Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Okay, I have only had it for two days and I have not seen it eat anything... I was told that it is only about two weeks old and he looked okay when I got him but now it is looking a little thin... I have tryed crix, parsley, mustard greens, sead and feed, and even worms... does anyone know of anything that they just love to eat or a way to help him get started...?

I am sorry to say this but you really should have done a lot more research before buying a BD.

He is too young and should not have been sold to you at less than 6" or 6 weeks. the reason is he may not eat for a week after going to a new home. if you bought him from a pet store then ha has spent his entire life moving around and may get to weak to eat. keep him hydrated.

you are not offering healthy food. go to www.beautifuldragons.com and read the entire site

go here to and read it
www.beardiedragon.com/pages/Care/BD_Care_QA.html

then go through and read the questions asked n the forum so it does not have to be repeated yet again.

sorry to be short with you , but you really need to put some effort into it.
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Bennett

Home of the Florida Orange
www.beardiedragon.com

What do you think I am doing... I did not buy him it was a gift and that is why I was not ready... I am asking question and ready and lokking for all the help I can get at least I am trying

Someone is asking for help, I think we should try our best to help, you are right, at least you are trying. It is hard when someone buys you a pet as a gift, and you aren't prepared for it. What kind of housing do you have for him/her? We can try to help you with that also, as alot of petstores do give out misinformation. Don't be afraid to ask for help. That is what the forum is for, to try to help others.

I have to dissagree with one thing. dragons are ok to be sold once they have eaten at least 1 or 2 times are over 4.5" and are very active and alert.
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sincerely,
jonathan
JDDK Reptiles www.jddkreptiles.com

I think you'll find A LOT of people are going to disagree with you on that one.
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Amanda
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2.0 bearded dragons (Ocho / Domo-kun)
0.1 kingsnake (Rio)
1.0 ferret (Playstation)
1.0 cat (Wally)
0.1 dog (Tima)

My opinion on this varies. I also breed beardies so I'll give my input. If the beardie is going to someone with lots of experience caring for babies, then it's okay provided that they know exactly what they are getting & the babies have properly been cared for. If it's going to someone other than an experienced breeder, such as a pet shop or for someone's pet, then it should be at least 6" long. Hatchlings stress easier and require more care than one that is well started. Most pet stores will not take the time or effort required to raise babies, and sell then off quickly to inexperienced buyers. Most places don't even tell the new owner how to take care of it.
Cricket

this is not a flame this is a simple question of your experience. how many BDs have you sold? and how many were the size you mentioned?
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Bennett

Home of the Florida Orange
www.beardiedragon.com

All I am trying to say is that you can sell bearded dragons under 6". Usually by the time dragons are over 4.5" and are eating, active, and alert they are ready to be sold to a responsable person. I am not trying to spark an argument I am just voicing what I have learned from my mentor who has been breeding, raising, and selling dragons for a long time. I think it is a great thing that you wait till dragons are over 6" because I know from personal experiance that young babys are difficult to care for. I respect that you wait but I just dont think its 100% neccesary.
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sincerely,
Jonathan D. de Kluyver
JDDK Reptiles quality reptiles and amphibians
www.jddkreptiles.com

So hard to be nice when a statement like that is throw on the forum.

Your mentor needs to go back to school and learn to be a student, before they become a teacher and produce more instructor like you.

IF this statement was fact (which it is NOT) why does a network of breeders exist that pledge specifically for this one fact....... never sell a dragon under 6 weeks?

I can tell you, because over 1/2 of those babies will NOT be alive to see their 6th week and most will not survive to see 3 months.

The ONLY reason to sell that young is turn a quick profit because the breeder is more interested in the profit margin than in ensuring a healthy baby to a new owner.
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www.reptilerooms.com

How many BDs have you raised? how many BDs have you sold? and how many were the size you mentioned?

I dont care about who your mentor is, he is not the one posting this misinformation. I dont care how long you have studied about herps although 2 years is really a drop in the bucket since you are arguing with a collective experience of more than several decades. I dont care what you read or who told you what. your name is on the post so you are responsable. I just asked you to put up or shut up. there are people here even less knoledgable than you and some may read your post and take it to heart. So speaking from my personal experience of over a dozen years, HOW MANY BDs HAVE YOU RAISED UP AND SOLD?

and as a comment to everyone who reads this, I think that the time has come for people here to request KS allow the vouluntary compilation of profiles for people posting. I recomend a vouluntary system where a short bio could be posted about members. you could input the experience you have so people reading these posts can determine your credability. There should also be a rating with these bios so that people who flame others, who give obviously BAD advice (not contraversial but BAD like calcium sand is good and should be used for baby BDs), people selling unhealthy animals and other detrimants could be posted. There should also be a rating for the other end of the spectrum for those that are helpful and offer good advice. It's easier than it sounds and I think the time has come that it is needed.

