Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Well i just got him yesterday. Hes awesome! His colors are really really cool. He didn't eat yesterday, i figured he wouldn't since he just got done with his plane flight and all that but he was definately active and checking out his enclosure and loved the basking area i have for him.

Couple quick questions

do they get cold at night? After it got dark he ran around quite a big looking for spots to lay it seemed. I turned on a night light (black bulb from my frogs and he loved it. I didn't want to keep it on though because i don't want him to get to used to it. I got him out and set him on my bed. He immediately found some covers and went right to sleep. I ended up putting a clean sock in his cage where he slept peacefully all night. Is this bad? Hes on repti carpet right now in a 10 gallon tank. I have a 55 but everyone said it might be to big.

Also for subtrate when he gets his new home, The breeder said to use sifted playsand. thats what they use for all their beardies. Sometime the beardies like the taste of the calci sand and will eat it which can hurt them. Any input on this? thanks!

heres a few pics. just click on the album called "beardie"

oh and any and all input/opinions are more than welcome. and if i'm doing something wrong PLEASE tell me, i take constructive critism very well =)

Pics of my new little guy

It will take a week or two for your dragon to be completely settled in his new home. I wouldn't worry much about him running around after lights out, it's possible he is used to having a bit more daylight or due to 'jetleg' as y ou said he was air shipped. If your breeder is in another timezone that could account for your dragon being active still after lights out. He will get used to the new time soon enough or you can adjust your timers to his 'home' timezone and change it gradually to match your daylight time.

Nighttime temps should be around 70F or around room temperature, as long as it doesn't drop below 65F. I would get rid of the sock as little bearded dragon claws can get stuck in it and he may lose a toenail. I would keep him on papertowels or the reptile carpet you have now till he is at least 10" long or longer, before switching to washed and sifted playsand. Personally I would suggest never using sand, sticking to things like plastic table cloth or non stick shelf liner to avoid all risk of impaction and easy cleaning.

The 10 gal tank will be fine for a short period of time, as long as you are getting the heat gradient they need. The 55 gal tank could still be used, just section off a part of it till your dragon gets older, around 14" or so, and he can be given access to the entire tank.
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PHLdyPayne

thanks!

that was my first concern on the carpet, i didn't want his claws to get stuck but it seems he can really move on it well. I'll definately take the sock out =)

As for the sand.... Personally i really enjoy the look of an animal in its natural environment. Half of the fun for me is recreating that, with this is mind i REALLY rather use as natural of materials as i can. If its going to hurt him then i don't want to obviously. I dont' even like the 10 gallon hes in because its carpet, rock and a piece of wood.

His surface temp graident is good in the tank. i have an IR thermometer which is awesome. The surface on his rock is from 100-107 and on the opposite side of the tank the warmest surface temp is around 78. Should i use a standard glass mount thermometer also?

One last question, what do you guys use for a background on your tanks?

What a cute little dragon,they are so sweet at that size.

Your set up sound great,I don't have much in mine right now either.Once my baby is bigger he gets a 75 gallon that I'm going to build some shelves in so he can climb. I use aquarium backing on my tank,I found a desert scene.

I used a 20 gallon Long for my Fiona when she was a baby and papertowels which worked nicely. (except I had to work out a way for the crickets to NOT get under it).

Now shes on play sand (I had her on wheat bran for a few months. Its a lot cheaper and looks natural). I switched from Wheat Bran because I started getting little bugs in it and it was quite dusty. I feed her in a bowl so her eating sand is very minimal. I also use rocks for her basking spot. They seem to hold the heat a lot better and look rather natural.

I also found a background that was somewhat desserty and rocky (which fits in good with the rest of her enclosure). I'm pretty proud of her house. (and she seems to enjoy it).

I wouldnt worry about your little guy runing around when the lights go out. Some days Fiona does that (usually around Daylight Savings time)..and other times shes out before the lights. (especially when shes been running around the house). Other times, shes running around (like she cant believe its THAT time again). When she was little, she would find her spot to pass out (very strange...she would sleep vertically balancing between her log and the glass).

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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

I see you have your 18" fluorescent on the left side of the tank opposite the basking area. Does she spend time under it with it being over there? What kind of bulb are you using?

Also i see you have two incandescent fixtures on the right. whats in each? Do you know what kind of surface temps you are getting on the rocks and sand?

sorry for all the questions but i enjoy learning about all this!

Nick

Fiona uses all parts of her enclosure. A lot of times during the day, I see her laying out on the UV side. There isnt enough room to put a UV bulb on the other side. She also gets outside when its nice out (which has just started recently). She usually gets 2-4 hours of natural sunlight per week (weather permitting).

