Bearded Dragon worries.

[TheBoga]

Hi everyone, this is my first post (I posted in the wrong section so I've re-posted here)but have been reading heaps of posts since I got my first Central Beardy on Sunday.

He's between 1 1/2 years to two years of age. My problem with him is that since Wedensday he's decided to climb up on a branch down the cool end of his 4ft Tank and has been sleeping heaps (possibly 20 plus hrs if I don't disturb him) and doesn't look like he has moved during this time. He opens his eyes occasionally when I get home then shuts them again. He's been eating OK since I got him until the sleeping started. If I move him off he walks around a bit then goes straight back to the branch again.

The temp down the cool end is 21* and the basking spot under the heat light is 39-40*. He was basking heaps down the hot end until I put a branch down the cool end and this is now where he is staying.

Any suggestions? It takes a bit to wake him up during the last three days. I'm worried.

Is he Brumating? No change in his colouring or anything.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[dragon lady]

Its possible that even if you didnt put the branch down the cool end...he would still sleep...cool down...go into brumation
he would go down the cool end on the floor

everything you have said sounds fine...temp wise
were is the UV?
do you have the lights set on a timer for day/night period?
how big is he?...weight /length?

if he is big enough he can brumate...we wont permanently sleep...not liken to hibernation
they do get up have a drink...eat
i find it easy to leave mealworms in a bowl with greens...the mealworms eat the greens!
still offer live
JasonL describes brumation best...."shorter heat time for brumation...not lowering temps!"

 

[Saz]

Try moving the branch back to the hot end and see if that changes his preference. If he stays sleeping at the cool end he is likely thinking about brumation.

One of my adult males has started brumation. He went under the newspaper four days ago and hasn't come back out. He gives me a filthy look when I check on him!

 

[TheBoga]

Thanks heaps for the replies, I appreciate it! I did a fair bit of research on this site before I found the Beardy I wanted to buy.


Some more info:
He's approx 17inches from nose to end of tail. Not sure of weight as I haven't weighed him but he isn't under weight by the look of him. I will try and weigh him.
The UV is at the top as it is a fish tank but he is only 10 inches from it so I believe that is fine. It's a Reptapet 10.0 36W.

I think he's been on this branch for days so I'm worried he hasn't fed for a few days. I work so I can't guarantee he doesn't move during the day but he seems to be in the EXACT same spot all the time.

I've been leaving my heat light on 24 hours (infra red Heat Glo 100w) as I'm not sure how cool it gets at night without it on. With the lamp on 24 hrs I get 40 in the basking area under it and 21ish down the end were he has decided to perch himself. (The tank is in the garage and I live in Melb it gets a bit cool)

Should I wake him and try to see if he will feed?
I haven't seen him drink and I haven't put him in any water yet (Only had him 6 days)
He opens his eyes if I pat him but dozes off again.
Will waking him and moving him stress him?

We're already so attached to him!
Thanks again for everyones help.

 

[dragon lady]

hoping your U.V isnt sitting on top of the glass...U.V doesn't penetrate through it
dragons need there sleep...no light is better...but red ok
a heat mat will help your temps if too low at night....
try to get a digital thermometer...its a best friend to a keeper! it will take the highest temp & the lowest temp at the same time,allows you to know with getting up at 4am to know what the low temp is...$15 at most shops
you can get a exact reading of heat within 5 min
if your tank is a aquarium the heat from the day may be escaping out the top...
put a big blanket over it at night...glass gets bloody cold!
temps shouldnt be under 12 at the minimum...16 is safe at any time day or night
you can offer food...up to him if he takes it or not...if he isnt warm he wont eat
i leave a mealworm / greens mix in a unescapeable dish...low to the ground..like a ceramic dogs bowl
if you use sand as substrate....brush it smooth in the morning
you will see whether he has left any prints at night to see whether he has moved

 

[TheBoga]

Hi again. The U.V isn't sitting on the glass so it is getting to him 100%, I took the glass lid away that fish tanks have below the lights as it has a timber lid so the Beardy can't escape so the glass wasn't needed .

