2 new babies, veiled, worried

[bka]

Last Sunday we got 2 babies, a boy and a girl (not sure how old). He is a little over 2 inches long (body, not including tail) and she is a bit smaller.

The pet store owner gave them both to us at a discount because his left eye and both her eyes were a bit squinty. He said that if they didn't get better with care after a week we could come back and exchange for a new one.
So we are trying to give them lots of attention and nurse them back to health. But we are concerned and could use some advice. We have been misting them and have given them a couple "showers".

*their eyes are starting to look better but not perfect. they still rub their eyes on branches or scratch them with their hind legs. but they look better - less squinty and more open and round. it was suggested that they were dehydrated and/or may have gotten something in their eyes so we have been trying to make sure that we mist them etc.

* the humidity level in the tank is around 40%. we mist it and it jumps up to 70% for a while, but then drops back down.

* they look a little skinny. They are eating (gut loaded crickets twice a day) and seem to have an appetite but like I said, they still look skinny and I can sometimes see their ribs.

* we have seen him drink a couple times but we haven't seen her drink. We are worried that they are dehydrated.

* sometimes he takes a big breath through his mouth, like he's panting. is this bad?

We really like them and want to get them healthy... what else can we do?

p.s.
more info

cage - they are in a 20 gallon acquarium (1'x2.5)
lighting - they have a repti-glo 5.0 uva/uvb lamp and a basking lamp
temp - under the basking lamp it's about 85 or so, on the other side it's about 70 or so
plants - we have 3 live plants and 1 fake plant
location - the cage is in the office (low traffic area) near a window that does not get direct sun

 

[bka]

pictures

here are a couple pictures... if it works

 

[Tarzansma]

Is their cage a glass tank or a mesh cage?

 

[REL JJA]

Yah Definetly Get A Mesh Cage For Sure ..... I Bet That Will Help So Much I Have Read They Need A Lot Of Air Circulation And I Glass Cage Just Does Not Do That For Them. I Have My Baby In A Little Mesh Cage And He Is Sooo Cute I Love Him!!!

 

[bka]

right now they are in a glass tank with a screen top

 

[alfaracer75]

My baby male veiled basks with his mouth open occasionally too... is that normal or something bad? I've seen him drink on occasion and he eats two or three times a day (3 or 4 crickets each time... I put in like 10 but he eats 3 or 4 and quits). His eyes aren't sunken and his droppings don't look like he's dehydrated...


Thanks!

 

[Chamomile T]

Is it possible he is getting over heated? Sometimes a gaping mouth will indicate they are too hot. I know with glass aquariums it can be really hard to keep the temperature right, a little like an oven, also they are harder to keep clean. I would try to find a mesh enclosure as soon as you can. That is just an idea, I am in no way an expert.

 

[alfaracer75]

My little guy, Valentino, is in a screen enclosure and it's usually around 90-95 degrees in his basking spot. The times I've seen him gape his mouth open is when he's up there basking. Wouldn't he just move lower if he was too hot?


Thanks,
Chip

 

[bka]

update

Their eyes are looking quite a bit better, lately. But they are still very skinny and I still have not seen her drink, and have only seen him drink once.

We rearanged the tank and got the humidity up a lot.
They are still eating, so why do they look so skinny?

Their droppings look pretty good.... had some yellow in them before, but now seem to be just white and brown.