I use Repti-Sun 8.0 bulbs (for UV) and change them every 4-6 months. I buy them at the Columbus Reptile show usually for $12-$15. (cant beat it).

I have two dome lights to keep it nice and toasty on that end.... I use 2 100W bulbs (in the winter I have to use a 150W Infrared bulb and a 100W bulb). I also have an under tank heater on that side for sleeing (the temps are usually around 75-80 at night). I have only tested the surface temps once and they were about 110 degrees (that thermometer has a small senser...I tested the rock and then placed it on the cooler side). The air measured on that side is between 100-105..I imagine the rocks are somewhat warmer...but she spends a good amount of time on the rocks and on the sand (on the cooler side). I have only seen her gaping once (because I had the 150 AND the 100 on a warm day. The air temps were never over 115 but I adjusted things---spring screws it all up)

Her aquarium is in our Kitchen and can vary in temp sometimes due to being by the door. Im constantly looking (every time I leave come in and when I go to bed).
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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

thanks ZZ very helpful.

I'm setting up all the stuff for the 55 now. I know it will be a little while before i get him in there but i want everything perfect before he does which is why i asked about the wattage and bulb type. I'm going to pick your brain some more if you don't mind.

I read to use a repti sun 10.0 if the dragon is within 20" and a 5.0 if its within 10" My question is if i have him in a 55 thats 18" tall and he has room to get onto something which method do i use? Can you over do it? I don't plany on making something high becaue he could fall but i might have an elevated side of the tank (the tank i'm building is gonna be SAWEEET)

May i ask what you feed her? I have the essentials right now but hes not eating yet (understandable) but i'm making a list of what i want to get.

One last thing, the breeder i got him from said that as long as temps don't fall below 65 in the house that he will be ok without any heat source at night. I assume this is ok but have been told to use a heating pad also. Do you put the heating pad under the basking spot? Do you have the heating pad only come on at night? Does the heating pad work with 2" of sand over it? Would it be a good idea to put carpet down under the sand so if he digs or burrows he won't get burned? i think the pads only get to 100 degrees if i'm not mistaking.....

Well,
I was always told to use the 8.0 but if you going to have it farther away it might be beneficial to go with the 10.0. Im not sure if you can over do it...something tells me you can, but I dont know what it would do.

I feed her greens now (Spring mix and trying to get her to eat Dandelions and other wild flowers). I also feed her silk worms. Expensive, but I think they are worth it. She has amazing colors. Believe it or not...shes not very good at eating crix, so I try worms of all kinds. She hates super worms. but will eat the Can O' pillars. I also supplement with all kinds of fruits and veggies. What ever I'm cutting up for my kids I split with her and my millipede. She eats all kinds of things including rasberries & mixed veggies. Go to beautifuldragons.com for a great list of what you can feed them. The important is to try EVERYTHING first. My girl is quite finiky. (hence her name: Princess Fiona). by the way, I dont mind you asking questions. (although Im not as knowledgable as others here).

I got her from a breeder who posts here a lot DmLove. Hes great for questions too.

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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

haha how cool!

I've been researching the foods also and it seems silkworms are really good. what do you pay for them? I went to a couple local pet stores at lunch and all they were live meal worms and live super worms.

Are the dead packaged insects recommended? like the can-o-pillars and stuff? I wouldn't think they would eat those since they don't move?

The tank you showed a pic of is a 55 right? to me an 8.0 seems right since its between the 5 and 10 that was recommended to me. i never knew they made an 8

I buy the silk worms online (california silkworms). I pay about $20 for 200. They have different sizes and when she was young she used to go through that in about a week. (aparently they eat LESS worms than crickets). Shes almost a year old now. I was trying to get her interested in something else (spoiled brat). But to no avail.

Silk worms are a lot easier to take care of. You can get a package of silk worm chow (powdered version of mulberry leaves...their ONLY food). they dont stink (like crickets) and can live a good while as long as their enclosure is clean (I use one of those critter keepers...just make sure you wash it out between shipments). Im going to breakdown and get them soon. (although she is eating more greens these days as well.
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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

awesome thanks for the info.

I'm going to get some and try them. They want like $3 for 30 meal worms at the local pet shop and i know meal worms are really fattening and should only be treats. They also had super worms. I'm not sure about those yet.

do they have the silkworm food on the site and do you use anything on the bottom of their cage when you keep them?

>>awesome thanks for the info.
>>
>>I'm going to get some and try them. They want like $3 for 30 meal worms at the local pet shop and i know meal worms are really fattening and should only be treats. They also had super worms. I'm not sure about those yet.
>>
>>do they have the silkworm food on the site and do you use anything on the bottom of their cage when you keep them?

