Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My little girl "Tulip" was advertised as a probable super red breeder. Here are pics showing her at 6 weeks old on the day that I received her, and a few now at 5 months of age. Her color ranges from tootsie roll brown to brick red. Does this seem odd? Could she still become more red with age?

Here are a few more that show her colors well.

Any dragon can color up, or "brown" out. Its all part of raising them and seeing what they turn into. You really have to look at what the genetics are of the dragons, the color of the parents, and the color of the baby in question. It helps also if the baby looks similar to something already produced to give you a better shot at what it might look like as an adult. I have had dragons go both ways..........they can look killer as a baby, but then lose color, or look plain jane as a baby and develop into an awesome adult.
chris

Hi
this is a beardies from josh from phantom dragons.
its hets for rd hypo x hets trans .
first she not looked nice later she got very nice .

here adult .

byee

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www.dragoncave.nl

She is absolutly beautiful Beardie! How much would a Red Bearded Dragon cost, on average?

You have a pic of your setup? What kind of lighting and temps are we talking?

Chris, some of your work is present here in Tulip. She is Scar/Siren x Crimson Red/Blood.

She is under a flood which provides up to 110 F basking temp as measured by heat gun (though she usually basks in the 100-105 range area), 81 on cool side, 36" of Reptisun 10. I'm considering adding another 18" UVB in the rear as it doesn't get much light there. The basking area has been upgraded since this pic with large tiles.

I have discovered the limitations of these Showcase cages. I'd love to switch to MVB, but am worried that the distance from the basking light well to the floor at 9" won't allow it.

The second pic here is of Scooter, Tulip's betrothed. Scooter is 6 months of age. He is Redflame/Foxfire Red x Hypo Red/Sandfire.

of those cages? What is the diameter of the dome opening? Yeah it looks like in the pics the cages lack some lighting intensity. I remember seeing I think it was your pics of those cages and they are nice.....I love how they look. Where is the 36" strip place? Im assuming its inside the cage, and a single bulb? I remember visions used to have a slanted section at the top of the back which was cut out and screened for strip lights..........is this similar?

Oh yeah, you may not need more uvb, but more light intesity. I used to like lumichrome 1xx fluorescents just for the color of light they give off, but it may be just a matter of trying a few different bulbs to see which work best in those cages and light them up best.

Could be also just the dragons color.

Does she normally look fired up(bright white belly with no pattern)?

The fluorescent strip molded-inset is at the front of the cage. The dome light well is 12" sq x 8" high. I'm currently using 8.5" domes, but had to raise them with supports to accomodate the floods. Would a 10" dia. deep-dome fit here in terms of it's height, and could I then use Megarays? Recall that there is only 9" from bottom of dome well to floor.

Tulip has been showing stress marks lately. I'll have to pay more attention to when and how often in proportion to brighter belly.

So from your measurements the inside of the tank is about 17" high? I would try to get the fluorescent lighting inside, instead of out. Longest bulbs that will fit, and two of them. The 18" bulbs may not be throwing alot of light, or the screen could be cutting down the amount of light. For uvb and light intensity, I would mount the fixtures inside. I use dual 2ft fixtures in my cages(but the cages are also white), and they light up well regardless of mvb or a regular bulb for heat(I use and have used both). Im sure there is someway to get mvb to work, but they cages might require some modification. You could cut the dome opening to make that higher(to give proper basking distance). You would have to use spacers in between cages to give room in between for the domes. Or, I have seen some people use light fixtures(sockets) that you can change the angle on, to angle the bulb across on like a 45 degree angle? Maybe mounting something like that in there would work.

The aluminum mesh that the lights sit on is designed well for maximum light transmission. I think that the sides of the dome well may block most of the UVB from the front mounted strips. There are 2 - 18" strips per cage across the front.

I believe that Tulip has the potential for better red coloration, and that the culprit is lighting. Any suggestions for improvement are welcome within the confines of this cage design.

She eats her collard greens, mustard greens, squash, dusted crickets and pw's well, but only about 1/2 of what Scooter eats. She is active, and a pretty good glass dancer.

I would not recommend using mercury vapor bulbs in that cage at all, not enough height, Mercury vapor bulbs should be at least 18" above the basking site.

Wattage of bulbs should not exceed the max. recommended wattage on the socket they are screwed into (ceramic fixtures are usually good to at least 125 watts or more. Should be written on the side of the fixture in inside the dome.

For your setup, I would suggest buying under cabinet florescent tubes, and screwing them directly into the ceiling of the cage itself (may have to predrill to get through the plastic...and depending on how thick, a nut or something may be needed to keep the screw from being pulled out...

For the basking spot, I am tempted to suggest just cutting out the wire in a slightly smaller circle than the width of the dome you are using.
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PHLdyPayne

Thanks Chris and PHLdyPayne. I may try mounting one 36" Reptisun 10 inside front (a 48" won't quite fit inside)and an 18" or 24" in back. No danger of too much UVB, Right? Wow, this experimentation stuff is expensive.

I do love these enclosures, even if MVB is not an option. I am confident that I can make it all work out.

Another Possibility? I've been dusting crickets daily with Repti Calcium with D3, except for 1 day/wk Herptivite instead. Should I perhaps switch to Repti Calcium without D3?