I have a digital thermometer and my readings are O.K (I believe), high 30's (38*) under the basking lamp and 21ish down the cool end where he is sitting on his now famous branch. The heat doesn't escape because I have a timber canopy with ventilation and my dig thermo tells me the lowest temp it reaches overnight is 21*.
I have a dish with mealworms and greens and water in it, it is a dish with three compartments in it. Plus there is a cricket wandering around the tank that escaped him.
My substrate is reptile bark from the reptile store not sand so I can't check for prints at all.

QUESTIONS: Should I get him off the branch and try and get him to eat? Or am I best to just leave him alone to sleep? How long will this last?

Thanks heap for the expert opinions I really appreciate the help.

 

[dragon lady]

if you get him off the branch...put him under the bake light to warm up first...before you offer feed

ide say he is in brumation...he will wake up to feed when he wants to...
its not easy being a proud dragon parent...at least human teenagers talk!
even if its not always nice!

sounds like you are doing everything right!

 

[TheBoga]

Thanks.
I'm confident the set up is right.
The Brumation could last for some time couldn't it? Will he not feed for a while?

 

[JasonL]

He may not feed untill September, though he may bask during his brumation and may eat alittle during basking periods, then go into brumation again. It is very important he isn't disturbed during the brumation period, as he will lower his heart / metabolic rate as to not use up excess energy, handling him during this time will "wake him up" so to speak, though he still won't eat, and will cause weight loss.

 

[TheBoga]

So it's best just to leave him sitting there?
Spray him with any water or just leave a bowl for him to go to if he needs it?
Should I leave some crickets wandering around in case he want to eat, or just leave some mealworms and greens in a bowl in case he decides to eat?

Sorry for so many questions but sometimes a few varied expert opinions help more than reading the best Beardy books. Thanks again for the help.

 

[dragon lady]

mine "wake up" for a couple of days ...eat a bit ,have a drink..then snooze again

JasonL...would i be right to describe the heart rate with...=
they lower their heart rate ...to cool down ...,in the wild a predator would see less movement
...so in that way the lower heart rate would protect them
by handling them ...when snoozing(brumating) you rapidly increase the heart rate
this can also cause a heart attack or irregular heart beat..thus harming them....?

this is the basic way it was explained to me as a child
im not good at explaining things!

 

[JasonL]

Don't water it or feed it, just leave it, just leave a water bowl in the enclosure, it will drink if it wants to, and you can offer food if you see it basking. Don't let crickets roam free though, they will feed off the sleeping dragons skin, though they rarely harm adults, they will stress the dragon at best.

 

[TheBoga]

OK, thankyou for the valuable info.

 

[TheBoga]

O.K. I need to report in again for some more help/info. My beardy which we've established is brumating hasn't moved or eaten since Saturday. I know because the amount of food isn't changing at all and I'm 99% sure he hasn't moved off the branch.

He opens his eyes to say hello but then closes them again. He's got his hands interlocked around his branch and he seems comfy.

So, should I leave him be or start to worry that he hasn't eaten yet? Advice again please!

 

[JasonL]

Leave him, he may not eat for some months, as long as he is healthy, he will be fine. Only offer food if you see him out basking, if not, don't feed him.

 

[TheBoga]

Thanks Jason.

 

[Chris1]

its a good idea to weight them as they start brumating so u can monitor their weight, they shouldnt lose much if everything is going according to plan,...

 

[TheBoga]

I might have to do that Chris, I only had him home for about a week and he then started brumating so it's been a bit hard as a first time owner to do anything, no sooner did I get to handle him for a few days then he's decided to go to sleep.

Might not be worth waking him to weigh him though?

As an update, It's now been a week of sleeping and no eating or drinking for him. Just the occasional look at me out of one eye to see what I'm up to.

 

[TheBoga]

Here's a quick pic of him. He's not quite as "yellow" as the pic makes out.

He's about 17inches from nose to end of tail.

 

[JasonL]

He looks in fine condition, and won't have any probs with weight loss.