What do you think, and speak up as this thread is slowly sinking to the bottom. Write KS and tell them
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Bennett

Home of the Florida Orange
www.beardiedragon.com

Well, you said what I want to.... LOL, but mine would get deleted when my fav stalker here reads it

I checked his site, he is 14 years old and also if you look over his info there it makes some other things clearer. knowing about one species, especially if it is snakes, does not make the same husbandry for lizards, especially one with a high a metabolism as bearded dragons have. One to 2 meals is fine to sell a snake snake that only eats once a week or once a month, but way bad info for a dragon that will eat 3-4 times a day as a baby.

Now there are some young people on here that are awesome with advice and their knowledge and they have my greatest respect as they have learned so much that many of us did not know until much older, so I do not hold that against anyone, but people should really have the background and knowledge before they advise others..... your playing with lifes here and peoples feeling about their pets.

You can not puppy mill dragons and sell them as hatchling to avoid the cost of raising them.... is only gonna lead to heartbreak for the people that buy them not knowing better or yourself if you care.

For other as always, be cautious who you listen to online for advice, they may have less expereince than you who are seeking answers.
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www.reptilerooms.com

First thought you must be a snake person, as feeding once or twice and selling is a snake thin, then went to your site and saw the hatchling for sale there...... and read the "about me"

Very sad
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www.reptilerooms.com

I said once or twice? oops sorry when i posted that message i had been looking in ball python classafieds for a few hours and was probably thinking of snakes as you said. I meant they have been eating for at least 1 or 2 weeks.
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sincerely,
Jonathan D. de Kluyver
JDDK Reptiles quality reptiles and amphibians
www.jddkreptiles.com

People who have been breeding for years with a lot of research, trial and error to back it up will tell you that hatchlings are fragile and should not be sold under 6 weeks or 6".
I think you'll find out the hard way...which is unfortunate only for your babies.
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www.classylizard.com

I agree 110% with what Bennett said. Do your homework and quick before you kill this thing. Also whoever is selling 2 week olds to non experienced people should be drawn and quartered.

Sean
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Heart Mountain Herps

Bennett and Sean are right. That is way too young for them to sell you a beardie. You can try pinhead crickets (very, very small, I think they look like tiny fruit flies or something). Also, if you want, I have a mixture that I have fed to my babies if/when they went through a non-eating stage. It contains all healthy foods, blended into a liquid and given to them through a needless syringe. Just a drop on their snout at a time, and let them lap it up. Keep him/her hydrated. Frequent mistings. Sounds pretty dehydrated, so do it many times a day. Also, if you do happen to get a poo, bring it into the vet to rule out parasites. I am not sure, but 2 weeks may be too young to administer meds, but at least you will know what you are dealing with. Someone correct me if I am wrong on this. Please post back if you want the ingredients of the mixture I have given. It has worked every time.

I am sure you have a healthy mix for your BDs. Nothing wrong with that but there is a MUCH easier way. Just get some rep-cal juvie pellets or t-rex VGF and mix with pedialite. it is a proven nutritionally complete meal. no guesswork.

Pinheads are to small for baby BDs, not enough meat on 'em. they should be able to eat 1/8 right out of the shell although I used to start mine on 1/4 before switching to roaches.

I think the reason for such a high death rate amoungst baby BDs (estimated 50%) is size at time of sale. Anytime a BD is moved (even to a new enclosure next to the old one) they can be stressed enough to stop eating. so if a baby is sold (as so many are) at birth before starting to eat, then they go to a wholesaler, then they go to a pet store, then they go to their new home... well you can see how that causes a problem. By the time they arive at their final destination they are to stressed and weak to eat so many (too many) die.

as for the coccidia, i would not even try a fecal until after having the animal for a week or more and getting some food in it. Stress can cause coccidia levels to skyrocket and giving meds that young is near impossible. Just a quick example, I got a BD adult from a very reputable breeder. She got a fecal right out of the shipping box with high levels of coccidia. in less than 2 weeks with no meds at all, the coccidia was almost non-existent.
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Bennett

Home of the Florida Orange
www.beardiedragon.com

When my Dino was young, I fed him pinheads, only for about a week, he did eat alot of them at a time though. I guess she could try like 1/8" or so, but I was just trying to given a tried and proven (with mine at least) method of helping. Thanks for the other info though

nice folks who share their successes and falures so we can all learn. keep in mind that every BD is different and what worked for me does not mean that it works every time. so in your case pinheads may have been needed. Its good to see advice from first hand experience.
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Bennett

