Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i have been noticing in the past week my bearded dragon seems to be loosing its skin or colouring im not sure if its the shedding process or if it has something wrong with it i have enclosed a pic of it

Looks like he's just shedding. Nothing to worry about.

also he just wont tame down at all thats a month i have had him and handle him every day and every day no matter how long i spend with him he flares up and actually tried to jump and bite my face i dont know what else i can do

graham

You're gonna have to stick with it. Sometimes it takes much longer. I'd reexamine all of you husbandry specs. Perhaps post them here with a picture for comments and suggestions. They can be very moody if his needs are not met properly. You could also try hand feeding him every time you take him out. That way he relates handling with a positive outcome.

its just a basic setup to be honest it a 4x2x2 tank

I would get rid of the wood chips also. I use childrens play sand for my healthy adults. There are lots of other otions available for non-particulate substrates. It doesn't look like there is a basking spot? Is there?

A basking spot is a raised area that has a surface temp. of 105-110 for an adult. The ambient (air) temp. on the hot side should be about 90. The other side should be between 75 and 80 when possible.

Think of walking barefood on a black road on a hot summer day. the thermometer says 90 which is the ambient (air) temp. The road surface is much hotter. This would be a basking spot.

You can measure the surface temp. with a temp. gun or by laying the probe of a thermometer on the basking spot.

Are your temps. in this range?

What and how often are you feeding? What is the age, length, and weight of the dragon?

yeah the basking spot is what you can see at the left hand side of the picture shining down the only i have is the exo tera stick on ones which is reading 85 but it is stuck on the back of the tank

I see them. Those dial thermometers are very inaccurate. They are also mounted much higher than the level of your dragon. I have a feeling that he is not near warm enough. You need to make an elivated basking spot directly below the lights at the right temp. range. If his temps. are too cool he cannot digest properly and this may make him cranky.

Here's a pic. of some of my enclosures. On the upper left side of each cage is a thermometer to measure the basking temp. The probe is in the tile in the center of the light. The other advantage of a raised basking spot is it gets them closer to the UVB lights. Yours would probably would enjoy a couple hides also.

I would get rid of all the wood you have in there..the chips and the grape vine. The grape vine is far too narrow and 'tippy' for an adult or even subadult dragon.

As BDLvr suggests, you need a raised basking area, something wide enough your dragon can stretch out on comfortably without holding onto for dear life. Large wide pieces of driftwood are fine or ornamental wood safe for terrariums and aquariums, but make sure they are wide and sturdy. The diameter should be at least as wide as your dragon when lying down (width across the body, average is probably 4-6". There are many ways and many items to use as a good basking spot...rocks, logs, wood sections, resin shapes, ceramic etc. It should be wide enough to be comfortable, have a slow or several 'tiers' to provide a range of temperatures your dragon can choose from for proper basking (from 100-120 is what I recommend, with the hotter temperature being at the highest part of the basking spot).

I also suggest you buy a temp gun (there are quite a few sites online to order these, just check the various banner ads here or the business tab) or you can buy a digital thermometer with probe at pretty much anywhere you can buy household/kitchen items. Just place the probe on your basking spot and after some time check and see what the temperature is. Move the probe to other locations..but unlike a temp gun, you do have to wait a period of time for the probe to register the actual temperature (usually about 10-15 minutes).
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PHLdyPayne

Did you get him as an adult? He may always be an unruly lizard...just keep trying to work with him..sometimes just holding your hand on the back while it's in the cage..then when he allows you to pick him up hold him close to your body for short periods of time...also,get rid of the woodchips,use newspaper or children's playsand[some debate,I have no problems]Wood can be swallowed.

You just have to keep at it with handling. Don't approach from overhead, use slower movements and try to pick up the dragon more from the side. Grabbing from directly above mimics predation and will often make them flighty. Make sure you are supporting the front and back legs well as they like control of their grip.

Get a temp gun, a cheap and indispensable tool for reptile keepers. This is a must have. Find out how much surface heat is available on your grapewood structure. Ditch the wood chips as others have noted, not a good substrate choice. If you have 3 or 4 inches of depth to work with in your cage, consider using a sand/soil/vermaculite mix substrate. Your dragon can do a little digging for activity and a semi-moist soil mix keeps a useable amount of humidity in your tank. Very important and often over-looked.

I think it just looks like uneven shed...I have that happen occasionally.Pretty sure it's fine..

i have just noticed the front of his nose is bleeding so im not so sure this is shed anyone got ideas

Sounds like nose rub due to stress.

I would give your dragon a soak in clean(no chlorine) water for 10-20 minutes. Use room temperature water or go out and get a few gallons of distilled. The soak will stimulate the dragon. If an impaction is causing the majority of the stress, the soak will help.

Yes,he's stressed about something...have you made the changes in lighting,bigger basking area,etc.?Males will rub snouts non-stop if they see another dragon,and sometimes their own reflection.If so,cover part of the glass that he's rubbing at.Hope any or all of these tips helps.BTW,you can use un-pasteurized honey as a natural anti-biotic anti-bacterial for his wound[google medicinal honey]but you would have to keep him on newspaper so that nothing will stick to it.Mix a tiny amount with very warm water to make it easier to apply,use q-tip.

If you are referring to the light beige along the right side of the face and along below the right eye...I have to agree that it doesn't look like a shed to me either. I don't have any idea what it is though. I think I would be taking it to a vet.