Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just acquired an adopted bearded dragon yesterday. He's about 14 inches long (I haven't gotten an exact measurement yet) and a very pretty little guy (girl?). He is very skittish. His previous owner treated him well, but said he's always been a little freaky about being handled. He lets me stroke his neck and back for a short period of time before he scampers off, but as of yet, he wants nothing to do with being picked up. I guess I'll work on that in the future and see if he turns around.

Questions...right now he's in a 20L aquarium with:

green cage carpeting
driftwood for basking
a couple types of plants (fake)
small water bowl (perhaps 6" x 4"
large food bowl (perhaps 50% larger than the water bowl)
two lights - one of the new zoomed $20 variety
the other is just an ordinary zoomed basking light

I am planning on moving him to my 55g that my corn snake is currently in. I was going to do this last night, but discovered the screen on the beardie cage has a small tear in it that my snake will surely discover and escape from. So, beardie will have to stay put for now. The screen is the sliding variety that I can't replace at any normal petstore.

So, the questions I have are:

What kind of bedding is best? I really don't like the look of the cage carpeting. I know there are risks of impaction with sand and so forth, but would repti bark be ok? It's what the snakes are on.

Should his water bowl be bigger? Isn't it supposed to be big enough to soak in? I know they get a lot of their water intake from fruits/veggies, but I still think he needs a bigger bowl. He was in it this morning...or at least his little tush was. It looked like he was trying to soak.

Do I need to run one of the UVB/UVA lights or is the zoomed one with the extra UV rays in it enough? I have several light strips, so I guess all I'd need would be the bulb but those things are like $40 around here and don't they only last like 6 months?

Thanks in advance.

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Actually, he shouldn't have a water bowl at all. You can bathe him every few days to help him shed, and he will get all his water from his veggies. They don't understand that flat water is drinkable. A water bowl will add to much humidity to the tank. All substrates have a risk of impaction, including reptile bark. You need a bulb with UVB in it, no incandescent bulb can produce UVB, so if your bulb is incandescent it isn't what he needs. A mercury vapor or flourescent tube that says UVB on it needs to be provided.
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I know that substrate brings forth a lot of debate...I have used WehatBran and am very happy about it! My Fiona uses it now and it really cuts down on the odor and looks like sand. It is also way cheaper than anything else ($7.50 for a 50 lb bag....I am on my thrid 55 gallon changing and haven't even dented the bag...I am going to find a 25lb next time).

Please don't use Reptile bark...not only is it not a substrate that would naturally be encountered by a Beardie in the wild, it can hold WAY too much humidity and bacteria. (actually, I even switched my snakes off of it and put them on Aspen bedding...cheaper and a lot less hassle).

I would continue to work on getting your new addition handleable. I just started getting my Beardie out more often (she is 5 months old) and she fought like the dickens at first...now she is already getting better about it. It has only been a week. If he/she tolerates your petting, he/she should be ok with coming out. (you could just pick he/she up and hold him/her in the cage...then work on coming out later---I think you would be surprised how adaptable they are.) Hand feeding may also help. (I did have a dragon --before Fiona-- who would never take anything from my hand, but was tame and loveable just the same).
Good luck.

By the way: You can order the UVB lights a lot cheaper than $40.00 (even from Foster's and Smith). Look around online.
I pay ~15-20 for them around here (KY). online I have seen them for 20-25. (including shipping) Either way, you need one.
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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

i use something called gentle touch.

It is pellets made from compacted aspen fibers.

It works really well and is easy to spot clean like with sand but has almost no risk of impaction.
When it is placed in a liquid (stomach acids of a bearded dragon) it breaks up into little fibers that can easily pass through the digestive tract
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sincerely,
Jonathan D. de Kluyver
JDDK Reptiles
Quality Reptiles and Amphibianswww.jddkreptiles.com

I'm new to bds as well so I'll let those who know more inform us all, but I also have those sliding tops and you can easily change the screen without buying a new top or cage. Take the cage top out (the sliding part) flip it over. You will notice a rubberlike striping like on window screen and screen doors. This can be removed and the new screen layed over the top and the rubber striping pushed back into the channel. do not cut your screening too close to size leave at least 1" all around so you can get a nice fit by pulling slightly on the screen as you put in the last two sides. Trim screen down to striping. I'm sure you can get the right screening at Homedepot or Lowes.