Beardie not looking good today

Phox · 10-21-03, 06:44 PM

Well Ive had my Beardie now for 2 weeks and he/she has been doing really good. Right now hes about 2 and a half months old. Eats between 30-45 crickets a day depending on the size of the cricket. I usually, first thing in the morning put in a salad, which he usually doesnt touch, atleast that I know of, and give him crickets 3 times a day. Well I gave him his usually first cricket feeding this morning and he wasnt interested at all in them. Sometimes he doesnt see me put them in his cage so I show them to him in my hand and then he goes nuts. Most of the time though he does spot them, jumps right now off his tree and eats them up. Anways this morning I offered him crickets and he ate one, which was definately unusual. Well at his second cricket feeding today, again no interest and this time he only ate 2. Well I just offered him his last feeding of the night, and yet again, no interest and only ate one out of my hand. And also usually all day he looks very health, when basking holding his head up high and just looks all around good. Today to go on top of not eating he was very sleeping looking and had his head down alot.

So...Maybe Im being a little paranoid, but is this somewhat normal, I mean for them maybe just to have days like this? Obviously I'll keep a close eye on him and see what happens, maybe he'll be back to eating like a horse tommorow.

BTW...He has uva/uvb light, basking temps are 90 in some spots and 120 in other spots, hes usually in the 115-120 spot most of the time. And the cooler side of the tank is 75-80, and i do give calcium and vitamin supplements.

Thanks in advance....

eyespy · 10-21-03, 06:50 PM

Has he been checked for parasites yet? Refusing to eat is often the first symptom a keeper will notice. It wouldn't be a bad idea to have a fecal exam done.

Phox · 10-21-03, 07:41 PM

He has not been checked that im aware of, but I'll see how he is tommorow and if hes the same I will definatly have him checked out asap!

But is it in any way normal for them to have bad days like this, every now and again?

eyespy · 10-21-03, 08:19 PM

Once they are full adults, over 2, it's not unusual for them to skip a day's meals but it's very unusual for young beardies.

Phox · 10-21-03, 08:35 PM

Thanks alot Eyespy! Ive already found a vet so I will most likely take him in tommorow.

Phox · 10-22-03, 04:08 PM

Well...Got the little one checked out today and its Coccidiosis. I was given treatment medication so hopefully he should be ok within a few days.

eyespy · 10-22-03, 07:04 PM

Glad to hear you got the diagnosis and now you can work on getting rid of those nasty critters!

I hope your vet already told you this and I'm just beating a dead horse here, but just let me get it out of my system, okay?

Hygiene is just as important as meds for getting rid of coccidia. Throw out any porous materials such as wood, keep him on paper towels changed daily whether or not they are soiled, and sterilize everything he touches at least every other day. Otherwise he will continue to reinfect himself with the oocysts passed in his feces and it takes much longer to kill off the infestation.

Phox · 10-27-03, 08:00 PM

Just a quick update.....

Its been six days since he tested positive for coccidia. The first three or four days he was pretty much the same, sleepy, lifeless and pretty much eating nothing on his own. As of day five he seemed much better, ate a few crix on his own and wasnt as sleepy. Well today he seemed even better than yesterday, he ate the most hes eaten since being diagnosed at three diffrent feeding, and he was pretty active. So hes definately coming around. His meds were ended yesterday and I received a call from the vet today asking how he was, I told them, and they told me if he doesnt get any better they'll give me more meds for him. Hopefully there wont be a need for that

.

ChristinaM · 10-27-03, 08:22 PM

Hey Phox, glad the little guy is doing better. One thing that jumped at me from your post is the basking temp. It should really only be 105F at the most....115-120F is wayyyyyyy too hot for him.

Phox · 10-27-03, 08:54 PM

Bichiraddict,

I dont think 115-120 is to hot. Ive seen a bunch of posts from people saying that is a suitable tempature. I think some beardies just like it hotter than other. My sick beardie likes it real hot, and not once has he gaped or had to move to far away from the heat, since ive gotten him. Now my other beardie, gapes at the 105 spot and frequently moves around to cool off.

ChristinaM · 10-27-03, 09:06 PM

okies

Out of curiousity, do you have any links to info saying that high of a temp is safe? Everything I've read and heard, says that 105F is the max.....so I'm curious. thx

Phox · 10-27-03, 09:08 PM

Np....

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/showt...threadid=26500

http://www.reptilerascals.com/beardeddragoncare.html

drewlowe · 10-28-03, 12:10 PM

i'm a little late getting to this one... but i'm glad your little guy will be ok. Another thing to add to eyespys suggestions would be to get another fecal done about 3-4 weeks after meds have been stopped. Just to ensure that all the parasites are gone.

My leos tested positive for coccida then when they had all thier meds and i waited the right time to get another fecal done they had pinworms that the vet couldn't see when doing the first fecal so they were given a differnt medication for that. Now they are clean (just got tested a few weeks back again). and at least once a year ( i like to try for 2 a year) they get a fecal exam just to ensure nobody has anything.

Bichiraddict- i have 2 basking spots for my beardies one at 105 the other at 115 and the one at 115 gets way more use. Each beardie is different thats why i offer 2 basking spots. eyspy is really the person that can answer that.

ChristinaM · 10-28-03, 02:31 PM

Thanks Phox and Drewlowe...... just goes to show how conflicting info can be :s

eyespy · 10-28-03, 03:09 PM

Beardies themselves can't make up their minds.

I put my basking bulbs on a rheostat or dimmer switch, crank the temp up to 120, and if they gape and move away I gradually lower the temp a couple of degrees at a time until I find the temp each beardie prefers.

I've gone from 89 to 118 in my various cages, depending on what each dragon likes. As they get older, you have to watch because once they get some body fat built up they tend to prefer lower temps.