Home of the Florida Orange
www.beardiedragon.com

Yup, I agree, and I have personally taken alot of advice from you personally, although I don't post alot, I do read alot, and alot of people here have GREAT information to share!

np
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Bennett

Home of the Florida Orange
www.beardiedragon.com

Thank you that was what I was asking for.. Some other people just have not clue

Ok, here is the mixture I used. Collard greens, mustard greens, escarole, 1 stick baby food chicken sticks, juvenile rep cal beardie pellets pre-soaked, yellow squash and water (cut the greens up tiny. Blend it to a liquid, so it is easy to suck it up into the needless syringe (you know, the kind vets give you to give oral meds, probably can get it at a pharmacy, or maybe even a vet will just give you one, mine did). Every time before feeding, I would separate what I planned to feed from the rest of the batch, and sprinkled with calcium and a multivitamin (Rep cal and herptivite). Just try a drop at a time on the tip of his/her snout and wait for her to lick it off. Keep giving him/her this until she stops licking it off. I would do this 3-4 times a day until she is eating on her own. And really, try pinhead crickets. You can find them online at places like www.superwormfarm.com, www.reptilefood.com, and a bunch of other places. Once s/he is eating on his/her own, feed her as many crix as she will eat in 10-15 minutes. If the place where you got him/her told you only so many a day, don't listen. Babies need alot of food! At least 2-3 times a day. Also, when she is eating the crickets, make sure you dust them with calcium and multivitamins (mine are on a schedule of 1 dusting a day 6 x a week of calcium, and 1 dusting a week of multivitamins, you may want to do 2 of multivitamins since s/he is so small and weak). I hope this helps. I will post again if I forgot anything. Oh, and remake the mixture at least every other day, throw out the old, and keep in the fridge, so it doesn't go bad.

Down towards the end it seems like everyone did a good job of telling you what to feed, however, I wanted to add a few things.
If your dragon is having trouble chasing down the crickets, put them in the freezer for a minute or two before feeding. Even if they completely stop moving, don't worry that they're dead. As soon as the get under the warm lights they will probably start moving again. It should slow them down a bit for your dragon though. Only put in a few at a time so you can make sure they all get eaten. If they don't and stay in the tank over night, they will come out and start eating your dragon (gross but true).
Keep the cage pretty basic for now. You don't want it in a huge tank yet because it could have trouble going over such a large distance to catch food. A 10 or 20 gallon tank is fine for now. It will outgrow it quickly though. If you have something bigger, you might want to try blocking off part of it for right now and giving your beardie more space as it gets bigger and starts eating better. Paper towels on the floor would be a good idea, though i'm sure other people have used a variety of other things safely. They're cheap enough anyway.
If you read the caresheets, which I will assume you did, you will see a range of temperatures listed for the basking spot (where you put the light). Keep it on the higher end for now. I think 95-105 degrees is what is commonly listed. Go with 105-115, but make sure you're doing it with a good thermometer. A cheap stick up one won't be really accurate.
Keep it simple for now, and once your beardie is doing better, and I hope it makes it, then make the tank fancy if that's what you want to do.
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3.0.0 Bearded Dragons Woodrow, Dexter, Tehko (My first beardie Griffin who turned me crazy, and Erik my Rankins, who will remain a midget- deceased)
1.0.0 Cat- the regular variety (Dominic- fat cat)
0.1.0 Dog- Lab mix(Betty- escape artist extraordinaire)
1.0.0 Red Eared Slider (Franklin)

boy, what a great idea, I am going to have to pass that one on to my customers and others. it sure beats the heck out of using a tweezes to break the jumping legs. thanks for the tip!

Just goes to show, even after nearly a dozen years of rasing BDs, there's still new stuff to learn.
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Bennett

Home of the Florida Orange
www.beardiedragon.com

The only thing is that they will eventually come back up to speed after "defrosting" under the lights. However, as long as you don't put too many in at a time it should be ok. Maybe start out with a few in the freezer, then go get those out and put some more in. IT might be more time consuming (I don't know) but if people don't like ripping off a leg, it could be better. That could also help people who have the same problem as their beardies and can't catch a cricket.
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3.0.0 Bearded Dragons Woodrow, Dexter, Tehko (My first beardie Griffin who turned me crazy, and Erik my Rankins, who will remain a midget- deceased)
1.0.0 Cat- the regular variety (Dominic- fat cat)
0.1.0 Dog- Lab mix(Betty- escape artist extraordinaire)
1.0.0 Red Eared Slider (Franklin)