Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I use a 125W MVB and 10.0 strip for my beardy, should i use the zoomed calcium with or without vit D?

My beardy has been very inactive and she has not eaten in about 1 month, so it is starting to worry me. At the moment i have her on the multivitamin and the zoomed calcium WITHOUT d3.

How big[length] is she and what size is her cage,how long have you had her?...if she's an adult it's normal to become dormant,heading into brumation this time of year.Post a pic of her and the set-up if possible.

Had her for about a year and a half and I got her as a newborn. I have a box in her cage and she has laid under it for around a month straight with nothing to eat. I took her out from under it today and she seems healthy and alert. She is about 1.5 feet long, her cage is 4 feet long by 3 feet wide, like i said 125w solar glo with 10.0 strip. hot spot is around 105.

what do you think on the calcium WITHOUT d3? I just switched to that not too long ago, aprox 3 months.

It is turning in to fall/winter her so you may be correct.

Any input would be valuable, thanks

Yes,it sounds for sure as if she's gone in to brumation.I would replace the 125 mvb bulb with a regular 75 watt household bulb to lower the over-all cage temp[ and will make your mvb bulb last longer]I don't have any lights on when mine are brumating and the temps get down to about 62 but that makes some people nervous.I've never lost a dragon in 14 years though.As for the D3,I would use it...just 2-3 times a week tops for an adult,very light powdering.Give lots of greens,that is the natural source of calcium.

so how long should i wait for this to get over? the room is really bright during the day and i cant really do anything about taht

Not to worry?!! A healthy dragon knows when it wants to resume normal activity...mine have slept on average from 2-4 months.They can be induced to go in to or come out of brumation by heat light manipulation...your dragon is just following her instincts.Don't worry about her...she knows what to do.She is in her box and you can turn all lights off[cover her cage with a blanket to keep it darker keep the room cool if you like] and just keep a small water bowl in case she wants a drink[ mine NEVER do]Check on her from time to time and just turn lights back on if she lays with eyes open all the time.

There isn't any need to darken the room or cover the cage while your dragon brumates. Switching out the MVB for a regular bulb during the time your dragon sleeps is fine though. I just use the strip lights myself as my cages are not high enough to use them safely.

One thing you can do is weigh your dragon. While brumating they should not lose much weight, under 10% through their entire brumate. If they are losing more then there is some underlying health issue going on.

As for the calcium, I recommend using the calcium with D3, but only once or twice a week. If your dragon eats all her greens, extra calcium isn't needed as much with adults, unless she is laying eggs (fertile or infertile) as this depletes their calcium stores quite a bit.
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PHLdyPayne