bearded dragons diarrhea?
I feed them crickets , kale , mustard greens , romaine lettuce , super meal worms , apple , green beans ,corn ,occasionally carrots , squash , grapes,blue berries, radish ,calcium on their food everyday .Yet they have diarrhea. Please can someone tell me why. And how to correct this . Thank you.They have a proper set up and light setup.
I also feed them collard greens .
Tagged with: apple green • blue berries • calcium • carrots • corn • crickets • diarrhea • grapes • green beans • kale • lettuce • meal worms • mustard greens • radish • squash
Filed under: Green Super Food
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There are a lot of people who say, "They have a proper set up and light setup." and are wrong because they got their info from a pet store or other misinformed individual. So, just to verify your setup:
You should have a heat light, which can be a normal household bulb, and your temps should be 100-110, measured with a temp gun or a digital therm with the probe directly on the basking spot. The cool side should be around 80. They should also have a good quality UVB, like ReptiSUN 10.0 fluorescent tube. If you have a compact coil, or a 5.0 bulb, they aren’t getting enough UVB.
So, providing everything there is in check:
I agree about the Romaine lettuce. Full of water, and void of nutrition, so it really doesn’t have a place in your beardie’s diet. Limit the fruits to once a week. There are meal worms, and then there are superworms. They are 2 different species. Meal worms are not good for your dragon, but supers are fine, provided your dragons are more than 15".
Besides the lettuce, the other main culprit could very well be parasites. Please take them to a vet for a fecal exam so they can get medicated asap if this is the case. If they live together, please consider separating them. If one gets sick, they all get sick, and it’s hard to monitor whose poop is whose. Also, it is just dangerous to keep them together because there will be dominance issues (even if you don’t see them) and will cause stress in one or both dragons (which can also cause the diarrhea).
Please visit http://www.beardeddragon.org for more info.
Parasites are a possibility.
Maybe from the live feeders, maybe from unwashed fruits and veggies, or maybe from a new animal you’ve brought into the house?
Whatever the cause you should take the beardies and a fecal sample to a reptile vet as soon as you can before things get worse :)
Romaine lettuce is notorious for causing diarrhea in dragons. Take that out of his diet and I promise you you’ll see an improvement.
Some people argue that dragons can eat romaine lettuce, but I’ve seen too many dragons have issues with it to take them seriously. Not to mention that it barely has any nutritional value – all lettuces are practically useless food sources. The only thing they’re really good for is moisture, but that’s sort of cancelled out by the diarrhea which causes dehydration.
Also consider taking mealworms out of your dragon’s diet, especially if he’s under a year old. Mealworms have much more hard chitin (exoskeleton) around them than crickets, which makes them much harder on a dragon’s digestive system. In some dragons it can even cause impaction. As well, carrots can cause impaction if they are not sliced thinly enough.
Everything else in your bearded dragon’s diet sounds good. Just remember to use apples, grapes, and other fruits as once-in-awhile treats since the sugar can actually give your dragon cavities. Other than that, it sounds like a happy, well-balance little lizard. :)
Parasites are a possibility.
Maybe from the live feeders, maybe from unwashed fruits and veggies, or maybe from a new animal you’ve brought into the house?
Whatever the cause you should take the beardies and a fecal sample to a reptile vet as soon as you can before things get worse :)
PARSLEY!!!
My class had a pet bearded dragon and it had the same problem, the teacher had had a bearded dragon before and knew just what to do. We started feeding it plenty of parsley and giving it plenty of water.
She began eating better and no longer had the dietary problems. Good luck!