Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Alright..the baby pictured is the most recent death. It is a young clutch, maybe 2 weeks old if that. They feed on pinhead crix and salads, however the other day i let them feed on small silkworms, but some that were thrown in were a little larger than they were supposed to be, but a few jumped on the opportunity and tried to eat it. Im not sure how this is related but could be of some help. This morning i found this baby, it looked like it was bleeding out of the mouth. I dont know what went on, any ideas? The vent was clear of anything.

Also, 2 other babies from an older clutch died a few weeks ago, and their vent was covered with feces. Any suggestions? I seperated every other baby into individual tanks, and they turned out fine.

Also, PS i got another nipper...rrg the tails get shorter and shorter i feel so bad, i seperate the first nipper and get another one. A reserved one got nipped as well, and i had to break the news, i hope they dont take it badly. One other customer backed out after their baby got nipped (the first nipper experience).Thanks
Sorry about the bad quality pictures, my macro mode camera is broken, so i got the old one.

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heres the first pic

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here

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pic

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cant really tell anything from the pics. pinheads seem too small to me. when I was feeding crix, I would give newborns 1/8-1/4, mostly 1/4s. The larger crix are more meat less chitin. Fecal matter in the vent after death is not uncommon it is normal body function.

How often and what times of day do you feed?
what are the temps?
how long are the lights on?
what are you dusting crix with and how often?
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Bennett

Home of the Florida Orange
www.beardiedragon.com

I actually do feed the babies 1/4 inches ..thats what i meant, pinheads are too small for me to acutally take care of..i feed in the afternoon and lights are on 12 hrs a day. Temps are 105 on hot and 80 in cool.
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and also...i dust with calcium and d3 every day except one day a week which is a multivit. I feed usually 1-2 X a day. Everyone is very plump.
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babies metabolism are higher than adults and I feed 3 times a day. that helps in reducing tail nips. They get a salad in the morning when they wake up and then roaches about noon and again around 4 or 5. I keep the hot side 110-115 for better digestion. Due to the contraversy of how much supliments to give I simplified my life by giving t-rex products with EVERY meal. hope that helps
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Bennett

Home of the Florida Orange
www.beardiedragon.com

I'm very sorry about what happened. You said all the others from the clutch are doing good and everyone is plump.. could it just be natures way? Maybe something was wrong internally. That could be cause for the bleeding from the mouth. Did you notice any acting funny? Maybe not eating as much or quite as spunky. Could he have just been a runt? Just wondering..

At 105 I found my hatchlings a bit reluctant to feed, I keep basking area at 115 and the cool side at 90. I have found that when I do this they are ravenous and will eat copious amounts of greens. I mist often as well.
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Maybe it was a baby born with problems. I don't breed beardies, (as you know), but I can still offer my sympathy right. ?

I hope you can solve the mystery
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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

Thanks to all of you for your sympathy and comments on what it may be. We have only LOST these three babies, and it is just devastating for me to even think about it. I thank you all for your sympathy, again.

David
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It is always good to feed at least 3 times a day after there morning greens. Also it sounds like the the silkies might of been a little big. From my experience nips, 90% of the time occur when dragons are not being fed enough. The solution is to feed more and the appropriately sized crickets and silkies.
-Randy
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AlphaDragonZ
www.AlphaDragonZ.com