Hey. I keep the bottom of mine bare. I just use a sweater box type bin. I always heard that they're hard to take care of, so I was wary of trying them for a while but I found that if you keep em clean and well fed, it's a cinch. They're probably the best staple feeder that you could use, and as mentioned, don't smell at all. Crickets just smell disgustimg, no matter how clean you try to keep them. They're not all that expensive and a lot better than crickets! Mealworms have a high chitlin content, so I don't really use them. Superworms are ok when your guy is older, even the tiny ones wouldn't be good right now.
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These stand for me
Name your god and bleed the freak
I like to see
How you all would bleed for me
-Alice In Chains-
1.1 Bearded Dragons: Gordo & Chiquita
2.2 Cats: Zeus, Remi, Kiki & Delilah

.

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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

awesome pics! That sleeping is hilarious!

I like his enclosure also. I'm thinking of just painting the back of my tank black to keep it simple. (on the outside of course)

If you look at the other albums i have in the link on the first page you can tell i like recreating environments. Look at the 55 gallon tank of my cichlids (which now has sand subtrate) and the 20 gallon tank for my tree frogs. I also just finished a 10 gallon with a custom cement background that i think turned out great. Theres an album on that also.

I was thinking about making a 55 gallon tank kind of the same way i made the custom background for the 10 gallon tank. Using Quikrete mason mix. It turned out somewhat rough which is my only concern. I'd love to make him some caves and ledges and a natural slate style background. Does anyone know how to smooth out concrete?

ZZ this is so wierd! I took away the sock that was in his cage and he is in the corner leaning against the glass the same exact way yours is sleeping VERY peacefully!

Oh and he ate eight 1/4"-3/8" little crickets today! what a porker!

I'm going to make a new reply updating the pics in the album. got a couple new ones

He is totally sweet. He looks alot like my Princess....I'm curious. Where did you get him from?
Jamie

i got him from www.mybeardeddragon.com len has been more than helpful from there!

>>i got him from www.mybeardeddragon.com len has been more than helpful from there!

Nice pics! I got my new girl from him too...2 weeks ago yesterday. I gotta get some pics of her put up!
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These stand for me
Name your god and bleed the freak
I like to see
How you all would bleed for me
-Alice In Chains-
1.1 Bearded Dragons: Gordo & Chiquita
2.2 Cats: Zeus, Remi, Kiki & Delilah

Ours might be related!

I think they might be half related. Chiquita is of the Chris Allen Red/OrangeXFlaming Orange Tiger variety. I could send ya some pics if you like. They're too big to put here and I'm an idiot and can't figure out how to resize them correctly! BTW, NICE cichlid tank!!
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These stand for me
Name your god and bleed the freak
I like to see
How you all would bleed for me
-Alice In Chains-
1.1 Bearded Dragons: Gordo & Chiquita
2.2 Cats: Zeus, Remi, Kiki & Delilah

thanks!

Yeh mine also has german giant

Can you guys check out the album again? I added some new pics of him. Theres a couple shots of him standing up. Are the colors on his stomach normal? They are soooooo defined. He did eat crix not to long before the pic was taken. He didn't hesitate at all to get the crickets i put in. He ate 8 in about an hour. I think he would have eaten them in 5 minutes if i would have let him. I have to stop and get crix tomorrow because him and the frogs cleaned me out today!

thanks!

Yes totally normal. Their belly changes like that when they are cooler. Nothing to worry about.
Hes quite beautiful.

Quick question: Are you dusting his crickets with vitamins??
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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

yes i have rep cal calcium and rep cal multi vitamins which is what was recommended by a few places online and has good reviews about everwhere. I am using a 1:1 ratio mixing them together then dusting the crix in a bag before he is fed which is what is recommended on the containers.

Seem good to you?

He slept like that all night! and when his basking light came on this morning the black oval markings on his belly came out. His belly was all white while he was sleeping.

Yes, that sounds very good. I use Reptivite. I sprinkle it on her food. She seems to like it (although it smells like ass... )
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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

haha yeh that reptivite is the same thing

Do you do it every feeding?

I do mine in the morning every other day. It was recommended. What do you think?

I used to do it everyday (because I am a creature of habit). Then as she got older I spread it out (as well as her feedings). I used to feed her a couple times a day one in the morning and one in the evening...the one in the morning received the vitamins)

She is about a year old now and I feed 2-3 times per week and she gets reptivite at one of those (so basically once a week). I sprinkle it on her greens.
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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

cool ZZ i was kind of hoping you would say you did it once a day because thats a lot easier.

