Just Got My Beardie!

[SoleSky]

Hey, if some remember I said I was going to look for a bearded dragon. Well I just got mine today He is so cute! I named him BeeGee and he is an italian leather back cross. Hes pretty small right now. I just got his viv hooked up with a basking bulb/uvb bulb. his water is all set up but I had a few questions about the feeding. He hasn't been under a light for awhile so I was just wondering if I should feed him now or wait an hour and also about his pellets. Can I put those in too? What veggies should I start with since hes a baby? Also the crickets haven't eaten their protein yet so should I still feed them to him while I wait the 24 hours the crickets need to be nutrious? Thanks
-SoleSky and BeeGee

 

[beardie_love]

Hey! Yes I remember. And congrats on your beardie! Italian leathers are niiiiiice.

You should leave him at least an hour under lighting (I prefer 2) till you feed him. You can use a little bit of Bearded Dragon food (pellets, etc), but majority of his salad should be the salad parts. Staple greens and veggies can include Collard Greens, Mustard Greens, Dandelion Green, Endive, Butternut Squash, to name a few. For crickets, feed them anyway (I do). I use to buy crickets WHEN I ran out. No problem.

Just remember, don't panic if he won't eat for a while, as he will be trying to adjust to his new surroundings. Relocation stress can last from a few days to a few weeks.

 

[SoleSky]

Oh great thank you. I tried to feed him without success. I will try a little later in the day. I'll post up some pics in a little bit. Where do I get the greens from? Also I was told to microwave the squash to its soft is this true? After how many days of not eating should I worry? and how big should his feeding place be?

 

[SoleSky]

Here is BeeGee! I was wondering about the temp. I have the light right on the basking branch and the temp gauge is only at 90. How long should it take to heat up more than an hou? (i've only had it on for an hour)

 

[beardie_love]

You can get greens from a grocery store that sells produce. Squash does not have to be microwaved. You can do it if you prefer. I've never done it and haven't had any problems, but you will want to chop it very finely.

Just give him a few weeks to adjust. He'll come through eventually, even if it's just picking at food here and there. I see you have a non-particle substrate, so you can feed him in his tank if you'd like. I like to feed mine in a bin so that the crickets can't hide like they would if I fed them in their tank. But it's up to you.

Nice pics.

Give the lighting about 2 hours so it can heat up to it's maximum. The temp should be 105-110 for a baby. And I see you have a stick-on temp gauge. They do not work well. They can be off by 20 +/- degrees. I suggest a thermometer with a probe as they are more accurate.

 

[SoleSky]

Oh I see. The lady at the pet store (I guess you hear this a lot) told me to use it. He is eating A LOT now it's very cool to watch. I bought him some textured tiles from Lowe's and they seem to be suiting him well. As for the temp I replaced the lamp to a different angle and got it up to 100 degrees (If thats correct or not). I hope hell be okay until I can get him a better thermometer. Also is the hydrogometer off? I bought one of those too, it cost me like 15 bucks I can't believe they don't work well. But thank you for the information, my beardie seems pretty happy as of now and isn't very scared of me. He's running around a lot, catching crickets and seems to enjoy to the basking branch. I'll try to get some bigger pics up later.

 

[beardie_love]

Yep, pet store people seem to give not so good suggestions.

That's good that he's eating. He adjusted fast . So just get a good therm asap and measure those temps! And a hydrometer is not needed. $15, wow. Try to return them. That's crazy! You can buy a therm with a probe for about 10 bucks.

 

[staylor]

Congrats on your new baby. Looks like all your questions were answered. Just a tip for feeding your crickets, you can toss in the damaged greens that you would not feed to your baby. It helps get rid of them before they spoil so it limits wasted food, you already have it on hand, you don't have to give water to the crix if you give them whole collard leaves since the stems hold large amounts of water and remember what your crickets eat your beardie will eat.

 

[SoleSky]

Yes I will definitely try to return the thermometer and such. How long do juveniles take to grow? Just wondering how long until I expand my tank

 

[SoleSky]

Thank you for the tip. The store suggested I give the crickets these orange cubes so I did. Dunno if theyre right or not but theres cricket crap on them so I guess its working. Also for greens, I will go to the store tomorrow and pick some up. My mom grows some sort of greens in her garden that he may enjoy. Also I didn't get to buy a spray bottle yet but will he be okay with his water dish until tomorrow?

 

[beardie_love]

Beardies under one year old tend to grow very quickly. How old is BeeGee? It would be best to get a 40 gallon breeder (or larger) now and just section it off so your little guy won't be too overwhelmed. Reason to get it now is so that you won't have to keep upgrading tanks as your beardie grows.

I'm guessing those orange cubes are from a jar? They're fine to use. I tend to just what I have laying around for food and water for the crickets. But that's just my preference .

He will be fine without a spray bottle for a day. You could give him a soak too.

 

[SoleSky]

Yep I soaked him for 5 minutes because his bed time is soon. Also I just turned off the bulb and tried to turn it back on and it wouldn't turn on. I just bought the darn thing fr $35 and its not turning back on. Is this normal? please say yes...

 

[beardie_love]

It should turn on..... maybe the cord came loose from the outlet or something. Check that out.

 

[Justus85]

I know how excited you are! Everybody poked fun at me because I was "so obsessed with a lizard". Hehe. Grats on your new baby. Keep us up to date with pics! Btw any possible way you could enlarge those ones you posted? They are pretty tiny. I'd say shoot for a 1.5 or 2 meg sized image. Maybe 3.

 

[SoleSky]

Fixed the light and BeeGee is out like the light hehe. Heres some enlarged pics of him.

This was when we first brought him home, since then i've added a food dish as well as a hidie hole log

 

[Justus85]

pretty little guy, make sure you monitor the temps well with that cage being as tall as it is

 

[SoleSky]

Yeah the temp was worrying me. I removed the screen and it reached 100. I was pushing for 105 but as mentioned earlier in the thread the thermometer may be off and I dont want him to get burnt. I may make a spot higher up in the tank for him to bask. Is using sticks from outside okay or is the risk of parasites too high? I'm just kind of stressed because I want the best for the little guy and people make it seem like they are so fragile. Plus the driftwood at the store is so expensive as well as everything else they sell. Is there any good homemade stuff or cheap stuff that they enjoy and is safe?

 

[beardie_love]

You can use stuff from outside. Throw it in the oven to kill anything on it. Not sure of the temp for the oven or how long it should be in there.. Maybe just put it in there at a medium temperature for an hour. Should do the trick.

 

[Justus85]

Well I wouldn't say they are "fragile". I'd be more willing to say they are hearty creatures. That being said there are risk factors in everything and minimizing those risks is the best policy. Sticks from the outside should be fine but they should be washed in some manner I forget the exact way to do it somebody will probably jump in and say exactly how it's done. I have that setup myself, a stick going towards the basking lamp so my lil guy can choose exactly how much heat he wants. My dude usually stays more towards the bottom though because at the top of his lil branch it goes right up to 115 and occasionally a few degrees over. Don't worry yourself too much, just take all the great advice the wonderful people in this community have to offer and you will be fine. I was completely new to this back in June but I have gained a wealth of knowledge from these people and seen first hand how much my beardie has benefited from their suggestions. Granted they are a little more hands on than your run of the mill cat/dog but that is part of the fun! Getting to see all the time you put in to them paying off with a big healthy beardie. I would suggest you ask the legendary Craiger about the do-it-yourself stuff, he is the master. There are a multitude of ways to cut down on the costs of feeding, habitat, etc.

 

[beardie_love]

Sticks from the outside should be fine but they should be washed in some manner

You can soak it in bleach too.