Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello all,

I am thinking about a couple different herps strictly as pets (no breeding planned) and that like to be handled. It's down to 3 species and of course beardie is one of them. I currently have Luna, my almost 1.5 year old veiled chameleon and have owned other herps in the past.

I have lurked on this page, inquired on the Cham forum for opinions, read some care sheets but would like some personal experience from you

A few concerns that have been brought to my attention and I am wondering what your experience has been:

***yellow fungus
***the fact that beardies are "factory farmed" for the industry
***spring hatchlings tend to be healthier than ones from later clutches

any input appreciated. Also, if you have a favorite caresheet please include
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0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 house geckos - Gaia & Tia (both MIA
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog (for summer)
0.5 Mad. Hissers (for summer - all girls, no little ones, whew!)

...what is their growth rate (baby to adult - thinking about housing requirements).

thanks
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0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 house geckos - Gaia & Tia (both MIA
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog (for summer)
0.5 Mad. Hissers (for summer - all girls, no little ones, whew!)

hello, well some beardies are farm raised. especialy if you buy from a department store style petstore.
Buying from a private breeder will cut down on infections and diseases that you would possibly get from buying from a huge petstore where there are so many other reptiles and have an easier chance of spreading problems to each other.
The growth rate seems to be pretty high. My little girl is growing nice and fast.i got mine when she was about 9 inches long and she is easily a foot long now. its probably been about a month since i have bought her maybe a week longer at most.
I am not sure on the spring hatching over late hatching if that would make them stronger or not. Since they are indoors when they breed and then in an incubator to hatch i cant see how it would change things. as long as the female is of good size and weight things should be fine.
If your not interested in breeding then you would probably want to stay away from the more pricey color morph dragons that are widely available. Alot of the breeders do have low color ones for alot cheaper. But they do get more colorful with each shed so even a dull colored dragon could become stunning as it gets older. My dragon is beautiful but for some reason she is even more stunning when she just wakes up. I think the extra heat and light might darken her up in the day time.
When i got mine i housed her in a 40 gallon breeder tank. I do read alot of post though that say to start a baby in a smaller tank. But since mine was 9 inches long i figured she was big enough to handle a larger tank and still be able to find her food. And she seems to easily be able to find her food. the second i start shaking the crickets into her tank she comes running.
if your looking for a lizard with alot of personality then a dragon is what you would love.
hope this helps some
good luck

Hi - thanks for your post. Can I ask who you got your beardie from and what she cost?

Is the "nh" in your user name for New Hampshire by chance? If so, where do you live?

lele in Strafford
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0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 house geckos - Gaia & Tia (both MIA
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog (for summer)
0.5 Mad. Hissers (for summer - all girls, no little ones, whew!)

Yes the NH is for New hampshire. I live in manchester. You from NH? I got mine from Vicki at Dachiu. They were very nice to deal with. Here is a little pic of her when i first got. She has grown alot since then and has alot more color then in the pic. If you need to ask more questions you can just e-mail me at nhgoalstop2003@yahoo.com

***yellow fungus
***the fact that beardies are "factory farmed" for the industry
***spring hatchlings tend to be healthier than ones from later clutches

Buying from a private breeder will cut the chances on all of the above. No pet store can give the time, and quality of care as a small private breeder who puts the health first, and simply loves each and every baby produced. Many strive for the best, healthiest, and go the extra mile researching any possible problems before even thinking about putting their males and females together to breed. You will get your monies worth that is for sure, and many times cheaper then the over priced pet stores. You will get a baby that was loved, given the best possible care, and full attention if you are having problems or have any questions. No need for the private breeder to lie about the products you need to buy, no motivation for selling anything except a high quality dragon, and providing sound advice that has worked for them..

Dragons require relatively large enclosures, as adults they will appreciate the extra room to run. As babies they do well in smaller enclosures until they are over the hump, and about 12 inches in length. By that size they are great hunters, and will be used to you, and more trusting of their surroundings.

