Chinese water dragon

justin4snakes · 08-19-10, 05:52 PM

had my water dragon for two weeks now and hes eating great. the only thing is that when i handle or move him, where even i put him, he will stay there all day. i know they are diurnal but he is not active day or night. he has proper temps, uv, large water bowl, and hes even taken outside for real uv 1hr a day. is he ok.

Freebody · 08-19-10, 06:10 PM

do you smoke weed in the house LOL im just kidding around, gave me a mental picture of him all baked and just chillin,my good old days lol, i never had a water dragon but i would think that after your watchfull eye was turned for a sec and he noticed, he would try to move around and explore, how is his temperment? is he just real calm, maybe hes just content and your lucky guy.

justin4snakes · 08-19-10, 06:15 PM

yea hes calm, when i pick him up he climbs on ma shoulder and chills there. i just want to be sure its normal

Grimleo · 08-19-10, 09:14 PM

Even if you do bring them out for some real sun each and every day, lizards that require UV generally make really unhappy pets when you bring them inside at all where they can't CHOOSE whether or not they want some good ol' UV. And when you have them outside under the real sun, they can overheat really fast =/ I have lizards that love being 115 degrees for hours, but when I take them outside they go straight for shade after a few minutes of soaking in the sun(and I live in the mountains where it gets 95 at most during summer). Just something to think about.

Are you sure you have the right temps?

If he just sits at wherever you put him in the cage, well then he obviously doesn't want to move, right? Did he ever go through an exploring stage where he got to know his cage pretty well?(and did he slowly settle down and become mellow?) Has he done his business at all lately? IDK if anyone else can help better than I can?(please chime in lol) But I think he's either cold, or he's in pain and doesn't want to move(got something stuck inside him?), or maybe he's just really lazy?

Hope this helps..

justin4snakes · 08-22-10, 07:44 AM

the previous owner just told me the dragon was given no uv lighting. i have the uv on for 12 hours. hes kinda weak, do u think its too late

Grimleo · 08-22-10, 11:01 AM

What sort of UV do you have(brand, tube/compact/coil light)? And if you can it would be a good idea to take him to a vet so they could give him some liquid calcium and test for other things. I couldn't tell you if he is going to make it or not because I haven't seen him, but it does take a lot of work to bring them back on track after they've been out of UV for a long time when they desperately need it.

Just make sure you have all the right req's for him like humidity, UV, temps, etc. and he should start looking up and of course take him to a vet if you can.

Will0W783 · 08-22-10, 07:50 PM

The previous lack of UV is most likely why he's inactive. I adopted a frilled dragon a few years ago that had been given no UVB and was kept in a basement where the temps got down to below 60F during the winter. She was the same way- she'd just lie wherever I put her. I had her on UVB light immediately, but in my case she never turned around. She held on for about 2 months, then died. Perhaps some calcium supplementation would help? Getr a good REPTILE calcium supplement powder (preferably with D3) and dust the crickets and other insects you feed him. I would also suggest a vet visit to determine the extent of the damage he suffered under his previous owner's care from lack of UVB. They get metabolic bone disease which is very similar to our osteoporosis-the bones are broken down and the muscles weaken. In their case it's fatal once it's past a certain point, but can be reversible if caught early enough. Best of luck with him; it's good to hear he's in better hands!

Freebody · 08-22-10, 11:11 PM

pics of your little friend?