Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Heya,

After doing some reading on the water dragon I fell in love with at the pet store, I've decided I'm ready to deal with the commitment these guys need.

However, I do have a few questions. To those willing to help me out by answering them, I'm forever in your debt.

First off is a question on tank size.
I know the standard "safe" size is min. 6 feet across.
The water dragon dragon I'm looking at is currently in a tank that's about 3 ft x 4 ft. There's no sign of cage-size-related stress through skin-rubbing infections or any signs of broken skin on the face, etc. I believe it's a female (rich, medium green color. No outstanding bright markings, no outstanding patterns, etc. Relatively low crest.), and she's already just a few inches short of 2 feet, so I'm not expecting her to get much larger. The tank I'm looking at for her is about 4 ft. long, but only about 3' - 2 1/2' feet tall. It fits the "twice as long as the lizard" mark, at least, and I believe that I can provide ample climbing space, if not height for her.
Does this sound okay, or do I need to shoot larger?

Also, what's the best way to preserve humidity? I know I need 80%.

I was thinking about using living plants and just misting every now and then. That should aide in decent air circulation and humidity within the tank when combined with misting I've heard mixed sources on whether or not they'll eat vivarium plants, though. Also, I haven't heard anything on what's poisonous to them and what's not.
My other idea was to buy one of those air purifier/humidifiers sold for reptiles and amphibs. and just use plastic plants.
Any suggestions on what would be best and/or safe plants?

Also, are both the UV _and_ basking light necessary? I was planning to switch between the (ExoTerra?) DayGlo and NightGlo bulbs to help regulate temperature.
Are there any under-tank heaters with built-in thermostats?
How do you normally do the 12-hour temperature changes?

Sorry for the mass of questions. I'm just trying to make sure I do this right.

Thanks and Take care,
Nicole

OK....Great choice of lizard...it was mine too. Enclosure size...The rule I always go by is about 70 gallons per dragon. Just because every dragon is different. some like to climb more than others...some need the running room. It's all different. For the dragon you're interested in...that enclosure sounds perfect (or at least it will suffice for other forum posters). Daytime temperature needs to be at about 84-88 with night time temps dropping into the mid 70's. For my dragons I use basking lamps with put on a cheap wal-mart timer to run 12-14 hours of photoperiod most of the year and then around 10 hours pre-breeding season. You don't HAVE to have humidity at 80%. Between 60% and 80% are fine. But remember, the higher the humidity, the better off they are with all of their natural courses (i.e. eating habits, shedding, etc.)If you read a couple of post back entitled "Humidifiers" I briefed on how to use an ultrasonic humidifier to keep the humidity level optimimum. UVB cannot be overstressed. UVB (290-320nm) is what allows reptiles to produce vitamin D3 and D3 allows calcium to cross over into the bloodstream and allows the animal to metabolize the calcium. Setting up the UVB fluorescent bulb approximately 12"-14" above where they spend most of their time is recommended. Exo-terra makes good products, and I use the Nightglo. But for somereason they don't last as long as I need them to. I hope that I answered most, if not all of your questions. Oh..and one other thing. Within a couple of days of getting your water dragon, take it to a vet. You need to have a fecal exam done, and request a fecal smear as well. Both test will run 15-20 dollars a piece. Any more than that is insane...just check the prices before the appointment. Also, make sure that your reptile vet is knowledgable on water dragons and have him to an exam on your dragon to make sure everything looks good. Vets can get expensive, I know...I'm a vet tech. I also have 14 different lizards, 5 different species. So I've seen both sides. I hope that I helped. Good luck...and if you have any more questions...feel free to ask or email me at creed_ggd@yahoo.com

sorry about all the typos...it's really late and i'm really tired...

Water dragons are tree climbing lizards, which means they need height. 4 feet wide is fine, but it should be 5-6 feet tall. I recommend no smaller than 300 gallons per dragon. The setup sounds fine otherwise.
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I would say don't waste your money on the UVB lighting, first of all it is difficult for an artifical light to maintain that spectrum, most that claim to, do not. The spectrum that the bulb produces will degrade over time. Instead of wasting money replacing bulbs every three months, invest a couple of dollars in a phosophorus free vitamin suppliment with calcium and D3. This is a much safer way to make sure that your waterdragon maintains a good D3/calcium/phosophorus ratio. There have been plenty of studies to support that, and I can support it antidotically as my two oldest waterdragons have gone 16 years without artifical UVB lighting. Now natural UVB exposure, on the other hand, can't be beat and its free. Just be careful as exposure to natural sunlight is like a steroid shot and your waterdragon can suddenly become more aggressive, until she gets used to it.