Behavior Questions

[auntiedeb99]

Hi all,

I have a couple of quick questions about behavior. We have had our dragon for a couple of months now and he is eating and growing like crazy. First, what is the intelligence of this creature? What I mean, is that I am trying to figure out when sort of enrichment do I need to provide for him? Or is he just content to eat, bask and poop?

Specifically, I have noticed that he frequently scratches at the tank walls and rubs his nose along the glass. Today he violently attacked one of his logs---I took it out and fed him his daily salad early, even though he had eaten about 12-15 crickets about an hour or so earlier. He gulped quite a bit of salad then.

Is there any sort of mental enrichment or out-of-tank time that might be beneficial? (Aside from baths which he hates.)

Thanks!

Deb Adams

 

[zebraflavencs]

Sure... you can teach him to fetch.... let him be a "dora" and explore things out of his enclosure in a dragon safe room, take him on walks if he is used to a harness... go for "day trips" out to the park, the list is unending... it's only limited to his interest levels...
Think... 3 year old child
Janie

 

[Michele654]

Is your beardie a male of female?

 

[touche]

May 1.5 yr old lives in the living room, sees all the action of the house. Cats, TV, people, etc. But I also bring him out almost daily to ride around the house, do dishes, etc. on my shoulder. He loves it!! Lizard harness' are great for outside, practice in the house though. When outside, keep a super close eye on him! Hawks, magpies, cats, dogs, etc. I sit right on the lawn with him and he pretends to hunt bugs and moving grass!

As for as smarts??? LOL Well their smarts are in self-preservation. Food and poop mostly. I do believe he likes us, but is always on the lookout for danger.

Enjoy your little pooper, I love Plato.

 

[auntiedeb99]

Thanks!

I don't know if he is male or female. We just call him a male. I have been nervous about taking him out for rides and such, because I was worried he'd try to jump off our bodies, or just be too scared to enjoy himself.

Today, though, I have taken him out and about a couple of times. He seems most comfortable if I walk slowly rather than quickly. He seemed content on the windowsill while I filled the dishwasher and made breakfast for the kids (microwaving leftover pancakes---no worries about the hot stove and I was careful to plug the garbage disposal). I also let him explore my daughters' beds. He mostly was interested in climbing the stuffed animals to get to the windowsill---despite the windowsill be rather cold.

Anyways, thanks for letting me know that he can be interested in exploring. He did seem to "enjoy" himself and didn't seem scared.

Deb A

 

[renich]

Awesome! Glad you explored a bit. It's fine to let him out every day for an hour or so. As you pointed out, don't let him get too cold. If so, back in to the viv!

Also a side note, which I'm sure you do, make sure you clean your hands before picking him up and after putting him back.

When the weather warms up, you can let him soak up some natural UV rays outside. You can get a wire mesh viv and keep him in site. This is a win win situation for all. He gets natural UV, nothing is better, and you get peace of mind that he won't go running away! Cuz they can run FAST when they want to.