Reptile & Amphibian Forums

dude... I like both lizards...

i like crested, because it has nice looking and easier to feed them.(like Gerber,yogurt...etc...course crickets too)

but i also like Beardies because they can be handled easily...they also have great looking and behaviors. but i heard full grown beardies eat 30~40 crickets a day??!!? shoot! that's alot..

hm....can't decide....

i need help~~~~~

Well, a crested gecko does not need UV light or as high a temp. They are best provided heat via red lights (don't bother with the bulbs at the pet shop, go to a thrift store/Big Lots and buy the regular 40 watts for much less than the overpriced ones in the shops). Terrarium; simple 20 gallon tall tank with a screen lid, a substrate of orchid, cypress or hardwood mulch to maintain humidity, plus cork bark, bamboo, and/or plenty of plants to hide in during the day will suffice for one or two crested. BE SURE TO PROVIDE HIDES IN THE WARM AND THE COOL END OF THE TERRARIUM! And yes, feeding is a little easier because the cresteds are not picky, but don't think they can eat babyfood all their lives. Spray tank to maintain humidity at 55-75%. Provide calcium/D3 supplement.

Bearded dragons, by contrast, are more terrestrial and need bigger tanks, with a 40 gallon breeder tank required for even a single specimen. Standard tanks are not wide enough for adult beardeds. The prefer moving targets over vegetable matter when it comes to food, especailly babies. Babies should be fed daily, but adults only need to eat sizeable meals three times a week. Up to ten crickets plus some Romain lettuce, spinach, apple, and or honeydew mellon will be fine for an adult, add a calcium/D3 supplement at every feeding for babies, every other feeding for adults. They need UV light as well as powerful basking lights, temp should be at least 95 on basking sight, 80-85F in cooler end of tank. These lizards can withstand low night temps into the 60s, and they can be placed outdoors during the late spring/summer and into early fall. A water bowl for soaking aids in skin-shedding.

My main peve about bearded dragons in the house: the adults produce a lot of feces, and it stinks, especially if they are being feed a lot of greens. Crested, however, have the issue of too hot temp can kill them. You leave young crested in a room that gets above 86, and they will most likely end up dead. At the same time, however, people often make the mistake of "Oh, it's nocturnal, it can live at perpetual 70-75 forever with no temp gradient". That cheap idea is why you often see so many posts in the Rhac forum titled "crested gecko stopped eating" or "crested gecko hides all the time, do appetite please help!"

Anythign else?

thanks~!!

I HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO GET ALL THE SUPPLIES, BUT...

I JUST CAN'T DECIDE BETWEEN BEARDIE AND CRESTED

WHAT ARE THE PROS AND CONS?

DUDE..I HATE MYSELF...

It's pretty much up to you whether you want to care for a 24" lizard or an 8 inch lizard. That's basically the difference, if money is no object. Cresteds are MUCH cheaper to feed, though, especially since there's a good powdered commercial diet for them. You could raise them on it if you wanted to.
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Eryx - All the fun of a boa in a convenient pocket size!

OH! I FORGOT TO ASK...

WHAT DO YOU MEAN... "Standard tanks are not wide enough for adult beardeds"????

standards are very narrow, the breeder tanks such as 40 breeders and up are alot wider more room.

I have a bearded dragon, and a ton of other lizards but no crestie, only henkeli leaftails ! So I can not compare Bearded to crestie, personally.

I can say full grown Beardies do not eat 30 -40 crickets at one sitting, your thinking of baby dragons, they DO !

By the time they are grown you should have most of their diet consisting of salads, and the occasional bug treats!

ALSO- now alot of people, are raising their beardies on pellets, and do not have the hassle of tons of crickets at all.

For more info on a cricketless diet, go to the bearded dragon forum and they will help with any questons you may have.

I think cresties are very awesome, and can understand your delema, when I am torn, I get both, hhahahahhaah lol

Hey good luck, let us know who WON !!!
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Eve

Standard tanks are not wide enough in that they are only 12 to 14 inches wide, which will not allow the animal to have much space. Yes, they can run back and forth, but the small width of the tank means the dragons may have trouble turning around. They just seem cramped in standard aquaria. Breeder tanks have a more even floor space, 40 gal breeders are more than 16 inches wide. They are a good all around tank for large terrestrial lizards. I also recommend them for blue-tongued skinks.