R.I.P. water dragons

[Magruber]

I thoughy I'd take my two 8 month old eastern water dragons out for some fun in the sun but ended in terror, I had them placed in a bucket out side in direct sunlight on a 35 degree day because Im used to keeping beardies I thought they could cope with the heat. I stayed with them for ten minits checking regulary then all of a sudden they became unconscious from heat stress one died instantly the othe still had his eyes open so I fought for him for hours, misting him and cooling him down but unfortunately he past as well. Not happy with my self one bit. how could I think that water dragons would be able to survive in those conditions.
So sad at this moment
Lost my two baby's
Rest in peace hopper and dusty

 

[Khagan]

Hmm..

 

[Sezzzzzzzzz]

Thats just horrible, on all sorts of levels.

 

[69blottfilms69]

Mate thats terrible

 

[longqi]

If correct its a hard lesson
One thing to always remember is that inside a bucket will be a lot hotter than out in the open
They probably could have coped with 35c
But not 50c

 

[KaotikJezta]

Water dragons being my absolute favourite lizards i find this more than a little distressing and infuriating, I hope Khagan is right and you are just a troll.

 

[Khagan]

Incase you're not trolling.. No reptile should be put in the sun without a shaded escape providing them with cooler temps, not even your beardies.

 

[Bluetongue1]

Where on earth did you get the idea to put lizards in buckets in the sun on any day, let alone above 30[SUP]o[/SUP]C? As Longqi indicated, it will get to 50[SUP]o[/SUP]C or there abouts. Try it with thermometer and see.

Given that 35[SUP]o[/SUP]C is the top end of the recommended thermal gradient and that is meant for lizards from the northern part of their range, you should not have them out in that heat at all. At an ambient temperature of 35[SUP]o[/SUP]C means they cannot thermoregulate, even if you provided the shade that you must ALWAYS provide, as Khagan pointed out.

If you are fair dinkum about this, then why did you ignore the lizards in their scrambling attempts to claw their way out of the bucket. I know these lizards well and they do not just roll over and expire if they are not happy where they are. They would have made every attempt to escape. As for keeping one going for hours after the other died... a croc of. Heat exhaustion causes irreversible changes to blood chemistry which result in fairly rapid demise. The only thing that is going to keep it going is a blood transfusion.

So the question is, how much have you made up and how much is for real?

Either way, sounds like you should not be allowed near a reptile.

Blue

 

[Magruber]

Get a life mate I just lost two of my lizards so the last thing I need is some old fart hangin **** on me. don't post if you ya just gonna be smart *** no one thinks your awesome just because you bag out inexperienced keepers who fail once. Have so respect.

 

[Exotic_Doc]

Magruber, mate dont get pissed off just try to take it all in stride. You have to understand that everyone on here has a passion for these animals and its hard not to get upset. Just like if you would go post on a dog forum that you left your puppy locked in a car and it died, trust me you will leave alot of people seriously pissed off. I feel for you mate, it was a pretty big mistake to make and cost you the lives of two of your pets. I hope you learn from this, but try to understand where others are coming from.

 

[Chris1]

like blue said, animals dont just lay down and die, there is no way they wouldnt have been scrambling at the sides.

besides, who in their right mind would deny tehm a shady side???????

its cleary written in rules all over the place, animals placed outdoors must have 50% shade, yet every summer thers at least 3 threads like this,..(and probably a whole bunch more that get cooked and not mentioned) !!!!!

youre upset, and understandably so.

thats all from me so i dont get an infraction,....

 

[junglepython2]

It is an easy mistake to make especially for the inexperienced, at least you had the balls to admit to it and hopefully others can learn from it.

 

[snakelady96]

Only take your reptiles out in the sun when you are there, stay with them and when it gets too hot for you its too hot for them. Thats just how i am, everyones probably got their own different idea but give that a go.

 

[timantula]

well theres a lesson lernt the hard way....

 

[andysnakes]

r.i.p water dragons......
the title of the thread should have been more like m.b.o water dragons........(murdered by owner)

 

[Notorious_Guf]

r.i.p water dragons......
the title of the thread should have been more like m.b.o water dragons........(murdered by owner)

Wow, harsh!

Sorry to hear about your Dragons! I think it's great that you came here to tell people of your mistake, as you will no doubt help other inexperienced keepers, or people thinking of keeping reptiles, to not make the same mistake.

Not everyone has a clear understanding of how reptiles work. People come here in search of information & mistakes are often the best way to learn. I knew someone who had kept a bearded dragon years ago & didn't realise it needed UV lighting & that they don't always drink from a water bowl. Theirs died while they were away for a few days, but they learnt their lesson & went seeking for an answer. Thus learning more about the animals they too love.

 

[Sezzzzzzzzz]

Magruber, mate dont get pissed off just try to take it all in stride. You have to understand that everyone on here has a passion for these animals and its hard not to get upset. Just like if you would go post on a dog forum that you left your puppy locked in a car and it died, trust me you will leave alot of people seriously pissed off. I feel for you mate, it was a pretty big mistake to make and cost you the lives of two of your pets. I hope you learn from this, but try to understand where others are coming from.

Well said Exotic doc.

As far as I am concerned any one with a bit of common sense knows not to leave ANY animal out in the sun on a 35 degree day without protection from the sun. I too am only new to reptiles but as far as i am concerned i would never even think of leaving my animals alone and unsupervised in the backyard, I would be to concerned that if the sun didnt get to them,that a bird or some sort of other threat could come into contact with them.

 

[andysnakes]

!

Wow, harsh!

Sorry to hear about your Dragons! I think it's great that you came here to tell people of your mistake, as you will no doubt help other inexperienced keepers, or people thinking of keeping reptiles, to not make the same mistake.



Not everyone has a clear understanding of how reptiles work. People come here in search of information & mistakes are often the best way to learn. I knew someone who had kept a bearded dragon years ago & didn't realise it needed UV lighting & that they don't always drink from a water bowl. Theirs died while they were away for a few days, but they learnt their lesson & went seeking for an answer. Thus learning more about the animals they too love.

people that have no common sense should not keep reptiles! simple as that

 

[MathewB]

I thought it was debatable to whether or not they needed UV?

Bad mistake mate and you paid the highest price, but I suppose ou don't need to be told that. I'm stunned that your dragon hasn't suffered a similiar fate. But what was going through your head? Couldn't you see the dangers?

 

[Sezzzzzzzzz]

Wow, harsh!

Sorry to hear about your Dragons! I think it's great that you came here to tell people of your mistake, as you will no doubt help other inexperienced keepers, or people thinking of keeping reptiles, to not make the same mistake.

Not everyone has a clear understanding of how reptiles work. People come here in search of information & mistakes are often the best way to learn. I knew someone who had kept a bearded dragon years ago & didn't realise it needed UV lighting & that they don't always drink from a water bowl. Theirs died while they were away for a few days, but they learnt their lesson & went seeking for an answer. Thus learning more about the animals they too love.

Not everyone has a clear understanding of how children work either. Is it ok when people lock there kids in the car while they "just duck into the shops" on a 35 degree day? But dont worry they can be replaced so it doesnt matter if they have a gruesome end to their life? But, because you can easily replace a water dragon, lets just tell the guy to "try again".

People should have a slear understanding of what their reptile requires and if they dont they shouldnt have them.

I dont think anyone has said anything harsh at all in this thread. I had expected people to be a lot harsher. Magruber did a stupid thing. shall we all just sit back and say poor magruber? IMO, there is probably alot of detail that was left out, such as the length of time that these poor guys were left out in the sun in a BUCKET for.....