Check out these two breeders as I bought from Jen at Kakadu myself, and I know first hand that Brandon at Dragons by Nature knows his dragons, and has healthy breeders. Both give the best care possible, and will help you out with any questions. I have a care sheet on my site (no dragons left though) and both Jen, and Brandon have care sheets on their sites with great info. Check out the links that are provided on the sites for additional information on dragon care.

I wish you good luck with your new pet whichever you decide to purchase. My experience with dragons, and many other species leads me to say hands down dragons are the most docile, and fun.. I Just LOVE Em

Great care sheet and great dragons
www.kakadudragons.com
www.dragonsbynature.com
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Mystical-Dragons Web Site
Webshots photos

Thanks for this info! Having a very special cham, and having had other herps, I at least understand the research that needs to be done beforehand and the importance in choosing a good breeder. this, in part, is why I come to the KS boards (and others, too

There is a show coming up in my area next month and although I may not buy there without a recommendation I will be looking around. Your site was recommnended to me so it was one I checked out. You say that you do not ship them. Do you only sell at shows and to local folks?

I will check out the sites/breeders you recommend. I have linked to the local show vendors and if there is anyone listed that you know or recommend please let me know. Not usre where you are located so you may not know them.

From birth to full grown - how long?

thanks,
lele
New England Reptile Show

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0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 house geckos - Gaia & Tia (both MIA
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog (for summer)
0.5 Mad. Hissers (for summer - all girls, no little ones, whew!)

No, when I have babies for sale shipping is available. If you sell at a slightly older age, and put in a lot of time before selling them getting them really used to being handled, and people the stress and time of acclimation is cut quite a bit. Within a day or two they will eat and start coming around a lot faster then if you ship them and they are still really young and afraid of being handled/people.

They can grow from babies to full grown within the first year to 18 months of age. Average size is 17-21 inches in length.

Sorry I'm not really familiar with anyone that is a vendor at that show. Maybe someone else can offer some insight, and knows one of those vendors. I would only recommend someone I know will give you the best customer service, and someone who I would not hesitate to buy from myself or have already.
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Mystical-Dragons Web Site
Webshots photos

Nice I didnt even know about the Repitile show in Manchester. Its like 2 miles from my house. I cant wait to go to that one.

beautiful choice i think beardies and leopard geckos are the best pets to have ive had five beardies i only have one know sold 4 kept the smallest cause he was all bossed around wen he was wit a bigger one so hes still dinky thats why his name is dinky if you really want to know alot get the bearded dragon manual and it will tell u just about everything you need to know

OK this really has nothing to do with the bearded dragon question but i noticed you have two house geckos MIA. God I had that happen with one of my ball pythons. Talk about searching for hours for a snake that was hiding the entire time behind his tank trying to get back into it where the heat was. But house geckos? those you will probably never find. atleast you probably wont have a bug problem in the house. I had two leapord geckos do that with out me even knowing it and the night they escaped i noticed movement out of the corner of my eye and they were walking in tandem out my bedroom. was funny. i broke out laughing as soon as i saw them. I guess they wanted to keep me company or something. lol

funny about your geckos! yeah, Tia disappeared in the winter and Gaia got out of a temporary cage she was in. it was the day before I was going to ship her to my Mom in FL and too her freedom! I saw her but could not get her. this was a few months ago, now. She could easily find escaped crickets, but not sure about water. I kept her tank set up with no lid, put in some crix and misted daily in the hopes she might seek it out and I would find her in there. But no go. After a month I finally took it away. But who knows, as it get colder she may surface as this is the warmest room in the house. That's why I haven't removed them from my signature yet.

m. was funny. i broke out laughing as soon as i saw them. I guess they wanted to keep me company or something. lol
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0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 house geckos - Gaia & Tia (both MIA
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog (for summer)
0.5 Mad. Hissers (for summer - all girls, no little ones, whew!)