How does this sound for lighting? He hasn't had any daylight for a couple days because i had to fix the fixture but i have an 18" fixture now and i'm going to put a repti sun 5.0 in it. This and my basking light will be on a timer. I'm going to have the flurescent turn on at 6am (when the sun rises basically) and feed him around 6:30 then have his basking light turn on at 7am. I have to leave for work then and won't be home till 5pm which is when i will feed him again. I was going to have his basking light turn off at 6:00pm and his fluerescent turn off at 7pm

Does this seem ok? I know he needs the heat for digestion. Will an hour of basking team be ok after his afternoon meal? I was thinking about turning the baskig light off before the repti sun to have a little more of a natural effect.

What would you change and why? thanks again!

I have always preferred longer daylight time.
I have the timer start (for both UV and heat) at 6:00am. and go off at 8 pm (together). I feed her around 6:30 and she is usually basking and ready to go by then. If not it isn't a big deal since I feed her in her bowl. (the food isnt' going anywhere).

If I were you I would set it up to have at LEAST 10 hours of darkness. (14 hours day 10 hours night). I would hook up everything on the timer and have it come on together. I have her UTH on all the time.

Just my opinions.
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Hangin with the Herps
ZZ

thanks once again =)

>>thanks once again =)

Just piping in my 2 cents again..can't HELP it!!You might want to reverse the lights, have the basking come on first and the basking go off last. The basking light should be on for at least an hour before you feed him and the last feeding should be about 2 hours before the lights go off.
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These stand for me
Name your god and bleed the freak
I like to see
How you all would bleed for me
-Alice In Chains-
1.1 Bearded Dragons: Gordo & Chiquita
2.2 Cats: Zeus, Remi, Kiki & Delilah

ok sounds good. I get up at 6am which is when i was planning on having the light turn on (might help with actually waking me!) then i leave for work a little after 7 which will give me time to get his food ready and feed to him. So that will give his tank an hour to warm up. Should be pretty good.

I got some veggies last night. I picked up Turnip greens, Kale, and collard greens. Sound good?

>>ok sounds good. I get up at 6am which is when i was planning on having the light turn on (might help with actually waking me!) then i leave for work a little after 7 which will give me time to get his food ready and feed to him. So that will give his tank an hour to warm up. Should be pretty good.
>>
>>I got some veggies last night. I picked up Turnip greens, Kale, and collard greens. Sound good?

Awesome. Yeah...I rotate the greens every week. So next week try diff ones, mustard greens, arugula, endive, etc. Just keep switching it up. If you haven't already, pick up some butternut squash, both of mine go crazy for it!
Bye.
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These stand for me
Name your god and bleed the freak
I like to see
How you all would bleed for me
-Alice In Chains-
1.1 Bearded Dragons: Gordo & Chiquita
2.2 Cats: Zeus, Remi, Kiki & Delilah

Great, i was going to ask what a good snack is that they could eat maybe once a week or overy other week? Something that won't hurt them but they would really enjoy.

>>Great, i was going to ask what a good snack is that they could eat maybe once a week or overy other week? Something that won't hurt them but they would really enjoy.

Insects or other? You can do waxworms for a treat every now and then. For a treat, about once a week I give mine some raspberries or blackberries. Most dragons I've seen love them...how's your little guy doing? Does he have a name?
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These stand for me
Name your god and bleed the freak
I like to see
How you all would bleed for me
-Alice In Chains-
1.1 Bearded Dragons: Gordo & Chiquita
2.2 Cats: Zeus, Remi, Kiki & Delilah

Hes doing awesome. We finally named him and his name is Drayko. I know its a wierd one =)

I had him outside today for a while. It was nice out and sunny so i just took his tank outside and sethim on the porch. He loved it. First thing he did was pop up on his piece of wood and just lay there looking around then he started getting lazy, letting his legs dangle.

I got him to eat greens today too. He has no problem with the crix. Hes been eating those no problem. I put greens in his bowl and he could care less. I held some to his nose for a second and he licked it. Then he started chompin. He ate 2 good size pieces of turnip greens.

Cool name....very unusual spelling. I love weird names. Glad he enjoyed his adventure outside! Bye.
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These stand for me
Name your god and bleed the freak
I like to see
How you all would bleed for me
-Alice In Chains-
1.1 Bearded Dragons: Gordo & Chiquita
2.2 Cats: Zeus, Remi, Kiki & Delilah

thanks!

I'm all about unique names too. Originally it was spelled draco but it didn't look the way i wanted it to sound so its now drayko lol

Hi, Cute one at that!!!I think our Beardies live at the same place!...I just noticed the close resemblance to them having fun in the sun,,,,,,

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0.1 Bearded Dragon