed. There are many diets out there you can mix with water that can give them a boost in nutrition. The one my vet gave me was carnivore care (although he shouldn't if your beardie isn't full grown yet). Make sure this vet can properly show you how to open his mouth so you can administer meds!!! You can do some serious damage to his jaw if done improperly.
If you have him on sand he could be impacted. Many reptile sands will tell you that they are digestable, but they aren't. If they ingest too much of it (and they will if you are feeding live), they can't pass it.
Sorry this was so long. If you can give us some more info we may be able to narrow down the problem ok?
Good luck!
2007-06-24 23:29:31 · answer #2 · answered by galapagos6 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
There could be several problems, but the first and most common problem is that his temps are too low. Does he have a basking spot with a temp of 105-110 degrees? Is he provided with UVB light?
Edit: First of all, a 20 gallon tank is WAY too small for Beardie of that size. 40 gallon tank MINIMUM. You didn't say, do you have any idea what his temps are, or is he provided with UV lighting? You are feeding him proper foods (though I'd avoid the Mealies), but are you dusting the bugs with calcium daily? Have you spoken to a vet?
2007-06-24 23:22:30 · answer #3 · answered by rollin_indahay 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
All i can think is that your pet doesn't have enough warmth, try turning your Thermostat /Heatmatt up.
Reptiles get really drowsy if they are cold.
2007-06-24 22:59:41 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It could be so many things. Go to www.reptilerooms.com and post to the forums. There are experts there that can help you quickly.
2007-06-24 23:02:25 · answer #5 · answered by KimbeeJ 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Is it warm enuff? or to warm do you have it baking in front of a window all day?
Or it could just have worms
2007-06-24 23:51:10 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
you might want to start digging the hole...
2007-06-25 00:30:53 · answer #7 · answered by ERIC G 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