Help, A little worried!

I got my first dragon about 4 weeks ago. Things have been great shes eating like a pig on crickets. Always has greens, occasional squash but prefers criks. She has grown about 1-3/4 inches in length and doubled in girth. I mist her 3 to 4 times a week, she used to drink waterdrops when misted,but hasnt in last 3 mists Also she hasnt pooped for me in 2 days . She acts normal still wants her criks but I'm worried about lack of bowel movement, I have read horror stories about impaction and dont want to do any harm to her. Here is additional info to help out . Paper towels for substrate. Basking perch temp around 104. Feed cricks twice daily about 2pm and 7pm Has access to greens 24hrs a day cricks 1/2 to 5/8 She is about 12 1/2 inches She is getting ready to shed from base of tail up Is it normal for beardies to shed diff areas at different times and I mean like a week apart. Thanks in advance for any knowledge you can send my way It is greatly appreciated!!!!!!
Thanks Matt

Hi Matt, It's been a few days since you've posted your letter and I've just come across it so I'm not sure if your still having a problem with your beardie not eliminating. Let me know. The only thing I would change about your care is don't feed him at 7pm. It's too late. He needs to have 3-4hrs of heatlights to digest his food. It's not good to go to bed on a full stomach. At his size you could cut back to crickets once a day, this way he's more apt to eat his veggies and that'd loosen his movements and make him more regular. Also. add a little melon, apples or pumpkin to his diet as that'll help hydrate him if he's not drinking regularly. Pumpkin is also a natural way to keep parasites away. It may not kill them but makes beardie more resilient. Good luck!

Gina Gauvin

I just added Mustard Greens in my baby beardies tank, so far they havent gone for it but I got home a little late this morn and one of them was waiting for heat light to be put on..Ive only noticed them eating once but I was at work all day yesterday so I should see them eating today.. Ive noticed that there just chilling around right now..Mine is laying flat underneath light but not eating the baby crick that is in front of her.. How can I tell if there not happy and dont want to eat??

I heard you dont need to mist them because they dont require much water, just to soak them for 5 minutes like twice a week, is this adequate??

Someone also told me to get a brighter light cause they just learned that it makes them more active cause they like brighter light, is this true as well cause I havent heard back ffrom that person..

Any feeding tips, my beardies are 4-5 weeks old??

Babies definitely NEED to be misted daily, if not several times daily. Adults can get by with misting a couple times a week and a bath as you described.
-Drew

Hi Drew, At 4-5wks your babies swhould be on a schedule so they learn when to eat and drink. Every morning turn the lights on with the sun atleast by 8am to keep them active. They need the warm temps to survive or they'll loose their appetites and die. After they've warmed up about an hour I put in a low sided bowl like a lid and mist the whole tank with warm water and then slowly pour water in the bowl to attract them to it and they'll learn to swim in it. After they've drank you can offer them crickets. Drinking seems to give them an appetite so always do that first. Keep them on paper towels and change it daily before bedtime to catch any leftover crickets. Good luck! Gina

Some Beardies drink from water bowls and some don't. My adult female gets very angry if I mist her, but she readily drinks from a water bowl. My male has never been seen drinking from a water bowl, and he loves to be misted. With young Beardies, you have to mist them several times a day, regardless of if they like it, LOL.

One of the best investments to get is a timer to turn the lights on and off in the viv. I highly suggest getting a timer from a hardware store, rather than a pet store,........they have many more varieties, and are much cheaper. I used to have the type of timer that is round with "pegs" you pull up. I now have the digital timers on everything, and they are so much easier to use, and cost less than $15 each.