Posted by:
LdyPayne
at Sun Aug 3 13:47:03 2003 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by LdyPayne ]
Bearded dragons are not venomous at all. Their bite isnt' that painful and rarely break the skin (been bit by mine several times till he started to finally outgrow that phase). Spend alot of time in the room with him, better yet keep him in a sitting room or somewhere were you often sit and watch TV so he can see you and get used to having you around. The fact he was only recently aquired by you could be why he is so defensive. He is in a new environment with new people, most dragons will be grumpy for awhile till they get acliminated.
Sometimes put your hand into his cage and just leave it there, far enough away so he can't lung for it but close enough that he can see and smell you. Keep all movements slow, sudden movements are more prone to cause his defensive reactions, including mock charges, puffing up, gaping and hissing (and lunging forward to bite). Holding him a few minutes several times a day will also help him get used to you and realize you are not trying to eat him.
Komodo dragon's bites are septic. As one of their main diets is carrion, the more rotten the better, this is why their bite is so toxic...their mouths and siliva contain billions of bacteria which they are immune to (another komodo dragon's bite won't become infected because of their high immunity to infection). However if they bite a living animal, they know that eventually that bite will cause massive infection and blood poisoning in that creature. So they just follow it till it drops and then move in to devour it. Not the sort of lizard to have as a pet 
Another thing to keep in mind, most petstores and their employees know little to nothing about reptiles. There are some that do but these tend to be rather far between. Never take their word for the care of any animal, reptile or otherwise. They want to sell what they carry and will push their products over the welbeing of an animal.
For food, crickets are a good stable. At the age of your dragon, two feedings a day is best. Typically 3/4 inch to one inch sized crickets are good. (no bigger than the distance between their eyes). Silkworms are also a great food to give them, if you want something other than crickets. Silkworms are a bit more expensive than crickets but in the long run much healthier and easier to care for. You should also order your crickets/silkworms from mail order instead of getting them at the petstore. Petstores tend to only buy one or two sizes of crickets and rarely if ever feed them once they get them in. What this means that after a couple days these crickets are pretty much empty husks as far as nutrician goes. Besides, you can get 500 or 1000 crickets for under $20 or a little more with shipping. A petstore could charge anywhere between $14 or more for 100 crickets.
Waxworms and mealworms are fine as an occaisonal treat but should never be fed more than once a week. Crickets or silkworms are the best stable insect food for dragons. (butterworms are good too but tend to be more expensive than silkworms but have more nutrients).
For greens, make sure you feed at least two of the following:
collard greens, mustard greens, dandelion greens, endive or escarole. Mixed with these, alternate between parsley, kale, frozen mixed vegetables (thawed and chopped), squash, zuccini, other dark greens. Romaine is fine once in awhile, but never feed iceberg lettace. Carrots are good shredded and added as a topping once in awhile, along with other mixed vegetables. Some fruit can be fed once in awhile (strawberries, blueberries, melons, grapes). Flowers such as hisbiscus and dandelion flowers are also a great treat.
Don't forget to dust your instects with a multivitamine and calcium with D3 suppliment once every other day.
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RE: New adoption ; ) - LdyPayne, Sun Aug 3 13:47:03 2003