Reptile & Amphibian Forums

This is my first time brumating and two of my females have gone to the cool side of the cage and refuse to eat for 3 days or go under the heat, so should I take them out of their cages into smaller ones, in a cooler room? if so what is the heat temp they should be at to brumate? any helpful suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
thanks

There is alot of available information out there from experienced breeders. If you google bearded dragon brumation you should get some good resources to read. Its best to read about it from different points of view, then go and do what seems right for your dragons.

Im not really sure what you are doing, or how you started the brumation process, or if the dragons did on their own?

Normally, I would reduce the amount of hours the lights are on. Reduce the amount of heat for basking. Maintain room temp in the cage, with only fluorescent lighting on for 10 hours a day. Monitor dragons and make sure they are not losing weight. Offer water every few days by dripping on their mouths or lightly misting(very light). I dont offer food at all when they are actually in brumation. You dont want a dragon eating and not having a proper basking spot to digest. Increase light hours, and increase temp. Offer food.

It really depends on the dragons as to how long they want to brumate for.

Chris

chris the girls actually started it on their own, I am pretty sure they are trying to brumate, they have been going thru a period of eating one or two days then not eating for several days and staying out of the heat, my older one was doing it first now both are, today is the 3rd day they have been on cool side and sleeping, not waking at all. I have read alot on the internet over brumation however my concern is alot of people say they simply "put them away in a drawer" I am mostly worried about the temp they should be while brumating. if they are putting themselves into brumation do you still need to reduce the light over a period of time? or do you simply let them sleep and keep the heat and light off? I really dont have to worry about the heat because they are refusing to go under it.

Here is a good article about brumation:

http://www.reptilerooms.com/index.php?categoryid=17&p142_id=125&p142_dis=3&p142_template=Simple
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1.1 Bearded Dragons
2.2 Leopard Geckos
1.0 Uromastyx (Mali)
1.1 Corn snakes
0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake
1.0 Rosy Boa
1.1 Green Anoles
1.1 House Geckos
0.0.2 Flying Geckos
0.0.1 Red Eye Tree Frog

Hey idahosox. I understand your concern. I'm going through my first experience of brumation. My beardy slowed down alot on food intake and basking. I took him to a vet last week to get him looked at. He has recently gone into what BDlvr calls "hard brumation" now. I provided him with a hide and have not seen him in days. I guess this is a sharing of my own experience and a question. Is the hide a good idea? I feel it is because it allows him to sleep with no distractions. Feed back would be appreciated. Thanks.

I never remove my dragon from her cage when she brumates. I see no point in putting her in a drawer somewhere. In her main cage I can monitor her much easier and when she comes out for a little, she has what she needs to bask etc. Not to mention I definitely don't have the room to have a drawer set up for a single dragon.
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PHLdyPayne

chris the girls actually started it on their own, I am pretty sure they are trying to brumate, they have been going thru a period of eating one or two days then not eating for several days and staying out of the heat, my older one was doing it first now both are, today is the 3rd day they have been on cool side and sleeping, not waking at all.

It does sound like your dragons are trying to brumate. Could be the ability of them seeing light/darkness outside, ambient temps dropping(even just at night more so) or them just being ready. Prior to this no signs of loss of appetite or anything? Fecals or any treatment done to rule out worms/coccidia?

I have read alot on the internet over brumation however my concern is alot of people say they simply "put them away in a drawer" I am mostly worried about the temp they should be while brumating.

I have never heard of putting them in a drawer, I have always used their cages. Room temp has always worked for me(even slightly warmer).

if they are putting themselves into brumation do you still need to reduce the light over a period of time?

I would reduce it a little each night, maybe over the course of a week, but in this situation im not sure......If they are already sleeping it might not make any difference.

or do you simply let them sleep and keep the heat and light off? I really dont have to worry about the heat because they are refusing to go under it.

thanks chris everyones help puts my mind at ease for being a first timer in brumation. by the way yes they have been wormed and the girls are in great shape, very healthy. thanks again everyone

I am not a breeder and would prefer my dragons didn't brumate. Oh well so much for that. lol. I saw 6 out of 22 today. lol. Of the 6, 4 are either new rescues or long term heavily handicapped dragons that need regular care.

I never put them in a drawer as I have read.

In the winter when the ambient of my house cools the range of temps. in their enclosures increases. The hot side remains the same but the cool side gets cooler. Most of mine choose to brumate. Personally, it's a tribute to good care that they feel well enough and have adequate stores to decide to brumate.

I'd just make sure you are sure they have no health issues. A fecal is good but don't use Albon if the load is not dramatic. Once they decide to stop eating there is pretty much nothing you can do to change their minds so definitely don't let them sleep with a gut full of dewormer.

Give them a cool place to sleep as they wish but still maintain a basking spot if they wake. This is one of the reasons sand is best. They will dig in and sleep in the cool and will lose very little weight since they are enclosed and can create their own more humid environment.

Last year I had a male brumate at 176 grams with no ill effects. A female brumated for 5 1/2 months again with no issues. I would not wake them every few days. I checked a few every 5 weeks. This is natural to them and we just have to put up with it. I'll take a pick and post it in a few.

Once they are asleep I cut the light cycle down but more to save my electric bill than anything. I only drop to an 11 day and a 105 basking spot is always available.

This is a 1.2 enclosure. They did this all on their own. My vet is amazed how they can completely block the opening. I haven't seen any of them since August. But, you have to be careful when you have m/f groups, if I were to wake the male he would wake the females. (bad) If I woke a female, the male would sense the activity and come out and cause problems including early breeding. So in this situation, I have no choice but to let them rise on their own.

well the girls I am sure are definetly down, I dont use sand in my tanks so I threw dish towels over them and they still are asleep, no movement at all today. hate this it scares the heck out of me to see them not move lol. they did eat 3 days ago so I will wake them up in a couple of days and soak them but other than that I will let nature take it course.
thanks for all the info it helped alot