Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just got a bearded dragon 2 days ago. I have been wanting one for a long time. I was not expecting to get one so soon but now I have one. He is 9 inches long and I am not sure how old he is or what sex it is. I have no idea of what kind of dragon it is either. I have it in a 10 gallon tank for now. I need some help on what size tank it needs. Also I have it in front of a mirror. Is that a good idea? If anyone can tell me about how old he and what all i need to get him comfortable it would be very much appreciated. Thanks so much.

I would guess your dragon is around 2 months old, give or take. You may not be able to sex it just yet, but here's a link to help you figure it out. www.dachiu.com/sexing.html

You might want to cover that mirror, the reflection could stress him out. Lots of people will cover 3 of the 4 sides of the tank with some type of paper to reduce reflection and help the beardie feel more secure.

A 10 gallon is a bit too small. It is hard to get a proper temp gradient in that size tank, most would start with a 20 gallon. You need to be able to get the basking spot around 105-115 and maintain the cool side at around 85, and it's just hard to get that with a 10g. If you can upgrade that would be good, since he's already big that 10g won't last much longer anyways. Soon after that he'll need an even bigger tank. 3x2x2 is a minimum, but 4x2x2 is preferred for a full grown beardie to live in. If the tank is too expensive a lot of people choose to build their own enclosure, this can save money if you're handy like that.

As for what kind he is, well, unless you know what the parents are there is no way to know what "morph" he is. It doesn't really matter, the morph is just a name to tell the bloodline used by breeders, it doesn't neccessarily determine the color. Yours does look to have more yellow than a "normal" though, he may have some nice color when he grows up.

You need to start reading up on some caresheets, and some people on this forum have a few really good ones that I would recommend. Read them thouroughly, it's a good start but don't stop there. There is a lot of information to be had about the husbandry of bearded dragons, good and bad, so the more you can educate yourself the better owner you will be

Good luck and welcome to the forum!

here are those links
beautifuldragons.com this one has a great food chart to learn what you should and should not feed your beardie

www.beardiedragon.com/pages/Care/BD_Care_QA2.html Q&A, answers a lot of questions you may have

www.kakadudragons.com/caresheet/caresheet.php#multiple a very thourough caresheet

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Amanda
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2.0 bearded dragons (Ocho / Domo-kun)

0.1 kingsnake (Rio)
0.0.1 tarantula (Otto)
1.0 ferret (Playstation)
1.0 cat (Wally)
0.1 dog (Tima)

Thank you so much for you help. I went and got Thorn a 23 gallon rubbermaid tub. I put holes in the sides and i got him a 75 wt basking bulb. The only thing is it has no lid. I sure hope he can't jump out. I figured it was cheap for now being that he or she will need a bigger tank sooner than i think. I had put some calci sand in his 10 gallon but I read somewheres that it is not good. So this morning I am going to go and get some play sand to put in his new tub. He ate about 6 crickets last night but I can not get him to eat his greens in the morning. Also i do have another question. I turn his lights off at night and he lays his head down and goes to sleep until morning. Does he need heat at night?

The rubbermaid should be fine, as long as he can't jump out.

You were right to change the calci-sand, it is bad stuff. He still may be kinda small for any sand right now. Smaller beardies should be kept on paper-towels or shelf-liner or something like that until they are bigger and less risk of impaction.

You are offering only greens in the morning and no crickets until later? Have you tried wiggling the greens in front of his nose? Sometimes they don't seem to realize it's food until you show them.

The enclosure can go down to 65F at night before you should be concerned about a nighttime heat source.
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Amanda
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2.0 bearded dragons (Ocho / Domo-kun)

0.1 kingsnake (Rio)
0.0.1 tarantula (Otto)
1.0 ferret (Playstation)
1.0 cat (Wally)
0.1 dog (Tima)

No , He can't get out of this rubbermaid. I am having a few problems with the heat light. I got a 75 wt basking bulb and his basking area is only staying at 95. The cool side is staying at 75. Do I need a 100 wt?
Oh and he ate from my hand. I am so excited.... Thanks for all your help.