Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok so as you can see i am new to the BD forum. I just purchased my BD last night. I have him at the moment in a 10 gallon tank because he is still very young. He is prolly 5 inches in length not even. I just went out and bought most of the stuff im going to need to keep him healthy let me know if this is good shopping list so far. I have a 75 watt basking light by zoo-med. I purchased T-Rex Calcium 2.0 because i had the stuff that had phosphourous got away from that becasue i heard bad things. I also just purchased the UVB that is needed i believe that can work for now. Its a ESU Reptile 7.0 Light that is used for the desert dwelling reptiles which has a picture of the bearded dragon on it. I removed the plastic over the light since the light would prolly not travel through it. The crickets i am feeding him until i can purchase the 1000 1/4 size crickets are as small as i can get them there about _____ that size but they seem light there small enough because to his eyes there not tha big I also purchased some juvenille food that is supposed to be moist but doesnt seem to so i think i will put it in some water the name of that is ZooMeds juvenille Bearded Dragon food. It is supposed to be the first soft formula but doesnt seem to soft. If anyone with some experience could add some input that would be great because i want wants best for him with what i can afford right now which i believe this sounds good to me at the moment. Just realy concerned with the Prey being to big for him so sometimes i will rip the cricket in half and let me eat it that way. He eat 5 crickets last night. Im trying to figure out how many he should be eating in a day if you could let me know that would be great any help is apprecaited i am glad i joined the forum thanks. DREw

ok heres a few things

your dragon will not last long in a 10 gallon. a hatchling is ok in there for a short time but needs a bigger cage soon. a adult dragon should be in a minimum 3'x2'x2' cage, some say 4 foot long but 3 works fine for a single dragon. but as they say bigger is better. if you are using glass cages its good to cover the back and sides with adhesive shelf liner. the non adhesive duck brand liner works great as a liner on the bottom. its easy to clean and looks good. sand as substrate is not a good idea. this can cause impaction and eye problems.

one thing u need is a temp gauge. digital gauges or temp guns are the best. the stick on ones are crap dont bother. the air temp over the basking spot should be 110-115 for a hatchling. 105-110 for an adult. take the air temp about an inch or 2 above your basking platform. dont place the probe ontop of your basking platform this will give off an inacurate temp.

the crickets or insects you feed your dragon should be no bigger than the space between your dragons eyes. i measure in length wise as most do. prey that is too big can cause alot of problems. roaches are a better source than crickets, but harder to find in pet shops and more expensive. ordering online is better and cheaper. dont feed a hatchling mealworms no matter what you read. the shell/skin is too hard to digest for a baby.

remember babies need more insects than greens. 90/10 in percentages. 3 times a day crickets 1 time a day some veggies. this will change as they get older. eventually at 1 year it will be 90/10 in favor of greens/fruits/veggies

hope this helps
good luck
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Beach Beardies

3.4.11 bearded dragons
1.0.0 Turquoise x Sunburst Veiled Chameleon
1.1.0 Sugar Gliders
0.1.0 Miss Queen Athena (Cat)

the dry pellet food is supposed to come hard and dry. soak it in water for about 5-10 minutes before feeding it to your dragon.

reptisun 10.0 bulbs are the best in my opinion for UVB. use the esu you have for now, when its time for replacement id get the reptisun. made by zoomed. yes the plastic cover should be removed like you did. the uvb should run most of the length of the cage, entire length if possible.
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Beach Beardies

3.4.11 bearded dragons
1.0.0 Turquoise x Sunburst Veiled Chameleon
1.1.0 Sugar Gliders
0.1.0 Miss Queen Athena (Cat)