A baby bearded dragon can stay in a 25 gal tank for roughly 6 -8 months, depending on how fast it grows. I would move it to it's adult cage as soon as it reaches 15". By 8 months, the dragon should be that length if not more. Adult cage should be at least 4'x2'x2'. Larger is better.
Bearded dragons need UVB light. All uvb bulbs put out uva as well. Good ones to get are the repti-sun or repti glow florescent tubes. I know one of these two have the 10.0 rating for uvb. Finding the highest rating is best. Mercury Vapour Bulbs are also available that put out alot more amounts of UVB as well as heat, than any florescent tube currently available. However, MVB are more expensive and need to be at least 18" above the basking area for your dragon so they may not be suitable if your cage is less than two feet high. Another note about MVB is they need to be mounted completely vertically, any tilt and they tend to burn out prematurely.
For dragons under 10" y ou also want to avoid any loose substrate( ie sand). Larger dragons can be housed on washed play sand (avoid the crushed walnut or calci sand as both can cause impactions and in the case of the former, perferation of the bowels due to rough egdes). Non loose substrates that are great for all ages are non stick shelf liner (duck brand is the most often used, make sure it's the non porous or holeless type), plastic table cloth, reptile carpet, newsprint or patternless (plain white, or brown) papertowel.
Basking temps should be within 95-115F with the higher end better for young dragons. It is also good to have a gradient available in basking areas, so dragons can go to the hotter end or cooler end of the basking temp range. Large wide pieces of driftwood, bricks/rocks are perfect. Or having several different basking spots at different levels. Air temperature should be in the low to mid 80's. Cool temp should go down to low to upper 70's F.
Measure all temps with a temperature gun or digital thermometer with probe. These are much mroe accurate than the strip or round dial thermometers most petstores sell. Digital thermometers can be found at any household store, such as Walmart, Home Depot etc.
Other basic information can be found at www.beautifuldragons.com and other sites. The site indicates also has a great nutritional chart for which greens to feed your dragons and how often.
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PHLdyPayne
